Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Wisdom of Gandhi

I found this quote from Mahatma Gandhi and want to think about it a bit.

"Man often becomes what he believes himself to be." 


This is so interesting to me because it sure sounds like we can control our destiny or our present circumstances by our thoughts and beliefs about ourselves.  Pretty powerful.  I wonder how many people follow that principle.  Is it really truthful?  Can we set the tone for our days, our lives just by what we think about ourselves?  Can we work to change the beliefs we've had since childhood?  Can we believe ourselves into a dream career or dream life?  Again, that is powerful if it is true.  How do we get ourselves to actually, really, believe these hopeful and positive dreams we may have for ourselves.  Or would some people say that's a lot of hooey and we can't control our circumstances?

I want to start envisioning some positive differences in my life and see if Gandhi really knew what was up, so to speak.  Is this a daily practice that needs to be undertaken to really "work"?  I'd love to hear what others think about this.  Do we have ultimate control over our lives or is everything planned ahead of time and unable to be changed? 

7 comments:

  1. I'm sure we'll never know for sure, but I lean toward thinking we have tremendous ability to shape our futures. And it seems like that power would only be made more strong by daily visualizations. I was invited to a "church" by a friend recently that bases its whole belief system on Science of the Mind, which, as I learned, believes *everything* is created by what we think. I'm probably a little less sure than that group is, but can't help but see the reality of lots of what they think.

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  2. Thanks, Kristin. I guess it can't hurt to try thinking and visualizing and seeing what happens.

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  3. I think it all starts with believing in yourself.
    And projecting that confidence you hv for yourself outward. Ppl will want what u hv and wanna follow you. Have what u are having. I think of the harry met sally movie.. LOL u know?? Sometimes, we must smile and be encouraging and inspiring, when inside we don't really feel like it. We need to do it anyway.. and with ea baby step.. we get closer to the 'ideal life' we wanna be living.. we must also be careful to not look too much in the future, that we miss living in the present. We must appreciate ea day..and make the most of ea moment we are given.. xo

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  4. Thanks, Bonnie. So well said. Living in the present is something I need to remind myself of often.

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  5. I've always beleived that we manifest our own realities, and this is what I've taught my pwn children and my students. I think the energy we generate attracts experience and people into our lives, and that developing a loving perspective and serenity will ensure a joyous reality.

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  6. P.S. I forgot faith. Faith is important too!

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  7. I"m working on faith--that's a tough one for me!

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