With no
cultivation of a realistic mental attitude, there is little or no forbearance
or endurance. A realistic mindset involves a degree of #SelfAwareness.
We see the world, we see how our minds work, and we strive for proper order in
the way we perceive, think, feel and act.
- Say
you perceive you are haunted by fears. What you do is you go out of your way to correct
these by applying #Fearlessness, after asking “where do these fears come
from?” From lack of realistic thinking. Think realistically then, and fear
subsides.
- You
are affected by someone’s unpleasantness, resentment, negativity. You
consciously rectify this by applying #Purity in your own mind and
recognising that only your ego is adversely affected, not you, really. The unpleasant
person is suffering unconsciously. Seeing this, you remain unaffected.
- Maybe
your body feels lazy and wants to lie in bed instead of getting up and
going to a yoga class. You force it to comply with your decision, practising #Perseverance,
as every decision taken and then broken continues the chain of weak will we are
trying to overcome.
- You observe
a tendency to keep something for yourself instead of giving it to
another, so you place the Virtue of #Charity before your mind’s eye and
give instead of grasping.
These are
just four examples. All problems are solved in this way, one after another,
from Virtue 5 to 26. The so-called “external” problems are solved in the same
way as well. War? Humans practise war due to their dysfunctional minds.
Make yours functional and you prevent war. Hunger and famine? Humans permit
this due to their dysfunctional minds. Align yours with reality and you combat
hunger. Sickness and disease? Things that are made have to decompose at
some time, it’s part of Nature’s recycling. We humans make things worse by our non-integration
with Nature, our non-understanding of Nature. So we should be more natural and
practise Virtues. If disease eventually comes, we accept it and learn to live
or die with it. Nothing lasts forever. The body must return to the Earth. Social
discrimination? Humans do this because their minds are dysfunctional. You practise
the Virtues, and treat all others at least as well as you treat yourself, that’s
the only way you can help. Mistreatment of animals? Humans do this
because their minds are dysfunctional. Practise the Virtues and show compassion
towards all living creatures. Etc. etc.
No,
wait. I have “internal” problems like stress, anxiety, tension.
I worry, I feel bad, I don’t know what to do, I’m in a mess. Sorry, there
is no such thing as “stress” or “anxiety”. It’s just your imagination running
wild. Who controls you? Your “imagination” or “You”? We all have to grow up one
day, and recognising the stupidity of "stress" is part of moving forward
consciously in our lives. The normal process is that one thought leads to
another, the chain cannot be broken or stopped, thoughts produce feelings and
trigger reactions in the body. All this builds up and causes havoc. So we take
to drink, drugs, entertainment or other forms of assuaging or calming the mind, with the
mistaken idea that we can “control” thoughts this way. But the procession
continues inside, the river keeps flowing, and since we have no control over
the thought process, and remain stuck in our tiny, relative, self-made worlds, where
everything is blown out of all proportion due to the self-protection mechanism and
self-centred viewpoint of the ego, we eventually wind up with a break-down, a
heart attack, a depression or simply slide into lethargy, curl up and die like
a sick dog. Stress means you are punishing yourself because you don’t
know how to stop the erroneous thinking process occurring within you. Re-align the mind with
realistic thinking. Then there is no stress. If you think there is, describe
the situation and let’s deal with it here, in public.
So we
respond to weakness with strength and endurance; to wimpiness with courage; to
impatience with considered reasoning and determination; to anger with
tranquillity and calmness of mind; to upset with the understanding that others
may be misguided and can’t help it, but we can. Because we apply forbearance
and endurance with skill.
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