Is it half-empty?

There are so many things that can happen in our isolation here in Iran. Perhaps, because there is not much things you can do here, you become more introspective and mindful of your surroundings.

I have been visiting Iran for several times this year for a project. The site is far from the main city. It is a very small town with huge petrochemical complexes. They do have a small bazaar with some parks yet I still feel unsafe roaming around alone. The local town folks don’t speak English making it more difficult to interact. Besides, the place doesn’t seem to be tourist-friendly. Though the people are warm and nice, because of the current political situation, the ‘air’ makes you feel in danger. Thus, I would always rather stay in the hotel after work.

My usual hotel routine after our shift is go for a cardio exercise in my room then proceed to a small, yet rather ‘sufficient’ gym. The hotel has this multi-function workout unit wherein you  can use it to pump up your chest, legs, biceps, triceps, shoulder, etc. I have been using it several times now though it is not as efficient as the ones you find in high-end fitness centers, but for me, it is far better than nothing.

This time around, we have been working with an Egyptian guy from Yokogawa who is busy starting up the program he has created for our pilot plant system. My colleagues have been in the hotel/area for quite a while now but for this Egyptian guy, this is his first time. He says, that he has been assigned for work in several places already like Singapore, Malaysia, Germany, and the Netherlands. So, I guess, he has been familiar to isolated sites considering the type of projects we are involved in. And considering he is from Egypt, a not-so-well off country compared to the ones in Europe and the like, we presume that he has been used to such meagre lifestyle. That is what I thought.

On the first day of the trip, he didn’t say that much. Perhaps, he is still observing the surroundings and the people. He was just probably hoping that everything is far better than what he sees. Maybe he just needed a rest from the gruelling trip that we had.

It all began on the second day when he started complaining about his internet. He noticed that facebook and youtube have been blocked. Well, he has to get used to it since internet access in Iran is very limited. His WiFi signal is very slow so he opted to transfer to another room where the access point is nearer. Yet he says that it didn’t do that much. And then he complained that the hot shower is not working, the food isn’t that delicious, the water tastes bad and so on. Funny thing is, every time he complains, another problem comes along. At least for him.

Every one in our team knew that me and my colleague have been using the gym. And the Egyptian guy was happy as well that at least he has another outlet to keep him busy in the hotel aside from the internet. He says, he also works out, perhaps that explains why he was so eager to use the facility. Yesterday, when we arrived at the hotel he was telling everyone that he will be going to work out immediately. Another colleague of ours, a Dutch, also wanted to flex some muscles so he said he might be going as well. We saw each other in the gym except for the Egyptian guy. We were wondering why he didn’t show up when he was the one who was excited about the gym since day one.

During dinner, we asked him if he has been to the gym. He said he was but only for five minutes. He said the multi-function exercise machine was so crappy that he can’t use it. He added that the wires were not in the proper places and that the unit was not functioning well. He left immediately after that. Interesting thing though, we were using that machine after he left and everything worked fine! Then it made me realize one thing,

Perspective is always relative. It depends on who is the observer. A pessimist sees the glass half-empty, the optimist sees it half-full.

The glass is simply just sitting there. It’s not doing anything. Yet, in the observer’s eyes, it draws an emotion, either a feeling of satisfaction or disappointment.  The same thing with the workout machine, an individual may see it as a blessing, and another may be just simply frustrated by it. Everything indeed is just a simple mindset. It is up to us whether to take things positively or the other way around. However, keep in mind that whatever affects you negatively, torments you. And whatever delights you, cheers you. Thus, there is no need for you to complain. Always choose to be happy. Namaste.

Earth Bound Spirits

I was watching one of the episodes of Ghost Whisperer and it made me ask about earth-bound spirits ~ those who haven’t crossed over yet, ‘Why are they not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel? Why do they have to stay and choose not to transcend?’

The questions made me realize one thing though, perhaps, the answer.

“We have become so attached to life, that we prefer to stay rather than move on.”

It is exactly the same thing with what we are trying to do while we are still in this land of the living. We torment ourselves for something that we don’t even have any control of.  Some people who have experienced a loss, whether it is a life, an object, or a relationship, becomes so depressed to the point of destroying his/her own life and no longer enjoying what the world has to offer.  Though we can not ignore that pain does exist and it is a reality, it does not mean that we have to linger on it forever. An American Buddhist, Bhikkhu Bodhi, said,

"Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional." Pain and suffering are not the same thing. Pain is a physical sensation; suffering is how we choose to experience it.

 The Buddha compares being afflicted with bodily pain to being struck by an arrow. Adding mental pain (aversion, displeasure, depression, or self-pity) to physical pain is like being hit by a second arrow. The wise person stops with the first arrow.

 Suffering comes from our attachments, as the Buddhist’s Four Noble Truths emphasizes,

   1. Suffering exists

   2. Suffering arises from attachment to desires

   3. Suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases

   4. Freedom from suffering is possible by practicing the Eightfold Path

Perhaps, an earth-bound spirit’s ‘unfinished business’ is just essentially a simple case of attachments. Depending on how attached you are to earthly pleasures or even to life, will determine your state in the after life.

Letting Go of Attachments

Remember, that the only thing permanent in this world is impermanence.

There is no object or body that goes beyond mortality. Sooner or later, the energy that binds them will dissipate and will be converted into another form. Even the feelings that you have, it has it’s own finite duration. However, today we are so preoccupied that we have already ignored this reality, that nothing can exist forever except for the energy that links us all.   Sooner or later, your car will break down and you just have to let go and perhaps, replace it with a new one. Someday, your loved one has to go and you can’t do anything about it.

Since we have ‘forgotten’ that everything has it’s own ‘life-span’ we tend to worry more and become afraid of losing what we have. You begin to be attached with these, and not willing to let go. Instead of enjoying what you have at this moment, you start to be anxious. Fear sets in and you begin to build walls to protect the things you think you value most. Your main focus becomes safeguarding what you have rather than enjoying them instead. Yet, no matter how high you build your ‘fence’, the ‘the angel of death’ will always find its way to take the ‘life’ of the one which you treasure most. And when that time comes, the loss torments you. Anguish, pain, grief, despair, you name it, they will no longer be strangers to you.

How then would we be able to fully enjoy something, if we are so afraid of losing it?

Letting go of all the attachments allows us  to experience what true happiness really is. There is no absolute happiness when you still worry. Yet, when you have already accepted the fact that someday what you have right now will have to go, and that there is no point of worrying of losing them, then you have now detached yourself from that object or entity. And from that moment of acceptance, you begin to completely enjoy all the things that you have. Thus, never fret about tomorrow for the past and the future are just merely illusions. What you have is only NOW. Immerse yourself in it. Relish it. And when the time comes when the one you have cherished most has to transcend, sorrow will no longer be in you for you have already enjoyed his/her/its presence. You have been prepared for that day to come since you have already accepted that nothing is permanent in this world. You have already learned to let go.

Namaste.