Sunday, February 03, 2008

Lucky Zen


Today's Quotation:

I think luck is the sense to recognize an opportunity and
the ability to take advantage of it. Everyone has bad breaks,
but everyone also has opportunities. People who can smile
at their breaks and grab their chances get on.

Samuel Goldwyn

Today's Meditation:

I don't believe in luck. Those people who have succeeded in life usually have done so as the result of hard work, of being able to see opportunities when they've come up, or a combination of the two. Those people who win tons of money in lotteries or inherit vast fortunes aren't necessarily lucky--many people who have come into money that way have become quite miserable, very unhappy with their "new" lives.

My biggest problems in life have come when I haven't recognized opportunities. Because I haven't seen them until too late so often, I haven't been able to take advantage of them. I suppose many people would say that I've had bad luck, but I don't see it that way at all. I see it as having missed opportunities, and I don't get down on myself for having missed them. After all, there was no one around when I was growing up to teach me to recognize and take advantage of opportunities.

Most of us are in that same boat--we haven't been taught how to recognize the opportunities that come our way as opportunities, so we squander chance after chance to make more of ourselves or improve our lives or lifestyles. That's okay, because that's how life is--what's not okay is to recognize the problem and not do anything about it.

Now that I know how many opportunities I've let go by, it's up to me to teach myself how to recognize them and take advantage of them. And the burden isn't completely on me--there are plenty of books and tape programs out there that can help us to learn to do these things. This is material that should be taught in schools, but it isn't, so we have to find other teachers outside of the classroom who have focused on this sort of thing as their own area of expertise.

Bad luck? Sorry, but there's no such thing. The universe functions too well for that to be true. Sometimes it's true that things are completely out of our control, but even if something negative happens to us, there will be something important for us to learn in it. If we can smile at our bad breaks and move on with our lives, learning in the process, life becomes much brighter. Bad luck tends to be an excuse for not wanting to look deeper.

13 comments:

What If There Is dog? said...

Beautiful

What If There Is dog? said...

Try to see it once my way
Everything zen
Everything zen
I don't think so


I don't believe that Elvis is dead
I don't believe that Elvis is dead
I don't believe that Elvis is, Elvis is

Dharma said...

Elvis has nothing to do with it. He died. That is a fact.

If people choose to believe in curses, then on the other hand they must also recognize fate. Can't have it both ways.

I think that those that tend to feel "cursed" are those that feel as if they have no control over their own lives, and maybe they dont', and need to re-evaluate how they are doing things and maybe try a different approach or use a new perspective.

It is a good way to live with much less stress and you tend to see things, and the world, in a less dramatic and woeful light.

I know because I had to do some of that myself. There is much to be said for the Zen way of living and seeing life.

What If There Is dog? said...

Try to see it once my way
Everything zen
Everything zen
I don't think so


I don't believe that Elvis is dead
I don't believe that Elvis is dead
I don't believe that Elvis is, Elvis is

Dharma said...

Too bad. It's okay. I hope that your faith works for you and will help you through your struggles. As for me, I know what works and am much happier for it. I am satisfied in the "how & why" things happen category and do not feel that life etc. is beyond my control.

What If There Is dog? said...

Try to see it once my way
Everything zen
Everything zen
I don't think so


I don't believe that Elvis is dead
I don't believe that Elvis is dead
I don't believe that Elvis is, Elvis is

What If There Is dog? said...

actually,I never said that I don't believe in fate...I said that I give it the finger all the time.I am glad that zen works for you.It IS a great method/religion whatever you want to call it.

I respect you for preaching it.

I believe somewhat in the Choas theory.I have written a mutiple page essay on how Choas could possibly justify God and us.

Choas also can be used to justify it's supposed opposite,Zen.

Blah blah blah blah blah

Dharma said...

By the way, I don't "preach" it (Zen). Can't be preached, it's a way of living. I just talk about how I live and how changing the way I think has improved my life/living.

The Top 52 of 2008 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
What If There Is dog? said...

...."I think that those that tend to feel "cursed" are those that feel as if they have no control over their own lives, and maybe they dont', and need to re-evaluate how they are doing things and maybe try a different approach or use a new perspective.

It is a good way to live with much less stress and you tend to see things, and the world, in a less dramatic and woeful light.

I know because I had to do some of that myself. There is much to be said for the Zen way of living and seeing life."


To that all I have to add is a,"AMEN" and a "Hallalujia"

That's preaching,girlfriend.Amen,sister:-)

Dharma said...

I just realized that you might see it that way. Coming from a traditional/western/Christian style religious background. You may only be able to see that type of a discussion/topic as preaching. It is the only way that you can process it, as preaching instead of a lifestyle change/adjustment. There is no dogma, no Amen, nor Halleluja. It just is what it is.

What If There Is dog? said...

No,it is no the only way I can see it.I am not a narrow minded ogre.But,I will call a spade a spade.It is a sign of a fanatic to assume that since their way is the only and/or best way to sing it's praises at the expense of other beliefs..
Your smug holier than thou banter is the same type of cluttered thinking that I hear out of the republican camp all the time.

I am glad and overjoyed that you have found a path that works for you,but only when you can take the pebble from my hand,Grasshopper,it will time for you to go.

What If There Is dog? said...
This comment has been removed by the author.