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# 2025-04-29 - Four Questions by Vaiśeṣika Dāsa | |
Krishna by Octavio Ocampo | |
I found this book in a little free library. I usually don't go for | |
religious books, but picked up this one because it's new (2024), | |
has nice art, and it touches on personal growth and yoga. | |
# Preface | |
Wisdom traditions throughout the world share a common thread: they | |
remind us that we can look here, there, and everywhere for happiness | |
outside of ourselves but that ultimately true happiness can only be | |
found when we look within. | |
The word sadhu comes from the term "sadh" which means to accomplish, | |
attain, or succeed. A sadhu, therefore, exemplifies a spiritual | |
practice. Sadhus are known for their wisdom, self-control, and | |
spiritual accomplishments. They are tolerant, generous, and treat | |
all living beings with respect. | |
# Introduction: Questions are the Answer | |
Punctuation marks do practical work: a period stops us; a colon | |
announces upcoming information; a comma divides data. But the most | |
powerful punctuation is the question mark. It's shaped like a hook, | |
and with it you can catch people's attention. You can snag ideas | |
from the depths of your subconscious. It can take you beyond the | |
mundane to the metaphysical. With a question you can discover truths | |
of ancient wisdom, investigate your own heart, and discover your true | |
eternal nature as an individual conscious being. | |
When you ask the right questions with the right attitude you can | |
learn the answers to all of life's secrets. When we sincerely ask | |
relevant questions to qualified people, we can be sure that we'll get | |
the answers we seek. Even before we know whom to ask, by merely | |
formulating our questions, we have begun the process. | |
Those who think they already have all the answers cannot sincerely | |
inquire and therefore will not receive solutions that will help them | |
to progress. | |
The yoga texts say that humans also need to ask survival questions, | |
but to be happy, they must also ask bigger ones. | |
"Now is your chance to ask the big, important questions, ones that go | |
beyond the survival or comfort of your body." | |
Armed with the questions "Who? What? When? and Where?" we explore and | |
navigate the world. Then there is the standout metaphysical | |
question, "Why?" which can take us beyond the world of matter. | |
"Why?" questions take us into the realm of purpose, motive, and free | |
will, which are beyond the elements and mechanics of the physical | |
world. | |
The bumper sticker "Question Authority" also warns about blind faith | |
and suggests that we not accept authority until we examine it. The | |
evil twin of blind faith, however, is blind doubt. Those who blindly | |
doubt are also faulty: they rule out things that seem unlikely, | |
because the subject is beyond their perceptual horizon. | |
# Question One: What Is My Purpose? | |
Purpose is the reason for which something exists. | |
When we are disturbed, we are anxious and less productive. When we | |
are aligned with our purpose, we act with integrity and vigor. Both | |
our mental and physical health improve, and we become more effective. | |
When we know our purpose, we proceed with confidence. | |
In his novel /The Brothers Karamazov/, Fyodor Dostoyevsky writes, | |
"Thy mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but | |
in finding something to live for." ... Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. | |
stated, "Life is not worth living until you have found something | |
worth dying for." | |
To determine your purpose in life, it can help to first list and | |
order your priorities. | |
Try this: Set aside some time to sit down with pen and paper and ask | |
yourself, "What are my priorities?" At the top of the page write, | |
"What is the most important to me?" and then just start | |
brainstorming. You don't have to worry about coming up with the | |
perfect answers, just take the time to write down whatever comes to | |
your mind. | |
Once you've come up with an initial list, mull it over, process it. | |
Then try reading it to mentors, close friends, and trusted family | |
members. Ask them, "What do you think?" The more you churn your | |
priorities, thinking them over and discussing them with others, the | |
clearer they become and the more you'll feel a fixity of purpose. | |
As soon as we sincerely ask, "What is my purpose?" we'll be provided | |
with the intelligence to answer the question. | |
Problem solving in geometry starts with a premise. We can't solve a | |
problem that says, "Given nothing, solve for x." | |
The premise, or axiom, in yoga teachings is that we are non-material | |
entities. That is, we are categorically different from matter, a | |
fact we can see through the incongruity and frustration we feel as we | |
deal with matter. ... We are spiritual entities, not part of the | |
material world. | |
## Journal Prompts | |
Set a timer for ten minutes and write down any responses that come to | |
mind when you ask yourself, "What are my priorities?" | |
Then, go through your list and put the items in their order of | |
importance to you. When you have your priorities in order, make your | |
list visible so that you can read it daily. | |
(Repeat this practice periodically, or whenever you feel your | |
priorities need to be adjusted.) | |
# Question Two: How May I Be of Service? | |
Our fundamental nature is to contribute to a greater good. | |
The problem with this path [of renunciation] is that as conscious | |
living beings we all have an inherent spirit of attachment. Our | |
nature is to be attached to something or someone. | |
If you find yourself in a frustrating situation or feel like you're | |
caught in a whirlpool of anxiety and don't know how to get out, try | |
asking yourself, "How may I be of service? How can I serve in this | |
situation?" | |
Selfless service stems from love. ... Such a selfless perspective | |
also properly adjusts our relationships with material resources. | |
If you just stay open to the idea and keep asking yourself how | |
/you/ can serve, then you'll eventually find your service niche. | |
