I am sad

[hemanthks]

I am sad, depressed and crying. I am just seeing a lot of greediness, lies, deception, hypocrisy, killings, etc. in this world...

What can I do? How can I set everything right ?

[HathaTeacher]

Hi hemanthks,
Part of it is of course the season, at our latitudes[]
and, sorry to say all prana on Earth comes from the Sun... Only 36 hrs. left to solstice JFYI, phew, thank goodness... (and it'll be on a full-moon night this time, quite a show ! )
Let's look forward to it. Winter solstice is a good time for reflection and pathfinding in one's life. If you're not excited by Xmas/Hanuka/Yule celebrations, or not taking part in any (whatever the reason) then make it a holiday of perspective, to help oneself in viewing life as a witness, and in brainstorming new possible path/paths into the happier new year/years.
 
The standard herb tea during an autumn depression is dried St. Johns Herb (hypericum), a plant excellent in transforming the sun energy into a chemical substance (hypericine), in the whole herb and particularly in flowers or buds.
Also, let in fresh air often (both mentally and literally) and avoid too much indoor life, especially during daylight (despite of our outdoor temperatures... :-) and try a mass-media fast for a while. Shrug for a while from lending your own head to their (pretty profitable... ) doom prophecies. Swap the end-of-the-world-is-next dramaturgy for some music or standup comedians you really love - they're capable of seeing lighter sides of things even in what you, or the media, tend to paint in dark. They practice light, in their own special way, which makes almost a preliminary exercise in non-attachment. Don't puzzle your head with the world not being as it should be (yet never has been...), just be in the world as-is. Focus on what you can do to increase happiness in it, starting with yours & the people's or animals' who are close to you. Interestingly, it's our own thoughts and deeds that make us happy, even if the media agenda claims those to be just a pee into the Ocean (in fact, those are not).

I find YouTube useful in finding what you need at a particular state of mind, it even adapts as you go, and for free.

Honor your need for regular sleep, be aware of your diet and habits, remember body and mind are two sides of the same coin. Self-pace, but skip neither physical exercise nor AYP practice. Perhaps have a friend, training pal, or sibling challenge you in some way which seems reasonable yet not too easy for you. To get out of Tamasic, you use a little Go! (not too much though) to get into Rajasic; nothing wrong with that, because it's nearly impossible to bootstrap yourself directly from Tamas to Sattva.

When I was an involuntary single, and not extremely cheerful either[] I picked up an old Tantra technique which I later posted here:
http://www.aypsite.com/plus-forum/index.php?topic=5573#50695

My 2 cents :-)

[karl]

quote:Originally posted by hemanthks

I am sad, depressed and crying. I am just seeing a lot of greediness, lies, deception, hypocrisy, killings, etc. in this world...

What can I do? How can I set everything right ?

A story for you.

A man was sitting at the side of the road between Edmonton and Calgary.

After a while a stranger approached him travelling towards Calgary. He asked what the people of Calgary were like.

The man asked the stranger wher he had come from and the stranger replied that he had recently left Edmonton.

The man asked how the stranger had found the people of Edmonton and the stranger replied that he had found them friendly, helpful, generous and fun.

The man told the stranger that he would find the people of Calgary to very similar and wished him well.

After another couple of hours another stranger appeared coming from the opposite direction. He approached the man and told him he had come from Calgary where he had found the people to be mean, unfriendly and surly and was hoping to get a better reception in Edmonton.

The man told the stranger he was going to out of luck and that he would find the people of Edmonton just as bad or even worse and bid him good day.

When you say 'set things right' do you mean the way you choose to see the world ? or the way in which you wish to perceive the world ?

As Buddha once said a foot feels the foot when it feels the ground.

No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place - Zen

Get out and go for a walk if you can, be busy, get plenty of sleep and rise early. Make yourself. Meditation can certainly help you realise.

Get a book by Byron Katie - Loving what is (she also has a web site).

[hemanthks]

Namaste HT:

quote:

Hi hemanthks,
Part of it is of course the season, at our latitudes[]
and, sorry to say all prana on Earth comes from the Sun... Only 36 hrs. left to solstice JFYI, phew, thank goodness... (and it'll be on a full-moon night this time, quite a show ! )
Let's look forward to it. Winter solstice is a good time for reflection and pathfinding in one's life. If you're not excited by Xmas/Hanuka/Yule celebrations, or not taking part in any (whatever the reason) then make it a holiday of perspective, to help oneself in viewing life as a witness, and in brainstorming new possible path/paths into the happier new year/years.

I was puzzled myself, nothing ever happened to me like this before. Later, today morning I came to know about lunar eclipse and winter solstice happening on the same day, and was thinking/contemplating on the same lines!! Thank You, I take this as a sign for something happening for sure.

Thank You for listening to me and for all the advise. It was helpful.

Namaste Karl

quote:
When you say 'set things right' do you mean the way you choose to see the world ? or the way in which you wish to perceive the world ?

As Buddha once said a foot feels the foot when it feels the ground.

No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place - Zen

Get out and go for a walk if you can, be busy, get plenty of sleep and rise early. Make yourself. Meditation can certainly help you realise.

Get a book by Byron Katie - Loving what is (she also has a web site).

Thank You for the story. I get that I have to see more of positive. When I said, to set things right, probably I meant the way I perceive the world ? Can you elaborate more ? whats the difference between choosing and perceiving ? I was thinking justice to all, honesty, equality and such things.

Loving What is - I have to get this book now, yours is the second recommendation.

Thank You.

Hemanth

[Shanti]

Hi Hemanth,

What is your practice routine?
Could it be you need to self pace a bit and increase your grounding activity?

