271-The truth about elephants- Buddhism in daily life

The truth about elephants


What is as big as an elephant, looks like an elephant, but weighs
nothing?


That's right, its shadow!


Our thoughts are like shadows. Our ego paints us pictures, makes
us believe things, shows us movies.


These can seem (at first sight) like real, but they are NOT. We
see these films and pictures, we are flooded with thoughts, but
these are without content, they are illusions, they are shadows.


Buddha taught us to turn off the thoughts, to "defeat" the ego,
to find peace, to stop desiring, wishing and clinging, only in
this way can we begin the journey to enlightenment.


We must learn to distinguish between the elephant and its shadow,
to cultivate good thoughts, to "push away" bad ones.


What are good thoughts, and what are bad thoughts?


Good thoughts are active thoughts. Bad thoughts are concerns or
wishful thinking formulated by the ego.


For example, planning for the next child's birthday party would
be good and important, but our ego's terrible ideas (what could
go wrong?) are wrong and negative.


The main part of our thoughts come only from our ego. Is she
cheating on me, does he still love me, will we make ends meet,
will I lose my job, what is that twinge in my stomach, am I sick?


All nonsense, bullshit played by the ego, unnecessary,
counterproductive, harmful, a SHADOW lays on the mind,
immediately the mood becomes gloomy, we become depressed,
melancholic, our life is at the mercy of the whims of our ego.


Paradise is nothing else than a state of mind, exclusively
dependent on our personal perception, heaven and hell are two
sides of the same coin, only I am the master of my thoughts, I
can determine my ego, "choose" and "control" the images and the
movies in my head, just as the great teacher Buddha has
exemplified it to us, go his way as well, awaken, "banish" these
very images and movies from our thoughts, thus begin the journey
to personal "enlightenment".


If "bad" thoughts appear in our head cinema, we must immediately
stop them, mentally slap our fingers, and put something
"positive" in the place of the bad thoughts. Here it offers
itself to think immediately about the personal awakening, to
focus the own way to the freedom from desire and wishes, to check
any "clinging", thus to create a positive substitute for the
negative sensations.


The shadow of an elephant may be big, but it remains a shadow, it
has no substance, not even for a small moment!


Who can cast a beautiful shadow, does not pay attention to the
shadow but to the body


- Lü Buwei - Chinese philosopher - 300 to 336 before the year
zero


Take your shadow from me


- Diogenes of Sinope - Greek philosopher - 404 to 322 before the
year zero


Even a hair has its shadow


- Publilius Syrus - Roman poet - 1st century before the year zero


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