Our capacity for brilliance is equal to our capacity to forget past and future, that's why little children are brilliant, they don't remember past and they don't relate to the future
- Marianne Williamson
Young children have a natural fascination for life, having a sense of wonder and awe, they see the extraordinary in the ordinary. They have open hearts for the discovery of the new. They have a beginners mind, innocent, fresh and always surprised by the constant mystery opening up before them. They are not caught up in thoughts of past and future but are present in the moment. They are content in their not knowing. Most of us have heard the quote by the great teacher Jesus "...I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven". What is this domain of heaven?. We can be sure it is not the domain of the personal self, with all the different persona masks we wear daily. Its not the realm of the whole ego construct, the false self, the world of me, my, mine or I. This term he used "kingdom of Heaven" may be thought of today as a greater state of being, within ourselves, where we experience an intense love, joy, peace, happiness and contentment deep in our hearts. He said it was available to us now if we could be like a little child. The Tao Te Ching vs 28 also says ....the Tao will never leave you and you will be like a little child. Little children have very little sense of self, they lack the thought dominated ego with its idea of being a somebody, that will develops later as the separate self identity.
How do we become like little children? Can we be at ease with not knowing, and not having certainty? Can we practice having beginners mind, even if we are old? How do we drop the false ego construct, as the main driver of our life? Can we be a content nobody? These are all questions that can be pointers for us, as a starting place of inquiry to prepare us for entry into that greater state of being.
The egoic mind complex is always trying to understand, analyze, judge, conclude and interpret, it needs something to be concerned about, believed in, and have its identity in. It is always wanting and fearing. It has a need to know and a need to be right. Perhaps it is afraid of not knowing. It wants certainty. It has belief systems that gives it satisfactory answers to its deepest questions. It has its truth and others with a different opinion are wrong. It is certain, beyond any doubt, that its view is right.
What would happen if we admitted we don't know for sure, that we may not be right in our opinions and beliefs? We would certainly have less conflict, less judgement, and a lot more open mindedness. Saying I don't know would free the mind of most of our excessive thought, it would have nothing to prove, nothing to gain and less to protect. We wouldn't need to control, no need to be right and no need for strong opinions. We would free up the mind for the development of more creativity, and allow it to work more from intuition, which is an intelligence far greater then thought produced by the intellect.
The easiest way to reduce thought is to adopt the attitude that concerning the deeper questions in life, we don't know anything for sure. However, the intellect and the ego cannot understand this truth or even want to diminish its position. But, there is a deeper intuitive part of our being, the heart, that can perceive this truth. The intuitive heart position of not knowing brings a greater sense of wonder into our lives, we can then be like the little child again, we will have an open heart and a capacity for greater love, compassion, joy and peace. Beginners mind is a practice of looking at life without preconceived ideas, judgements or interpretations.
When the mind is free from excessive thought and knowledge, anxiety, guilt, fear of all authority, the constant wanting for more, and concerns about past and future, it allows your mind to be fresh, young , innocent, full of vitality and passion once again. You are living Now. In this renewed state you can learn and observe with wonder, mystery and surprise again. Life becomes amazing , full of realizations coming from intuition rather then intellect. You are now free and are working from a higher and greater state of being, this is heaven while still on earth. Isn't life amazing!
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