@Tribesteemup had this question for us these last couple of weeks -
"What makes you into the person you are today? Is it all destiny or do we play a hand in shaping who we are?
I believe the effect of Kamma (Karma in Sanskrit) has a lot to do with the unfolding of your life.
With this in mind, also knowing that we create our Karma, that certain actions will bring about certain resultants, and adding to it the impermanence of life and the human condition of attachment to this life, I can see that we do have a great deal to do with shaping our lives.
If we have a positive and compassionate outlook of life, cultivate good karma, and work towards improving the spiritual quality of life, we will find more happiness in our life. If we live a happy and full life when it comes to an end, to the point that of death where we seek out attachment to a new body and new life. it's that knowing how to live well, be in an awakened state - for me that means having a loving attitude, being responsible and compassionate with no regrets, That knowing how to live well will allows a person to die well, to be able to let go without a struggle for something that is inevitable.
Just as a well spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well spent brings a happy death. - Leonardo Da Vinci.
That impermanence becomes clearer as I age and I know it will become more so as I approach my final moments. But with this knowledge and wisdom, I'm motivated to live a a better life, cultivate good karma and improve the spiritual quality of my life.
From Buddhist teachings I've realized that it's the final moment of our consciousness that is the most important moment. That's when the accumulated karmic forces are activated. It is this death moment that brings about the birth moment.
I take up the philosophy of
living each moment as if it were your last.
Once you are born there is a lot of potential as a human being but it has to be developed.
We are all born with certain instincts and behaviors that enable us to survive, have our base needs met.
Along with these base needs there is also the need for security, love and belonging.
It's really interesting that when these needs are not met in children, how it effects their development and behavior. This attachment need with our parents, who we are totally dependent on, comes at a time when the child's brain is only just coming into being and the adult's brain is fully developed, which makes for an asymmetrical relationship, which can be difficult to navigate.
Gabor Mate shares some wonderful insights into this and how parents or caregivers can work towards fulfilling these needs in their children.
For a more expanded talk from Dr. Gabor, an expertise on childhood trauma, stress, and the mind-body connection, and more of his view on human development tune in below -
A lot of Gabor's work is on addictions and how it can reveal underlying traumas and effects they have on our behavior.
Looking at addiction, which most of us have had at some point in our lives, although they may be very simple addictions such as to sweets or social media, You can see what's behind this addictive behavior by asking such questions as
What kind of problem were you trying to solve with that behavior?
What is it you were really wanting from it?
What need(s) are you trying to fulfill?
Answer those questions truthfully and some truths about yourself may be revealed.
I'm fascinated with that, for how much of our lives do we live out by our conditioning and how can we be free from that conditioning and be more our true selves.
Here's a great quote from Socrates
The unexamined life is not worth living
Let's say those needs I mentioned previously were being met, there is also the need for esteem, having meaning/purpose, doing something worthwhile.
Here is a talk from one of the great thinkers of our time - Jordon Peterson "FIND MEANING IN YOUR LIFE"
And more from Gabor Mate
Then there is one more thing we need to address - that of self-actualization, where you transcend the mundane and you find fulfillment, with desires falling away. A wonderful state of being! Something worth pursuing!
Have you heard of the Mindful Life Community which resides in the @naturalmedicine server here.
We run group meditations and support each other as we grow through conscious awareness. With much love!
Discord 🧘About Image from Pixabay
Grateful for the curation and support of @tribesteemup