Cultivating a gentle heart and spirit (pt.2/2)
Hi folks!
As I was saying earlier, having a gentle heart and a gentle spirit is a good thing. I think I pretty much covered the gentle heart matter earlier. I'll summarize the traits of a gentle heart at the end of this, I promise.
A gentle spirit is far more personal then a gentle heart, and yet, somehow, others can tell that you have this. A gentle spirit is not only that gentle heart but rather the willingness to carry this gentle heart's traits into the rest of one's life. Compassion is not only extended to the people around you but also to those farther away and even the other forms of life that are not alive. As such, there is respect and regard for all life. In some folks (like myself), it is even for the very Earth and the whole of reality. The capacity to trust and be honest combine in a gentle spirit to be expressed as something like faith.
I can not call it faith because I have seen this trait in people who are atheists. There is, however, a sense of acceptance with the world. Even if there is disappointment and even a measure of anger with the things that are wrong, there is acceptance. A gentle spirit is also courageous and determined. These are two traits that no one thinks of when they think of gentleness.
Only great courage and great determination can allow some one to make a daily risk of themselves emotionally to interact with others. People who have a gentle heart and a gentle spirit are often more keenly aware of that daily risk. We grieve for others who are casually hurt and tossed aside on a daily basis. At times, it may even be as though we can feel an echo of their pain ourselves.
A gentle heart is compassionate, honest, and benevolently inclined. A gentle heart tends to look for the good in others and seeks to understand them. A gentle spirit is accepting, courageous, and determined.
It is possible to have these traits and live in a difficult world. It is possible to make changes to make the world a better place. A large number of the reformers, activists, and revolutionaries that have changed the world for the better possessed gentle hearts and spirits. Even if they were required to act in violence, they continued to possess these qualities. After all, a gentle heart and a gentle spirit does not require being a doormat or remaining silent in the face of injustice.
Here's wishing you all well today. I shall be available this afternoon and tonight.
Blessings to you and yours.