The most powerful thing in the world, and beyond that

It's unpleasant, disturbing, and even can be life threatening upon coming in contact with difficult situation where one is being discriminated, bullied and threatened with violent abusive behavior, bullying and threats by those who are under the influence of deep ignorance. It's an unfortunate and painful experience, and truly unnecessary event to be happening onto anyone.

One doesn't need to become and behave like those ignorant human beings, where the mind thinks and believes that in order not to be discriminated, bullied and threatened by anyone, one needs to be more powerful than all the others by being more violent, aggressive and cruel than everyone else.

Real power is not coming from being violent, aggressive and cruel to be over-powering all the others, or being charming, persuasive and influential to be captivating all the others to become submissive towards oneself, and to act and behave in accordance to one's commands/desires.

Power is not about the ability of in control of all and everything.

It's about having self-awareness and self-control of not harming oneself or others. One doesn't need to become a bully or a nasty person just because one has been or is being bullied and ill-treated by some others who are ignorant. That's power. Being able to reject or walk away from violent fighting against one another that would cause unnecessary damages towards one another and the surrounding environment, is wisdom. That's power.

The most powerful thing in this world is the nature law of IMPERMANENCE. None, and nothing, can escape impermanence. The so called most 'powerful', 'wealthy', 'knowledgeable', 'successful' person and the champion of all champions in the world, will also have to bow down to IMPERMANENCE.

However, there's something beyond that, which is the knowledge and effort of transcending or going beyond IMPERMANENCE.

One can transcend or go beyond IMPERMANENCE, upon the attainment of the real liberation/independence/freedom in the mind, or SILENCE (selflessness/desirelessness), or the realization of unconditional peace from within, despite all kinds of inevitable impermanent changes and all kinds of 'difficulties', 'ridiculousness' and 'chaos' that are existing in the world, being free from ignorance and all kinds of incorrect thinking, desires or impurities deriving from ignorance, while having the correct understanding/wisdom/knowledge towards the modification of the mind, or the play of ignorance and egoism, and respecting the law of selflessness and impermanence in all kinds of names and forms, that enables one being undetermined and undisturbed by all kinds of impermanent changes, ignorance and the consequences of ignorance in the world, without the idea/urge/desire/action to be interfering with or controlling the world and all the others to be or not to be in certain way in accordance to one's commands or desires by intimidation or captivation, while being unattached towards all and everything or the duality of 'goodness and badness', transcending the mind perception of a worldly life existence of the limited adjuncts of a selfless impermanent body and restless modification of the mind.

Nothing to loose

Because of fear towards loosing something, one is not free, and would surrender oneself towards any bullying, intimidation or threat coming from somewhere and someone.

Those who have nothing to loose, they are fearless, and there's none and nothing can bully, intimidate or threaten them for anything.

The difference between the two, is the presence or absence of attachment.

Be strong and feel empowered?

Many people want to be 'strong' and feel 'empowered', as they think and believe that if they are 'weak' and 'vulnerable', they will be 'belittled' or 'intimidated' by those who are stronger than them, and if they are strong, they won't become a 'target' or 'victim' of other people's 'intimidation/belittling'.

In yoga, one doesn't need to be 'strong' or feel 'empowered' so that one doesn't become a 'target' or 'victim' of what most minds think and believe as a form of 'intimidation/belittling'.

One just needs to stop seeing/thinking/believing/identifying oneself as 'weak' and 'vulnerable' and one is naturally a 'target' or 'victim' of other people's 'intimidation/belittling' that needs to be toughen up and be empowered. One also needs to be free from self-pity as well as expectation or longing for receiving sympathy, empathy, protection, acknowledgement, support, attention, understanding, praise, liking, appreciation, encouragement, or empowerment from others.

It's stop thinking/believing that oneself or 'all human beings' should be treated in certain ways and shouldn't be treated in certain ways, or oneself deserves to be treated in certain ways while doesn't deserve to be treated in certain ways.

If the mind is not free from such thinking/belief/identification of  "I am weak and vulnerable and being a target/victim of other people's intimidation/belittling." then even though other people are not being intimidating/belittling oneself at all, but one will always feel 'intimidated' or 'belittled' by other people's confidence, courage, credibility and straightforwardness, which the perception of being intimidated or belittled is not coming from others, but from within constantly feeling "I am weak and vulnerable and being a target/victim of other people's intimidation/belittling."

