Deciding that we have been wronged, whether justified or not, can lead down the path of darkness where hatred smolders with an intensity that eats at us, at our rationality.
In his journal, Marcus Aurelius suggests that it is in our power whether or not to bear hatred toward another. He believed that everyone participates in the same divine intelligence, so that to hate or to act against one another is contrary to Nature.
If we act responsibly, therefore, we will summon our inner strengths and let go of the poisons of hatred. Hatred is a waste of our efforts, our emotions, and, most importantly, time.
Reflecting Pool
If we acknowledge our flaws
and relinquish them--
as time presses days and weeks into months
--we attain more harmony, more balance, contentment.
This is the bliss of our personal best.
As we grow towards self-realization,
our soul desires the pool of transcendence
that reflects the harmony of our spirit:
realities our lives have assumed.
Touchstones
Living holistically establishes priorities
through the tournament of experience.
When we meditate on core virtues,
life's meanings begin to unfold.
Personal themes become integral values: touchstones.
Without the flow of harmony between personal
values and the World's, potential is hamstrung.
Virtue and harmony are arts with infinite potential.
Cherishing the Significant
Balancing wants and needs requires pragmatic wisdom.
Embracing neither austerity nor extravagance,
we follow an uncluttered path
when desires beat their drums of discontent.
Cherishing the significant, discarding the superficial,
we trek with riches of contentment.
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