Learning 669

Today  is  your  chance to  awaken  to  the  gift  of living  —  before  it  is  too  late.  Time  really does  slip  through  your  fingers  like  tiny grains  of  sand.  

Let  this new  day  be  the  defining  moment  of your  life,  the  day  that  you make  the  decision once  and  for  all  to  focus  on  what  is  truly important to  you.  

Make the  decision  to  spend  more  time  with those who make your  life  meaningful.  Revere the  special  moments,  revel in  their  power.  Do the  things  that  you  have  always  wanted  to do. 

Climb  that  mountain  you  have  always wanted to  climb  or  learn  to play  the  trumpet.  Dance in  the  rain  or  build  a  new  business.  Learn to love  music,  learn  a  new  language  and rekindle  the  delight  of your  childhood.  

Stop  putting  off  your  happiness  for  the  sake of achievement.  Instead,  why  not  enjoy  the process?  Revive  your spirit  and  start  tending to  your  soul.  That’s  the  way  to  Nirvana.

The  ultimate  destination  of all  truly enlightened  souls  is  a  place  called  Nirvana. 

Actually, more  than  a  place,  as it is believed Nirvana  to  be  a  state,  one that  transcended anything  they  had  known  previously.  

In Nirvana, all  things  were  possible.  There was no  suffering  and  the  dance  of life  was  played out  with  divine  perfection.  On  reaching Nirvana, one felt  that  he can step  into  Heaven on  Earth.  This  was the  ultimate  goal  in  life.  

We  are  all  here  for  some  special  reason. Meditate  on  what  your  true  calling  is,  and how  you can  give  of  yourself  to  others.  Stop being  a  prisoner  of  gravity. Today,  light  your spark  of  life  and  let  it  blaze  brightly.  Start applying  the  principles  and  strategies of enlightened living. Be all  that  you  can  be.  A time  will  come  when  you  too  will  taste  the fruits  of  that  place  called  Nirvana. 

Little  hints  will  appear  to  confirm  your entrance at the state of enlightenment. You  will start  to  notice  the  holiness  in  everything  that is  around  you:  the divinity  of  a  moonbeam, the  allure  of  a  lush  blue  sky  on  a  scorching summer  day,  the  fragrant  bloom  of  a  daisy or  the  laugh  of  a mischievous  little  child.

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Learning 660

When you have  cultivated  a  deep  sense  of  faith  in  your  abilities  and an  indomitable  spirit,  nothing  can  stop  you  from  succeeding  in  all your  pursuits  and  living  with  great  rewards.  

Taking  the  time  to master  your  mind,  to  care  for  the  body  and  to  nourish  your  soul will  put  you  in  a  position  to  develop  more  richness  and  vitality  in your  life.  It  is  as  Epictetus  said  so  many  years  ago:  ‘No  man  is  free who  is  not  a  master  of  himself.’

“Kaizen”  is  actually  a  very  practical  concept. Very.  Think  about  it.  How  could  a  person  possibly  lead a  corporation  if  he  cannot  even  lead  himself?  How  could  you nurture  a  family  if  you  haven’t  learned  to  nurture  and  care  for yourself?  How  could  you  possibly  do  good  if  you  don’t  even  feel good?  Do  you get  the point?” 

We need to think far  more  than  the importance  of  daily  exercise, a  healthful  diet  and  a  balanced lifestyle. Its the  importance  of  building strength  of  character,  developing  mental  toughness  and  living with courage. These  three  attributes  would  lead one  not  only  to  a  virtuous  life  but  to  a  life  filled  with  achievement, satisfaction  and  inner  peace.  Courage  was  a  quality  everyone could  cultivate  and  one  that  would  pay  huge  dividends  over  the long  run. 

What  does  courage  have  to  do  with  self-leadership  and personal  development?”  One can wonder. 

“Courage allows you to  run  your  own  race.  Courage  allows  you to  do  whatever  you  want  to  do  because  you  know  that  it  is  right. Courage  gives  you  the  self-control  to  persist  where  others  have failed.”

Ultimately,  the  degree  of  courage  you  live  with  determines the  amount  of  fulfillment  you  receive.  It  allows  you  to  truly  realize all  the  exquisite  wonders  of  the  epic  that  is  your  life.  And  those who  master  themselves  have  an  abundance  of  courage.

Learning 659

Most  important  principle  for  anyone  seeking to  attain  their  goals and  to  fulfill  their  life’s purpose is “you  will  never  be  able  to  hit a target  that  you  cannot  see.”

