We are not alone!

The day started with the motivation of, 

Minimize the harm that I give to others..

Give the least harm and Being the most benefit..

Practicing Compassion ..

After a 10 Day long retreat in silence, I was reflecting on how I can practice or use all the teachings that I've learned during retreat in my daily life. I found out that 'Awareness' is the very first step or pre-requisite of anything that we do in and around our lives. I observed and pen down the things that I can practice on a daily basis . . . 

• Setting the motivation everyday before getting up from the bed and follow M.A.D. (Motivation - Action - Dedication). Start with small motivations :)

• Checking my motivation before doing anything or taking any action (internally or externally) ..Is that motivation going to help oneself and other sentient beings? Would it support me in my inner journey? :)

• Seeing or taking things from different perspectives that everybody wants to be happy and be free from sufferings! :)

• Greatly develop the awareness that I don't spend much time on external desires/things rather spend maximum time to work upon myself, on my afflictions (through meditation or any other way that I feel connected with). Practicing love, compassion, generosity and kindness.. :)

• Being aware of 10 non-virtues and 5 precepts, I will try not to break them. :)

• Sitting in silence minimum for 10-15 minutes everyday in the morning and before going to bed in the night.. :)

My view of looking at things has changed drastically and the equanimity meditation helped me a lot in this. I always had this fear of being judged by others. I realized that in the process it was me on the first place who judged myself. And because I have judged myself so I generate this fear of others judgement. I also found that because I judge people so I think that they will also judge me. But when I started looking at others with the eyes of compassion and understanding that the other person is also suffering and wants to be happy, then all the judgements around them dissolves. And in the process, the judgements that I make around myself also dissolves. 

I sensed that We are more than SURVIVAL!!

From childhood, I had this perception for Americans that they are the happiest one in the world. They are very rich, they rule the world, so they don't have any problems in their lives. And as I grew older, this perception was still there in background. In the retreat, I saw an American girl and I thought "इस को क्या परेशानी होगी, वह एक अमेरिकी है.." but on the last day when I saw her crying harder and harder in front of a Stupa for almost about an hour, all my judgements , perceptions broke into pieces. And I experienced that there is already a lot of suffering in the world, wherever we look, whoever we meet, no matter how he looks, what his nationality is, or how much he earns; each person has his own struggles and sufferings. And I am not alone in this. We just need to hold each other because I am another YOU ..!!!