LESSON OF THE DAY 468

Ayahs of the Day:
God is the one who sends you down water from the sky, from which there is drink, and vegetation for grazing. God produces grain for you thereby, and olives, and date palms, and grapes, and all kinds of fruit. Surely in that is a sign for people who reflect. [16: 10,11]

Hadith of the Day:
Good character, good understanding, and moderation constitute one part of the twenty-four parts of prophethood. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
The greatness of the believer is in his God-consciousness, and his pride should be in his obedience and his courage lies in his display of good character under all circumstances. [Omar radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
You are given opportunities to choose between being kind and being right. You have chances to point out to someone their mistakes, things they could or should have done differently, ways they can improve. You have chances to "correct" people, privately as well as in front of others. What all these opportunities amount to are chances to make someone else feel bad, and yourself feel bad in the process.

Without getting too psychoanalytical about it, the reason we are tempted to put others down, correct them, or show them how we're right and they're wrong is that our ego mistakenly believes that if we point out how someone else is wrong, we must be right, and therefore we will feel better. In actuality, however, if you pay attention to the way you feel after you put someone down, you'll notice that you feel worse than before the put-down. Your heart, the compassionate part of you, knows that it's impossible to feel better at the expense of someone else.

Luckily, the opposite is true--when your goal is to build people up, to make them feel better, to share in their joy, you too reap the rewards of their positive feelings. The next time you have the chance to correct someone, even if their facts are a little off, resist the temptation. Instead, ask yourself, "What do I really want out of this interaction?" Chances are, what you want is a peaceful interaction where all parties leave feeling good. Each time you resist "being right," and instead choose kindness, you'll notice a peaceful feeling within.

Don't confuse this strategy with being a wimp, or not standing up for what you believe in. I'm not suggesting that it's not okay for you to be right--only that if you insist on being right, there is often a price to pay--your inner peace. In order to be a person filled with equanimity, you must choose kindness over being right, most of the time. The best place to start is with the next person you speak to. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]

Food for Thought:
The secret of abundance is to stop focusing on what you do not have, and shift your consciousness to an appreciation for all that you are and all that you do have.