Seven months ago I began a journey of practicing mindfulness every day and we've reached day 227. Yesterday, I talked about getting things done. Today is a new day.
For example, confronting abuse as a bystander varies greatly depending on the culture. Imagine walking down the street and stumbling upon a couple engaged in a heated argument. Everyone is staring and you decide to join. Then one attacks the other and things start getting really messy. You intervene and pull the assaulter back to stop the confrontation. In America, you'd be considered a "hero" if you were to do that because in that moment you stopped something bad from escalating further.
However, in Japan, it's the exact opposite. If you were to do the same thing in Japan, you might be viewed as "nosy" and sticking your head in business that doesn't concern you. If anything, while you may have stopped an assault between the couple at that moment, you don't know the full situation and your intervention may end up making the situation worse for the victim when they go home later that night. Who knows what goes on at home? You're stuck between being a monster for not doing anything or being a monster for being a nosy prick. It's like playing a shit game, only it's real life.
There cannot be one without the other and so there will always be differing opinions on subject matter. It's something that's been consistent throughout our known history. Maybe you disagree with everything I've written? However, it seems like people focus too much on the actions themselves and their results when judging something to be a positive or negative. In the case of the confrontational couple, your wanting to help people could end up saving someone, or hurting them even more further down the road. How we choose to perceive the situation will change whether any action is "good" or "evil".
In practicing mindfulness, I've come to think about this a lot. If anything can be considered "good" or "evil", I think intention is also important to consider. If we're given a gift from someone it feels less good when it's obligatory and reluctant than when it's heartfelt and genuine. The same goes for us. When were truly care for something we put a lot more effort into things than we do things we're apathetic for. We're all human and we're bound to make mistakes. Wanting to help others is great, but if our actions don't reflect our intent we disrupt the flow and that's where imbalances lie.
To keep things consistent and align our intentions with action, having more awareness of and accountability for our actions is necessary. While we may think we have the best intentions at heart, looking at the big picture and seeing whether what we're doing really helps others is crucial. Paying attention to what we're doing, why, and owning up to the consequences is a way to get started.
Peace
"Our intention creates our reality." - Wayne DyerWith the recent spreading of #metoo I'm seeing go around various social medias it got me thinking about good and evil. We all have our own beliefs and values as to what constitutes "good" and what is "evil". Good could be being kind and giving to the needy while evil could be harming others and being selfish. While some things are pretty commonly agreed on throughout various cultures, such as killing being terrible and helping the poor being great, yet there are many gray areas depending on the culture.
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/good_men_to_do_nothing.htmlThe only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/good_men_to_do_nothing.htmlThe only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/good_men_to_do_nothing.htmlThe only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/good_men_to_do_nothing.html
For example, confronting abuse as a bystander varies greatly depending on the culture. Imagine walking down the street and stumbling upon a couple engaged in a heated argument. Everyone is staring and you decide to join. Then one attacks the other and things start getting really messy. You intervene and pull the assaulter back to stop the confrontation. In America, you'd be considered a "hero" if you were to do that because in that moment you stopped something bad from escalating further.
However, in Japan, it's the exact opposite. If you were to do the same thing in Japan, you might be viewed as "nosy" and sticking your head in business that doesn't concern you. If anything, while you may have stopped an assault between the couple at that moment, you don't know the full situation and your intervention may end up making the situation worse for the victim when they go home later that night. Who knows what goes on at home? You're stuck between being a monster for not doing anything or being a monster for being a nosy prick. It's like playing a shit game, only it's real life.
There cannot be one without the other and so there will always be differing opinions on subject matter. It's something that's been consistent throughout our known history. Maybe you disagree with everything I've written? However, it seems like people focus too much on the actions themselves and their results when judging something to be a positive or negative. In the case of the confrontational couple, your wanting to help people could end up saving someone, or hurting them even more further down the road. How we choose to perceive the situation will change whether any action is "good" or "evil".
In practicing mindfulness, I've come to think about this a lot. If anything can be considered "good" or "evil", I think intention is also important to consider. If we're given a gift from someone it feels less good when it's obligatory and reluctant than when it's heartfelt and genuine. The same goes for us. When were truly care for something we put a lot more effort into things than we do things we're apathetic for. We're all human and we're bound to make mistakes. Wanting to help others is great, but if our actions don't reflect our intent we disrupt the flow and that's where imbalances lie.
To keep things consistent and align our intentions with action, having more awareness of and accountability for our actions is necessary. While we may think we have the best intentions at heart, looking at the big picture and seeing whether what we're doing really helps others is crucial. Paying attention to what we're doing, why, and owning up to the consequences is a way to get started.
Peace
 |
| What are your intentions? |
How do your intentions and actions align?
ReplyDelete