My Work is Loving the World

 What if we receive a comfortable, healthy life but no one to love us truly? Will we be happy will such a life?
Many rich people fall in this category and keep wanting more fame, name, stuff etc. wondering how to get real happiness. Greed, over-ambition are as much sign of missing love in life as depression or stress. 

Few centuries back, people were more content than today -- while they didnt have many of the technical progressive stuff and machines to comfort life. What was different ? They had each other; more often in deeper relations.

I feel loving others is the most beautiful, wonderful thing I can do. It creates a loving , nourishing space which has the capacity to heal others and me. 

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Few years back i was assigned under a manager who was dominating the team to the extent to take away their rights given by the company. He was also more bothered about self-centric benefits than what is good for overall team or company. I raised a concern with seniors and meetings were being held to look into the matter. 
Over a few days, I saw the manager extremely tense and worried. He was shouting at me at times. I was upset but in that moment, while responding to his email ; something else happened. 
I could look at him as a person who spent years making his career, creating a goodwill and reaching a certain position in career. Though, some of his ways were wrong; yet the way of handling was becoming harsh from human angle. Hence, this email I wrote with more understanding and softness; realizing that this will prevent the case/me to be taken seriously any longer. 
It happened and the manager got some levy, though i suffered from his behaviour itself. I am still content that in that one moment , I could let go of ego related victory and put humanity first.

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To practice gratitude, when I sit down to pray daily, i kneel on my knees and offer gratefulness for 3 things. It really helps to be consistent and feel grateful.

 Thank you for this extraordinarily beautiful poem.  I relate to this notion by realizing that although other work is important, only loving the world, humanity, nature and the cosmos changes me.  I, with my husband, have raised a family, been in small business and worked for other employers.  These parts of my life have been imbued with more or less love depending on the situation, but now it is only through loving the world I am whole and feel incredibly blessed and grateful.  There is no rush to fix, change or perfect situations when I am  ín-love with the world.  I have experienced this when listening to a friend share her deep, dark and shameful (to her) secrets of her life.  Just to love her in that situation was more than enough and I was astonished at her beautiful authentic should shining through her pain.   My main practice is stopping comparing the present, judging the present moment and just allowing the moment to be what it is - usually in meditation but sometimes it just surprised me that I can be simple awareness itself.  Bless you Mary Oliver.

 I am looking for beauty far away in the snow clad Himalayas; I am seeking fragrance in the flowers in the garden of Aden; I am searching for the holy foot prints on the sand of the Ganges; and I am  yearning to hear the Divine voice in holy places.

 When I stand still, I hear the soft  whispering voice of a flower right in front of me, look at me, I am right here fully present. O seeker! Where are you?

I am like the musk deer looking for the enchanting fragrance coming from somewhere. I go North, South, East and West, look above, look below getting exhausted and worn out.

 When I stand still,I hear the sweet voice coming from within like the voice coming from the navel of the musk deer. I am here, right here within you.

The Upanishad Rushi sings with his hands folded, It is far and it is near. It is near, it is far.

We need to visit ourselves, be with ourselves as poet Rumi says.

May we find a quiet space within ourselves everyday to embrace our searching soul and listen to our quiet inner voice, counting my everyday blessings.

Namaste.

Jagdish P Dave