Total Thoughts (November 22, 2009) - Sri Rama's Dilemma/Bhisma's Justification

Total Thoughts:

Sri Rama's Dilemma/Bhisma's Justification (On Wings and Wheels pages 51-55)

 

• Different sets of rules apply in war - we can understand this better when we reflect on whether the ends justify the means and whether we have acted rightly or wrongly
  
• It's difficult to achieve our goals -  we should remember that the goal is that we are happy/at peace with our decisions
• Temperament can affect our destiny - we should be aware of the line between our 'real' selves and our 'fake' selves
• Free will and destiny have different implications -we should think about how destiny can push us towards acceptance and free will can push us towards choice
• Understanding choice can help us grow - if one is enlightened, is there a choice? we can reflect on whether it is real or the ego and understanding this can help us gain clarity and predict consequences of our actions
  
• Awareness can bring about change - making people aware of how much they have, can help them understand how they can contribute to society (ie. help others)
• Decisions have purpose - we should understand when we are making decisions for ourselves and when we are acting for the greater good
  

 

"The quality of the mind would determine how the Ego would react to a given challenge." - Swami Chinmayananda

 

Inspire-Love-Be

Total Thoughts (November 15, 2009) - Error or Sin?

Total Thoughts:

Error or Sin? (On Wings and Wheels pages 46-51)

 

• We should realize that society and the individual are not governed by the same morals and rules - society might punish you even if you thought your action was right. We should reflect on the idea that just because you are not punished immediately, does not mean it will not happen in the future, or in another life so we should strive to always do what is right
• We should be more morally conscious of 'little' mistakes - we should try to understand the line between a small innocent mistake and one with longer term consequences. We should think about how hard we should be on ourselves and become more aware so those mistakes don't continue and eventually evolve into bad habits
• Perception can have an impact on how mistakes affect us - having mistakes in our lives, whether they have been directed at us or not, we need to understand whether something is a 'true mistake' and how we can learn from our experiences. It is then, when we can be more conscious of the positive or negative balance that it creates
• There are different degrees of 'right' and 'wrong' - we should be prepared and decide how we would react when faced with either situation
  
• Punishment doesn't always bring about change - we should try to understand the role of rehabilitation and education for those that have done wrong things before we try to punish or force a solution, with respect to society and ourselves
  
• Conformity poses challenges - rather than conforming, we should take time to reflect on whether it would be harmful or not, aligned with our morals and make a decision based on what we believe to be right

 

"Ignorance will not disappear merely with education. It can go only with a change in our ways of thinking." - Gandhi

 

Inspire-Love-Be,

Total Thoughts (November 8, 2009) - Abortion, Indecision

Total Thoughts:

Abortion, Indecision (On Wings and Wheels pages 44-46)

 

• Abortion is a serious decision, not to be taken lightly - this is something that we should acknowledge and understand the long term consequences of and how it impacts our decisions and actions
  
• We should take a long term view of decision making - we should practice thinking something through, even if we would still perform the action as it will allows us to become more aware of the decision at hand and will allow us to reflect on the experience with the possibility (in some cases) of revisiting the decision later and learning from it
• It is beneficial to strive for inner peace - when you are at peace with yourself, it can help in the decision making process because you have faith in what the outcome will be rather than being attached to the expectation of the outcome
  
• Indifference contributes to indecisiveness - a useful technique could be to question how certain decisions affect us and how they are connected to the 'bigger picture'. for small decisions an effective tool can be to flip a coin and follow through with the result
  
• We can reflect on Sati - when we reflect on Sati, we should think about how it was related to the time and understand what learning can be adapted to modern day society
  
• Education can benefit society - we should think about the most effective way to deliver education to society as inspiring people often is more effective and impactful than governing people
  
• Social patterns change over time -  we associate with different role models over time and sometimes it helps to take a step back and raise our awareness to re-evaluate whether we are learning from the right role models
  

"Desire is at the root of all actions, good or evil" - Swami Chinmayananda

 

Inspire-Love-Be,

Total Thoughts (November 1, 2009) - Social Conscience and Euthanasia

Total Thoughts:
 

Social Conscience and Euthanasia (On Wings and Wheels pages 41 - 44)

 

• Things that are taught to us become our belief - our actions and decisions may be influenced by learned behaviour and we should gain a better understanding of how this learned behaviour affects us to better direct our actions and decisions
  
• Selfishness can be controlled - it is in our nature to be selfish, however with increased knowledge and awareness we can exercise more control
  
• We should not treat people differently based on their title/association - it is beneficial to make our relationships more straight-forward and simple, therefore relationships will be less complex and we can achieve more peace
  
• Performing actions and having expectations is not sustainable - if we have expectations then there will be room for disappointment, therefore making the journey to contentment more difficult
  
• You can be closer to God through self-development - this is something that we should continue to practice and strive for
  
• Should avoid the term '"God" - there are many interpretations and the translation can sometimes be confused in certain situations
  
• The book "Island" by Aldous Huxley is a good read - examines many of our discussion/life topics
  

 

"An investment in knowledge pays the best interest" - Benjamin Franklin

 

Inspire-Love-Be,