Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Take A Spiriual Inventory
You know we are an angry and hostile country that is addicted to negativity and incivility. It is easy for us to blame it on this fast-paced, digitized, noise-polluted, demanding world of ours. But that would not be going to the root cause of the problem. The reason for the abiding hostility, negativity and incivility in this country is that most of us are generally unhappy with ourselves. Yes, we are manifesting our inner state outwards.
I believe it is because most of us have at least one thing from the past that we can't quite seem to let go of. I wish I could say that there was only one thing from the past that caused me stress or kept me on edge. There are many things. I realized that I had to clean those things out of my mind and heart. In other words, I took an inventory of my mental and spiritual closets. Oh my! What did I find?
I found stuff in those closets going back decades. In my book "Harmonious Day: A Self-leading Spiritual Approach for Reaching Your Highest Perfection" I call it mental and spiritual junk and baggage. It resembles clutter that you accumulate over the years in your attic, basement and closets in your home. This clutter, if not managed, will accumulate to the point where it spills over into your functional living space. The only reason you don't discard any of this junk is for the simple fact that you want to hold on to it just because you want to. You delude yourself into thinking that it may have some value or utility. There is no other reason.
In my closets I found grudges, containers filled with memories of negative thoughts, racks of fears, old cans chock-full of bad wishes and ill intent for people. There was a lot in there that involved forgiving others and myself as well. In my experience, I have observed that the latter is a major problem for many of us.
You name it and it was in there. I hung on to those things because I felt they had some utility or value, but they were merely monuments to a negative past. I was partially right about the worth of my junk. It had value all right; negative value, but no usefulness. The value, form, and substance were there because I gave it to them. I allowed them to take form and come to life and reside way deep down inside of me. Just like Dr. Frankenstein, I created scary monsters in my life.
So, I cleaned those closets out. Just like the old-fashioned spring closet cleanings my mother used to do. I threw everything away. It was hard to do, because prior to this, my primary daily motivations for living were based on the junk and baggage in those closets. It was truly liberating to release and let go of this junk and baggage, because my potential for spiritual growth and general well-being was circumscribed until I did. It was like a bunch of gigantic weights that had been holding me down for most of my life had been removed and I could move about freely and unrestrained.
By ridding myself of all of this junk and baggage, I made room for new positive thoughts and experiences. I won the war for control of my thoughts, spirit, and destiny. This is what I believe is meant by Jihad or Holy War in the Islamic tradition. The Koran states, “The most excellent Jihad is that for the conquest of self.” When you have completed this process, your heart and mind are open to experience the newness of things as they unfold in your daily life.
Finally, forgiveness is a big part of this cleansing process. I submit that most of the junk and baggage we hold on to relates to not forgiving ourselves. A lot of us find it much easier to forgive others than ourselves. Rabbi Joseph Gelberman, founder of my seminary, and patriarch of interfaith ministry said, “It's not about deserving forgiveness or not deserving it. The truth is, we deserve not to suffer from the painful and harmful effects of non-forgiving.” The painful and harmful effects of non-forgiveness will linger forever, until we release them and let them go.
I am urging all of you to take an inventory of what is in your spiritual and mental closets. Look inside and find out what is there that fosters anger, negativity and incivility, and throw it out. I know this is easier said than done. Many of us spend fortunes on therapy to rid ourselves of this stuff. And, if that works, please continue to do it. However, I offer that some good old-fashioned prayer, and daily meditation might prove effective.
You know, I want to live in a happier America. For America to become happier, we as individuals must become happier. If all of us commit to make America happier just by simply ridding ourselves of at least some of those stress causing demons from the past, we might find more people smiling and laughing on their way to work, in offices, and who knows road rage incidents might decline. Hey someone might actually say good morning or good afternoon and really mean it.
So I am curious, what are the things in your closets that keep you anchored to a negative past and hold you back from stepping into the bright and new possibilities that come with each sunrise?
I believe it is because most of us have at least one thing from the past that we can't quite seem to let go of. I wish I could say that there was only one thing from the past that caused me stress or kept me on edge. There are many things. I realized that I had to clean those things out of my mind and heart. In other words, I took an inventory of my mental and spiritual closets. Oh my! What did I find?
I found stuff in those closets going back decades. In my book "Harmonious Day: A Self-leading Spiritual Approach for Reaching Your Highest Perfection" I call it mental and spiritual junk and baggage. It resembles clutter that you accumulate over the years in your attic, basement and closets in your home. This clutter, if not managed, will accumulate to the point where it spills over into your functional living space. The only reason you don't discard any of this junk is for the simple fact that you want to hold on to it just because you want to. You delude yourself into thinking that it may have some value or utility. There is no other reason.
In my closets I found grudges, containers filled with memories of negative thoughts, racks of fears, old cans chock-full of bad wishes and ill intent for people. There was a lot in there that involved forgiving others and myself as well. In my experience, I have observed that the latter is a major problem for many of us.
You name it and it was in there. I hung on to those things because I felt they had some utility or value, but they were merely monuments to a negative past. I was partially right about the worth of my junk. It had value all right; negative value, but no usefulness. The value, form, and substance were there because I gave it to them. I allowed them to take form and come to life and reside way deep down inside of me. Just like Dr. Frankenstein, I created scary monsters in my life.
So, I cleaned those closets out. Just like the old-fashioned spring closet cleanings my mother used to do. I threw everything away. It was hard to do, because prior to this, my primary daily motivations for living were based on the junk and baggage in those closets. It was truly liberating to release and let go of this junk and baggage, because my potential for spiritual growth and general well-being was circumscribed until I did. It was like a bunch of gigantic weights that had been holding me down for most of my life had been removed and I could move about freely and unrestrained.
By ridding myself of all of this junk and baggage, I made room for new positive thoughts and experiences. I won the war for control of my thoughts, spirit, and destiny. This is what I believe is meant by Jihad or Holy War in the Islamic tradition. The Koran states, “The most excellent Jihad is that for the conquest of self.” When you have completed this process, your heart and mind are open to experience the newness of things as they unfold in your daily life.
Finally, forgiveness is a big part of this cleansing process. I submit that most of the junk and baggage we hold on to relates to not forgiving ourselves. A lot of us find it much easier to forgive others than ourselves. Rabbi Joseph Gelberman, founder of my seminary, and patriarch of interfaith ministry said, “It's not about deserving forgiveness or not deserving it. The truth is, we deserve not to suffer from the painful and harmful effects of non-forgiving.” The painful and harmful effects of non-forgiveness will linger forever, until we release them and let them go.
I am urging all of you to take an inventory of what is in your spiritual and mental closets. Look inside and find out what is there that fosters anger, negativity and incivility, and throw it out. I know this is easier said than done. Many of us spend fortunes on therapy to rid ourselves of this stuff. And, if that works, please continue to do it. However, I offer that some good old-fashioned prayer, and daily meditation might prove effective.
You know, I want to live in a happier America. For America to become happier, we as individuals must become happier. If all of us commit to make America happier just by simply ridding ourselves of at least some of those stress causing demons from the past, we might find more people smiling and laughing on their way to work, in offices, and who knows road rage incidents might decline. Hey someone might actually say good morning or good afternoon and really mean it.
So I am curious, what are the things in your closets that keep you anchored to a negative past and hold you back from stepping into the bright and new possibilities that come with each sunrise?
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