## Journal Prompts | |
Fan the spark: Give encouragement or appreciation to someone. | |
Write down how it makes you feel. | |
Perform an anonymous act of service for someone--no matter how | |
small--remembering that an essential element of that service is to | |
not seek credit for doing it. | |
# Question Three: What Is the Lesson? | |
The world often moves in ways contrary to our plans. When things go | |
wrong, rather than ask "Why me?"..., we can instead ask our third | |
question: "What is the lesson?" | |
To consistently ask "What is the lesson?" requires practice, | |
diligence, and an introspective attitude. We humans are designed to | |
learn from experience, so it's not only possible, but natural. | |
What's more, the search for lessons brings meaning to life. We come | |
to see how so-called reversals of fortune, even calamities, can be | |
blessings in disguise. | |
Every circumstance is an opportunity to learn. When we ask, "What is | |
the lesson?" the universe becomes our schoolhouse. | |
Our present life is not our ultimate destination; it's a stopover. | |
While here, we're meant to develop impeccable qualities. | |
This universe is designed for learning, not comfort. We are subtle | |
spiritual beings ensconced in a material world with which we are | |
incompatible. | |
The material world is inconvenient. If we try to live a life of | |
convenience, we'll be disappointed. If, however, we view the | |
incidents in our lives, including the inconvenient ones, as | |
opportunities to learn and to refine ourselves, we'll experience the | |
exhilaration of progress. | |
## Journal Prompts | |
Think about a challenging time in your life. It could be something | |
with which you've been struggling, or something from your past. Jot | |
down what happened and how it affected you emotionally. If you | |
believe that you acted in an improper way, write that down too. | |
Getting these things out of your mind and onto paper will give you | |
some objective clarity. | |
Now ask yourself our third question: "What is the lesson?" Come up | |
with as many different lessons as possible. | |
# Chapter Four: Where Am I Investing My Attention Right Now? | |
Giving something attention is making an investment in it, putting | |
energy into it, and as we all know, different investments bring about | |
different outcomes. | |
... according to the yogic teachings, we, as sentient, conscious | |
beings, are sparks of the Supreme. We have the same qualities as our | |
divine source, just as sparks have the same quality of the fire from | |
which they emerge. Our source is supremely conscious--omniscient, | |
omnipotent, and omnipresent, and has unrestricted free will. As | |
spiritual sparks, we are infinitesimal. We are minutely conscious, | |
our free will lies in our volition to decide where to focus. | |
Awareness of this freedom is exhilarating: from moment to moment, we | |
can choose where to place our attention. Or we can decline to choose | |
and let ourselves be carried along in a kind of mass consensual | |
trance. | |
Rather than waking up from an absorbing dream, we sometimes resist | |
and want to keep sleeping, even when the alarm clock rings or someone | |
tries to wake us up. As the saying goes, it's impossible to wake up | |
a person who is pretending to sleep. Similarly, one cannot wake a | |
person who is dedicated to the status quo... | |
Those determined to remain in their trance, to ignore the power of | |
their own ability to choose where they place their attention, seek | |
the association of those who support this constricted way of | |
thinking. | |
To plan one's daily activities may be practical, but more than mere | |
time management, we need /attention/ management. Ask, "Where am I | |
investing my attention /right now/?" | |
We can only /act/ in the present. ... If we keep asking, "Where am I | |
investing my attention right now?" we realign with the only point at | |
which we have power--the present moment. | |
I like to call this "preparation mode." If you don't like the state | |
you're in, go into preparation mode. That means living in the | |
present, which automatically helps create a better future. | |
How we utilize our attention also affects our relationships. | |
Improving the quality of our relationships can be as simple as giving | |
full attention to other persons. In any relationship, our attention | |
is our most valuable asset. | |
The quality of attention we give to people--to all living | |
beings--determines the quality of our relationships with them. And | |
purposeful, undivided attention conveys the message "I care." | |
Ancient yogis were extremely careful about what they allowed into | |
their consciousness through the senses. They didn't allow degrading | |
impressions to nest within their minds. In this regard, as noted by | |
one commentator, the yogis realized that their minds were as | |
sensitive as eyeballs. Consider how the eyes are two of the most | |
delicate surfaces on the body, irritated by the touch of even a tiny | |
strand of hair. Meditators and yogis today retain an awareness that | |
whatever we allow to enter our consciousness will remain and have a | |
lasting effect. They're careful, therefore, about what they allow to | |
enter.... | |
To focus our attention, the yoga wisdom texts recommend the process | |
of mantra meditation--fixing one's mind on a kind of potent sound. | |
Authentic metaphysical sound vibrations may seem like any other | |
sound--just a combination of syllables--but Vedic mantras originate | |
from outside of the material world. They are eternal mantras passed | |
down by generations of sadhus. These authorized mantras lift us... | |
## Journal Prompts | |
1. List the ten things you spend the most time doing. | |
2. Figure out which ones take the most time. | |
3. Decide which ones you'd like to invest more (or less) time in. | |
4. Make a tweak to your schedule to improve your ROA | |
(return on attention), starting today. | |
author: Dāsa, Vaiśeṣika | |
detail: https://thefourquestionsbook.com/ | |
ISBN: 9781925850031 | |
tags: book,self-help,spirit,yoga | |
title: The Four Questions: A Pathway to Inner Peace | |
# Tags | |
book | |
self-help | |
spirit | |
yoga |