TUESDAY, 6 JULY 2004
The goal is not to be incapable of doing evil deeds, but not to do evil deeds.
That means looking yourself in the eyes and admitting, “I am capable of being evil and doing bad things,” and then to choose to not be evil, and to not do bad things.
This choice, as most know, is not always easy, but even that should serve as motivation, rather than as a reason to doubt yourself.
Believe that you can be good. Believe that you can do good things. Then be good, and do good deeds.
Myself and I: “I talk to myself.” A deceptively simple statement? Who’s the “I” in that sentence, and who’s the “self”?
WEDNESDAY 7 JULY 2004
Happiness is primarily an issue of the senses.
Think about it for a minute: What are you looking at right now? What do you smell? What do you taste? What do you hear? What are you touching?
Equally important, and perhaps even more so: What are you not looking at, or what do you not see? What do you not smell? What do you not taste? What don’t you hear? What are you not touching?
And then, if happiness is to a great extent dependent on how you experience your immediate environment: What do you want to see? What do you want to smell? What do you want to taste? What do you want to listen to? What do you want to touch?
Conclusions on FRIDAY, 9 JULY 2004
1. What at one stage seemed like wise choices that initially had positive results, may in some cases with the passage of time produce extremely negative consequences.
2. Sometimes you must pretend what you are not to achieve more positive results.
3. The enlightened, wise person should be able to play the game better than the ignorant; he should also be able to exert better control over his emotions.
4. The question can be asked: Do you want to play the game?
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