Today's MOZEN: Practice Makes Perfect. 9/9/2014

Words and photo by F LoBuono

I have worked hard to try and understand human nature. I think that, perhaps, I may be beginning to. One thing apparent to me is that we have a dual nature. Humans are capable of great compassion and empathy while at the same time being guilty of indescribable cruelty. In today's super-connected world, it's easy to find. Just scan a page of Facebook and you will see the full range of human emotion. There are entries that warm the heart followed immediately by ones that shock the senses. I think that I understand the complexity of our emotions and that hate is as real as love. However, I also believe that we as humans should strive for a higher ideal and for ways to minimize hate and maximize love. Isn't this the point of all spirituality and religion?

So, why does it seem that, especially lately, hate seems to be triumphing over love? All of us, firsthand, are witnessing the brutality that is sweeping the world, often in the name of god. Why? I suppose the simple answer is that it's easier to be hard. It's easier to destroy then it is to create. It is easier to give in to the baser emotions of greed, lust, jealousy, and anger. It takes an effort to reach a higher plane. It takes sublime thinking to achieve a level of consciousness where fear is not the ruling factor. To attain enlightment we must overcome the strong urges that keep us tethered to emotions that have been with us since the beginning of our very consciousness as a species. We cannot, and should not, discount these emotions. They are what we are. The challenge is to find the right place where we understand our negative feelings but are not ruled by them.

Like exercising (or writing for that matter), there are times when being nice seems like drudgery. It just "feels" better being pissed off. We'd much rather bite someone's head off then take an extra minute to understand why they may have made you angry and that it probably wasn't all THAT important in the first place. A quick flash to anger usually is our first reaction. However, over the course of time, if we stay disciplined and focused, allowing our initial impulse to pass becomes less of an effort. Sure, there will be days that we have to make that extra effort but, in time, if we practice what we preach, being nice will be no effort at all. In fact, like all things that are practiced over time, kindness, compassion, and patience become second nature. In Buddhism, is is called Mindfulness. And it is something that is worked towards on in a daily basis. From my understanding, mindfulness is an actue awareness, even unto a molecular level, of what is going on around us and the interrelationship of all things. Mindfulness allows for consideration of all things. It is a simple concept that takes, according to Buddhist traditions, many lifetimes to achieve. But, as with all long journeys of discovery, it starts with the first step.

The old adage practice makes perfect applies to so many things in life. The more you do something, the more it becomes so-called second nature, the easier it becomes to accomplish. Of course, the greater the goal, the greater the challenge, the greater the effort is required to achieve success. However, and this is the point, the MORE we do something, the LESS difficult it tends to become. This is true of sports, writing, and attitude. The more we practice mindfulness, the easier it becomes to live with honesty, integrity, and compassion. In other words, it becomes easy to live a full, fulfilled, happy, loving life. PRACTICE. PRACTICE. PRACTICE. Eventually, you'll get real good at it.

Now, is that so hard?