Our personality can be compared to a shopping basket. We go to the supermarket with loads of food, household stuff and utensils. We walk around and buy things that are most to our likes denying those that we dislike. For example, we buy a toothbrush of medium roughness, because someone told you that hard one will damage your teeth, in better case your previous experience with hard toothbrush was not so pleasant, so you’d made a conclusion that you need either medium or soft. This time you’ve decided to try medium one, if it doesn’t suit you will go for soft one or choose another manufacturer. So you might throw the medium toothbrush the same day you bought it. With regrets about money spent, or time wasted for going to the market for the second time or without any. At the counter the contents of your basket will be closely scanned and studied by a cashier. The cashier might suggest you to buy a different brand of the toothbrush with regards to her/his experience with toothbrushes. You might be influenced by her/his words or ignore and stay with your choice. Might a crowd in the queue will share their suggestions and ideas for you to accept and follow or reject and stick to your internal feel about toothbrushes.
Our personally is truly a supermarket basket, a selection of ideas, concepts, likes and dislikes, prejudices and believes, emotions and feelings most part of which are hidden below the counter of our conscious level influencing our decisions and choices from behind the scenes. And the society is the cashier to persuade you into the righteousness of your choices made. Have you ever thought that you can form and shape your personality in whatever character you can imagine possible? That if for a moment you can stop clinging to your attachments and aversions, denying the society a role of the Supreme Judge and in contrast finding the Supreme Judge within, the Infinite and Absolute Truth that dwells within all dwellers of the Universe. Then it would cost you just nothing to decide to throw away any negative emotion or feeling buzzing in your head at the exact moment it arises or deny any false or fake action, speech or thought the moment you become aware of it. And in that particular glimpse of pure awareness, spontaneous and unconditional moment It wouldn’t be anything more than throwing a toothbrush that didn’t match your teeth. Would it?
Daily practice: each moment that you express your thoughts, ideas, react to the situation emotionally, accepting or denying any outside condition, hold on for a while, linger on just for a second or two. Try to feel your inner voice. Ask yourself – is it me who chooses it? Do I really need it? What inner consequences I am to face if I react to it this way? Try to be honest. Don’t go for outer reasoning. Dive into your True Self. Open yourself to the situation and question. Through persistent practice you will realize that you no longer buy those nicely advertised products, they neither touch nor catch you. The market doesn’t decide for you. And that is part of your self-liberation called freedom.
Yoga Light-House Sri Lanka