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Conquest of happiness
Secret of happiness
Maria Popova
In my darkest hours what had saved me again and again
Is some action of unselfing ,
Some instinctive wakefulness to an aspect of the world
Other than myself-
An helping hand extended to someone else's struggle
The dazzling galaxy just discovered millions of light years away-
Cardinal trembling of the tree outside the window
So to contact happiness of angry kind is
To be dissolved into something complete and great
Something beyond the bruising boundaries of the ego.
The attainment of happiness then is then less a matter of pursuit than surrender to the world's wonder
Ready as it comes!!!
Position and possession
A lone lion has an hunting success rate of only 15%. During a night hunt, their success rate can climb to over 40%. In areas with tall grass, they manage a success rate of over 50%, because they are able to get much closer to prey.
They look for high probability successes- before giving the chase
Huge amount of patience waiting and watching for hours.- to find the best opportunity of chasing down the prey.
Lions are king of beasts, but they not waste time in low probability chases. When hungry they do not run into the Savannah
And chase their prey randomly thinking
That they will just chase it down and get their dinner!!!
Lions Get into position first, to have a higher probability of possession!!!
Now is there a lesson for us here?
A famous soccer coach said once to his student: you need to get first into position ,to get possession of the ball!
So a solution is to make the move. The puck goes where Gretzky is they say!
Anticipate...make a move....you stand better odds of possession!
Deft footwork- like Gretzky or Tendulkar!
மனிதன்
கண்ணதாசன்
அர்த்தமுள்ள இந்து மதம்
தொட்ட பின்பே பாம்பு என்றறியும் மனிதர்கள்
சுட்ட பின்பே நெருப்பென்றறியும் அப்பாவிகள்
பட்ட பின்பே பரம்பொருளை நினைக்கிறார் !
தேடல்
கண்ணதாசன்
அர்த்தமுள்ள இந்து மதம்
உண்டு உண்டு என்று அலைந்து
இல்லை இல்லை என ஏமாந்து
எங்கே எங்கே எனத் தேடி
இங்கே இங்கே என்று கண்மயங்கி
ஆடி ஓடி அயர்ந்து ஓய்ந்தேன் பராபரமே!!!
Who am I?
Herbert Hancock
Maria Popova Blog
We usually define ourselves by what we do;
I am a writer
Or I am a doctor
Or I am a dancer
Or I do construction
That's how we define ourselves
There's a big trip with all of that
[....]
We are not this or that thing
That We define ourselves as!
The core of which we are is a human being,
It changes everything
So music now, I look at it from the standpoint of human being
And use that as the foundation.
And then I use what I do to translate what initiates from my humanity
Into musical terms
That why I am able to make every record be different
From every other record!
Civilization
All the world's so called progress seems to be:
Bringing the following,At the flip of switch or opening of a tap
With scale and speed
- Air - Fan
- Water- Tap
- Fire - Cooking gas
- Earth - House
- Sky - Air conditioning, lighting
Double down!!!
Double down on what's working the best!!!
-James Clear
Focus on strengths!
Strengths multiply!
Find out the strengths
Based on what's working the best!
And make a list of what I need to do
This is the life of blueprint!
Not the life of Auto-pilot!!!
To crave the results, but not to the process
Is to guarantee disappointment!!!
James Clear
Prayer to the Lord
Taittiriya Upanishad
Pg.296
Lord, may I grow in spiritual wisdom
And may I have food and clothes and cattle,
May students come to me from far and near
Like a flowing river all the year
May i be enabled to guide them all
To train their senses and still their minds
May this be my wealth,
May this be my fame🙏🙏🙏
My notes:
May this be my motto towards
Education and towards being a coach !!!
Deserve and then desire
My high school soccer coach had a saying that I love:
If you’re not in possession, get in position
Exceptional results
"The 2-step process for exceptional results:
(1) Spend a little time each day thinking about the highest leverage activity available to you.
(2) Spend a little time each day working on it."
James Clear
Problem solving
Problem solving
More deliberation is needed in settling than propounding a problem
Seneca, letters from a stoic
My notes:
Problem solving requires a deep state of mind as
It involves both IQ and EQ .
