FEBRUARY BLOG

February 18

Illustrated by Miki Howenstein

Life—overpowering the elements
1) The Dalai Lama was once asked, “What is the most important quality in a spiritual teacher?”  His answer: “Cheerfulness.”  That cheerfulness is a kind of invitation that says, “It feels good to be here. Wouldn’t you like to come too?”(Charles Eisenstein, The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible (Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books, 2013 (Kindle Edition)), 230.)

2) Morality should be joyous, an affirmation of life rather than a denial. (Thomas Moore, The Soul of Sex: Cultivating Life as an Act of Love (New York: HarperCollins, 1998), 176.)
JR: Living morally is often seen as a burden because of the mistaken idea of what morality is. Ethical values give you a grounding in which you can integrate your life and become whole. And, as you come to feel “holy,” the joy of living fills your being, and your life becomes a conduit nourishing all forms of other life which you have contact with.
PP: How do you view morality? As a burden, or as a pleasure? How can you make it feel more life-engendering so that you long to make morality more a part of your life?
PA: MORALITY - What a Bummer! Control myself, especially when I was a horny teenager - Be for Real! Yet, I’ve found that it is moving more towards a moral life that I become intrinsically happier. I can still enjoy life’s pleasures (good food and drink, sex, play, etc) with morality meaning that I enjoy these things within certain confines. For example, playing brings me great pleasure, but if I’m only playing, I most likely won’t be able to make a living and will starve to death. Sure wouldn’t be much fun, just like too much of any of life’s pleasures. Morality indeed brings more sustainable satisfaction and joy into life.