Even if other people's action/speech/behavior is truly unpleasant/unreasonable with the intention to intimidate or belittling oneself, one won't be intimidated/belittled by that at all, if oneself is free from the thinking/belief/identification of "I am weak and vulnerable and being a target/victim of other people's intimidation/belittling." and would allow other people to act/speak/behave the way as they are, but one is not determined or disturbed by it. Neither does one need to be 'protected' from it.

One would stop seeing/perceiving 'intimidation/belittling' here and there, but just being aware of people are either being confident, courageous, credible and straightforward as they are which is nothing 'intimidating/belittling', or people are acting/speaking/behaving in the way that reflects their state of mind under the influence of ignorance, egoism, impurities, unhappiness, or suffering. Instead of feeling being a 'target' or 'victim' of other people's intimidation/belittling, one will be compassionate towards other people's unhappiness and suffering.

One will understand that one doesn't need to be 'strong' or feel 'empowered' at all, as the one who feels weak and vulnerable, who is highly sensitive, who is longing for attention and understanding from other people, who has expectation towards other people's treatments towards oneself has to be in certain ways and not to be in certain ways, who thinks oneself deserves certain treatments/reactions and doesn't deserve certain treatments/reactions, who constantly feels intimidated/offended/bullied/victimized/belittled/unattended/unheard/discouraged by other people, who wants to be sympathized, be protected, be heard, be understood, be noticed, be attended, be encouraged, be supported, be liked, be praised, be appreciated and be acknowledged, or who doesn't like to be unnoticed/unattended, unheard, disliked, disagreed with or criticized, is the ego.

Free the mind from this ego.

One will no longer identify oneself as a 'target' or 'victim' of other people's 'intimidation/belittling'. One stops seeing other people's action/speech/behavior that one's mind perceives/recognizes as unpleasant/unreasonable as a form of 'intimidation/belittling', while allowing other people to be free to act/speak/behave the way as they are, to express their unhappiness and suffering in the way that they are, that they know.

Those who understand this, they cannot be disturbed/hurt by other people's 'unpleasant/unreasonable' action/speech/behavior, but they can choose to move away in silence. It's not a weakness to move away in silence towards other people's 'unpleasant/unreasonable' action/speech/behavior, as these people are in suffering/unhappiness, and they don't know how to express their suffering/unhappiness in a less unpleasant/unreasonable way.

Be free.

Ignorant towards ignorance

The power of ignorance is so great that the mind doesn't even know it is under the influence of ignorance, thinking that it is wise or smart enough, or it is wiser or smarter than others. And the ego doesn't like to hear or be pointed out that it is the product of ignorance, and would feel offended or humiliated or intimidated.

Those who are aware of there's ignorance in themselves would be able to learn and evolve.

Be free.

Intimidated by other people's physical conditions and abilities in yoga (asana) practice?

If we have been putting in the same amount of time, discipline and effort into our daily yoga (asana) practice, just like those who have been spending lots of time, discipline and effort to keep the body and mind busy engaging in regular yoga (asana) practice, whether for spiritual growth, or for health and fitness reason, or for both, we won't have the free space in the mind, nor have the free time to be busy looking at other people's 'performance', or their result of a persistent and regular practice, and feel either envy or intimidated by other people's physical conditions and abilities, and spiritual improvement.

Although yoga, or unconditional love and peace, is nothing to do with the levels of physical conditions and abilities, but naturally, there will be certain amount of improvement in physical conditions and abilities, as an 'unavoidable' side effect coming from the regular yoga (asana) practice, whether we are aiming at it, or not, or whether we like it, or not.

We do not intent nor expect to gain any physical fitness, strength and flexibility while performing the yoga (asana) practice, as that is not the objective or goal of performing the yoga (asana) practice, and our basic yoga practice is non-attachment and non-identification towards the impermanent limited conditional physical body and the thinking mind. But the physical and mental effect coming from the regular yoga (asana) practice will still be there, as it is.

The body will gain certain degrees of fitness, strength and flexibility, and the mind will gain certain degrees of calmness and peace. But that is not the end of our yoga practice. We need to use that physical condition and state of mind that is conducive for meditation, to contemplate upon the truth, to go beyond the body and mind, to remove ignorance, to be free from being conditioned by egoism, duality, or the qualities of names and forms.

We will never feel intimidated by anyone or anything, if we truly practice yoga and meditation under correct understanding, right effort and right attitude.

Om shanti.