Becoming Free of Our Substitute Life

This writing reminds me  of Mahatma Gandhi's words. " Our thoughts become our feelings. Our feelings become our actions. Our actions become our habits. Our habits become our character. Our character becomes our destiny." 

My identity is shaped by many beliefs. One of the basic beliefs is that I should always tell the truth and live my life truthfully. I know from my own experience how difficult it is to always tell the truth. When I do not tell the entire truth, I feel bad, guilty and ashamded. I find no reason to justify it. What is missing is the courage to tell the truth. Telling a lie is self-serving  and self-limiting. And that makes me feel unworthy. What has helped me is to to mindfully and compassionately process my guilt filled thoughts and painful feelings by letting them come and go and slowly and gradually free myself form the grip of the emotional pain. It is by letting the dark clouds come and go I see the light. Mindfulness practice has helped me to cleanse me and brought me to a wholesome place.

This is an going inner work. It needs time to go through this self owning, self examining, self confronting,self cleansing and self forgiving inner work. It feels so good to live a genuinely authentic, truthful and compassionate life.i

May we all be free from the bondage we create in our own selves and by our own selves!

Jagdish P Dave



 

 Thank you all for your observations! They do help! I recognize all of it! What helps me is compassion, the absence of judgment and cynical comments whenever I am identified with that puppy state of mind. It helps me to gain hight, perspective and reconnect with my higher purpose. I remember doing a retreat where I realized how I manipulated myself and my environment with those stories... It was a real wake up call. The most difficult inner judgment I faced were my feeling of shame and guilt... and the only thing that helps me is compassion once again! Thanks for travelling with me "the road lesser travelled" Poupa 
 

Samuel Smiles said the same thing:
"Sow a thought, reap an action;
Sow an action, reap a habit;
Sow a habit, reap a character;
Sow a character, reap a destiny."

I am blessed that I believe and understand today's wisdom reading.
As said by Jagdishbhai, its inner work and needs continuous awareness to start sowing original rather than substitute thoughts.
Thanks for refreshing my thoughts and in gratitude to souls who are facilitating journey of this less traveled road.
Bharat