By Karnamrita Das
THE POWER OF QUESTIONS and MEDITATION ON WHO WE THINK WE ARE: A natural process for me, almost like breathing, is my daily and frequent contemplation to question myself as to what I am truly absorbed in, focused on, and desire more than anything else, and also my aspirations and highest ideals, or what I want to be absorbed in, and become.( My prayer life is full of sharing this with Krishna, and praying for the empowerment to best serve others by who I am, and who I am becoming.)
The answers to such questions are essential to understand as it tells us who we are, and what we are becoming, in this life and beyond. There are so many ways to say this from many spiritual traditions and also in the Success literature of our time. To me, this is one of the many benefits of facing inevitable death of the body, either today, or tomorrow. Here is a short free verse rambling from last year which expresses this:
What do you believe about your self
and what do you actually have faith in—
that is so much a part of you
it’s invisible, hidden, yet constant
like the air you breathe?
You hardly perceive it
but it’s your sense of self
that gives you a life attitude
like the scent of your body
which life, people and dogs can smell.
It follows you everywhere
like your shadow
determining how you think
what you give energy to by attention.
Coloring your outlook
it’s what you project onto life
like tinted, scratched, or clear glasses
shaping your interpretation
of what you notice, or don’t see.
What do you truly want
if you dig deeply enough?
Knowing this truth,
what are you prepared to do
and what sacrifices
are you willing to make
in pursuit of it?
If you want to pay the price
to obtain your goal
do you think it’s inevitable
you’ll grasp or achieve it?
Or do you think
what you want is
impossible for YOU to obtain?
Are you at peace
with your life
which the Gita teaches
is necessary for happiness?
Are you thus satisfied,
or stuck in a rut,
seemingly painted into a corner
at a dead end street
and no way out?
Is life conspiring for you
or against you, or
is life full of possibilities
and you, full of potential
which you recognize
and feel hopeful to realize?
If you accept your potential
are you willing to endeavor
to develop it, knowing
you are a work in progress?
Do you have a sense
of the person you
were born to be, or
do you think
the die is cast and
that you must settle
for mediocrity and dissatisfaction
because you aren’t worthy of joy?
Our belief, faith, thoughts, and attitude
can be positively improved
by work, sadhana and prayer,
which is our essential life work.
Why?
Because they will determine whether
we have positive expectancy,
feel Krishna is helping us,
believe in the possible,
and are happy and grateful.
If we accept our highest self
we'll be willing let our light shine,
We'll go beyond our past pain
or our bodily appearance
intelligence, gender,
family, or nationality
to make spiritual progress
and fully use our life
for its best purpose
and help others as well.
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