15th June 2011
All wrong-doing arises because of mind. If mind is transformed can wrong-doing remain?
Buddha
Last week I was talking to a dog trainer who is my friend for a long time. He was explaining to me how easy it is train dogs. He took me to his `school' where I met a variety of dogs belonging to various pedigrees. I saw his assistants actually involved in giving some basic tips to dog owners. My friend told me that the first requirement for training a dog is that the owner should be sincerely interested in training his dog. He said once this is ensured, any dog can be trained.
He explained that the basic discipline training for a dog starts with obeying the command `no'. He demonstrated that whenever the puppy does something which we don't want, we should use the command `no' and over a period of time the puppy learns to obey this command.
Simple, isn't? I learnt an important lesson that day: our mind is like a dog and if we want it to be powerful, we should give appropriate commands! If you think for a while, a habit is formed by repeating a behaviour several times and enjoying the same. Supposing we tell our mind `no' every time we are about to indulge in that behaviour, we will desist from indulging in that behaviour and ultimately we will not get into that habit. Remember the old adage `a stitch in time saves nine'?
Try the following simple exercise.
Identify on habit which you want to get rid of. For example, you over eat. Next time when you are about to take one more cake, internally say `no' and repeat this every time you about to do the same.
Try this for a month and notice how much control you have over your mind!
N C Sridharan
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