Spirituality, this seems to be a buzz word these days....very often on Orkut the religious status mentions - "Spiritual but not Religious".
A question I would like to ask is this - "How many of us really know what does being spiritual actually mean?"... Well for those who are seeking the answer this book seems to give one....
The books was presented to me by Quetzal Online Private Ltd... it has since played a very great role in moulding my thought process..did I say thought!!! Yes, It is "thought"....where does this concept of thought itself come from? Will get clear as we get into my understanding of the Book, rather my book review
When Descartes told - "I think, therefore I am" it was just the reiteration of how connected we will be with our thought. I am nothing but what I think I am... It is what I think I am that makes me do what I do, the way I do... But who is this "I"?
A peep into the the thought over "I" and we will start realizing, all we identify with it just thought..."I am Sachidananda!!!" well is it so... wouldn't have my name been different if it was christened that way? Why would not some one call me by some call me by some other name?... so is it that I am "Sachidananda" or "I think I am Sachidananda"...people call me so... that is not what I am... its just my name... not me!!! It could have been anything.
I have a T-shirt to which I am very attached to, I was walking by the road, and some paint fell on it...I immediately react shouting abuse at the painter...Why did I do it?... The T shirt is part of my identity... I think what I am is reflected by the T-Shirt I wear...But wait...for a moment if I think its not my identity...its just a shirt... any shirt would be soiled some day...so why do I have to hurl abuse at the painter...I move ahead... may be try and get it cleared, which would actually make the most sensible thing....
Well the problem then seems to be as though it was me identifying with something..."I think I am..." So what would I call this identity? Tolle calls it the "Ego"... The more we attach ourself with the ego... the more we tend to identify ourself with things that we think we are... and when it doesn't go the way we think it has to go, we are upset, we are angry, get irritated... all these...
The ego always tries to expand itself...it makes me feel happy that I abused the painter...I have got more power than him... I see myself as one who is above him... Ego can equally be negative...it can make me feel completely miserable...It makes me search for pity and concern from my fellow mates..."This shouldn't have happened to me" this is what it says...this is what is tries and identifies with...when people around me reciprocate it goes to the next level and tires to get some more sympathy from them...it goes into detailed description of the event and tries to prompt the person around me to give me more concern... all this will help me feel... there is some one who sympathizes with me...well do we need the sympathy...not exactly... its only the thought that I need some support form someone at least verbally... I can still live and make more if I don't attach myself to this failure... I need to look at the current available option...choose the best and get above my thought of looking for people support to me.
When I said "I identity with my thought" does that mean its wrong to thing? No absolutely not.... thinking is not the mistake... its identification with the thought that you have which makes it critical..."Thought" is our slave... it is not our master... Identifying with thought we let it be our master and decide what we have to do.
How do we stop identifying with our thought? well its a long process.. It is important to prevent ourself from evaluating any situation that we are into....also don't evaluate the person who is around u.... When I evaluate I am trying to judge and compare with some thing I think I am...instead accept the things as they come... do your best... use your thought to make it the best...this is a better way of life....
My prof always used to say "In the process of becoming, you should not loosing being. Being is more important" Yes, this typically what happens and makes us dissatisfied... we think of somehtinig that has happened in the past and crib that is shouldn't have happened... or we keep thinking about the future and loose our present moment....It is only the present that is in front of us... we cant change the past by thinking about it nor can be get into the future by just thinking... its important that we live the present moment....
This being with the present is a state of concentration... being completely involved with the present work that we do... this is what makes us "human being"...
All this and more is explained really well in the book... if this small review of my thought on the book has influenced your thought...then do read the book...its worth more... may be life transforming to a few....A clearer understanding of spirituality will come out of it...
I loved and enjoyed this book...very revealing...very realizing...
