It is difficult to act on a daily basis with a light or tender heart. However, some people manage to do so, despite situations that are much more difficult than ours. How do they do it? What is the secret of those who keep smiling even though they have every reason to fill their hearts with hate or despair?
There is a daily inner struggle between our clear and our dark thoughts. To tip the balance in the right direction, we must proactively use our good intention, no matter who we are dealing with. It is easy enough to hate if we are not careful. To continue to love we need two things: a protective bubble that allows us to create this love alone and a confrontation with the outside world to test this love.
The protective bubble
You can’t give infinitely of yourself without finding yourself tired or demagnetized. In order to project this love onto the world, we must cultivate it every morning through thought, prayer or meditation. This kindness that we offer to ourselves nourishes us as a person and prepares us for the kindness that we can have for others.
Killing bad thoughts at the root
Each day is made up of tens of thousands of thoughts that cross our minds. The sum of these thoughts is ultimately equivalent to our energy level. The more we have higher thoughts, the more they magnetize our body and allow us to start a virtuous circle. Conversely, the more negative the sum of these thoughts is, the more we will feel diminished or vulnerable. Thus, loving thoughts act as a kind of shield for ourselves, they allow us to go in front of dangers without letting ourselves go.
Loving thoughts make us grow, hate makes us smaller
Love acts like the sun on a plant. Conversely, hatred is the shadow that hides the light of the sun. To act with love is to make the effort to remove the veil that hides us from the light. It is a deliberate action towards something that grows us and that we all need.
Stirring atoms into energy particles
When our body or mind is static, it will tend to atrophy. A muscle, when left to rest, becomes smaller. The mind works the same way. The same is true for the heart. Thinking with the heart is necessary if we want to develop our love. When love remains in a static state, it curls up on itself until it is totally forgotten. To be kept alive, love must be used. It acts like a sword stored in a scabbard, if not used, it will rust and lose its usefulness.
Turning on the machine
When we think and act out of love, we set in motion a machine that works like a windmill. This sets us off on a course that will bring other positive things and carry us through the day.
The necessary confrontation with lower energies
Daily life necessarily leads us to meet apathetic people who will undermine this momentum. This is normal and should not be deplored. Negative people are like a test for us. When you play a sport at a competitive level, you train during the week and compete with opponents on the weekend. If you decide to apply action through love, you can repeat this pattern. You recharge part of your day, usually in solitude. The rest of the time, you observe if your level of love that you have grown can resist the onslaught of malice or aggression that unfortunately we encounter too often. Imagine that there are different levels of practice in this discipline through action. We all start with a white belt and with practice and training we can progress in this “martial art”. I say martial because it is like fighting with only love and kindness as weapons. It is not easy. You can say to yourself that Gandhi was certainly a black belt. The learning process is long, but there are masters who have gone before us and who can guide us in this way.
The temptation of meanness
When we are confronted with unkindness, we are tempted to let it contaminate our hearts. It is actually quite easy to give in to it. It is very hard to maintain a compassionate and caring attitude in a hostile environment. We must try as much as possible to resist this temptation even though it may be strong. Resisting evil with good is the ideal, but it is a very difficult path.
It’s okay if you’re angry
In trying to be perfect in our intentions, we tend to curb our negative emotions. It is necessary to avoid holding on to this idealized self-image. The best way is to purify yourself regularly, especially through prayer, and then to act spontaneously. In principle, a repeated practice should soften our heart and we would act out of love more naturally. A bit like a fire that needs to be stoked, prayer revives our soul and its noble qualities. It would be a shame to let what is good and latent in us cool down. The more we practice the way of goodness, the easier it becomes. With time these actions will become like second nature and they will define you a little bit what you are. A thought leads to an action, which in turn leads to a habit that over time becomes your essence.
