The season of renunciation...

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3 v1

In the last few days I've taken to quiet reflection, a sort of sweet renunciation.  It came about in a funny way.  Facing indirect accusations about my character, I grew frustrated in trying to 'prove' myself.  
Of course, this was getting me nowhere.  One can not prove themselves virtuous.  You either live it or you don't.  And even if you choose to live it, it doesn't mean you're without blemish - it can only mean that you are dedicated to constant refinement.      
It's a funny old world, and there are days when no matter how much you try to do right, someone will still blame.  The ego doesn't like this blame.  The ego wants to appear blameless.  And any suggestion otherwise the ego will fight.  So when I find myself wanting to fight, to defend 'my honour' (aka my EGO), I know this is the season for renunciation. 
Renunciation is not easy.  If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.  :)   But when you realize that 'proving and defending' is pointless, then it's time to turn to the power of silence.  
The interesting thing is, when taking the path of silence and allowing others their opinion, when the choice is taken to not fight and defend there is a deep peace and a deep love that follows.  Ego wants to deny other's their own opinion, but the benevolent soul wants only peace and is willing to 'pocket the insult', in Gandhi's words. 
I want to give power to that benevolent soul.  And so, what am I really renouncing?  I'm merely renouncing the misguided desires of ego.
Om shanti.

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.brahmakumaris.org.

Perfectly Speechless: Describing the Indescribable

Perfectly Speechless: Describing the Indescribable

Consider for a moment a time before the invention of dreams.  And the first person who ever experienced a dream - of course, the word 'dream' would not have existed yet - would then try to explain his experience to someone else.  It might sound something like this:

'I was in a place, which at the time seemed familiar, but now I can't understand why it was familiar.  I was talking to familiar people, but I couldn't tell you why they were familiar or what their names were, and then I remembered I had to be on the other side of town at that very moment.  I panicked, I started running, but I couldn't get though the crowds.  And then I was lying in bed.  It's as if the whole situation didn't really exist - that place didn't exist, those people didn't really exist, and I didn't really have to be somewhere else.  My mind thought it was real, but it was all imagined.'

Now, for a bit of fun, let's imagine that the person dreaming came out of his dream, briefly, and then went back into his dream and went to tell someone IN THE DREAM about the experience!  'Why would someone do that?'  you ask.  I don't know, but let's see where it leads us.  The explanation might sound like this:

'I was talking with some friends when I realized I had to be on the other side of town that very minute.  I started running, but I couldn't get through the crowds.'  The listeners nod - they've all been there before.  'Next thing I knew I was lying in a bed.  I had the strangest feeling, it was as if I was somewhere familiar - my bed, my house - but not my bed and house as I know it here.  It was beyond this world, it was from another place.  And this whole life - this here, this now - appeared strange, unreal, as if none of you really existed.  And I thought perhaps you didn't exist except as a distant memory.  But then, somehow I came back, and here you all are.  Here you are, the same, but different.  Different, because I think of you now as part of this world, this world which is fleeting, temporary.  But the world beyond, well I don't know much about it yet.'

I expect that those enlightened spiritual leaders might sound something like this when they speak about transformation or enlightenment.  It's not something easy to explain to someone who has not yet had the experience.  A new jargon is created to define new experiences.  Then those following try to get the same experience, they try to learn from the 'enlightened one'.  They try to achieve what he has achieved - that waking up into a new world.

We have dreams, we know about dreams and so we use dreams as an analogy.  I suppose analogies is all we have in trying to describe those 'a-ha' moments.  But analogies don't take the listener to the enlightened stage.  How do teachers describe the indescribable?  How do they take the students to that stage of enlightenment?  Is it even possible?  Or does the student have to find their own way there?

Om Shanti

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.bkwsu.org.

The Quest

The Quest

In my search for spiritual/philosophical enlightenment, I was hungry for discourse.  I enjoyed those brief moments where I had opportunity to discuss a probing question and maybe get a little closer to those hidden truths.  But I also found that when I had opportunity to bring questions to the table, I was completely dry and void of any.  Somehow I knew that dialogue will bring us closer to our spiritual aims, but I didn't know how to start, I didn't know how to seek.  I was content with the answers I had and so poor on the question front.  

Richard Rohr, a Franciscan friar, reminds us in his daily meditation the value of 'quest'.  That is, the process of asking questions, seeking deeper insights and understandings, engaging in discourse to emerge the truth.  He points out that this tradition of discourse has been replaced by the ego's need to have all the answers and therefore we have lost that powerful tradition.  

I appreciate his reminder and understand better why I lack that questioning spirit - I just wasn't taught that way, I was taught to have all the answers!  So Fr. Richard gives me something to think about - what are the big questions, the important questions, the questions that are going to lead to spiritual insights.  And with these questions I can keep the mind busy on spiritual attainments rather than waste thoughts.

Om Shanti.

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.brahmakumaris.org.

Simple Formula for Happiness

Simple Formula for Happiness

It makes me happy to give happiness to others, and so, my friends, I present to you a simple formula for happiness.

Those who are happy, know what they have.  

It all comes down to where you focus your attention.  Do you focus on what you have?  Or what you feel is missing?  It comes back to that proverb, "The grass is always greener on the other side."  If you adopt this attitude, that there is something better around the corner, you can never be content, never happy.  Constantly focusing on what you don't have, you never learn to appreciate what you do have.  By chasing that next million, that next cause, that next job, that next holiday, you end up spending your life chasing, not enjoying.  

Take heart, dear friends.  Count your blessings and be happy!

