(As per popular request, starting today, we will be mentioning the reference verse for the post. As mentioned earlier, it may be a good practice to look at the verse and the commentary in the book while reading the post. It is not NECESSARY or COMPULSORY).
Today, Shankaracharya prods us to embark on the most significant and most neglected activity of our lives: TO THINK!
How is thinking a neglected activity? Are we not thinking all the time? Yes but the problem is that we use our thinking ability to make profits, play politics, concoct gossip, build plans, select vegetables, decide dates, manipulate people, etc. Our thinking is utility-based and gross. By Shankara's standards, this doesn't qualify as thinking at all. Thinking about people, objects, emotions, situations is not really thinking. Shankara says Think of yourself, your life, your purpose. When thinking is directed inwards, we evolve.
Shankaracharya says: Think to Evolve! That is called "Chintan"!
Shankara thus encourages us to think over the pivotal questions of life. Where have I come from? Where am I going? What is my identity? What is my relationship with the world around? THINK!
Many people ask: Why do we have to think so much? Just go with the flow!
We need to think so much because we are not animals!! Animals go by impulse, human beings by wisdom. It is only the human being who has the ability to think subtly and discriminatively. Let's not waste it in just thinking which dress to wear for the party or which share to invest in. That's ok. But...
Think with a purpose. Think with depth. Think with direction. Think to evolve.
The fact is most of us don't like to think. There are various reasons:
1) We are outright lazy! Intellectual sloth is a world-wide disease. People don't want to take the trouble to think and analyse their own selves, the world they live in, the God they pray to. They don't mind spending 3-4 hours everyday passively watching TV, but don't seem to have the time to spend 30 minutes daily thinking about their own lives. It is important we identify and shed off this intellectual inertia.
2) We are not motivated enough to think. A lot of us do not just see the point! Why the hell should I think? It becomes important we realise that our entire life is designed by our thinking. We consider stress natural, sorrows obvious, suffering mandatory, because we do not realise that on the other side of clear thinking is bliss infinite!
3) We love the comfort of our ignorance. For many of us, thinking is painful because somewhere deep within we know that if I start thinking clearly, I will lose all my wrong notions and false ideas, and sadly I don't want that to happen. It is important that as people we gather the courage to give up our old ways and live the best life we can because opportunities like a human-life don't happen very often. To renounce fallacious thinking is true Sannyas.
4) We lack intellectual stamina. We just have lost our ability to pursue deep thinking for sufficiently long for it to reach any definite logical conclusion. We start thinking, and then give up midway. How often we hear ourselves say, "I am tired of thinking so much"! The law of the mind is: Use it or Lose it. Study of scriptures is a powerful way to train the mind in clear and systematic thinking, and thus cultivate intellectual stamina.
Everyone sees apples fall. But Newton thought about it. Knowledge arose. Everyone lived as slaves for centuries. Gandhi thought about it. Freedom arose. Everyone saw the idols at Dakshineshwar. Ramakrishna thought about it. Love happened. Everyone was anxious about the war. Arjuna thought about it. Geeta flowed. Thinking leads to growth, learning, freedom, peace. Right, clear, meaningful thinking is the key to lasting Happiness & Success.
So, Shankara says, spend the day thinking over what really matters. Think with the help of scriptures, under guidance of a Guru, in a scientific manner. Think because when we Think, we evolve.
Quotes:
"Time can make us grow old. But it is thinking that brings about maturity." - Gurudev
Suggested Activities:
1. Write a blog or a journal! Writing forces the mind to think clearly.
2. Join/Form a discussion group and regularly meet & discuss life, identity, purpose.
3. Spend time in solitude. At least once a year, live alone for a week. Solitude is very conducive for right thinking.
4. Go for Nature-walks. Walk amidst the greens. Yes, research shows that exposure to nature helps inspire a person to think about oneself and is a great aid in evolution.
5. Wake up early. Early hours of the morning offer a charged ambience and have a magical impact on our ability to think & evolve. Early-risers are better thinkers.
6. Embark on systematic spiritual study. Whether spirituality inspires us or not, study of scriptures surely trains the brain. If you can, sign-up for a spiritual class or study-group. If you have no direct access, study online. Chinmaya Mission and several other organisations offer online/postal spiritual courses. To join a Chinmaya Mission online/postal course, go to www.chinfo.org
(TODAY'S POST IS BASED ON BHAJA GOVINDAM VERSE 8)
Today, Shankaracharya prods us to embark on the most significant and most neglected activity of our lives: TO THINK!
