The Brazilian retired professional footballer player PELE said:
You choose anything like writing a blog, reading books, writing software’s and codes, making stock investments, playing any game (Football, Cricket, Chess, archery.....), acting, singing, exercise, daily routine. Whatever you select, all needs practice to become the master of the field. The more you practice, the more proficient you become.
The Japanese archery master Awa Kenzô was once sick for several months, which took him away from his craft. Finally, when he was able to get out of bed on a cold wintery day, Kenzo met with a few students eager to resume their lessons. As he spoke with them, he was suddenly beset with pain and left the room to urinate. His students found him outside, his urine dark red, staining the snow. Kenzo looked at them and said simply,
Marcus Aurelius, who suffered from numerous painful ailments in his life, almost certainly would have agreed. Because the Stoics believed that everything we experience is practice for our philosophy. Everything is a canvas for our mastery. Illness, archery, politics, the way we arrange our workstations, how we respond to obstacles and offenses.
In our schools, we learn to read and write, we gather the useful information for life but we are not more directed towards the wisdom for life, wisdom on how to deal with the world, wisdom on how to become smart? many similar....
This wisdom we learn from reading good books. And keep continuing the practice of reading and learning.
A young physician went to a Zen Master and asked to be taught Zen. "Zen is not such a difficult practice," said the Master. you are a physician, treat your patients with kindness, that is Zen. " The physician visited the Master three times, but on each occasion, he was told the same thing. The Master said, " a physician should not waste his time here, go home and look after your patients." It was not clear how such a teaching could remove the doubts and confusion about life that the physician had, and so on the fourth visit he complained to the Master. The Master smiled and said, "Perhaps 1 have been too hard on you. 1 will give you a meditation to practice. " He instructed the physician in Insight meditation. The physician practiced this form of meditation each day for two years. At length he thought he had attained clarity of mind, but the Master commented, "you are not there yet." The physician continued to practice. In time his mind became calm and balanced. Problems and doubt dissolved. Emptiness became the Truth. He served his patients well and without ever knowing it, became free from the concern over life and death. The next time he visited the Master, the Master simply smiled.
It is a recurrent theme of mine that spiritual life is ordinary life. There is no separation between the two. To progress in spiritual understanding there is no need to renounce the world, to give up the ordinary things of life and lock yourself away in a cave or a monastery. To cut yourself off from the world. There is no requirement to become a monk or a nun or a recluse. Living in the world is excellent practice.
To find yourself in a situation like this can be very testing, soul destroying in fact, but in spiritual training we must remember that everything depends upon attitude. If you are doing something you don't want to do, then everything connected with it becomes a drudge. Having to work in such conditions can seem like a prison sentence, but if you see this as an opportunity to train and develop, then everything changes for you. No more drudge, just the chance to practice.
When things go well, there is the moment for you to see your mind and watch your reactions. When things do not go well, there is the same opportunity. It all depends on attitude.
Do you see this as the chance to practice or not? If you say yes, there are no more problems for you. Everything changes. However, if you say no, right there in that answer, is the arising of unhappiness.
Unhappiness begins in the mind of the person who always wants everything to go his, or her own way.
When there is no choice, the only thing to do is surrender, to be open and learn. We cannot always choose the conditions we live under. No matter how hard we try, we are not able to make everything perfect according to our desires, and if we attempt to do this, we will suffer.
Look at the world. Look how everyone follows this path, and look at the results when they fail. Misery, anger and unhappiness. From the position of practice, everything is perfect just as it is. There are no special conditions we must create. Nothing special we must do. Whether we work in a factory, a shop, an office, or stay at home and look after the house and family, right there are the perfect conditions for practice. There is nothing outside your mind and body, and so nothing is outside your practice.
Let go of the desire to make everything the way you think it should be, and be with things as they are. Look at your mind, your feelings, your reactions, and there is your practice.
Learn to be open and accepting. This is the practice of the enlightened mind. The free mind. Choosing one thing over another is the foundation of unhappiness. Let go of choice and be with what is.
In life we all must experience many different conditions, some good, some not so good, some downright painful. All of us are subject to the entire range of human emotions and feelings. It is the same for everyone. Pleasure and pain arise endlessly, and if we are attached to one over the other, we will suffer.
One Zen Master has said,
Everything is the opportunity to practice, the painful experiences as well as the pleasant. Learn to look at your life as a gift, the chance to attain full enlightenment. The end of all your suffering and unhappiness, and cultivate a mind that will use every possible opportunity to achieve it.
"Everything is practice"Choose any field of your choice, what needed to become a master of that field is the practice. Without practice nothing happens.
You choose anything like writing a blog, reading books, writing software’s and codes, making stock investments, playing any game (Football, Cricket, Chess, archery.....), acting, singing, exercise, daily routine. Whatever you select, all needs practice to become the master of the field. The more you practice, the more proficient you become.
The Japanese archery master Awa Kenzô was once sick for several months, which took him away from his craft. Finally, when he was able to get out of bed on a cold wintery day, Kenzo met with a few students eager to resume their lessons. As he spoke with them, he was suddenly beset with pain and left the room to urinate. His students found him outside, his urine dark red, staining the snow. Kenzo looked at them and said simply,
“This too is practice.”Although his remark was rooted in the Zen philosophy Kenzo had studied all his life, its truth was a deeply Stoic concept as well.
