Wisdom@Self Archives - Page 3 of 4

Hero & Villain

January 9, 2022

Sound is – Sound & Silence Light is – Light & Dark Happiness is – Happiness & Sorrow Calm is – Calm & Anxiety Beauty is – Beauty & Ugly Achievement is – Achievement & Failure Life is – Life & Death and so on… We can have two different goals: Win – Where we take sides. One over the other. Play – Where we ride the adventure of crests & troughs, realising they come in pairs. Probably, in the long run, play wins. Wonder – How many of us will watch a ‘drama’ with a hero and no villain?

To-Do / To-Be

December 25, 2021

Get XYZ done Be aware of your breathing. Meet John Doe Be aware of your breathing. Sends email to Emily Be aware of your breathing. Finish the bank paperwork Be aware of your breathing. Go for a run Be aware of your breathing. Doing meditation once a day is one thing. Being meditative through the day is another. One is an activity to do. Another is a way to be in the moment. Wish you a meditative holiday. Each breath is a present.

I Don’t Know

August 24, 2021

An Emperor visited a Zen master to ask about the afterlife. “When an enlightened man dies, what happens to his soul?” Asked the Emperor. All the Zen master had to say was: “I have no idea.” “How could you not know?” Demanded the Emperor. “You’re a Zen master!” “But I am not a dead Zen master!” He proclaimed. Socratic ignorance refers, paradoxically, to a kind of knowledge – a person’s frank acknowledgement of what they don’t know. To acknowledge our ignorance is the beginning of the journey to awareness. Most of us think we know ourselves, whereas the fact is

Absolute Freedom

August 21, 2021

Good is the opposite of bad. So, good is then the product of bad. Because if bad goes away, good will go away too. The opposite of something is embedded in it. In choosing one, we choose the other by default. Good-Bad. Beautiful-Ugly. Joy-Sorrow. Excitement-Boredom. The entire world around us is designed in binary mode. The vital question to table here – Is freedom the opposite of bondage? Or is freedom the freedom from the game of opposites? Freedom and Love are interesting concepts. They can live in the binary and also beyond it. There is relative freedom. Then there

Living One-Way

August 9, 2021

What if You posted a blog and didn’t check on the number of likes it got. You went for a run and never measured the distance and speed. You wrote a letter and didn’t worry about getting a response. You learnt music, not thinking about performing ever. You started a company not thinking of an exit. You donated a bunch of money to a charity anonymously. You invested in your partner without expecting a thing in return. What if you loved and never expected anything in return. What if you lived one-way.

Watching My Breath

August 4, 2021

Probably one of the most important things to do in life – Watch one’s breath for a few minutes. Probably one of the most challenging things to do in life – Watch one’s breath for a few minutes. I am learning from my relationship with running. When I tried to conquer milestones at running, I failed. Then I made running a companion, and it ran with me. Now when I run, I watch my breath for a few minutes. Sometimes. When you stop watching, it appears.

Understanding Before Believing

July 27, 2021

The famous actor and atheist W. C. Fields was doing a tour of the United States. One day his manager came into his hotel room and was shocked to see him reading a copy of the Bible.“Bill!” he said, “What the hell are you doing? I thought you were an atheist.” Fields replied, “Just looking for loopholes, just looking for loopholes.” We must understand an idea or ideology before believing in it or disbelieving it. Understanding why we believe or disbelieve it will help develop self-knowledge. Understanding why others believe in it will help develop compassion. Truth, as we know,

Mind Type

July 23, 2021

Doctors tell us that we have a particular body type. A body type results from genetic inheritance, what we have physically and emotionally experienced, and the habits & behaviours we have adopted through our life. They also tell us that our body type is unique to each of us. What applies to our body-type type also applies to our mind-type. As a result of genetics, evolutionary biology, childhood experiences, adult life experiences and other cultural influences- each of us has a unique mind-type. Zodiac profiles, personality tests and palm readings slot us into a type. We believe them because we

Moving One End Of A Stick

July 7, 2021

If there is no punishment, no one will talk about rewards. If there is no defeat, no one will yearn for victory. If there is no scarcity, no one will hoard. If there is no suffering, no one will search for happiness. If we want to move one end of a stick, the other moves naturally. Left defines Right. Down defines Up. Dark defines Light. …And that’s how the game plays out. Our quest for meaning is not defined by choosing the better over worse. Because good and bad are two ends of the same stick. It is perhaps about

Rational Intelligence

June 2, 2021

The music we listen to The brands we prefer The person we fall in love with The fragrance we pick The home we choose The fashion we adopt The beliefs we subscribe to The moral contracts we sign with self Mostly irrational, mostly emotional decisions. Fact is – We are dominantly irrational by nature. Accepting our irrationality is essential. Consciously observing our irrational self without judgment is the beginning of rational thinking. Knowing why we are irrational the way we are, is intelligence.

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