a few things to remember

blurry lulu; july, 2010

i spent a beautiful, quiet week in august with john friend in park city, utah wherein i took a lot of notes.  i mean, a lot.  he had a lot to say; i think i used up three pens.

much of the week was spent discussing the bhagavad gita, which i read for the first time this summer while in the midst of my own existential crisis of sorts.  

at the end of chapter sixteen, krisha says to arjuna, "let the scriptures be your authorities in determining right or wrong actions."

the scriptures--a touchy subject.  for some, "the scriptures" can refer to the bible, torah, or koran.  for others, like so many in my family including my mom, aunts and grandmother, it could refer to the works of hafiz or rumi, to which they turn regularly for a bit of guidance.  what i learned that week was that "the scriptures" could be anything that's written down that i know to be true--even if i wrote them down myself.   and "right and wrong" here in this context doesn't refer so much to good vs. bad as much as it means dharmic vs. adharmic, or right for you vs. not right for you.  

so john had us do an exercise, a simple one where we wrote down five things we knew to be true with the idea that we could always turn back to this page in our journal when faced with darkness or difficulty, or even just a tough decision.  and the idea is that as we go through life and realize more truths, we can add to this list and enrich our personal scriptures.

here's my list:

• there is something beautiful about every thing
• the way of nature is always an excellent starting point
• the answer is always love
• generosity breeds abundance
• the most integrated way is to step back and look at the big picture
• the more i love, the more i am loved
• recognize that i am being breathed
• love is the space between

and two more truths i've been taught to remember by my teachers:

• remember that everyone is in pain, whether it's emotional, physical, or another kind.  no one is free of pain, and we must interact with others with this in mind.
• at the root of everything, everyone just wants to be happy.  even misguided actions are results of the desire to be happy.