Monk wisdom is here

One day, a loyal young monk witnessed conversation between a very rich businessman and his master. Seeing how disrespectful the business man was, the monk was angry. But his master kept smiling.

When the conversation was over, the monk asked the master,

“Master, how can you let him treat you like that? He thinks he is much higher than you, he’s so full of pride, and greed. How can you be so patient? I cannot help but to resent him!”

In response, the master patted him on the shoulder.

“Look deeper, and see; behind every pride is the fear of not being acknowledged by others; behind every greed is the fear of lack or losing something. Seeing that fearful man, I cannot help but to feel compassion toward him; and wish he is freed from such sufferings.”

Hearing this, the monk was silent.

Make sense of emotions

Notice how emotions unfold in your life, how you react or respond to the world around you.   Notice where emotions come from.  Track them back to see how they arise.  Sense how, why they build up.  What do they teach you? What do they invite you to see within yourself?

Notice how you respond to others as they confront you, get emotional or remain indifferent toward you. Eleanor Roosevelt reminds you that nobody can intimidate you without your consent. If you do not choose to be afraid, then fear cannot touch you. The apparent reasons for fear cannot last unless you believe in them and allow them to control your thoughts.

Notice whether you allow your emotions to escalate and affect your health and well-being or, whether you observe quietly, respond slowly and calmly, to whatever unfolds in your life. What if its all a test? To respond without anxiety or agitation is to exhibit what peace is all about.  You help others to know peace as you respond from this state of being yourself.

Why is it do you figure that people often focus on negative emotions and complaints? It comes back to creating unskillful thought patterns. Each of us has a choice to be mindful and to understand the origins of our thoughts and emotions. If you are angry or afraid, ask why. Every emotion is a pointer to the only emotion heart knows- unconditional love.

Consider that you always have opportunities to respond differently to comments and behaviours than you are taught. Be aware of emotional triggers and conditioned habits that do not serve you.  Fear and anger flow away as you view them as the teachers they are. Be aware that peace is itself an emotion that empowers and inspires you, come what may.

"Everytime you allow someone to trigger a negative emotion or anger or ill will, you do not have to follow that path. Why do you get angry? Anger arises from a series of agitations you think about or dwell upon. Anger is like a fire. It starts like a spark. If you catch it quickly, its easy to put out.  Through your mindfulness, awarenss and mental training, it is not hard to transcend emotions like anger, frustration and grief.  Its not a training of will power, but of wisdom power to see where things come from so you can catch them earlier." -Ajahn Brahm

The significance of tattoos

At different stages of life, people get tattoos for different reasons .  Maybe you have some yourself that echo your own learning curve or act as memorials to loved ones.  Maybe you contemplate getting one to recognize a milestone, personal revelation or life change.  Maybe you know someone who has tattoos or have seen images of them on people you admire.  Even if tattoos do not appeal to you at all, your response to them reveals a lot about yourself.

Notice which tattoo symbols stop you in your tracks.  Which emotions do they elicit? What is this really telling you? Is it the prospect of permanence , a distubing fear or anger that surfaces?

Much like symbols in your night dreams, tattoo symbols that capture attention invite you to be aware of the nature of your judgment and the underlying reasons for it.  Notice whether you assume only 'certain kinds of people' get tattoos, whether tattoos evoke painful memories of suffering for you or whether they turn you off for other reasons you are not yet accepting. 

Notice also who you spend the most time with.  How you feel about tattoos is like an invitation to grow mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually. You are better able to do so when surrounded by people who accept you for who you are and who support your evolving choices.

Anything that evokes emotion silently draws attention to love.  Sometimes getting tattoos is a call for love, a gesture of love, an effort to restore balance or to express love.  Even that which has little or no appeal to you echoes your state of mind and state of being.  Peace and tranquility are ever-present.  Everything you do or do not points toward them.  This goes without saying.

“Everyone has secrets. It's just a matter of finding out what they are.”  -Stieg Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Break down the barriers

Many people convince themselves they do not deserve to be happy.  This is an invitation to make peace with the past, to recognize and understand the nature of guilt so you can let it go.  Ask why you desire to punish yourself.  Guilt and grief are psychological barriers to the peace and harmony you already have but choose not to see.  Choose to see your own inner beauty.  Harmonize with everything. Transition is seemless.  Reframe the unfolding path of your life.

The 5 stages of grief, developed by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, a model describing emotional responses to loss, often used for terminal illness but applied broadly to grief. However, these stages aren't linear; people don't always experience all of them, nor do they follow a set order, and it's common to revisit stages or skip some entirely, as grief is a unique and messy process for everyone. 

Forget what's lost

Ever notice that its harder to find certain things when you focus on what you are convinced you have lost? When you are not focusing attention on what is apparently missing, and you turn away toward something else, is it not incredible how missing things mysteriously reappear? Many people ask, "what is it with that?" 

Consider how something in your vibration creates every experience. Consider that as you are vibrating the story, "I do not know where it is," then the thing continues to exist and vibrate in a place beyond the scope you are focusing on. Consider how you feel when something disappears.  Whatever the feelings, irritation, frustration, anger or others, they are in your vibration before the manifestation, before the disappearance of something you are now looking for.  Every experience has at its core the intention to empower you to raise awareness of the real issue. And this is not that which evokes the same feeling o the surface.  It is deeper.