EQ because you should not first become unsettled by the problem.
IQ because you need to deliberate upon the problem and find a solution towards solving it.
Problem solving = IQ *EQ
Value what you have
Value what you have,
not What you want to have!
Imagine that you lost something that you possess
Something today
A purse, money or phone
See , how valuable you feel about it then!
Now start to assign the same value when you have it now!
Value what you have, not
What you want to have!
Stamp them with special labels
Stamp them with special labels
Seneca
Letters from a stoic
Show me how I am able to see through this resemblance:
Enemy comes to me full of compliments disguised as friend;
Vices creep into hearts under name of virtue
Rashness lurks under the appellation of Bravery
Moderation as sluggishness
Coward is regarded as prudent;
My words:
Beware of the trickeries and word- plays
Not to know does no harm
Mastering them does no good!
On attention!
D H Lawrence
Maria Popova Blog
If you live by the cosmos
You look into the cosmos for a clue
If you live by a personal god
You pray to Him
If you are rational, you think about things over
But it all amounts to the same thing in the end
Prayer or thought or watching the flight of birds
It is all the same process, ultimately of divination
All it depends on is the amount of true , sincere religious concentration
You can bring to bear on your object
An act of pure attention, if you are capable of it
Will bring it's own answer.
And you choose that object to concentrate upon
Which will best focus your consciousness.
Every real discovery made every serious and significant decision ever reached,
Was reached and made by divination
The soul stirs and makes an act of pure attention,
And that is a discovery
[•••]
It is the same with the study of the stars
Or the sky of the stars
Whatever object will bring consciousness into a state of pure attention
In a time of perplexity ,
Will also give back an answer to the perplexity!!!
Solving for problems and opportunities
Ability to think deep about a problem -
Through writing,
and Finding the next actions
is the most important thing to do!
Infact that is the only thing I can do!
Don't allow things to boil in mind alone!
Living Happily
Mediations, Marcus Aurelius
If you work at that which is before you
Following right reason vigorously, calmly
Without allowing anyone / anything else to distract you
But keeping your divine part pure,
As if you should be bound to give it back immediately
If you hold to this, expecting nothing, fearing nothing,
But satisfied with present activity
According to Nature,
And with heroic truth in every word and sound you utter,
You would live happily!!!
Have a toolkit
Marcus Aurelius
Meditations
Like physicians who have always their knives and instruments
Ready for cures which require their skills
So do you have to have principles for understanding
Of things divine and things human
And for doing everything, even the smallest,
With a recollection of the bond that
unites divine and human to one another!
For neither shall you do anything which pertains to human without having a reference to things divine
Nor the contrary!!!
The private man
Theory of moral sentiments
Adam Smith
The private man has no other funds to pay them for
But the labor of his body
And activity of his mind
He must therefore acknowledge superior knowledge of his profession
And superior industry in the exercise of it
He must be patient in labor
Resolute in danger
And firm in distress!!!
Passion is one-way entry
LoC i1018
Adam Smith , Theory of moral sentiments
“Love (passion) is commonly succeeded by ambition;
But ambition is hardly ever succeeded by Love”
That passion, when once it has got entire possession of the breast,
Will admit neither a rival nor a successor ;
To those who have been accustomed to the possession
Or even to the hope of public admiration
All other pleasures sicken and decay ;
Are you in earnest, resolved never to barter your liberty
For the lordly servitude of a court,
But to live freely, fearless and independent?
There seems to be one way to contrive in that virtuous resolution- and perhaps but one;
Never enter the place from where so few have been to able to return
never come within the circle of ambition
Nor even bring yourself into comparison with those masters of earth
Who have already engrossed the attention of half of mankind before you!
2 different roads
Theory of moral sentiments
LoC 1078 Adam Smith
To deserve , to acquire , to enjoy the respect and admiration of mankind
Are the great objects of Ambition and emulation!