Also yep, definite yes to "loving what is" by Byron Katie.

[karl]

I want to answer your question, however I'm not sure it's the right time. My answers might sting a bit. The metaphor in the story is deeper than just being positive.

The metaphor provides a mirror it does not provide an answer. That answer has to be provided by you.

Imagine you are marooned on a Desert Island. No contact with the outside world for several years, no knowledge of events, no contact with anyone. If you ask yourself who is doing the killing, the hypocrisy, the greed, the lies and deception in that world what would be your answer ?

[Etherfish]

quote:Originally posted by hemanthks

I am sad, depressed and crying. I am just seeing a lot of greediness, lies, deception, hypocrisy, killings, etc. in this world...

What can I do? How can I set everything right ?

You have to change yourself first. Ghandi said something like BE the change you want to see in the world.

Hard to understand from our viewpoint; you have to trust the masters.

[Kirtanman]

quote:Originally posted by hemanthks

I am sad, depressed and crying. I am just seeing a lot of greediness, lies, deception, hypocrisy, killings, etc. in this world...

What can I do? How can I set everything right ?

Just set yourself right, that's all you have to do.

As Ramana Maharshi famously said (paraphrasing a little, here) .... "It is easier to simply put on shoes, than to try to carpet the entire world."

Suffering comes from incorrectly limited perspective; practices open us up to our true nature, where nothing can ever be lacking, wrong or unwhole.

Near-term, though, just know that non-peace requires thought -- and not only thought, but certain types of thoughts, and over-attachment to those thoughts, along with any conditioned interpretations we may have about those thoughts.

In actuality, though, just as our computer screens refresh, reality refreshes every moment - every moment is a new universe - all thoughts are really just moment-to-moment clouds passing through consciousness; they're only as troubling as the focus of our attention allows them to be.

Also, as Anthony de Mello said, the one thing that sages of every tradition agree upon is simply:

All is well.

It really is; only thinking can make it seem otherwise.

And I realize that none of this may necessarily feel true at any given moment; spiritual sadhana is basically comprised of letting go of our conditioned tendencies to constrict around the idea that something, or many things, are wrong .... and opening to simply being easy with it all, and recognizing that all is well, all is as it is, and that the greatest gift and healing we can ever offer is the gift and healing of opening to our own inherent wholeness.

And the only way to avoid doing that, is to stop practicing.



"Rest easy, baby, rest easy .... recognize it all as light and rainbows, and be happy."
~LIVE, Run to the Water

Wholeheartedly,

Kirtanman

[hemanthks]

quote:Originally posted by Shanti

Hi Hemanth,

What is your practice routine?
Could it be you need to self pace a bit and increase your grounding activity?

Also yep, definite yes to "loving what is" by Byron Katie.

Namaste Shanti: I do alternate nostril breathing (5-10 min) followed with DM (20 min) daily twice (but with a different mantra). I am uncomfortable doing SB. In addition, I do Ganapati Homam daily.

I really don't think pacing is the issue here. I will give it a try, if I continue to feel the same.

[hemanthks]

quote:Originally posted by karl

I want to answer your question, however I'm not sure it's the right time. My answers might sting a bit. The metaphor in the story is deeper than just being positive.

The metaphor provides a mirror it does not provide an answer. That answer has to be provided by you.

Imagine you are marooned on a Desert Island. No contact with the outside world for several years, no knowledge of events, no contact with anyone. If you ask yourself who is doing the killing, the hypocrisy, the greed, the lies and deception in that world what would be your answer?

If I am all alone and the hypocrisy, greed etc. exists in that world, then everything should be coming from within me? Are you saying I am seeing these things because somewhere I am all these?

Please continue.

Namaste

[Etherfish]

I don't mean to interrupt Karl, but:
Every sort of action and emotion exists in this world. It is up to you what you want to concentrate on.
This is not to say you shouldn't devote your life to righting certain wrongs. Just that you should become aware of everything before you make that decision.

[karl]

quote:Originally posted by hemanthks

quote:Originally posted by karl

I want to answer your question, however I'm not sure it's the right time. My answers might sting a bit. The metaphor in the story is deeper than just being positive.

The metaphor provides a mirror it does not provide an answer. That answer has to be provided by you.

Imagine you are marooned on a Desert Island. No contact with the outside world for several years, no knowledge of events, no contact with anyone. If you ask yourself who is doing the killing, the hypocrisy, the greed, the lies and deception in that world what would be your answer?

If I am all alone and the hypocrisy, greed etc. exists in that world, then everything should be coming from within me? Are you saying I am seeing these things because somewhere I am all these?

Please continue.

Namaste

It is not for me to say, you need to explore that within you and find that truth.

What does your intuition tell you. Does the world cause you to suffer ? Is that really true ? Should the world change in order for you to be content ?

Once you figure out what the answer to this is you can let yourself off the hook that you choose to hang by. It is OK to want to see a change in the world as long as you want it for unselfish reasons. Change starts with the one who wants change, crying and depression only gains crying and depression for your world.

It's your story in your very own play, written and directed by you, all actors play their parts just the way you expect them to and you get the pay off you want. Deciding you want to change the play after many years of performing it in all the top theatres can be difficult to give up.

Are you prepared to tear up the script and write a different one ?

[hemanthks]

Etherfish and Karl;

Thank you for your words, it was helpful.

Namaste
Hemanth

[karl]

quote:Originally posted by hemanthks

Etherfish and Karl;

Thank you for your words, it was helpful.

Namaste
Hemanth

Remember that this is your first real step onto a practice tightrope. It takes time to find balance.

We are here to support you if we can. So, keep posting your experiences and questions.