In an utterly confusing time like the present where we have managed to create a fine mess of our planet – what do we teach our children about God, spirituality, and religion?
The past couple of weeks have been quite hectic – from NY to Atlanta, back to NY…then to London, and now in Paris for a couple of days, before heading off to my next destination. It’s a bright, sunny day, and while sitting down in a typical Parisian Café on the Champs-Elysées, I can’t help but ponder what to teach my child on these topics, and my mind reflects on a discussion held back in Atlanta…
That night…following day-long conversations about business transformation, technology, the good old value proposition of it all, and other never ending debates….after a few drinks, our little group (with apt global representation) got into the heavy discussion of ‘what one teaches their children’.
Recently, I started to read some of the writings of Sri Chinmoy. Sri Chinmoy was born in 1931 in Shakpura, Chittagong in what is now Bangladesh. Aside from being a spiritual leader and a philosopher, Sri Chinmoy is a prolific writer, an accomplished musician, and a composer. He says:
“Spirituality is man’s boundless freedom in his life boat: the freedom of his life-journey, the freedom from his life pangs and the freedom beyond his life achievements. In spirituality is man’s farthest Vision. In spirituality is man’s nearest reality. God has Compassion. Man has aspiration. Spirituality is the consciousness light that unites man’s aspiration and God’s Compassion. Spirituality is not an escape from the world of reality. Spirituality tells us what the true reality is and how we can discover it here on earth. Spirituality is not the denial of life, but the purest acceptance of life. Life is to be accepted unreservedly. Life is to be realized soulfully. Life is to be transformed totally. Life is to be lived eternally.”
I meet a variety of interesting people these days – professionals, entrepreneurs, authors, bankers, social activists, you name it. Some known some not so known. Regardless, it is some of their spirit, passion, and ‘their freedom in their lifeboats’ where I often get my spiritual inspiration.
The more I keep jumping from planes to trains to automobiles, I realize how important it is to teach my son the importance of life’s journey, knowing yourself, and understanding others. Perhaps nothing could be more spiritual.
As I wrap up my week in Europe and start getting ready to head out to Amman, Jordan, a dear friend from Israel reminds me of a quote from Khalil Gibran. He (Gibran) said “I will not know myself until I know everybody else.”
According to The Japanese Art of War:
“Be aware of yourself and know yourself. No matter how much you have learned and how much you know, if you don’t know yourself you don’t know anything. Indeed, if you don’t know yourself you cannot know anything else. People who don’t know themselves criticize others from the point of view of their own ignorance. They consider what agrees with them to be good, and hate whatever doesn’t go their way. They become irritated about everything, causing themselves to suffer by themselves, bothering themselves solely because of their own prejudices. If you know that not everyone will be agreeable to you, know that you won’t be agreeable to everyone either. Those who have no
prejudices in themselves do not reject people, and therefore people do not reject them.”
Trying to master this art of knowing yourself by knowing others is my only road to spirituality…
