On this day
take the time to keep in mind your health and the health of your loved
ones. Taking care of ourselves and those
close to us throughout the year is important not only to life but also to our
ancestry. Keep in mind the ideas of
eating well, moderation and self preservation. There is also a rare Full Christmas Moon.
On this day
we remind ourselves of the virtue of Discipline.
Discipline is showing
a controlled form of behavior, and is usually understood to be synonymous with
restraint and self-control. Self-discipline
means self-control. Synonyms: teaching,
self-restraint, regulate, orderliness
Your own self is your master, who else could be? With yourself well controlled, you gain a
master very hard to find. ~ The Dhammapada
The word discipline originally comes from a word that meant teaching and
learning. The idea was that when you
teach, you put out a pattern of knowledge or behavior that students fit
themselves to. The basic idea is that
there are patterns that are worth learning to fit and also that the way you
learn is to change your behavior to fit such patterns. For example, the best way to have a strong
body is to learn the pattern of eating healthy and exercising that creates a
strong body, and then to practice fidelity to that pattern.
It is doing what you really want to do, rather than being tossed around
by your feelings like a leaf in the wind.
You act instead of react. You get
things done in an orderly and efficient way.
With self-discipline, you take charge of yourself.
The ant represents self discipline and a group effort. Self discipline means deliberately aligning
our energy with our values and priorities. Through mental practice we focus in
on a task before us and lets other temptations and distractions pass us by.
Self-discipline
asks that we endure frustration, disappointment, and pain in the service of a
higher goal. It means being willing to
push ourselves to the limits of our will and endurance if that is what is
needed for success.
And good
intentions aren’t enough. People have
good intentions when they set a goal to do something, but then they miss a
deadline or other milestone. Suddenly it
gets a lot easier to miss again and again and again.
Self-discipline need not be
harsh; it can take the form of a quiet resolve or determination that then
directs our choices. It is exacting, but
is rarely served by our being self-critical or self-denigrating. Self-discipline allows us to make use of
whatever power and capabilities have been given us, to be all that we can in
the service of our dreams.
“Discipline is the
master key that unlocks the door to wealth and happiness, culture and
sophistication, high self-esteem and high accomplishment and the accompanying
feelings of pride, satisfaction and success. Discipline will do much for you. More importantly, though, is what it will do to you. It will make you feel terrific about
yourself.”
Glad Yuletide to Everyone. Hail!
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