Most Relate to the World By Their Emotions-Daily Meditation 9.19.23
Today’s quotation:
Most relate to the world by their emotions, which means they know only the unreality of illusion–this world of emotion is the world of duality, of love and hate, of joy and sorrow. All emotions are relative to themselves and last only as long as the supporting thought is maintained. -A Spiritual Warrior
Today’s Meditation:
Our emotions are very important to us, but it seems pretty clear that they should not be our guiding lights–they’re far too fickle and far too transient. The emotion that I’m feeling now more than likely won’t be the emotion that I’ll be feeling in two hours, yet if I make decisions based on what I’m feeling now, I’m stuck with the results of those decisions even when my feelings have changed.
When we know the world by our emotions, we can no longer see it objectively. I feel crappy right now, so the world looks crappy. I feel great right now, and the world looks incredible. We lose stability and consistency, which are very important to us. After all, the world is changing constantly, but it still gives us the seasons every year, and the sun comes up each morning and sets each evening; people are consistently born and die.
We need to respect our emotions and feel them if we’re ever going to get to know ourselves as well as we can. But we also have to remember that many of those emotions are the results of triggers that were developed when we were very young, and they no longer serve us in any way. I may feel a particular emotion now simply as a matter of habit rather than that emotion being a logical result of a specific situation.
Our lives are far too vital for us to leave them to the whims of our emotional state. We need to recognize our emotions for what they are and avoid making important decisions when they’re having their way with us, for they are not reliable guides for us on this life journey that we’re in the middle of.
Questions to consider:
Why is it so easy to make decisions based on emotions?
What are some possible problems we can have if we allow ourselves to be guided by our emotions?
How might we learn what our emotions have to teach us without letting them take control?
For further thought:
When you feel yourself in the grip of an emotion such as jealousy, anger, or sorrow, detach yourself from it. Take a step back. When you do that, you can allow the feeling to run through you without causing negative thoughts or actions. -Gary Zukav
If you missed our last Daily Meditation, you can catch it here.
