(HH Pujya Swami Chinmayananda)
We are often brought up to not think of ourselves in terms of Love. The Love which manifests as healthy self-esteem but does not display egotism, narcissism, or 'ologies'. It is not about pampering, finding loopholes, spoiling, avoiding, escaping. Learning to Love oneself is a part of the battle of understanding Universal Love - that capital 'ell'. If we cannot Love ourselves, how can we ever hope to properly, appropriately, Love others?
It is about knowing one's boundaries without being defensive, knowing one's limits without being restrictive: it is being clear about values and principles and practicing them. It is knowing when to withdraw and when to reach out. It is the setting of lesser and greater goals, then not being harsh when time-frames slip or the goals shift.
Self-Love can be nurtured through the cultivation of thinking on the subject of our relationship with the external and how it bears upon our internal nature. Yet That Love, The 'Ell', is beyond even rumination, examination or contemplation.
It lies only within pure meditation. That point at which all thinking ceases, thoughts are suspended and we find the spaces between them. The reward of enquiry into Self and Love is to bring one to that point of the suspension of animation and sit only in meditation.
moksha - 'breaking the myth' (Sanskrit, Vedanta... it is a long and arduous path to get from understanding the material world and then shattering all that understanding)
nirvana - 'negating the manifest' (Tibetan - Buddhism... as it arose from Vedanta, this is similar in the above, of coming to realise all this is an illusion)
dhikr - 'remember Me and I will remember you' (Arabic - Sufism... differs slightly, in that Islam still retains dualism, That and Us, but in joining with the Love manifest in That, we, the Us, become as one)
dveikut - supreme connection (Judaic - Kabbalah... this is the concept which is referred to in Psalm 46;10
“Be still, and know that I am God”)
[The term used in Christian mysticism is 'hypostatic union'. Not quite the same ring to it! But it describes the unification of human state with the substratum of existence and was an understanding that arose to 'explain' Jesus of Nazareth. It did not arise from Yeshu's teachings - which are very Vedantic in tone and presentation.]
NB; while staying true to LLL on Sundays, some posts will now inevitably tie in with 'menoculayshunal' posts, as an essential part of the exploration in those can be found in my expositions here. (Weeelll, exposition might be aggrandizing it a bit, but they will be deeper than your average post!) Also, a recently acquired, but fast becoming worthy pal, "F" over at Tigger's Wee Blog, has her own pondering going on which ties in rather nicely. Wonder where we might wander together... 😍
Loving our self has never been easy. If it was and how would we be?
ReplyDeleteCoffee is on and stay safe
Much wisdom about Love today! Thank You! Love Barb
ReplyDeleteI've always thought of myself as too lazy, or possibly too shallow, to make the time to meditate. I did give time to it while i was ar university - stress control really (full time study by day full time job at night). Since then I've only really found deep self-care to be a realistic goal when living on my own. Self-care has had to take forms that others in the household can 'identify' with - like physical exercise. Humans are social animals, so we thrive best in communities (and households) of people with whom we share a curiosity. I nearly said 'share values' but that could be read in so many wrong ways. By curiosity I mean a willingness to learn, explore, examine, test change, adapt, build resilience, embrace.... What does shared curiosity mean to your followers? Have i picked the right word? xxx F (and Mr T of course)
ReplyDeleteHari OM
DeleteRe the meditation; neither think in terms of lazy or 'depth'... for true meditation does take a great deal of dedicated practice and it is fair to say that it takes some strength to be able to separate oneself for sufficient time each day to engage in that practice - as the fact that my own practice lapsed during 2020 serves to prove. Having others dependent on one involves a level of sacrifice.
Your comment on 'self-care' is valid in its own point. However, it is not to be confused with the Self Love being described above. Self-care is definitely about managing one's immediate environment, particularly in social terms, to ensure an equal measure of cooperation and common interest. How well one manages is largely determined by how well settled one is within oneself - and it is the latter part which is addressed by Self Love. The human critter is indeed socially inclined, but there is also an imperative that each individual seeks some degree of solitude for their mental and emotional wellbeing. If cohabitating in any form, then indeed it becomes necessary to temper how one finds that time of solitude. There is no reason that meditation cannot take place in a multi-person household, as long as there is simple respect for each to have their own, self-dedicated space and time.
Your comment then moves into a third dimension with regard to communal living - which is O/T for this post - but I do like the term 'shared curiosity' in describing an ideal group scenario... perhaps we are finding that here in Blogville!!! Yxx
I think our happiness has a lot to do with our perception of who we ourselves are.
ReplyDeletelove does have to be cultivated, on that I am in agreement. love doesn't just happen, and that is on all the different types of love. I say I love dogs. loving people is much harder and a different kind of love. I love pizza is also different. I love the person I live with becomes much harder.. loving myself is even harder than any of these
ReplyDeleteI so failed at meditation! I took classes. It was really hard. Thanks for the reminders.
ReplyDeleteHappy Sunday YAM...
ReplyDeleteWhat a thoughtful post. Love...a four letter word with so many meanings and used on so many things.
I often find myself saying I love food, books etc. I try to use a different word, just using love to describe my feeling for living breathing things.
Hugs HiC
Interesting reading, as always. I'll admit I've never been drawn to 'actively' pursuing meditation - at least not in the form which I think is meant here. My most valuable and (to me) meaningful thoughts invariably come unbidden, when I'm out by myself, walking or riding my bicycle, and this to me feels sufficient, although I realise that you are aiming for a greater depth.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Gail.
Oh, my. Deep thinking. My brain is resistant these days but I shall do my best. namaste, janice xx
ReplyDelete