Re-engineering Our
Patterns - Eknath Easwaran
When
I recommend to someone that they slow down, they often raise a legitimate
question: “There is so much that I have to do; how can I go through it slowly
and get it all done?” I usually answer by referring to my own experience as a
teacher in India. As chairman of the Department of English at a large
university I had heavy responsibilities. But I wanted very much to train myself
to do things slowly and without tension because I knew it would be a help on
the spiritual path.
I
began by making a list of all the activities I engaged in on the campus, the
things I was expected to do and the things I liked doing. It turned out to be a
long list. I said at the time what people tell me today: I simply cannot go
slowly and take care of all these vital matters.
Then
I remembered my spiritual teacher, my Grand-mother, who had great
responsibilities in our extended family of over a hundred people and in our
village. She always fulfilled those responsibilities splendidly, and I recalled
that she had an unerring sense of what was central and what was peripheral. So
using her example, I started striking from my list activities not absolutely
essential.
I
was amazed at the number that could go. I began to avoid those functions that I
could not justify to myself. Putting aside my likes and dislikes, keeping an
eye on what was necessary, using as much detachment as I could, I struck more
and more from the list. Soon half of it was gone, and I found I had more time
to give to what seemed likely to be of permanent value.
Re-engineering
our patterns in the way I have mentioned will not be easy or painless. It will
require persistent efforts for a long time. But the benefits are magnificent
and we begin to receive them from the very first day we try to make a change.
About the Author: An
excerpt from ‘Meditation’, a book by Eknath Easwaran.
