Hari
Om
'Freedays' are the 'gather our thoughts' days;
Q&As; a general review of the week so far…
A
lot of the posts till now have brought out the necessity to assess our value
system and hold it up to the light, as well ourselves; measuring our words
against our deeds and so forth. This is the very nature of philosophical
enquiry and rightly so. Putting values into practice is the challenge which is
always set.
The
quote of Gurudev above brings to mind the need to keep congruent within
ourselves as to those values. We may say them, we may act them… but how deeply
do we feel them, believe them, live them? Often when things are not working out
as we had hoped in our tasks, we are inclined to step back and look for
reasons. Not so often do we look within for those reasons.
A
very familiar old saying is akin to what has been given here by Gurudev;
"it is a poor workman who blames the tools". We understand the latter readily for we are
so caught up in the physical world and therefore a physical example can be
appreciated. If the hammer hits the thumb of the user, it is the user whose
attention has been diverted sufficiently that either he could not move the
thumb in danger away quickly enough, or keep proper aim. However, the key to
that was the awareness - an internal thing after all, even in the physical
action.
Applying
that to the study and intellectual pursuits as well as the creative outlets of
any kind, when we flunk a test or feel we are not getting a point or the poem
or drawing is not at all seeming complete, we cannot blame the teacher, the
books, the pens or whatever. We must look to ourselves and work on what the
hurdle is which has arisen within.
One
of the common problems is discovering that we have not, perhaps, fully lived
what we preach.
Conversely,
to experience the flow of creativity and comprehension which comes when one is
congruent and 'together'…. Well, it borders on the magical.
Check
in with yourself constantly. Be aware constantly. Then be aware when awareness
falls. It is okay for this to happen, it
is human; being aware of unawareness remains true to Vedantic values and allows
for rest and recovery. That is all that
is asked. This is saadhana.
