Beyond Doing… Let Us Discover the Beauty of Being

Beyond Doing… Let Us Discover the Beauty of Being

Dear friends,

Warm greetings to you all!

From the moment we open our eyes in the morning until we go to bed at night, each of us is constantly doing something.

As soon as we wake up, our minds begin thinking about the tasks awaiting us that day.

We have to go to work, earn money, look after our families, nurture our relationships and save something for the future. Our days keep rushing by, caught up in this endless cycle.

Amid all this activity, how many of us pause for a moment and ask ourselves, “How am I, really?”

We spend a great deal of time thinking about what we do. But we rarely stop to reflect on how we are being.

Do we have a good job?

Are we earning a good income?

Are we making progress in life?

Are others appreciating us?

Questions like these constantly occupy our minds.

Yet, in the midst of all these concerns, we often push aside some of the more important questions.

Is our mind at peace?

Are we loving and kind towards the people around us?

Are we truly experiencing and enjoying the present moment?

Standing at the threshold of old age and looking back on life, this truth has become deeply meaningful to me.

Life is not merely a list of things we have accomplished. It is also the experience of how we have lived.

There may be ways to measure how much we have achieved. But what measure can tell us how lovingly we have lived, how many hearts we have brought joy to, or how many times we have forgotten ourselves and laughed wholeheartedly with others?

I believe that is where the true fulfilment of life lies.

### Is Doing Nothing a Waste of Time?

For many of us, doing nothing creates a sense of guilt.

When we sit quietly without a mobile phone in our hands, without a television in front of us and without thinking about the tasks we need to complete, we feel as though we are missing out on something important.

How did we become this way?

Somewhere along the way, we have developed the belief that we are useful human beings only when we are constantly doing something.

We fear that if we rest, we might fall behind, or that if we remain still for a little while, others might move ahead of us.

This fear keeps us moving without pause.

But take a moment to observe nature.

A tree does not bear fruit every moment.

A flower does not bloom every single day.

The darkness of night is just as much a part of nature as the light of day.

Even when a seed lies quietly beneath the soil, growth is taking place within it.

If so, must we, as human beings, be constantly active all the time?

Sometimes, doing nothing is not laziness. It is an opportunity to meet ourselves.

It gives us the space to understand what our minds are telling us, to notice the things we have neglected and to rediscover the person we may have lost amid the endless rush of life.

### What Does It Mean to Be?

By ‘being’, I do not simply mean being alive.

I mean living our lives with awareness.

It means waking up in the morning with a sense of gratitude for having been given another day.

It means enjoying the taste of our tea without allowing our minds to wander towards the next task.

It means truly listening when someone speaks to us, rather than merely waiting for our turn to respond.

It means experiencing the joy of seeing a smile on the face of someone we love.

These are not great achievements.

Yet they are the little moments that make life beautiful.

Most of the time, we live for the next moment.

Our minds keep running towards the future, chasing the next goal, the next promotion, the next increase in income or the next journey.

There is nothing wrong with planning for the future.

Fulfilling our responsibilities is important too.

But if we lose the entirety of our present while trying to reach the future, when are we actually going to live?

Life does not begin tomorrow.

It is happening right now.

### Let Us Be Fully Alive!

Being fully alive means much more than simply breathing.

It means being connected to the life unfolding around us.

There are so many beautiful experiences available to us: noticing a leaf trembling on a tree, listening to the song of a bird, breathing in the earthy fragrance of rain falling on the ground, or having a heartfelt conversation with a friend after a long time.

Yet when our minds are somewhere else, none of these experiences truly touches us.

Our bodies may be in one place while our minds dwell on the past, regretting what has happened, or worry about a future that has not yet arrived.

We begin to experience life more fully when our body and mind come together in the same moment.

I am not suggesting that we should forget all our worries in a single day.

Life will always have problems that need solving.

Difficulties and disappointments will continue to find their way into our lives.

But my feeling is that, even amid these challenges, we should not forget to enjoy the little moments of happiness that come our way.

### Let Us Embrace Stillness!

Peace does not simply mean the absence of noise around us.

It also means reaching a state in which we do not feel compelled to fight every thought that arises within us.

Sometimes our minds ask a thousand questions.

