Greetings all,
Thanks for understanding my new schedules and for patiently waiting for me to return from South East Asia on the 7th. I've vowed to break a few habits now that I'm back and to meditate more. So far, the meditations are progressing beautifully but I still have a lot of work left on changing a few habits which I know it's time to let go of. In tune with breaking old habits, here's something I've written.
Lessons are repeated until we learn. To hang in there.
Sometimes we make promises to ourselves about habits we know we need to change. With determination and firmness we say “I will never be impatient again” and for a day or two we stick to our resolve. Some of us use the additional tools of Reiki, affirmations, visualization to help us stick to our intent, and some of us go purely by sheer will.
What usually happens is for a few days after that, we actually feel liberated from the confines of this ancient habit. But just before the smile turns to smugness, a little test is tossed in front of our paths to see if we have truly learnt.
For me, these kind of things happen constantly. Sometimes I pass the test and sometimes I don’t.
I have learnt just because I make a fervent promise never to be impatient again does not mean my words will dissolve away this habit forever instantly. Tests will appear before me in the form of a chatty cashier and her mobile phone in the supermarket, oblivious to the long queue. My toddler who is mastering the fine art of selective listening. And others who will slowly tweak my resolve till I am tempted to say or do something out of impatience.
These tests do not appear out of some cosmic mockery but just to indicate to me that we have to work for our rewards as souls in human forms. That we have chosen the human form to learn lessons and they will truly be repeated until we learn from deep within.
Some lessons are a product of Karma. Patterns engrained since past lives. Some lessons are just pure personality traits like impatience or procrastination, but at the end of the day a lesson is a lesson. And even after making a resolve, we need to face a few lingering tests to see if we meant what we said, and if we are willing to sweat for the reward. Give up soon after promising, and the test will come back. Persist and someday, someone may present you with a badge in the shape of a star.
Do you have any habit you’re struggling to break? Why not take a few minutes to ponder what is it that’s making you break your resolve? Did you quit the diet? Return to smoking when the pressure got too much? Or give up cleaning your papers halfway. Many suggest taking things slowly and setting goals that are achievable. Try saying “for the next 1 hour I will be patient” and when you catch yourself getting impatient again, repeat the affirmation.
-Mita Bhan
Meditation has changed my life in a million beautiful ways, and nothing makes me happier than teaching what little I have learnt over the past 10 years of practice. For those of you who attended my "Writing as A form of Healing" workshops at the Karmic Research Centre, you'll may recall that these workshops are less theory, more interactivity and tons of fun .
To be held at my premises in DLF City, the first of the series is on "Learning to Relax". A 1.5 hour workshop that introduces the benefits of meditation and takes you through a few very simple relaxation routines that if done regularly will help ease stress, bring clarity and a sense of peace within.
For more details, just reply asap!
Looking forward to your feedback as always
Mita Bhan
