Our feelings of isolation and loneliness breed mistrust, misunderstandings, competition, antagonism and the whole series
of health destroying emotions such as fear, anger, hatred, jealousy, bitterness, resentment etc. These negative emotions build
up a personality complex of their own, and grow out of the control destroying our health and relationships.
Learning
to accept and love ourselves and others despite our faults, weaknesses, habits and mistakes is a powerful means for healing
ourselves and others.
By developing more deeply rooted feelings of security and self-worth, we enable ourselves to
understand, forgive and love others and ourselves in more and more situations.
The following thoughts may help us
in that process.
We are all souls in a process of evolution.
We are all controlled by our ignorance and fear, which cause us to
function in less than perfect ways. Thus, it is logical to accept and love ourselves and others even though we are not perfect
and make mistakes.
This can be understood more clearly through some examples.
Two broken legs
If we know someone who has two broken legs and for this reason is unable
to carry out his or her responsibilities or be very productive or creative, we automatically understand that they cannot do
any more, because they have two broken legs.
What we fail to understand is that many of people who we perceive as
lazy, irresponsible or negative and even immoral have in fact two of their "emotional legs" broken. They have seriously impaired
emotional legs of "inner security" and feelings of "self-worth".
Their insecurity and feelings of self-doubt cause
them to behave in negative ways. We, too, might be such persons who have had their inner strength handicapped by negative
childhood experiences. Thus we would do well to understand and love ourselves and others even when we are not able to be who
we would like to be.
Accepting ourselves does not mean that we do not recognize and admit our mistakes and weakness
and seek to improve ourselves and free ourselves from those obstacles so that we can manifest our inner potential on all levels.
Also, accepting others does not mean that we do not assertively explain to them the types of behavior that we need
from them.
Half-finished Paintings
An incomplete painting is not yet in its perfected form. It is in the
process of being perfected, of being completed. We know that it is not completed because consciously or subconsciously we
know that it can be much more than it presently is. But we do not reject the painting because it is not yet what it will be.
We do not say that it is wrong or unacceptable. We simply perceive it as incomplete and we attend to the process of completing
it.
Let us then imagine that our and others¹ personalities are half-finished paintings. Let us perceive the general
state of the society and world around as a painting in progress.
Yes, there are many weaknesses, faults and aspects
to be improved in those paintings. But they are what they can and should be for their incomplete stage. A painting must pass
through a series of stages until it is finally completed. Each of these stages is a perfect part of that process of completion.
No stage could be skipped or avoided.
Thus, we and those around us are "perfect" at every stage of that process of
completion. We and everything around us is at a stage in the process of perfection. Even our imperfections are a perfect temporary
part of our movement towards perfection.
When we perceive ourselves and others as unfinished paintings, we will have
patience and understanding for our mutual weaknesses and faults. We will perceive them as parts of our being which need to
be worked on in the process of manifesting our perfect being, which is waiting latent within us to become a reality.
The
same of course holds for those around us who are in a process of perfecting their unfinished paintings.
The Bud and the Flower
A flower bud does not yet manifest its latent beauty. Yet we do not
reject, criticize or condemn it. We realize that it is in a process and that it is what it needs to be now in order to become
the flower which it is destined to be. We accept it is as it is and wait patiently for its blossoming.
In the same
way we need to perceive ourselves and others as:
1. Paintings in the process of completing ourselves.
2. Buds becoming
flowers
3. Souls in the process of evolution.
We all deserve love and respect exactly as we are.
Our life purpose, however, is to attend to the process
of evolution and self-perfection until we blossom into the magnificent and totally conscientious and loving beings that we
are destined to be.
If we care for our bodies and minds,
they will care for us.
Be Well
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***** Reference Box for Publishers *****
************************************
(Robert
Elias Najemy's recently released book "The Psychology of Happiness" (ISBN 0-9710116-0-5) is available at
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/holisticharmo-20
and
http://www.HolisticHarmony.com/psychofhappiness.html .
His writings can be viewed at http://www.HolisticHarmony.com where
you can also download FREE articles and e-books.)
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