Monday, July 21, 2008 at 5:05pm
Do you possess an adaquate philosophy of life?
Column: PERFECTBALANCELIFE
In the marketplace of ideas we are constantly bombarded by sales people cajoling us into buying their version of how to effectively live life. It will surprise you learn that most people suffer a lot because they are applying a philosophy of death into their daily life. Trust me; living by such a philosophy will bring no long-term benefit to you or others. It is imperative that you immediately begin to practice an adequate philosophy of life into all that you do.
Living by a death philosophy means: Responding to life in such a way that you are not able to gain the maximum intended benefit from every experience that you encounter in life.
The following points can be considered to represent the practice of living by a philosophy of death:
• An inability to recognize your own unique qualities and gifts.
• Being unwilling to take action even when you know this is what you need to do.
• Blaming other people for your troubles and difficulties.
• Accumulating and holding onto resentments.
• Refusing to admit when you are wrong.
• Fearing other human beings.
• Accepting the ideas or beliefs of others without verifying whether or not they are valid.
• Fearing your own mortality.
• Lacking trust in yourself or others.
• Giving up in the face of extreme trial.
• Believing that your thinking processes cannot be changed or altered.
• Multiplying your personal problems into the lives of others.
• Accepting advice from others because you doubt your own ability to find the correct answers.
• Not trusting your inner voice, your intuition.
• Unable to state to your own satisfaction the reason why you think you are alive on this earth.
Take time to reflect on this list and see if you can determine whether or not you are intimately involved with living life through a philosophy of death.
All valid religious traditions and spiritual disciplines go to great lengths to help us adopt a vibrant living philosophy of life, thus avoiding the pitfalls associated with a philosophy that is centered on death. Next week I will demonstrate how our religious traditions and spiritual disciplines engender an adequate philosophy of living, rather than dying.
Jack LaValley is a practitioner of the martial arts, physical cultivation exercises, and sitting meditation. Although currently working in the hospitality industry, he spends much of his free time helping and working together with those who are pursuing the spiritual path. Jack and his wife, Wha-ja Oh-LaValley, a native of South Korea, reside in Westchester County, New York, and are the proud parents of three beautiful children. Jack is completing his book manuscript, "A Perfectly Balanced Life: Living Each Day with Wisdom and Strength," and expects publication to be in October 2008. You can reach Jack at: perfectbalance1@optimum.net © Copyright 2008 by Jack LaValley.
Living by a death philosophy means: Responding to life in such a way that you are not able to gain the maximum intended benefit from every experience that you encounter in life.
The following points can be considered to represent the practice of living by a philosophy of death:
• An inability to recognize your own unique qualities and gifts.
• Being unwilling to take action even when you know this is what you need to do.
• Blaming other people for your troubles and difficulties.
• Accumulating and holding onto resentments.
• Refusing to admit when you are wrong.
• Fearing other human beings.
• Accepting the ideas or beliefs of others without verifying whether or not they are valid.
• Fearing your own mortality.
• Lacking trust in yourself or others.
• Giving up in the face of extreme trial.
• Believing that your thinking processes cannot be changed or altered.
• Multiplying your personal problems into the lives of others.
• Accepting advice from others because you doubt your own ability to find the correct answers.
• Not trusting your inner voice, your intuition.
• Unable to state to your own satisfaction the reason why you think you are alive on this earth.
Take time to reflect on this list and see if you can determine whether or not you are intimately involved with living life through a philosophy of death.
All valid religious traditions and spiritual disciplines go to great lengths to help us adopt a vibrant living philosophy of life, thus avoiding the pitfalls associated with a philosophy that is centered on death. Next week I will demonstrate how our religious traditions and spiritual disciplines engender an adequate philosophy of living, rather than dying.
Jack LaValley is a practitioner of the martial arts, physical cultivation exercises, and sitting meditation. Although currently working in the hospitality industry, he spends much of his free time helping and working together with those who are pursuing the spiritual path. Jack and his wife, Wha-ja Oh-LaValley, a native of South Korea, reside in Westchester County, New York, and are the proud parents of three beautiful children. Jack is completing his book manuscript, "A Perfectly Balanced Life: Living Each Day with Wisdom and Strength," and expects publication to be in October 2008. You can reach Jack at: perfectbalance1@optimum.net © Copyright 2008 by Jack LaValley.