How is thinking a neglected activity? Are we not thinking all the time? Yes but the problem is that we use our thinking ability to make profits, play politics, concoct gossip, build plans, select vegetables, decide dates, manipulate people, etc. Our thinking is utility-based and gross. By Shankara's standards, this doesn't qualify as thinking at all. Thinking about people, objects, emotions, situations is not really thinking. Shankara says Think of yourself, your life, your purpose. When thinking is directed inwards, we evolve.
Shankaracharya says: Think to Evolve! That is called "Chintan"!
Shankara thus encourages us to think over the pivotal questions of life. Where have I come from? Where am I going? What is my identity? What is my relationship with the world around? THINK!
Many people ask: Why do we have to think so much? Just go with the flow!
We need to think so much because we are not animals!! Animals go by impulse, human beings by wisdom. It is only the human being who has the ability to think subtly and discriminatively. Let's not waste it in just thinking which dress to wear for the party or which share to invest in. That's ok. But...
Think with a purpose. Think with depth. Think with direction. Think to evolve.
The fact is most of us don't like to think. There are various reasons:
1) We are outright lazy! Intellectual sloth is a world-wide disease. People don't want to take the trouble to think and analyse their own selves, the world they live in, the God they pray to. They don't mind spending 3-4 hours everyday passively watching TV, but don't seem to have the time to spend 30 minutes daily thinking about their own lives. It is important we identify and shed off this intellectual inertia.
2) We are not motivated enough to think. A lot of us do not just see the point! Why the hell should I think? It becomes important we realise that our entire life is designed by our thinking. We consider stress natural, sorrows obvious, suffering mandatory, because we do not realise that on the other side of clear thinking is bliss infinite!
3) We love the comfort of our ignorance. For many of us, thinking is painful because somewhere deep within we know that if I start thinking clearly, I will lose all my wrong notions and false ideas, and sadly I don't want that to happen. It is important that as people we gather the courage to give up our old ways and live the best life we can because opportunities like a human-life don't happen very often. To renounce fallacious thinking is true Sannyas.
4) We lack intellectual stamina. We just have lost our ability to pursue deep thinking for sufficiently long for it to reach any definite logical conclusion. We start thinking, and then give up midway. How often we hear ourselves say, "I am tired of thinking so much"! The law of the mind is: Use it or Lose it. Study of scriptures is a powerful way to train the mind in clear and systematic thinking, and thus cultivate intellectual stamina.
Everyone sees apples fall. But Newton thought about it. Knowledge arose. Everyone lived as slaves for centuries. Gandhi thought about it. Freedom arose. Everyone saw the idols at Dakshineshwar. Ramakrishna thought about it. Love happened. Everyone was anxious about the war. Arjuna thought about it. Geeta flowed. Thinking leads to growth, learning, freedom, peace. Right, clear, meaningful thinking is the key to lasting Happiness & Success.
So, Shankara says, spend the day thinking over what really matters. Think with the help of scriptures, under guidance of a Guru, in a scientific manner. Think because when we Think, we evolve.
Quotes:
"Time can make us grow old. But it is thinking that brings about maturity." - Gurudev
Suggested Activities:
1. Write a blog or a journal! Writing forces the mind to think clearly.
2. Join/Form a discussion group and regularly meet & discuss life, identity, purpose.
3. Spend time in solitude. At least once a year, live alone for a week. Solitude is very conducive for right thinking.
4. Go for Nature-walks. Walk amidst the greens. Yes, research shows that exposure to nature helps inspire a person to think about oneself and is a great aid in evolution.
5. Wake up early. Early hours of the morning offer a charged ambience and have a magical impact on our ability to think & evolve. Early-risers are better thinkers.
6. Embark on systematic spiritual study. Whether spirituality inspires us or not, study of scriptures surely trains the brain. If you can, sign-up for a spiritual class or study-group. If you have no direct access, study online. Chinmaya Mission and several other organisations offer online/postal spiritual courses. To join a Chinmaya Mission online/postal course, go to www.chinfo.org
(TODAY'S POST IS BASED ON BHAJA GOVINDAM VERSE 8)
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