Take In The Wonderful Scenery Of Life
Gyalwang Drukpa
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We all come from nature and are a part of nature, we are nature.Even as you sit and have a cup of tea, you are taking nourishment and comfort from leaves grown perhaps thousands of miles away or picked from your own back garden. Nature offers us so many reminders about how life is precious, it makes us receptive; it cultivates our senses. When we think life is just horrible, we can walk in nature for a little while, and we will be able to broaden our view and see life in a different, better light.
Nature doesn't worry about the past or race to the future; day simply becomes night and then day again, everything connected and evolving at the same time. Even in our urban environments, taking time to look around and enjoy the journey from one place to the next will often result in noticing things that surprise and delight us.
Taking in the scenery of life as we go along is all part of our appreciation.And the more we look around, the more we begin to get to know what inspires us, what we really like. Nature also has a way of bringing us into the moment and into our body , sometimes to help us contemplate and often to help us let go of our worries and get back to the basics.
Modern technology and communication mean that we now spend so much time in the virtual world that it is easy to lose our connection with nature.I myself end up looking at the computer for hours, and yet often little is achieved, it is a true challenge to one's powers of attention. We cannot simply sit still and quiet in our surroundings without pulling out our phone or sending another email. This is far from calming or comforting; our minds whirr away , just like our gadgets, on permanent alert, flitting from one thing to the other. It becomes difficult to focus on just one thing, just this moment, what we are doing or who we are with right here in the present. The term `virtual' is the perfect description, because this modern world of tech nology is so illusive, it isn't real. Some of my friends even plant virtual trees or have virtual pets, which sounds cute but i think there is a bit of a dangerous side to this too so it is good to be aware. I know people who have thousands of `friends' they have never even met. We have to be the boss with technology and not let it take control of us; we have to be careful and mindful.
All elements in nature and all living beings are our friends and supporters if we know how to interact with them positively and with understanding and appreciation. So too with our Self-nature. If we forget to connect with ourselves, we lose touch and start feeling a little lost as we get into trouble.Like those who love gardening, taking care of flowers and plants, creating beauty , we have to take care of our Self-nature so that we might radiate creative beauty to benefit others.
If we can't respect nature, how can we respect ourselves? I see such a strong connection between how we treat nature and how we treat ourselves.Because as soon as you take that moment to stop and enjoy the view you begin to care about your own life and, in turn, everyone else's too.
Nature doesn't worry about the past or race to the future; day simply becomes night and then day again, everything connected and evolving at the same time. Even in our urban environments, taking time to look around and enjoy the journey from one place to the next will often result in noticing things that surprise and delight us.
Taking in the scenery of life as we go along is all part of our appreciation.And the more we look around, the more we begin to get to know what inspires us, what we really like. Nature also has a way of bringing us into the moment and into our body , sometimes to help us contemplate and often to help us let go of our worries and get back to the basics.
Modern technology and communication mean that we now spend so much time in the virtual world that it is easy to lose our connection with nature.I myself end up looking at the computer for hours, and yet often little is achieved, it is a true challenge to one's powers of attention. We cannot simply sit still and quiet in our surroundings without pulling out our phone or sending another email. This is far from calming or comforting; our minds whirr away , just like our gadgets, on permanent alert, flitting from one thing to the other. It becomes difficult to focus on just one thing, just this moment, what we are doing or who we are with right here in the present. The term `virtual' is the perfect description, because this modern world of tech nology is so illusive, it isn't real. Some of my friends even plant virtual trees or have virtual pets, which sounds cute but i think there is a bit of a dangerous side to this too so it is good to be aware. I know people who have thousands of `friends' they have never even met. We have to be the boss with technology and not let it take control of us; we have to be careful and mindful.
All elements in nature and all living beings are our friends and supporters if we know how to interact with them positively and with understanding and appreciation. So too with our Self-nature. If we forget to connect with ourselves, we lose touch and start feeling a little lost as we get into trouble.Like those who love gardening, taking care of flowers and plants, creating beauty , we have to take care of our Self-nature so that we might radiate creative beauty to benefit others.
If we can't respect nature, how can we respect ourselves? I see such a strong connection between how we treat nature and how we treat ourselves.Because as soon as you take that moment to stop and enjoy the view you begin to care about your own life and, in turn, everyone else's too.