Om shanti.

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.brahmakumaris.org.

Letting go....no, REALLY letting go.

Letting go....no, REALLY letting go.

Each morning I go through my morning routine, which starts out very quiet and relaxed. The final part of my morning routine is taking my daughter to school, usually in a rush and usually with her quickly explaining the new revelation on her Pokemon/Minecraft/etc game.  By the time I say goodbye at the school gates it's about 8:50am - I walk home, in a rush and with my mind spinning through the day's To Do list.  Sometimes I walk to the shop - in a rush with mind spinning through a shopping list.  It seems the whole morning creeps into a resulting crescendo and once I'm in that state of flurry, I'm trapped - no way out.  

So I have another routine for the walk back (that is, if I remember in my mindless state).  First, I slow down my walking pace and my breathing.  This tricks my mind into thinking I'm no longer in a hurry.  Then I begin the process of letting go - letting go of lists, letting go of complaints, letting go of expectations, letting go of all mind clutter.  I get 10 minutes of walking, 10 minutes of letting go, before I reach back home.  But ideally, I try to let go in a second - REALLY let go, so that I can enjoy those precious 10 minutes of peace, completely free from stress, free from effort,  free from myself and the expectations I place on myself.

Om shanti.

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.brahmakumaris.org.

Keeping Calm and Carrying On - in the workplace!

Keeping Calm and Carrying On - in the workplace!

In this fast paced world where we're expected to produce, log our productivity and then 'tweet' and engage a public we can't see, we tend to get pulled deeper and deeper into the muck and mire of expectation.  We're expected to perform, twice as fast, twice as hard, twice as much and twice as long.  Those of us who wish to practice a certain mindfulness or detachment are shunned as not being team players, not playing ball.  It's becoming increasingly difficult to maintain our spiritual principles where we've set our priorities and still keep the boss happy.  

I've been thinking about this a lot and knocking around some ideas - how does one keep the balance?  This is what I've come up with so far:

Learn to Act

I remember working in a canteen with a very laid back colleague.  He wasn't slow, he just appeared slow and it really annoyed our boss.  The boss had no complaint about his speed, but just that he looked too laid back, as if the task was not important enough to 'jump to it'.  The boss wanted him to show some energy, some enthusiasm, some urgency and just for show, just to make the customer feel important. Rightly or wrongly, the boss had an expectation that my colleague was not fulfilling.  Maybe if he had just put on a small act, put a spring in his step, made it look like he was dashing around the kitchen, he could have kept customer and boss happy.

Manage Expectation

As an eternal optimist, I believe anything is possible all the time and so I say yes to everything and fail to deliver.  This is the story of my life.  I have learned to say no, but even learning that doesn't mean I always say it when I should.  I am getting better at managing expectation when I remember to.  When I first notice I'm failing, I try to alert others to let them know it's all falling apart or it's going to be a little late or whatever.  Better to admit the slip straight away rather than keeping quiet thinking you have time to recover.  More than likely you don't - just face it and admit it.  You will gain trust and respect.  

Gather Evidence

Having been on the other side, where I have managed others, I see a different point of view.  Sometimes the boss (me) has an expectation how the job should be done.  For controlling types, especially, there is a need to dictate every last detail, to micro manage.  It would be better if bosses didn't do this, but if you have one that does, you really have to protect yourself.  I do try to keep quiet and let others get on with their jobs.  If there is a complaint that needs addressing, the boss should address it.  But if the job is getting done correctly, why should there be concern about the style of how it was done?  Some people's styles are mis-matched - like the boss and colleague in the first example.  The problem is, if the boss dictates the style, then this can hamper the input of the employee.  They become so concerned with being what the boss wants that they completely thwart their own creative process.  If you have a boss like this, you need to step back and 'gather evidence'.  Does the boss's feedback criticize your style or performance?  Have you made mistakes?  Is your productivity down?  If the criticism is on style, you could suggest to the boss that your own style helps you perform your best.  If he's still adamant that your style is unhelpful, well, perhaps you can 'learn to act'.

For your own happiness, you need to find that balance that works for you, and then work your style in with those around you.  Listen to the feedback - that will help you find the balance - but weigh each piece of feedback against what is useful, important, keeping those lines of communication open with colleagues.

Om shanti.

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.brahmakumaris.org.

Writer's (or any kind of) Block - Where does it come from?

 

Writer's (or any kind of) Block - Where does it come from?

Whenever I sit at the keyboard, I believe that words should just flow from my fingertips at will.  Whether I have an idea or not, I expect an idea to just come, that I've been spinning my wheels all day on a variety of topics, that I must be able to choose one to write about.  But my mind goes blank and I have nothing to write.  There is plenty of inspiration, but all of a sudden, nothing seems good enough.  

This sort of block is an ego block.  Nothing is good enough.  Nothing is worthy of the image I'm trying to uphold as a writer.  (Or more accurately: Nothing is good enough to disguise how ordinary I really am!) 

 

The trick to going beyond the block is to go beyond the ego.  To write as a discipline and to not be concerned with the quality or how it makes you look.  Through writing (practice) quality will improve anyway.  But one has to start somewhere.  

I'm excited by this new idea.  I hope it doesn't mean I start producing rubbish and that you all run and hide when a new blog appears (whoops, another ego thought).  I do hope to apply this to other areas where blocks exist.  Has anyone else tried something similar?  Care to share the experience?

Om shanti.

Thank you for reading. For more information on Raja Yoga philosophy see www.brahmakumaris.org.