They repeatedly bring back memories of what has happened. They search for hidden meanings in the words spoken by others. They worry about what tomorrow might bring.

At such times, instead of searching for answers to every thought, can we simply observe those thoughts arising and passing away?

Let us sit quietly for a little while, gently observing our breath.

If thoughts arise, let them come.

We do not have to force them away.

Nor do we have to chase after them.

This small space of stillness may open the door to a deeper understanding of ourselves.

When we begin to step back from the need to control everything and instead become aware of what is happening, a new inner space begins to emerge.

Within that space, we may gradually discover what we truly need, which worries are unnecessary and what we can learn to let go of.

### Let Us Live with Joy and Love!

If we believe that happiness is a reward we will receive only after achieving everything we desire, we may end up waiting for that day throughout our lives.

For the moment one desire is fulfilled, another often arises.

One problem is resolved, and another takes its place.

That is how life moves forward.

So, must we wait until all our problems have disappeared before allowing ourselves to be happy?

There is happiness in recognising the value of what we already have.

There is happiness in the care and affection of someone who loves us.

There is happiness in offering even the smallest act of help that eases another person's suffering.

Likewise, being loving is one of the greatest sources of meaning in life.

Love is not about using grand words or declaring that we are going to change the entire world.

Its true expression is found in the little things we do every day: being patient with those who live with us, respecting the feelings of others, admitting when we have made a mistake and offering whatever help we can to someone in need.

Sometimes, how people feel in our presence matters more than how much money we have earned.

If we can leave someone with a sense of hope, even after we have gone our separate ways, then our lives have carried a beautiful meaning.

Does the world today need only more material possessions?

Does it need only more competition and achievements?

I feel that this world needs more loving people, more peaceful minds and more hearts capable of feeling the suffering of others.

We do not have to be constantly achieving something to become such people.

Sometimes, our very presence can be a source of comfort to others.

### Let Us Understand Doing and Being Together!

There is one important point we must not forget.

The purpose of this reflection is not to suggest that we should stop being active in life.

We have responsibilities towards our families.

We have duties towards society.

We need to work towards our goals.

And we need to do whatever good we are capable of doing.

But while doing all these things, we must take care not to lose ourselves.

Let us work, but not allow our work to become our entire identity.

Let us earn wealth, but not lose the meaning of life while pursuing material possessions.

Let us progress, but not sacrifice our peace of mind and our capacity to love in the name of progress.

Let us work for others, but not forget to care for the human being within ourselves.

The actions we perform in life are important. But the state of mind with which we perform those actions is equally important, if not more so.

Sometimes, a small act performed with a mind filled with love and awareness can do more good than a great achievement accomplished in a state of inner turmoil.

When we understand this, our everyday lives themselves can become a spiritual practice.

We do not have to limit mindfulness to the time we spend sitting alone in meditation.

We can remain aware while talking to our families, working, walking, eating or helping others.

Spirituality is not merely about withdrawing from life.

It is also about experiencing and living each moment of life more deeply.

### Dear friends,

As I stand at the threshold of seventy, this is one of the many lessons life has taught me.

We do not have to wait until we have achieved everything before we begin to live.

We do not have to wait until every problem has been resolved before we allow ourselves to be peaceful.

Nor do we have to wait until all our desires have been fulfilled before we experience happiness.

Life is already here, in this very moment.

This breath, this moment, the people around us and the love we can share with them are all precious opportunities we have been given.

Let us make a small effort today.

Let us sit quietly for a few moments without feeling the need to rush.

Let us observe our breath.

Let us become aware of what is happening around us.

Let us share our love wholeheartedly with someone dear to us.

Let us feel grateful for what we already have.

None of these things may transform our lives in a single day.

But they may bring about a small change in the way we look at life.

Over time, that change may improve the quality of our lives, deepen our relationships and strengthen our inner peace.

This is what I wish to share with you.

What we give to the world is important.

At the same time, how we live in this world is equally important.

Just as we set aside time for doing, let us also make time for being.

Let us be fully alive.

Let us embrace stillness.

Let us live with joy.

Let us live with love.

For the true beauty of life lies not merely in what we have accumulated, but also in the kind of human beings we have become.

With affection,

Sakthi Sakthithasan