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May all find the teacher within to guide oneself towards unconditional love and peace

Sunday, November 25, 2018

Go beyond self-esteem and self-worth

For those who are not really interested in the path of yoga, they don't need to 'practice yoga'. People can just live everyday life as they are, don't need to do anything to purify the mind, to render the mind quiet, to free the mind from the influence of worldly egoistic ideas, thinking, belief, behavior, action and reaction, to free the mind from ignorance and the by-products of ignorance - egoism, impurities, restlessness and suffering.

People can continue being passionate towards improving the quality of a worldly life that mostly emphasize on the gratification of the desires of wants and don't wants.

From young to old, it's all about developing and enhancing the qualities of name and form that the thinking mind attached onto and identifies as 'I', to carry on or adopt a particular cultural/religious/spiritual belief and practice that influence the way of life, to be 'educated', to accumulate 'knowledge', 'skills' and 'qualifications', to empower a high self-esteem and self-worth that builds on personality, confidence, self-image, body image, charm and attractiveness, physical and mental ability and achievement, to be accumulating relationships and friendships, to broadening social networks, to establish a livelihood and a social/community life, to enjoy sights/sounds/tastes/smells/sensations/imagination, to aspire and be inspired, to fall in love, to find a life partner or some lovers, to reprocreate, to build a family, to enjoy easier and more comfortable life, to contribute to the society or the country or the world, to attain acknowledgement, recognition, support, praise and compliments, to attain 'success' in life, career and relationship, to attain the sense of existence, purpose, pride, happiness, joyfulness, blessedness, gladness and meaningfulness.

For those who sincerely want to practice yoga and realize yoga, then go beyond a worldly life that emphasizes on developing and enhancing 'self-esteem' and 'self-worth' that derived from ignorance and egoism that feed on worldly ideas, thinking, beliefs and practice.

The necessity or importance of developing and enhancing 'self-esteem', 'self-worth', 'confidence', 'self-image', 'body image', 'charm and attractiveness', 'physical and mental ability and achievement', 'the sense of existence/purpose/meaningfulness', and etc, are nothing but the play of ignorance and egoism.

The sense of self-esteem and self-worth that builds on the qualities of names and forms, such as "I know something", "I can do something", "I achieved something", "I am good", "I look good", "I feel good", "I am strong", "I am healthy", "I have family and friends", "I am contributing something", "I am acknowledged and supported", "My life/career/relationship is good and meaningful" and so on, is conditional and impermanent. It will break.

Yoga practitioners are supposed to eliminate the egoism and not empowering the egoism. It's the ego that needs to have a high self-esteem to achieve 'success' in life, career and relationship, to attain the sense of existence, acknowledgement, self-worth, confidence, purpose, or meaningfulness. And thus it performs actions out of intention and aspiration. It attached onto and identifies with its actions and the fruit of actions. It is being determined and bound by the actions and the fruit of actions.

For those who are aware of this, actions are being performed out of compassion, without the need/aspiration of 'developing' and 'enhancing' self-esteem to achieve 'success' in life, career and relationship, to attain the sense of existence, acknowledgement, self-worth, confidence, purpose, or meaningfulness. Though that is what most people including highly educated and intelligent minds strongly believe in and are practicing, and that's their freedom.

"Well done!"
"That's very good!"
"You should be proud of yourself!"
"I am so proud of you!"
Most people think and believe that all these words are very essential positive encouragement and acknowledgement towards somebody's achievement to enhance their self-esteem and self-worth, so that they will be motivated to strive harder to improve and be better, to attain continuous positive feedback and acknowledgement, to attain the sense of self-worth, accomplishment, purpose, meaningfulness. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Those who are free from ignorance and egoism don't need any 'positive words of encouragement or acknowledgement' from anyone to motivate them to perform actions that will benefit all and everyone, and are not disturbed or discouraged by any 'negative words of discouragement or non-acknowledgement' to be continuing performing actions that will benefit all and everyone.

'Yoga teachers' who truly teach yoga in the yoga class don't empower the egoism in the yoga students but to allow the students to develop correct understanding and direct experience towards the practice of yoga to eliminate the egoism.

By constantly giving the students 'positive words of encouragement' out of "good intention to encourage and motivate the students to be good, do good, to improve and be better" because the teacher thinks and believes that "the students who haven't developed non-craving and non-attachment would be discouraged or lack of motivation to be good and do good, or to improve in their practice, if the teacher doesn't give any 'positive words of encouragement' to the students", don't help to eliminate the egoism, but instead will only be empowering the egoism in the students. And if the students have already developed non-craving and non-attachment towards any kind of 'positive words of encouragements', then, 'positive words of encouragements' are needless in such yoga classes, as the students don't need to hear any 'positive words of encouragements' to motivate them to be good, do good and to improve, neither the students will be discouraged or lack of motivation to perform their practice, to be good, do good and to improve, if the teacher never give any form of 'positive words of encouragements.'

Be free.

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Know thyself. Everything is impermanent and selfless. There is no 'I'. There is no 'I am selfless'/'I am not selfless'. There is no 'I am hurt'/'I need to be healed from hurt'. Non-blind believing, non-blind following, non-blind practicing and non-blind propagating, but be open-minded to inquire the truth of everything. Be free. Be peaceful. Be happy.

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