Question:

I am practicing “It’s Okay” for every situation. But If some one is sarcastic and if I do not react to them, that always revolves in & around my mind until I do something. I will be free only if I answer back. What to do?

Answer:

Stop fooling yourself and see the truth as it is. Whenever you react back to sarcasm, you never get free. In fact you are now bound. You repeatedly keep thinking about what you said and how you said and whether it was right or wrong, etc. Then what the other person reacts with, that starts a big internal fire within you and you keep thinking even more. You are far from being free. You just trapped your own self by ‘reacting’. Now he/she will react and you will react back and he/she will react and the vicious cycle continues creating numerous karmas for you!

Question:

If I say, “it’s ok, leave it”, means I can stop at that moment but it haunts me and at some point of time it burst out and that leads to many worse situations. Instead of that if I answer or respond, my mind will be free from that situation. I know that this is not correct. How can I answer to myself to overcome this situation. Even if I respond, many situations turn to verbal fights and ends with misery. How to explain myself to overcome this scenario?

Answer:

It is difficult not to react because you have made a habit pattern out of it. Just like if you are a smoking addict, it is difficult to quit but NOT IMPOSSIBLE. Therefore:

Step number 1 is to recognize that ‘Anger is a dangerous habit pattern that YOU have adopted and encouraged through lifetimes.

Step number 2  is to create the willingness to change yourself. If the willingness is not there to change yourself, then things around you will continue to bother you. Don’t think that life will be smooth by reacting, it will not. Educating your mind that, “changing habit patterns of ‘reaction’ is for your good” is your responsibility. Just like the Karma bag created out of ‘reaction’ is your responsibility.

Step number 3 is to commit to yourself that you will make a sincere effort to come out of it. And what is the effort? You must keep ‘practicing to overcome the temptation’ of falling into the same trap of ‘reaction’.  Just like a smoker/alcoholic that is trying to get out of the bad habit has to overcome the temptation , you will have to overcome the temptation to ‘react’.

What can help make you stronger on this path?

Again and again, practice Sakshi Bhava as Ashtavakra has been training us so long. If you have not joined any Ashtavakra knowledge sessions, please join the next one.

Just like you cannot quit smoking by any information given to you in one email, similarly, you cannot quit the habit of ‘reaction’ from information from one email. It requires considerable effort on the mind and this can be achieved only through consistent knowledge sessions. These knowledge sessions help you break your habit patterns [if attended sincerely] and become the master of your mind. For information on knowledge sessions email ancientwisdompearls@gmail.com