Inspiration
How can we serve others around us? By making our lives
inspirational and interacting with tact and wisdom. We
should be so cheerful, and our lives such examples, that
they say 'Here is an angel.'
Responsibility
Whenever there is any kind of bondage in our lives,
either through situations or people, we tend to feel
uncomfortable and try to break free from them. Yet we
find that it is not easy to do so. We rarely ever can
think of looking within if there is any bondage in our
own minds. We need to understand the fact that the
bondage is in fact not outside but within our own minds.
We also need to realize the fact that nothing is forced
on us but whatever happens to us is our own choice. When
we take up responsibility in this way we will not
complain but will make the best out of every situation
and thus experience true freedom.
Meditation - A Process Of Cleansing, Dialogue And
Joining (cont.)
Meditation can be defined as a process of cleansing,
a process of dialogue and a process of joining. Today we
take up:
Dialogue
In Greek, the word meditation is translated as
dialogismos, from which comes the English word
dialogue. Meditation is a dialogue with oneself, with
the true self; a very necessary process for developing
self-knowledge and accumulating inner strength.
The basis of spiritual dialogue with oneself is
introspection. Introspection is the ability to
examine and change oneself, as one wants to or should
do. Without a consistent re-evaluation of our
attitudes and thought models, negative habits easily
dominate our consciousness. A healthy dialogue with
our inner selves means that we interact positively with
others, without being trapped or lost in ourselves.
Introspection involves being an observer: observing and
not reacting to situations or people with negative
emotions such as anger, hate, fear, resentment and
jealousy. Being detached observers helps us conserve our
inner energy and keeps us spiritually, mentally and
emotionally healthy.
(To be continued tomorrow....)
Soul Sustenance
Self Respect
Self-respect depends on knowing who I am, knowing my
eternal (ageless), spiritual self. When I have found
that sense of spiritual identity, I feel I have a right
to be here, to exist. Without the spiritual dimension,
it is very difficult to really respect myself deeply. In
this case, I base my respect on identifying with the
superficial (artificial) aspects of my being: looks,
gender, success, my life partner, my intelligence. With
such artificial identification, I will never have a
stable sense of self-respect, because people's opinions
change. Today they love me, tomorrow they reject me.
What is the result of depending on their opinions? I
will end up fluctuating all the time - feeling positive
when they say good things, and feeling down when they
say negative things. To stay stable in my self-respect,
I need to have a deeper understanding of my spiritual
identity (the foundation of this being that I am a soul)
and tap into those riches that are within me forever,
waiting to blossom, like the flower from the seed.
As I become spiritually aware, those riches and
resources start flowing out of me. The more stable I am
in my self-respect and spirituality, the more I radiate
what I truly am. I feel a deep sense of contentment and
I am happy to be me, however I am. I accept myself as I
am.
Message for the day
The one who understands the importance of time makes
full use of it.
Projection:
There is usually a tendency to postpone things to the
last moment. When the situation demands that we finish
the job and at the same time if unforeseen things come
up, we tend to feel pressurized. We, then, are not able
to do the job well and begin to wish that we had more
time.
Solution:
We need to understand the importance of time and do the
job needed to be done immediately. We need to understand
the fact that if we lose this moment, there is no chance
of getting it back again. If we use the time at hand
fruitfully, we'll always be able to remain light and be
available to things that come up suddenly.