
First Change
There is no greater teacher than one's own
practical example. To be really benevolent
therefore
means that I must first change, then I have the
power, the knowledge and the experience of
thinking and doing for the ultimate benefit of
all.
Spiritual Maturity
As we mature spiritually there is less need to
have our self-respect
bolstered by praise and special attention. As
our thought processes
become more compassionate and less self
obsessed, we feel increasingly
satisfied with ourselves and our lives. We
relate to people more easily
and feel no need to draw attention to our
successes or complain about
our problems.
The Journey Of Time (cont.)
becomes
new. All material possessions including the
human body, all political movements, religious
movements, different philosophies etc. move from
a state of newness to a state of oldness or
decay. This is on a micro level. When we apply
this principle and process on a macro level to
the world as a whole, we can then easily
understand why we live in an 'old world' - a
world with scientific progress but overused,
misused, tired and where many sectors are simply
worn out. This process is sometimes known as entropy.
The Law of Entropy states that a closed system
moves from order to disorder or chaos, when the
energy inside it reduces because it is not
renewed or re-energized from a source outside
that system. On a physical level, the sun
sustains and re-energizes the systems of nature
on the physical Earth every day. But in the
recent past our exploitation of the world has
started to become faster than the world's
ability to renew or re-energize. We now use the
trapped energy in our physical world much faster
than the sun can replace it.
Tomorrow, we shall explain how the Law of
Entropy can be applied to spiritual energy and
our virtues.
Soul Sustenance
Shedding Off The Attachment To A Positive Past
(Part 1)
A very powerful mis-identification (incorrect
identification) that each one of us indulges in,
to different extents, is identifying with our
positive or glorious actions of the past. This
identification is so strong that almost every
day it comes to the surface of our consciousness
when we switch on the movie of this story of
these actions on the screen of our minds. By
rehearsing this story repeatedly we love
experiencing the same emotions and feelings that
we felt at that time, emotions that we had
enjoyed very much. We not only re-experience
that pleasure but we also love to share the
pleasure by persuading others to see that movie
by broadcasting that movie in front of whoever
we come across. This is normally done in the
form of words by speaking about our professional
or personal achievements, our educational
qualifications, our experiences, actions for
which we gained recognition, our history, etc.,
all a thing of the past. But this is not
talking about the real self, this is just a
story, thus it is a false identification with
something we are not. Every time we indulge
in this type of identification, we strengthen
the incorrect belief that we are talking about
our self. We believe the past is us. This is the
incorrect identification.
If someone were to ask us to describe ourselves
in a few words, instead of talking with humility
about our spiritual self, our virtues, powers,
strengths, etc., which is the real self, we
quickly mention all of the above features of our
past, thinking this will give the other an
impression of our credibility. Even when we
communicate with people over email or some other
mediums, we are quick to mention all these
things in our signature, etc. believing this is
our story and portraying that we are in love
with it and other people should identify us with
this story as we do and love us for the same. To
remember and identify with any memory of action
that we created yesterday is to identify with
what we do. And we are not what we do.
(To be continued tomorrow …)
Message for the day
To be committed towards one's own progress is to
help others to move forward.
Expression:
The one who is committed
towards his own self-progress, is free from
criticizing others when he sees them make
mistakes. Having realized what is wrong, such a
person makes corrections immediately. He is able
to realize his own mistake in a second and take
the chance for self-improvement. This naturally
gives the ability to help others also to bring
about a change for the better.
Experience:
Since I am committed to my own self-progress, I
am able to become stronger and stronger with
each passing situation. I find that I become a
source of inspiration for those around, as I
continue to learn from all that happens. I don't
put people down for their mistakes, but am able
to give them the help to be better.