The Path to Awareness Has Potholes

As promised, I am going to discuss Point One of The Seven Points of Mind Training. This is, I believe, a fairly simple thing to understand, at least compared to the rest. I figured this stuff out a long time ago, but it's nice to be reminded. Growing up, daily undeserved criticism and powerlessness were a WAY OF LIFE. So it is sometimes hard to recognize when I am not treating others the way I want to be treated, but it is something I have realized about myself and am working on.

What I really feel the need to cultivate is patience; this is not something that comes easily to me. Every time I catch myself, and realize that what I am about to say will not bring love or positive energy to the situation, I have won a small victory over my past. I have made that little path towards peace in my brain just a bit more trodden, and the freeway of rage and helplessness just a bit less congested. I know that the next time it will be just a tiny bit easier.

This isn't about repressing anything. It is about being completely WIDE AWAKE and IN THE MOMENT when I want to lose myself, and instead recognizing that THERE IS NOTHING TO BE ANGRY ABOUT, and that even when there is a good reason to be angry, since anger is, after all, a naturally occurring human emotion that leads to change where change is needed, there are many more effective ways of expressing it than screaming. This goes back to my first post, when I discussed being the change I wish to see in the world and consequently, my life. The overall goal being a daily ritual and creation of a loving, safe place for my family to grow. I have to model the kind of person I wish them to be. For me, there is really no other choice.

Plant your feet.

But not too hard.

So, back to the point, specifically, POINT ONE, which states: The Preliminaries, which are the basis for the dharma practice. Within this first point, there is only one slogan: First, train in the preliminaries; the four reminders, which are:

1. Maintain an awareness of the preciousness of human life. I believe that this means that every life is precious; every person deserves to feel relatively safe and secure. Deserves to live within the freedom that I am searching for myself. I don't know how realistic this is, but I have never been one to give up in the face of something that seems impossible. I also feel the need to extend this to all living things; animals, plants, oceans, the air, and most important of all, our mother; the Earth. We are all connected to each other and reliant on every single other living thing on this planet, as well as the planet itself. When more people realise this, that is when we will really begin to see the deep, profound changes that are so desperately needed.
2. Impermanence; be aware of the reality that life ends; death comes for everyone. This one is easy for me; always has been. I was that kid; very anxious. Always afraid that something would happen to my parents, or someone else I loved, every time they left the house. ALWAYS AFRAID OF EVERYTHING. I have actually had to work on bringing myself a step or two back from this awareness, so that it no longer has the power to paralyze me. It used to keep me up at night; this dark thing that would grow and grow, coming to rest stubbornly in my stomach. I could barely breath. I worked long and hard to vanquish that demon, yet it still lurks on the periphery, just waiting for the opportunity to get back in and make itself at home. I admit to letting it sometimes, but never like before.
3. Karma; recall that whatever you do, whether virtuous or not, has a result. I feel like this speaks for itself. I believe this wholeheartedly, and have seen the truth of it many times. This is true not only for the actions we take, but also the words we speak, and the thoughts we think. Everything is energy, and we are responsible for what we are contributing to the world around us. I feel like this is one of those LIFE LESSONS that should be taught religiously in every school and to little children, the way some teach the alphabet, and shouted from rooftops; EVERYTHING YOU DO HAS AN AFFECT ON THE WORLD AROUND YOU, therefore everything you do affects you to.
4. Ego; contemplate that as long as you are too focused on self-importance and too caught up in thinking about how you are good or bad, you will suffer. Obsessing about getting what you want and avoiding what you don't want does not result in happiness. No kidding, right? Easier said than done, of course. Who doesn't know someone who is so caught up in the right and wrong way to do everything that they drive themselves and everyone around them absolutely crazy? Those are the extreme cases, but the majority of people suffer from this to some degree. This is fighting about religion. This is every stupid argument I have ever been in. This is where pettiness comes to play. 

And that's it! That is Point One and the first Slogan. Now that I have seen it in writing again, I am going to spend a few days really focusing on this. Especially the last two. What challenges do you recognize in yourself here?

"...grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."