Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Live Through Consciousness, Not Through Emotions


"Live through consciousness, not through emotions". This is the quote I looked down at as I made my "stress relieving" tea this evening. This quote spoke loudly to me. I often read the yogi quotes that are on tea bag ends and smile, but tonight, it spoke. How do we live through our consciousness, and not through our emotions? What is consciousness, and where do our emotions come from? These questions began to formulate in my mind as a contemplated this simple yet ever so powerful quote.

What is consciousness? From my training on the mountain, it is a state of mind in which we are one with the universe, where we are our true selves. How do we get there and why would we want to be there? Both such great questions to ask, and I feel there could be many answers to each. Here is my take on them.

How do we get there, regular sadhana, of course. Sadhana is a spiritual regular personal practice to find our purpose in life. Sadhana can be done through mediation, pranayama, asana practice ( yoga in western terms), praying, reading, singing, listening to music, dancing, running, and so on. Whatever vessel clears your mind of your ego's chatter, brings you to the present moment and allows you to find your truth.

Now knowing sadhana, the question is, why? My question back is, why not? Every being on this planet has a purpose. Whether it is big or small, every person can impact another in a positive light. The question is, is that something you are doing in your life right now? That doesn't mean your audience is 10,000 people, or maybe it is, which is great! Or, it could mean you are babysitting one child and you make a true, positive inspiring influence in their life through your actions. That is just as powerful. We are here on this planet to be one with our mother earth, to help each other, to be happy and to be Love. This is why we have a regular sadhana practice, to bring us to our truth.

Going back to the quote, our consciousness is the essence of being. The place of being that is true bliss, our truth in life. On the other hand, our emotions is our ego raising its big head and reacting to our circumstances. There is a difference between reacting versus responding. Reacting is being in a state of judgement, placing blame on others and "playing victim" to circumtance. To respond is to take full ownership of your own actions, come from a place of nothing and bring your best self to the situation. When we allow our emotions to speak for us, we are reacting. When we react, we are allowing our ego to jump first, yelling, kicking and screaming for a perceived reality that is not real, nor valid and true. When we respond, we are coming form a place of nothing and in turn allowing our consciousness to lead our response. To allow our consciousness to respond, we save ourselves from the reaction of our emotions.

Oh, how a little quote on a tea bag tag could strike such an elaborate conversation with myself and in turn, something I get to share with you all. What a beautiful world we live in.

Namaste.



5 comments:

  1. I too was preparing my yogi tea before bedtime and had the same quote and was curious about what it meant...it was a pleasure reading your insightful blog on the meaning of it.
    Namaste,
    Anne

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  2. I found the same quote yesterday and it really struck a chord with me too, though with a slightly different slant. As a very emotional person, especially when it comes responding to the sadness of others, empathizising and then feeling drained, this quote was a reminder to focus on consciousness instead: Being conscious of those emotions, observing them with detachment rather than getting swept along on the flood. Thanks for your wise words

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  3. Boy oh boy....there are alot of us! I'm a very emotional creature...woke up this morning trying to calm a panic attack out of nowhere. Yogi tea this afternoon led me here. Feeling better now. If I could only put a reign on my emotions at times...no warning just a hell of a ride. ☺

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  4. Boy oh boy....there are alot of us! I'm a very emotional creature...woke up this morning trying to calm a panic attack out of nowhere. Yogi tea this afternoon led me here. Feeling better now. If I could only put a reign on my emotions at times...no warning just a hell of a ride. ☺

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  5. Thank you for your beautiful perspective. I also found this quote while drinking my tea. Since it left me quite perplexed, I turned to the internet for some insight. Thankfully, it led me to your post.

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