People  spend  their  whole  lives dreaming of becoming happier, living  with  more  vitality and  having an  abundance  of  passion.  

Yet  they  do  not  see  the  importance  of taking even  ten  minutes  a  month  to  write  out  their goals  and  to think  deeply  about  the  meaning  of their lives, their Dharma. Goal setting will make your life magnificent. Your world will become richer, more delightful and more magical.

Goal-setting is  not  just  for  distinguished  people who  reside  in a  world  full  of  material  attractions.  Anyone  who  wishes  to  improve the  quality  of  their  inner  as  well  as  their  outer  worlds  would  do well  to  take  out  a  piece  of  paper  and  start  writing  out  their  life aims.  At  the  very  moment  that  this  is  done,  natural  forces  will come  into  play  which  start  to  transform  these  dreams  into  reality.

Learning 657

Thoughts  are  vital,  living things,  little  bundles of  energy,  if  you  will.  

Most  people  don’t  give any  thought  to  the nature  of  their  thoughts  and  yet,  the  quality of your  thinking  determines  the  quality  of your  life.  

Thoughts  are just  as  much  a  part  of  the material  world  as  the  lake  you  swim  in or the street  you  walk  on.  Weak  minds  lead  to weak  actions.  

A strong,  disciplined  mind,  which  anyone  can cultivate  through  daily practice,  can  achieve miracles.  

If  you  want  to  live  life  to  the  fullest, care  for your  thoughts  as  you  would  your  most prized  possessions.

Work  hard  to  remove  all  inner  turbulence. The  rewards  will  be abundant.

Learning 653

The  Chinese  character  for ‘crisis’  is  comprised  of  two  sub-characters:  one  that  spells  ‘danger’ and  another  that  spells  ‘opportunity.’  I  guess  that  even  the  ancient Chinese  knew  that  there  is  a  bright  side  to  the  darkest circumstance  —  if  you  have  the  courage  to  look  for  it.

There  are  no  mistakes  in  life, only lessons.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  negative  experience,  only opportunities  to  grow,  learn  and  advance  along  the  road  of  selfmastery.  From  struggle  comes  strength.  Even  pain  can  be  a wonderful  teacher.

Absolutely.  To  transcend  pain,  you  must  first  experience  it.  Or to  put  it  another  way,  how  can  you  really  know  the  joy  of  being  on the  summit  of  the  mountain  unless  you  have  first  visited  the  lowest valley.  

“To  savor  the  good  one  must  know  the  bad?” 

Learning 651

The  boundaries  of your  life  are  merely  creations  of  the  self.'” 

Enlightened  thinkers  know  that  their  thoughts form  their world  and  the  quality  of  one’s  life comes  down  to  the  richness  of one’s  thoughts. If  you  want  to  live  a  more  peaceful, meaningful  life, you  must  think  more peaceful,  meaningful  thoughts.” 

Learning 650

Stop  judging  events  as  either positive  or negative.  Rather,  simply  experience  them, celebrate them  and  learn  from  them.  

Every  event  offers  you  lessons.  These little lessons  fuel  your  inner  and  outer  growth. Without  them,  you would  be  stuck  on  a plateau. 

Just  think  about  it  in  your  own  life. Most people  have  grown  the  most  from  their  most challenging experiences.  

If  you  meet  with  an  outcome  you  did  not expect and  feel  a  little  disappointed, remember  that  the  laws  of  nature always ensure  that  when  one  door  closes  another opens.

Once  you  consistently  apply  this  principle  to your  daily  life  and start  to  condition  your mind  to  translate  every  event  into  a positive, empowering  one,  you  will  banish  worry forever.  You  will stop  being  a  prisoner  of your  past.  Instead,  you  will  become  the architect  of  your  future.

Learning 649

“Your  I can  is  more  important  than  your  I.Q.”
When  you  form  the  habit  of  searching  for  the  positive  in  every circumstance,  your  life  will  move  into  its  highest  dimensions.  This is  one  of  the  greatest  of  all  the  natural  laws.

And  it  all  starts  with  using  your  mind  more  effectively.

All  success  in  life,  whether  material  or spiritual,  starts  with  that  twelve-pound  mass  sitting  between  your shoulders.  Or  more  specifically,  with  the  thoughts  that  you  put  into your  mind  every  second  of  every  minute  of  every  day.  Your  outer world  reflects  the  state  of  your  inner  world.  By  controlling  the thoughts  that  you  think  and  the  way  you  respond  to  the  events  of your  life,  you  begin  to  control  your  destiny.