The Choice Is Yours
Every moment, we make a decision about our lives. Nobody is forcing us to be miserable or happy. And we don't realize this. That is our tragedy. But it is not a tragedy if you discover it; then it becomes a joyful thing, a celebration—you can choose your misery, and you can choose your blissfulness.
We continue to blame others for our woes, never considering that we may have chosen them! If somebody insults you, it is your choice to feel insulted. If somebody humiliates you, it is your choice to feel humiliated. It all depends on how you look at things and how you respond.
Buddha says: "The same way water falls upon the lotus leaf and rolls off, nobody can stick to it because the leaf is so slippery, nobody can get hold of it. Just as water falls on a lotus leaf and rolls off, just as air touches the grass and goes away—so should be your response towards insult, towards humiliation. It should not enter into your heart at all because it comes from outside—it has no door inside to enter by—it comes from outside; if you don't open the door, how will it come in?
People are very much addicted to their misery. They are very much committed to their misery; they have become identified with it so deeply that they cannot even imagine that there could be any other possibility for them.
There is no doubt that the idea which you choose to entertain in your mind when you first wake up is going to set the tone for your whole day. If you entertain the idea of complaining about something or harboring ill will toward someone, that energy will penetrate every aspect of your life. But if you choose an idea of appreciation for something or someone, you are already choosing happiness.
There are people who feel very good about feeling miserable. They will cling to their misery because they enjoy being miserable as far as others are concerned.
On the contrary, if you choose blissfulness, you will be more alert, more alive, and regardless of whether your needs are met or not, you will be happy. You will be happy in spite of the circumstances.
If misery is prevailing all around you and if it still doesn't affect your mood, then the quality of your life has increased tremendously. With that increase in quality of life comes a tremendous increase in creativity and efficiency. Nobody can remain creative and efficient while miserable.
What does "bliss" mean? It means freedom from all tension and effort; it means harmony with existence, with things as they are; it means being in tune with the whole universe. But because we live in our minds and our minds are not in tune with the universe—our minds are constantly trying to change things according to our own ideas and ideals—we live in a constant state of conflict. Our minds cannot be satisfied with anything as it is; they have their own notions about how everything around us should be. This creates a constant struggle.
If you are aware of your misery, if you know what it is, if you have experienced both it and the other thing called happiness, then there is no question of which to choose. Happiness is a way of living, but unhappiness is a way of avoiding it. And this avoidance has to end; we are only avoiding happiness.
Do not believe a thought that says you are powerless. The moment you say, "I am powerless," it is a judgment. It is a declaration about yourself. It is an identification with powerlessness that the mind interprets as truth. It is not true! What the mind thinks does not have to be true for you. You have a choice in every moment: to choose the thought of powerlessness or the thought of empowerment.
The only thing that makes it difficult to choose the thought of empowerment is your investment in believing what you have always believed, which is "I am powerless."
But once you understand that nothing external to you can make you happy or unhappy, and there are no circumstances under which you are not at choice—once you really get this—then there would never again be any reason to think, "I am powerless."
You can choose your misery, or you can choose your blissfulness. Only then does life become a growth from within outwards—and only then does life become extraordinarily creative.
It will take time and practice before this way of thinking becomes natural and automatic for you. However, if you begin now by making this commitment—to choose the thought that empowers you—it will become your new nature very quickly.
We love you dearly.
We are here with you.
We are your family of light.
A'HO
Aurora Ray
Ambassador of the Galactic Federation
Copyright 2022 Aurora Ray. All rights reserved.
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