In studying the \u201cself\u201d, the teaching says that we unconsciously seek non-disturbance or gratification of all the senses; and thereby are mechanical\u2014not awake\u2014not aware.\u00a0 One purpose was given to us as an experiment\u2014that is to be what, to me, is being a good guest or making a little contribution to a pleasant mood.\u00a0 This seemed pretty easy and a worthwhile activity; but I discovered can sure get twisted.\u00a0 I have worked with this idea for years.\u00a0 To begin with, I didn\u2019t recognize the \u201clittle\u201d and tried to \u201cmake\u201d the pleasant mood for everyone whom I eventually found was quite egotistical and not possible.\u00a0 I also began to see that I twisted it into \u201cpleasing people\u201d, \u201cdoing whatever they asked\u201d or \u201chelping people\u201d.\u00a0 I thought that\u2019s what \u201cmaking a little contribution\u201d meant\u2014it doesn\u2019t.\u00a0 I just ran across an excerpt in the vintage tapes that puts a little more light on the experiment.<\/p>\n
Someone in the audience says:<\/p>\n
(I established my purpose to be a good guest and contribute to a pleasant mood, but does that always mean to somebody else’s pleasant mood instead of mine?)<\/p>\n
Now there’s no such thing as another person’s pleasant mood and my pleasant mood–there’s only a pleasant mood. I think we have repeatedly said–If you were in a car going down the road all by yourself, you’d want a pleasant mood in the car. So the pleasant mood is being made for you. If you’re somewhere else and you’re contributing to a pleasant mood, it is for you and it is for everybody around you. I can hardly conceive that you would be in a foul mood and be contributing to somebody else’s pleasant mood–it flat doesn’t make sense. There’s no way you could do that.<\/p>\n
So when I contribute to a pleasant mood, the mood covers everybody around including me. In other words, if I’m in a room with eight people, and I have a pleasant mood, it covers nine people. If I’m in a room with only one person in it, that’s #1, then that pleasant mood only covers one. Mood is something we live in like a fish lives in water–it is not something I’m doing for another person or doing for myself. It is a state I’m setting up all around me. You might say the only light you will ever live in is that which you generate for yourself. So if I generate a pleasant harmonious mood, I’m in that mood as well as everybody else around because the mood is the environment; and we’re all in the environment– so it is not \u00a0just for me or for another person.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In studying the \u201cself\u201d, the teaching says that we unconsciously seek non-disturbance or gratification of all the senses; and thereby are mechanical\u2014not awake\u2014not aware.\u00a0 One purpose was given to us as an experiment\u2014that is to be what, to me, is … Continue reading