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Acceptance - an Introductory
Exercise
If you have not read about acceptance as a means of stress reduction and
mind detoxification, please click
here
to read in health section
before continuing to read this section.
Acceptance is
about letting go of unrealistic expectations, large and small. It’s
about coming to terms with reality no matter how unfair or unpleasant it may
be. Acceptance is what we do when we acknowledge that no matter how
hard we try, we can’t control everything, people or situations in life.
However acceptance does not
means accepting failure and to give up trying or a do not care attitude.
Here we are doing this mental exercise for a week or more to free our mind
from stress and particularly from the prison of EGO.
Ego and acceptance
Ego cannot accept
and person or any situations or events in life. Non-acceptance is Ego's
nature and also a means through which it gets its nutrition. The moment we
accept any person or situation we see that the Ego's energy is drained. As
soon we accept we find that the Ego loses it's heroic acts in our life's
drama. Ego does not allow us to accept anything. It always blames others for
all the problems. Blaming others Ego has bright chances to get hold of
the mind to either brood over the past or be anxious of the past. Acceptance
brings out awareness to the present moment, while Ego does want to graze on
past memories or worry and fear about future.
|Purpose of the practice
The intention of the acceptance practice is to
confront our Ego. We take it for granted that we are this mind and Ego
without being aware of our true Self. This practice would allow us to
be pay more attention (awareness) to our Ego. As soon as we accept someone
or an event or action, the Ego would storm in us. Be aware the Ego would
smell danger and would hide out for a while then it will strike us back with
full vigor.
What to witness
This exercise is just to be aware of our Ego. Only if
we are aware of our enemy's strength and weakness we can win a war. So start
to practice acceptance and immediately pay attention to the way our Ego
acts. We might have a dispute or disagreement with our partner, family
member or with some at work or a shopping mall. Immediately chant the mantra
"Accept". We can witness the war movie unfolding in our minds.
Acceptance the most powerful spiritual technique
Acceptance is the
key to open the spiritual mastering of our mind. Practicing this brings
amazing results. It is simple but very powerful in opening doors to the
mystery of our mind and Self. This is the easiest means to purify the mind.
It brings peace, patience and wisdom in us. It opens the doors of our inner
light. With this one practice all good qualities will get into our
personality.
There is an amusing story about a scientist (Isaac Newton?) He
was a great cat lover and every time the cat needed to got out it would come
to him and do "Meow! Meow! Meow!". The cat's behavior did not bother him
until the cat gave birth to four kittens when the frequency of going out and
in became more. So Newton called for a carpenter to cut one big hole
and four smaller holes in the door so that the big cat would go in the
big hole and the kittens in the smaller holes. The surprised carpenter asked
whether he was talking to a world renowned scientist who could not
realize a simple fact that the kittens could have easily used their mother’s
‘pet door’.
Acceptance is like a pet
door through which all good qualities would get
into us. So pay attention to our
Ego by practicing acceptance.
Please
click here to continue to read first chapter of Gita.
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