Skip to main content

Half Full or Half Empty?


Half Full or Half Empty?

Much of life today is based on depreciation and denigration of public leaders, groups, governments, religions, corporations and even family members. This is negative living, always pointing out faults in no uncertain terms and ignoring the virtues. A Hawaiian civic leader lamented to us recently that people are cruel in their complaints. "It's OK to criticize," she said, "but they should be kindly when doing so!"

A story I was told decades ago relates. A guru was sitting with two disciples under a sprawling banyan tree in India. The older student inquired, "Guruji, how long must I wait until I realize God?" The teacher responded, "Enlightenment is not something that can be predicted, but since you have asked," he leaned over and spoke in the right ear, "It will be twenty more lives." "Oh, no!" the youth cried in dismay, "I don't know if I can wait that long!" The other follower, naturally curious, asked of his own future. The guru whispered, "Liberation will come after you live as many lives as this banyan has leaves!" Hearing this, the seeker jumped to his feet and began to dance. Why? He was suddenly overcome by the assurance that he would ultimately be liberated. Ecstatic with appreciation, he transcended the mind and attained his liberation that very moment.

The first student was on the path of depreciation. For him the pot was half empty. The second followed the path of appreciation and was immersed in thankfulness. For him the pot was half full. "Some people complain because God put thorns on roses. Others praise Him for putting roses among the thorns."

Appreciation is a beautiful, soulful quality available to everyone in every circumstance--being thankful for life's little treasures, grateful for the opportunity to begin the day where you are, appreciating the perfect place your karma and God's grace have brought you to. Appreciation is life-giving. Depreciation without appreciation is heartlessly destructive. Yet, it is the all-too-common way of our times. When something is done that is good, helpful or loving, it is often overlooked, treated as something expected. No acknowledgement is shown, no gratitude expressed. But if a shortcoming is seen, everyone is swift to point it out!

The Vedas, the Tirukural and our many other holy texts indicate a better way. The wise ones knew that all people possess freedom of choice and the willpower to use it. Today that freedom is usually used, unwisely, to downgrade others, as well as oneself. Ignorance seems to be almost as all-pervasive as God. We find it everywhere and within every situation. It does not have to be this way.

Gratitude is a quality of the soul. It does not depend on how much we possess. Its opposite, ingratitude, is a quality of the external ego. When we abide in soul consciousness, we give thanks for whatever we have, no matter how little or how much. When in ego consciousness, we are never grateful or satisfied, no matter how much we have.




Daksh Educational Services




www.himalayanacademy.com

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

About Handwriting Olympiad

The Handwriting Olympiad (HWO) is a written competition which is conducted annually for students who wish to participate on an national level and get awarded for their good handwriting skills.  The Handwriting Olympiad is being conducted since the year 2010.This is the only Olympiad where every participant stands to win. Be it in the form of awards or a corrective advice.    Follow us on Youtube :   https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnZi ... Our prime objective being to help the students overcome all the flaws in their handwriting by providing individualized corrective advice to all the participants of the competition. It is life time benefit for every participant.    Follow us on Google+ :  https://plus.google.com/1102254431303 ... We certainly appreciate the efforts from parents, teachers and schools that let their students participate in the handwriting Olympiad and en-cash the opportunity to benefit from the expert advises.  ...

Games That Kill

Nintendo--it's a toy, but it's not a game. Toys have real influence in shaping young minds and emotions, more than parents realize. When kids play in an open field or in the woods, they are experiencing nature and learning how to relate to natural things. So many messages are going into their minds, so much information is being absorbed. It's very different when our kids spend their hours alone with popular video games like Nintendo, which work within the subterranean stratum of the subjective mind, aligning vasanas in the chitta to kill, kill, kill. Nintendo--it awakens the desires to succeed through intimidation and force. Nintendo--it teaches kids that the world is full of enemies to be slayed, opponents to be conquered, attackers to be attacked first. Nintendo--it complements a strategy to develop a nation of terrorists within every home that harbors this asuric mechanism. For those who don't know, Nintendo is a Japanese-produced video computer system that pl...

✅अति विशिष्ट व्यक्ति / V I P कौन है?

🙏  क्या आप को जानकारी है कि............ LIKE | SHARE | COMMENT Subscribe this Blog "Daksh Educational Services" for more Educating & Enlightening articles. 💥 1)अमेरिका में सिर्फ दो तरह के लोगों को वी आई पी मानते हैं : वैज्ञानिक और शिक्षक । . . 💥 2) फ्रांस के न्यायालय में सिर्फ शिक्षकों को ही कुर्सी पर बैठने का अधिकार है। . . 💥 3) जापान में पुलिस सरकार से अनुमति लेने के बाद ही किसी शिक्षक को गिरफ्तार कर सकती है। . . 💥 4) कोरिया में हर शिक्षक को वे सारे अधिकार प्राप्त हैं, जो भारत के मंत्री को प्राप्त हैं, सिर्फ अपना आई कार्ड दिखा कर । . . 💥 5) अमेरिकन तथा यूरोपीय देशों में प्राथमिक अध्यापक को सर्वाधिक वेतन मिलता है, क्योंकि कच्ची मिट्टी को वे ही पक्का करते हैं । Follow us on Facebook :  Daksh Educational Services 🚷 एक ऐसा समाज, जहाँ शिक्षकों का अपमान होता रहेगा, वहाँ सिर्फ चोर, डाकू, लुटेरे और भ्रष्टाचारी लोग ही पनपते है। Follow us on YouTube :  Daksh Educational Services 🇮🇳 🚩 शिक्षक बचाओ, देश बचेगा 🚩 🇮🇳