The Power of Belief

The Power of Your Belief

You are what you belief. What you belief makes you who you are. Your beliefs rule your life. They condition the way you think, the way you behave and the way you do things. They can put limits on what you can say, what you do and what you have.

As Henry Ford once succinctly put it, “whether you believe you can, or whether you believe you can’t, you are probably right”.

One day, Socrates was having a walk outside the city of Athens. After a short walk, he decided to have a rest. He sat on a milestone by the side of the road a few miles from the city. As he was resting, he saw a traveller coming along the road. As he approached Socrates, the following conversation followed:

Traveller: “Greetings, friend! Can you please tell me; is this the road to Athens?”

Socrates: “Greetings. Carry on straight ahead. It is quite a big city. You cannot miss it.”

Traveller: “Tell me, what are the people of Athens like?”

Socrates: “Well, tell me where you are from, and what the people there are like, and I will tell you about the people of Athens.”

Traveller: “I am from Argos. I am very proud and happy to tell you that the people of Argos are the friendliest, happiest, most generous people you could ever wish to meet.”

Socrates: “Well. And I am very happy to tell you, my friend, that the people of Athens are exactly the same.”

A few minutes later, another traveller arrived and approached Socrates and again the following conversation ensued:

Traveller: “Greetings, friend! Can you please tell me; is this the road to Athens?”

Socrates: “Greetings. Carry on straight ahead. It is quite a big city. You cannot miss it.”

Traveller: “Tell me, what are the people of Athens like?”

Socrates: “Well, tell me where you are from, and what the people there are like, and I will tell you about the people of Athens.”

Traveller: “I am from Argos. I am sad and disappointed to tell you that the people of Argos are the meanest, most miserable and least friendly people you could ever wish to meet.”

Socrates: "Well. And I am very sad and disappointed to tell you, my friend, that the people of Athens are exactly the same.”

What do you think about Socrates, the two travellers and their belief system? What do you think about your own belief system? What judgements do you pass on others based on your own belief? What conclusions do you draw when you hear one side of a story before you have the opportunity to hear the other side? What assumptions do you make about the character of a person you are meeting for the first time who does not share your view on a matter you hold very dear to your heart? Your beliefs can help you to become the best of who you want to be. They can also help to make you become the opposite.

Identify any disempowering belief you currently have. Find out where it came from. If you cannot align it with any of your core values, you must consider dumping it now.

Dumping such unwanted belief would enable you to be a light traveller with no baggage to weigh you down in your journey in life. This should give you the needed freedom to move freely in your journey that takes you toward achieving your ultimate purpose in life.

My 5 Favourite Quotes

My Top 5 Favourite Quotes

"Learn to use your emotions to think, not think with your emotions" from Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad Poor Dad.

"Our happiness depends on wisdom all the way" by Sophocles (465 BC - 405 BC)

"Destroy the seed of evil, or it will grow up your ruin" by Aesop (620 BC - 560 BC)

"Injuries may be forgiven, but not forgotten”
Aesop (620 BC-560)

"The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent full of doubt" by Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970)

The Mind

The mind is like a garden, thoughts like the seeds. We can grow either flowers or weeds. Let your mind be the garden that  produces lushious flowers for the enjoyment of self and others.

Miracle

When people tell me they don't believe in miracle, I say to them;  "it's probably because you do not believe your own existence, which is a miracle in itself."

It is not my role to preach or try to convince anyone of what to believe. It comes from inner knowing.

The best way I have found to appreciate my life as a miracle is in regularly going into my inner space and meditating on life questions such as:

Where do my thoughts come from?

What is consciousness?

Where does consciousness come from?

I will keep believing that my life is a miracle until the universe comes up with the answers to these human questions.

Living Like The Great Master

Learning to live like the Great Master

The Master does nothing, yet he leaves nothing undone. The ordinary man is always doing things, yet many more are left to be done.”  This inspiring quote from the 38th verse of the Toa Teh Ching has been my lifeline during moments of despair when I become overwhelmed with thoughts of where my life is going. This has become the subject of my meditation especially during the onset of distress and before anxiety and panic set in.

