I take my personal responsibility for making my choices that are healthy, wise, constructive and helpful only to me but to others.It's up to me to choose what to eat or not. I may eat junk food and fill my body-mind-and heart with junk and unhealthy and toxic stuff, desires, thoughts and emotions prompting and compelling me not only me but others around me.
Daily living offers me several opportunities to train my mind not to react ignorantly but wisely.Yesterday I was in a grocery store to buy fresh vegetables. The space was not wide enough for three carts to go through.Right in front of my cart, there were two ladies talking amicably with their carts parked blocking my way. I remained mindful of my thoughts and feelings arising in me. So in stead of pushing their carts angrily I took time out to put them aside so that I can move on. My intention was not to teach them a lesson or expect a "thank you expression"from them. They did it on their own. This is not a big event but according to my experience small steps of empathy and wise and right actions become building blocks for freeing myself from my self-created bondage of suffering. All wisdom traditions and wise teachers show the same way:Harm not yourself and others. Consider mistakes as miss- steps.Soften your heart when it is hurting.Be kind to you and to others. Act not react.Repalce a negative thought by a positive thought, anger by kindness, curses by blessings, revenge by forgiveness. In order to grow my Tree of Loving Kindness, I need to nurture my seeds of growth potentiality everyday. Knowing by itself is not enough. I need to practice what I know in my everyday encounters. Such practice requires mindful self-discipline and that's what keeps me rooted and that's what nourishes my Tree of Loving Kindness.
Namaste!
Jagdish P Dave
On Apr 20, 2019 Jagdish P Dave wrote :
Daily living offers me several opportunities to train my mind not to react ignorantly but wisely.Yesterday I was in a grocery store to buy fresh vegetables. The space was not wide enough for three carts to go through.Right in front of my cart, there were two ladies talking amicably with their carts parked blocking my way. I remained mindful of my thoughts and feelings arising in me. So in stead of pushing their carts angrily I took time out to put them aside so that I can move on. My intention was not to teach them a lesson or expect a "thank you expression"from them. They did it on their own. This is not a big event but according to my experience small steps of empathy and wise and right actions become building blocks for freeing myself from my self-created bondage of suffering. All wisdom traditions and wise teachers show the same way:Harm not yourself and others. Consider mistakes as miss- steps.Soften your heart when it is hurting.Be kind to you and to others. Act not react.Repalce a negative thought by a positive thought, anger by kindness, curses by blessings, revenge by forgiveness. In order to grow my Tree of Loving Kindness, I need to nurture my seeds of growth potentiality everyday. Knowing by itself is not enough. I need to practice what I know in my everyday encounters. Such practice requires mindful self-discipline and that's what keeps me rooted and that's what nourishes my Tree of Loving Kindness.
Namaste!
Jagdish P Dave