Pondering others is a tough one for me.
I'm a writer. Most of my "character development" comes from the eternal internal dialogue I have. Going over past scenarios, memories, tragedies and accidents provides lots of "stuff" to write. Now, if I follow the lojong slogan path, I'm supposed to stop going over these scenarios in my mind. Hmmmm.
I think that I need to go deeper into this slogan. My gut reaction about not pondering others is that it truly means if we constantly access the "doings" of those around us, including and most importantly, those around us who give us a royal pain, then, of course, that leads to judgments that we have no right to make. In addition, it widens the split between us and "the others". It doesn't allow us the energy to put ourselves in their boots, even for a moment of contemplation. Instead, we waste precious energy in going over their "sins" and even, (mea culpa) attributing the commission of our own "sins" to their negative influence in our lives. (You know: "I lost my cool and shot the bird when this jerk in an Acura cut me off from the exit!!!!!!!" Not: "Breathe. Send light and calm to the guy to make him a more attentive and courteous driver. Focus on how to get to the next exit in one piece, and make your appointment! Breathe.")
If I find myself contemplating a bad scene and attributing "reasons" to other people's actions, I probably should just sit with it and label it "thinking". Then, use it or let it go, but not get hung up on it nor let it affect me. This is tricky stuff, this sitting and breathing and letting go and blessing.
Hmmmm.
When I look at the wars in the world and listen to the debates from all sides, what emerges is this: NONE of us know what is really going on...seriously. There are forces all around us, encircling us, above and below and beyond, that we , in our human incarnation, just can't grasp. What we can do, however, is to understand this and to try to feel which debates get us going--make us really rabid and make us stop listening--or even begin to ponder the person taking "the other side". War is hated by all--except those making a profit from afar. (Afar being the operative word.) Put their family or themselves in the middle of a firefight and see if they still applaud battle! We all abhor war. We all fear pain. We all seek A LIFE well-lived--a life of respect, basic comfort, love. I'm going to try to concentrate my pondering on these facts.
The rest, I'll label: thinking.
I'm a writer. Most of my "character development" comes from the eternal internal dialogue I have. Going over past scenarios, memories, tragedies and accidents provides lots of "stuff" to write. Now, if I follow the lojong slogan path, I'm supposed to stop going over these scenarios in my mind. Hmmmm.
I think that I need to go deeper into this slogan. My gut reaction about not pondering others is that it truly means if we constantly access the "doings" of those around us, including and most importantly, those around us who give us a royal pain, then, of course, that leads to judgments that we have no right to make. In addition, it widens the split between us and "the others". It doesn't allow us the energy to put ourselves in their boots, even for a moment of contemplation. Instead, we waste precious energy in going over their "sins" and even, (mea culpa) attributing the commission of our own "sins" to their negative influence in our lives. (You know: "I lost my cool and shot the bird when this jerk in an Acura cut me off from the exit!!!!!!!" Not: "Breathe. Send light and calm to the guy to make him a more attentive and courteous driver. Focus on how to get to the next exit in one piece, and make your appointment! Breathe.")
If I find myself contemplating a bad scene and attributing "reasons" to other people's actions, I probably should just sit with it and label it "thinking". Then, use it or let it go, but not get hung up on it nor let it affect me. This is tricky stuff, this sitting and breathing and letting go and blessing.
Hmmmm.
When I look at the wars in the world and listen to the debates from all sides, what emerges is this: NONE of us know what is really going on...seriously. There are forces all around us, encircling us, above and below and beyond, that we , in our human incarnation, just can't grasp. What we can do, however, is to understand this and to try to feel which debates get us going--make us really rabid and make us stop listening--or even begin to ponder the person taking "the other side". War is hated by all--except those making a profit from afar. (Afar being the operative word.) Put their family or themselves in the middle of a firefight and see if they still applaud battle! We all abhor war. We all fear pain. We all seek A LIFE well-lived--a life of respect, basic comfort, love. I'm going to try to concentrate my pondering on these facts.
The rest, I'll label: thinking.
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