The paradox of this verse illustrates the dilemma inherent in the paradigm of how people succeed in life: Through hard work. This presupposes that hard work alone is the prerequisite for achieving success. That is why we are all involved in the rat race striving for success. We do not know when to stop striving. By our continuous striving and re-striving, we let in stress, depression and dis-eases into our lives.

Hard work is great for success. However, letting in the grace of the Great Master brings real meaning to human success. Although we can control our work, we cannot control the outcome. That is in the hands of the Master. That is His grace.  

The creative Source does nothing, yet everything He created works in perfect completeness leaving nothing undone. The universe is in complete harmony with the Creator. When we interfer with nature and suffer the consequences, we blame the Master for causing it or for not preventing it.  

As the Master is perfect, he completed His creative work to His perfection. He does not therefore need to interfere.

This verse has application in many areas of life. For example, when the work is complete, the worker steps aside and allows the outcome to flow in like river. It also has application for business. For example, when the boss issues an instruction to his employees, he leaves the stage and allows them to get on with the job.

When you practice the habit of allowing, you do nothing, yet you leave nothing undone. You let go of your interferance and let God take control. At the point when everything in your life seems to be at a complete standstill, I ask you to surrender all to the Great Master, the universal Power, the Source of your inexhaustible supplies, who does nothing, yet leaves nothing undone. When the Master created you, He left nothing undone. He created you to perfection leaving nothing.

This verse teaches me to become an observer of events in my life. As you step out of your door each morning, begin to notice everything and everyone you come across on your way to and from work, from shopping, from your place of worship, etc. Begin to notice what each event brings into your live or what it takes away. Always let your mind be on the positive side in all of such events. Begin to learn to see the blessing in every encounter. Even when someone steps on your toe, it is for a reason. Perhaps just to test your level of tolerance, or to learn more about forgiveness.

The greatest joy for us as humans is that we are all destined for success. We let success manifest in our lives by knowing when enough is enough in everything we do. The Master does not strive for success, He is the success. He does not strive to be great, He is the Great. Begin today to learn to become like the Master who does nothing, yet leaves nothing undone.

The Kingdom of God

The Kingdom of God

The kingdom of God is already in our hearts. It is like a garden needing constant nourishment through our good deeds. This is what invites God's Spirit into our hearts and keeps it growing. At that level of Beingness, every little act of love, every small gesture of goodwill, every genuine expression of gratitude, every kind word spoken, every little help rendered, every act of care and compassion, everything and anything we do that brings comfort, relief and succour to others counts toward keeping the kingdom of God in our hearts alive and flourishing. In the words of Oscar Wild, "Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead." God is Love. Love is God. Let us Keep both in our hearts.

Never Give Up Praying

Never Give Up Praying

There was once a renowned sage. He used to pray fervently in front of his Lord each day. One day, while he was praying, one of his followers came and sat beside him. As the two sat silently together, the sage received a message from God, which was overheard by the follower. However, the follower, out of respect for the sage, kept quiet.

The next day, the pious man was once again busy praying. The same follower was by his side when he received another message. Once again, out of respect, the follower did not ask the sage any question.

On the third day, the same thing happened. But, this time the follower decided to speak out and asked, "God has constantly been telling you that your prayer is not accepted, so why do you keep praying?" The sage, with a feeling of surprise in his face, responded and said, "You have only heard this rejection for three days and are suggesting that I give up praying, whereas I have heard this rejection for thirty years and I have not given-up or become discouraged. Anyway, who are you to interfere? It is simply my job to pray and it is for God to accept prayers as He pleases."

We should never be discouraged if our prayers are not being answered as quickly as we want. God will never let our seeds go to waste as long as we keep watering and nourishing them with good deeds to make them grow.

Extracted and adapted from A sufi Story