
Comparison with Others
Comparing yourself with others will leave you
vulnerable on three counts: you'll either feel
inferior, superior or impressed. All three of
these states are dangerous because they all
disregard the underlying principle of our true
connection with each other - mutual love and
regard, based on independently generated
self-esteem. To protect yourself from this
vulnerability, make sure that your attention
remains turned within, towards the spiritual
experience of pure pride. Staying centered in
your elevated self-respect will help you remain
undisturbed by others around you. Keep asking
yourself, "Who am I?" "How would my spiritual
personality respond to this event or person?"
this will help to center you further, and allow
you to enjoy the successful efforts of others.
Looking at Positivity
When someone relates something to me about
another person's
negativity, I tend to listen to it with great
interest. I then find
that the other person is greatly encouraged to
speak about it. But
such waste talk is not really useful for anyone
and I find that there
is no solution for the problem at hand. When
someone is talking about
the negativity in another person I need to
question myself if
listening to this is of any use to me, or if I
can do anything about
the situation. If I cannot do anything I need to
remind myself that
there is no use listening to such waste talk.
Instead I need to make
an attempt to look at the positive aspect in the
other person so that
the other person can see that too.
Practical Positive Response Training To The Mind
(cont.)
In last two days' messages, we have explained
the process of restoring positivity in the mind
when faced with a negative situation, where the
most common response is a negative one but the
mind can be trained to respond in a different
way, in a positive way. Today we explain this
process with an example.
e.g. You have just had a major argument with
your spouse and have lost your temper. At that
time, not only your mind but your physical body
also feels uncomfortable - it is in a state of
complete stress. You feel your blood pressure
has suddenly shot up, your heart is beating
fast, you feel uncomfortable in the stomach,
your hands are shaking, your face and eyes are
red. On top of that, you also feel sad. You have
behaved like this many times before and you know
the results of responding in this way. The
relationship has been scarred and you have
worsened a situation. This could have been
avoided. There is sorrow, guilt, low self esteem
and hopelessness over your loss of control.
Also, there is a fear regarding your future, not
necessarily a long term one, because things will
get sorted out sooner or later, but a short term
uncertainty does exist, especially regarding
what your spouse's response will be in the next
few hours or days. In this state of mental and
physical helplessness or desperation, anger may
come again either projected towards yourself or
towards your partner, which will be followed by
the same effects, worsening your state further.
In this moment of lack of spiritual wisdom, you
remind yourself of the simple wisdom that you
are in fact a soul. Even while you are still
caught up in the turmoil of the negative
situation, using your intellect, you consciously
emerge inside yourself, your true awareness of
being a sparkling point of peaceful light
situated just above the eyes, at the center of
the forehead. You not only become aware but you
also use the intellect to visualize your true,
peaceful, spiritual and star-like form clearly.
In that moment, you are able to tap into the
reservoir of peace that is present deep inside
your being. You calm your mind by holding on to
this awareness for a few minutes. You feel - you
know - that you are peace. As this experience
grows, it has a soothing effect on your whole
physical system. Gradually, stability and peace
are restored to your body as well as your mind.
Soul Sustenance
Restoring The Mind-Body Balance
Many people are under the impression that the
focus of spirituality is only on the mind and
the soul, and the physical body is neglected.
But that’s not true. Our physical body is
essential to our life and the art of living. It
is our vehicle and our home. An appropriate
balance of diet, sleep, relaxation and exercise
is important for the body. However, when we
enter the world of spirituality, the main
emphasis is on the mind and the soul. This does
not mean that we do not value or take care of
our body. Without a healthy body, we would not
be able to express ourselves mentally or
spiritually. Spiritual progress, which
includes the listening/studying and imbibing of
spiritual knowledge, the practice of meditation,
the inculcation of divine virtues and the
spiritual service of others through different
means is much easier and better with a healthy
body.
Unfortunately, though, we have lost the art or
wisdom of balance and for very long we have
placed too much emphasis on our physical form,
the body; and less emphasis on our spiritual
form, the soul, as a result, reducing our
spiritual awareness. One of the aims of
spirituality is to restore this balance between
mind and body so that we can experience
well-being and happiness at every level. So
while our body and our physical energy are
essential, the focus of spirituality is on the
mind and the soul, to help regain the balance.
Message for the day
God's
love brings out the best from within.
Expression:
God, who is an image of
perfection, becomes a source of inspiration and
power for the one who is connected to Him. With
the connection with God, and with an experience
of His love, it becomes easy to be in touch with
the innate qualities of peace and purity. In all
circumstances, the presence of God becomes a
great motivator to express the inner beauty.
Experience:
When I am deeply connected
with God, I am able to be connected with the
innate beauty. God's love becomes a source of
energy to connect me back to my innate beauty.
Thus I find that I am able to maintain this
inner beauty under all circumstances. I am not
negatively influenced by the situations or
people.