We have a place to meet this coming Thursday :-)

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Ross Clark

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Jun 3, 2007, 1:08:25 PM6/3/07

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Hi Folks,

Arlette has offered to host the group this Thursday, June 7 at her home in Salem. Her home is located at 0462 Irvine Street in Salem. Please call Arlette at 519-846-5022 if you are planning on coming.

Thank You, Arlette
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Self-LOVE a topic for reflection

"You can travel around the world to search for someone more lovable than yourself, and yet that person is never to be found."

The Buddha taught that each person has within themselves a unlimited source of LOVE and this is our true or deepest nature.

So, next time you are caught up in anger and hatred, just stop to do a little contemplation and introspection:

Are these negativities really necessary?
Do I not have the inner strength to conquer them?
Please note that the practice of forgiveness can be constructively motivated by self-interest.
You forgive your enemy not to fulfill any religious or moral norm, but simply to benefit yourself. For you do not want the harmful emotions to continue working havoc to your mental well-being. With this understanding in mind, the practice of forgiveness and tolerance can yield amazingly positive results.

The inner strength we can utilize for this purpose is related to an important topic in the discussion of love and compassion: self-love.

The Buddha and many Western thinkers concur that loving ourselves is the foundation of love and compassion for others. As the Buddha observes, "You can travel around the world to search for someone more lovable than yourself, and yet that person is never to be found."

Self-love, however, should not be confused with narcissism and ego-centeredness. It comes from a process of healthy personal growth in which the actualization of our personal potentials, especially in the service of others, brings us joy and happiness, and enhances our self-worth rather than self-conceit. To love ourselves is to be continuously in touch with this source of joy and happiness, and to learn to appreciate the goodness we have in us.

Self-love in this sense is eroded by all egoist and narcissistic tendencies, including self-aggrandizement and self-abasement. Conversely it is enriched by our willingness to open our hearts and minds to accept all situations and all people, to touch our pain and sorrow with tenderness, and to reach out to others in need of help.

Out of self-love the power of love and compassion grows. It is a power:

so warm as to heal
so strong as to overcome
so radiant as to illuminate

The potentials of that power are indeed within all of us - a precious inner resource that we all can and should learn to develop, and to benefit from.