Marcus Aurelius, who suffered from numerous painful ailments in his life, almost certainly would have agreed. Because the Stoics believed that everything we experience is practice for our philosophy. Everything is a canvas for our mastery. Illness, archery, politics, the way we arrange our workstations, how we respond to obstacles and offenses.
In our schools, we learn to read and write, we gather the useful information for life but we are not more directed towards the wisdom for life, wisdom on how to deal with the world, wisdom on how to become smart? many similar....
This wisdom we learn from reading good books. And keep continuing the practice of reading and learning.
A young physician went to a Zen Master and asked to be taught Zen. "Zen is not such a difficult practice," said the Master. you are a physician, treat your patients with kindness, that is Zen. " The physician visited the Master three times, but on each occasion, he was told the same thing. The Master said, " a physician should not waste his time here, go home and look after your patients." It was not clear how such a teaching could remove the doubts and confusion about life that the physician had, and so on the fourth visit he complained to the Master. The Master smiled and said, "Perhaps 1 have been too hard on you. 1 will give you a meditation to practice. " He instructed the physician in Insight meditation. The physician practiced this form of meditation each day for two years. At length he thought he had attained clarity of mind, but the Master commented, "you are not there yet." The physician continued to practice. In time his mind became calm and balanced. Problems and doubt dissolved. Emptiness became the Truth. He served his patients well and without ever knowing it, became free from the concern over life and death. The next time he visited the Master, the Master simply smiled.
It is a recurrent theme of mine that spiritual life is ordinary life. There is no separation between the two. To progress in spiritual understanding there is no need to renounce the world, to give up the ordinary things of life and lock yourself away in a cave or a monastery. To cut yourself off from the world. There is no requirement to become a monk or a nun or a recluse. Living in the world is excellent practice.
To find yourself in a situation like this can be very testing, soul destroying in fact, but in spiritual training we must remember that everything depends upon attitude. If you are doing something you don't want to do, then everything connected with it becomes a drudge. Having to work in such conditions can seem like a prison sentence, but if you see this as an opportunity to train and develop, then everything changes for you. No more drudge, just the chance to practice.
When things go well, there is the moment for you to see your mind and watch your reactions. When things do not go well, there is the same opportunity. It all depends on attitude.
Do you see this as the chance to practice or not? If you say yes, there are no more problems for you. Everything changes. However, if you say no, right there in that answer, is the arising of unhappiness.
Unhappiness begins in the mind of the person who always wants everything to go his, or her own way.
When there is no choice, the only thing to do is surrender, to be open and learn. We cannot always choose the conditions we live under. No matter how hard we try, we are not able to make everything perfect according to our desires, and if we attempt to do this, we will suffer.
Look at the world. Look how everyone follows this path, and look at the results when they fail. Misery, anger and unhappiness. From the position of practice, everything is perfect just as it is. There are no special conditions we must create. Nothing special we must do. Whether we work in a factory, a shop, an office, or stay at home and look after the house and family, right there are the perfect conditions for practice. There is nothing outside your mind and body, and so nothing is outside your practice.
Let go of the desire to make everything the way you think it should be, and be with things as they are. Look at your mind, your feelings, your reactions, and there is your practice.
Learn to be open and accepting. This is the practice of the enlightened mind. The free mind. Choosing one thing over another is the foundation of unhappiness. Let go of choice and be with what is.
In life we all must experience many different conditions, some good, some not so good, some downright painful. All of us are subject to the entire range of human emotions and feelings. It is the same for everyone. Pleasure and pain arise endlessly, and if we are attached to one over the other, we will suffer.
One Zen Master has said,
"The Way is simple, it just means giving up picking and choosing."Usually we would all prefer pleasant bodily sensation to unpleasant bodily sensation, pain, but the story of the meditation teacher in hospital might help us let go even of this choice. He had awoken at home in the early morning with severe pain in his abdomen. This became increasingly worse as the morning progressed, and finally a doctor was called. The doctor suspected kidney stones, and so sent him to hospital for an examination. Once in the hospital, still waiting to be seen, and the pain intensifying each minute, the meditation teacher, in a moment of desperation, heard himself exclaim, 'Jesus Christ, take this pain away.' Then, from somewhere in the back of his mind a voice replied, 'Take it away, I've only just given it to you.'
Everything is the opportunity to practice, the painful experiences as well as the pleasant. Learn to look at your life as a gift, the chance to attain full enlightenment. The end of all your suffering and unhappiness, and cultivate a mind that will use every possible opportunity to achieve it.
To do an experiment, just select any new habit that you want to adopt, and do it for next 21 days without fail, it will become a habit or a part of your daily routine.
Start reading 10 pages daily, and soon you can see yourself reading many books.
Start writing blogs, and son you become more clear in your thought process.
Start investing or SIP regularly, and withing a couple of years, you see that your wealth will start compounding and increasing.
Start a habit of daily walk or exercise, and soon you see that your body come in share(I am working on this habit, let's see what happen)
The list will go on..........
I have written one entire blog post on the above Kaizen technique, Please read.
Remember this today as you go about your work or pursue your studies. All that you encounter--intended or inconvenient--is an opportunity for practice and for improvement. But only if you let it be, only if you open your mind to it.
Disclosure: To write the blog, i have taken the help from here.
Keep reading, Keep learning,
-Mahesh
Remember this today as you go about your work or pursue your studies. All that you encounter--intended or inconvenient--is an opportunity for practice and for improvement. But only if you let it be, only if you open your mind to it.
Disclosure: To write the blog, i have taken the help from here.
Keep reading, Keep learning,
-Mahesh
