Karma Yoga_ A Scale for Self-evaluation
Yogendra
Yoga and Total Health
Dear Reader,
There is no place for complacency in the life of a Yoga student. One must continuously keep evaluating oneself, to find out whether one is progressing, or is in a "status quo". The easiest yardstick, to measure our progress, is one in terms of Karma Yoga. If one is wishing to retire away from life, or one is getting too involved in it, or cannot strike a balance between the two, one is not making much progress. The most important issue, when we think of Karma Yoga, is the question of our commitment to a spiritual life. A belief in a higher life, and a faith in such a higher reality is necessary. This faith has to be expressed in our day-to-day activities. It is no use saying that one has such a faith, and yet feel continuously insecure, and therefore be at war with things around us. One who has such a belief, is willing to accept the external reality, as it is, without continuously challenging it, or wanting it to be different. It could be a good way to check our progress in different situations - whether we feel that things as they are happening are ultimately for our own good, or do we get into the mood of running away from situations in life.
Another scale of evaluation is that of organizing the priorities of duties, such as duty to ourselves, our physical health, our mental health, our spiritual development, as well as duties to people around us, our duty to the one who provides us our daily bread, our duties to the society etc. One should be clear about one's duties and apportion time and energy accordingly. The capacity to shift from one type of duty to another, is also very essential. There must be flexibility.
Another way to evaluate ourselves is to find out when involved in our duties, whether we are able to give ourselves totally to the work at hand. Do we get disturbed, and therefore have poor concentration? The point here would be to see if while we are involved in our work, we are able to completely get lost into the work, so that there is the least number of egoistic tendencies remaining with us. A sense of self-effacement and transcending of one's own ego is aimed at.
Here are some scales to evaluate our progress, as we are involved in life, carrying on our various responsibilities in our work. There could be more ways to measure our progress in life. The issue rather is, whether we are in the habit of carrying out such evaluation work.
Yours in Yoga
Editor
Karma Yoga_ A Scale for Self-evaluation
Yogendra
Yoga and Total Health
Dear Reader,
There is no place for complacency in the life of a Yoga student. One must continuously keep evaluating oneself, to find out whether one is progressing, or is in a "status quo". The easiest yardstick, to measure our progress, is one in terms of Karma Yoga. If one is wishing to retire away from life, or one is getting too involved in it, or cannot strike a balance between the two, one is not making much progress. The most important issue, when we think of Karma Yoga, is the question of our commitment to a spiritual life. A belief in a higher life, and a faith in such a higher reality is necessary. This faith has to be expressed in our day-to-day activities. It is no use saying that one has such a faith, and yet feel continuously insecure, and therefore be at war with things around us. One who has such a belief, is willing to accept the external reality, as it is, without continuously challenging it, or wanting it to be different. It could be a good way to check our progress in different situations - whether we feel that things as they are happening are ultimately for our own good, or do we get into the mood of running away from situations in life.
Another scale of evaluation is that of organizing the priorities of duties, such as duty to ourselves, our physical health, our mental health, our spiritual development, as well as duties to people around us, our duty to the one who provides us our daily bread, our duties to the society etc. One should be clear about one's duties and apportion time and energy accordingly. The capacity to shift from one type of duty to another, is also very essential. There must be flexibility.
Another way to evaluate ourselves is to find out when involved in our duties, whether we are able to give ourselves totally to the work at hand. Do we get disturbed, and therefore have poor concentration? The point here would be to see if while we are involved in our work, we are able to completely get lost into the work, so that there is the least number of egoistic tendencies remaining with us. A sense of self-effacement and transcending of one's own ego is aimed at.
Here are some scales to evaluate our progress, as we are involved in life, carrying on our various responsibilities in our work. There could be more ways to measure our progress in life. The issue rather is, whether we are in the habit of carrying out such evaluation work.
Yours in Yoga
Editor