First road to attain above is by
Acquiring wealth, greatness ,
proud ambition,
ostentatious avidity,
More gaudy and glittering
That which forces attention of every wandering eye
And attract a great mob
But transient and fleeting!
Second road to attain above is by :
Study of wisdom
Practice of virtue
Humble modesty
Equitable justice
Beautiful in outline
Attracting scarce attention of anyone
Of even a small party
But steady and lasting!
Dealing with the Odds
Not that I have accomplished perfection-but I want to do the best with cards I am handed over
William T Sherman
satisfaction comes not from perfection
But in attempting to be the best with what was given! (Being resourceful!)
There are multiple paths
But to choose the optimal path
Is the thoughtfulness
Rather than peering without direction
Choosing to slow down with direction
To give yourself 3 to 4 years
And optimise life over it
Not instant gratification
But delayed one!
That is the way to deal with the cards handed over!
On self control and emotions
Letter CXVIII Seneca
Letters from a Stoic
There is no vice that at the start is not modest
But afterwards the trouble spreads more quickly- widely;
Every emotion at the start is weak
Afterward it rouses itself and gains strength by progress
It is more easy to forestall it
Than to forego it!
All emotions flow as if it were from a natural source
From within! As a natural spring
Nature has intermingled pleasure with necessity
Not in order that we seek pleasure
But in order that the addition of pleasure
Makes the indispensable means of existence
Attractive to our eyes;
Should it claim rights of it's own
It is luxury!!!
Let us therefore resist these faults
Demanding entrance
For it's easier to deny them admittance
Than to make them depart!
Ask no Favors
What a great-souled action it is
To be the only person
Who is canvassing for nothing
Offering prayers to no man
And saying:
" Fortune, I have nothing to do with you
I am not at your service
I know men like Cato are spurned by you
Men like Vatinius are made by you
I ask no favors"
This is the way to reduce the favor to its size
This my dear Lucilius
Is a noble thing
To canvas for nothing-
And to pass by all the elections of fortune!
Complaint against Stoics
Pg 470 letters from A stoic
Seneca
This is the complaint against the stoics
"Your promises are too great
Your counsels too hard
I am a mere mortal
Unable to deny myself everything-
Cannot I sorrow a bit?
Can't I desire moderation?
Cannot I give way to anger a little?"
Do you understand why are you asking me this?
It's because you are in love with your vices
You prefer to give excuses rather than shake them off
The reason is - unwillingness
The excuse- Inability!!!
( my note : oh my god! What a powerful last two sentences!!!)
The noble soul
Pg 483 letters from a stoic
The noble soul, knows its better nature
To take care to conduct itself
Honorably and seriously at the post of duty
Where it is placed
Counts - none of these extraneous objects as it's own
But uses them as if it were a loan
Like a foreign visitor hastening on his way-
And when we come across such a person- (noble soul)
How can we help being conscious of the image of a nature so unusual?
Evil mind
Pg 483
Seneca
Letters from a stoic
The greatest proof of an evil mind is
Unsteadiness
And continued wavering between
Pretence of virtue and love of vice!
A kind of wandering-off into opposites-
Changing plans and prayers- day by day
One day he imagines to be "would-be" King
And another time - really unassuming-
One time - he scatters money
Another time he steals it-
It is a great role to play
The role of 'one man'
But none can be 'one man'
Except the wise man!
The rest of us often shift our masks!
Patience
CXXIII letters from a stoic
Pg 491
A man who is patient
The real strength of mind he possesses
Is by viewing one's own troubles not only fairly but calmly
Not flying into fits of temper
Or worldly wranglings
Supplying ones own needs by not craving
Which was really due and
Reflecting that our habits may not be satisfied
But never our own real selves!!!!
Avoid trash talking
Pg.492 ,Letters from a stoic- CXXIII
Seneca
just as you have attended a concert
And then you carry about music in your head
Trash talk also leaves the seeds of trouble in the soul
And the evil which is sure to spring into new strength
Follows us about even when we have parted from them
Accordingly ,close your eyes against evil talk
And right at the outset too
For when such talk has gained an entrance
And the words admitted in our minds
They become more shameless!!!