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Ancient Wisdom Posts
The Proposed Monthly Focus of the Daily Posts
OCTOBER 2020
Benjamin Franklin 13 Virtues
JANUARY 2021
Rumi, The Sufi
APRIL 2021
Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
JULY 2021
Teresa of Ávila
NOVEMBER 2020
Patanjali Yoga Sutra
FEBRUARY 2021
Surprising Metaphors of the New Testament
MAY 2021
Carl Jung
AUGUST 2021
The Eightfold Path of Buddhism
DECEMBER 2020
The Divine Mother appearing across all times and places
MARCH 2021
Maya Angelou
JUNE 2021
The Tree of Life, The Kabbalah
SEPTEMBER 2021
George Gurdjieff
An explanation of how these ancient wisdom posts work
We, humans, are forgetting machines. Our ancient wisdom has always taught us how to quiet our minds so that we can remember who we truly are. Instead, our minds seem to be getting busier and busier, stressed and ruing the past and fearing the future. Technology has metamorphosised our world, but the ancient wisdom still applies. This wisdom is found in any of our great religions or philosophies --for theists, atheists, or agnostics.
I would invite you to take five minutes each day with me in a morning contemplation of an inspiring quote from a well-known text or philosopher that sets up the day's awareness challenge. I will post a different one by midnight (Australia/Sydney time) for the next day's contemplation.
Sample daily posts are found below Benjamin Franklin's Chart of 13 Virtues to give you a sense of what these are all about, shown for the first seven days In October. In October, the focus is Benjamin Franklin's virtues throughout the month.
We will then focus on a particular text, religion, philosophy or writer each month. My intention is to cover all kinds of thought from across the world, time and purpose (theism atheism, and agnosticism included). The "wisdom" would not always be classified as "ancient," but I've chosen the source for its enduring insight. Also, I do not always feature the words of the particular source each day, although the day's quote is directly about the source we are covering. For example, you can see below that I am covering Benjamin Franklin's 13 virtues in October, but I use different people's quotes to cover each of these virtues.
October 2020: Focus on Benjamin Franklin 13 Virtues
The daily practice of Benjamin Franklin* and my current practices in meditation and contemplation inspire me to set an intention each day of an aspect of awareness I would like to grow. Each morning, Benjamin Franklin would review his intentions for the day, concentrating on one of his 13 virtues. Each night, he would review how the day went on this particular virtue as well as aspects of the other 12 virtues. He concentrated on one virtue for each four-week period of the fifty-two weeks of the year. See this link for an article providing more background.
The Schedule for August is:
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October 1-6: Temperance
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October 7-8 Silence
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October 9-10: Order
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October 11-12: Resolution
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October 13-14: Frugality
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October 15-16: Industry
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October 17-18: Sincerity
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October 19-20: Justice
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October 21-22: Moderation
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October 23-24: Cleanliness
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October 25-26: Tranquility
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October 27-28: Chastity
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October 29-30: Humility
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October 31: Overall Reflections
October 1-7, 2020: First week's sample of the daily posts.
October 7: Blaise Pascal
Quote:
All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Find a quiet room today, and sit for at least 20 minutes. Notice your thoughts, your emotions and your bodily sensations without judgement.
On Silence
October 6: Marianne Williamson
Quote:
While overeating would be seen by some as an indulgence of self, it is in fact a profound rejection of self. It is a moment of self-betrayal and self-punishment, and anything but a commitment to one's own well-being.
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Notice your eating habits today. How committed are you to well-being in your eating and what would you need to change?
On Temperance
October 5: Socrates
Quote:
He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Notice three things for which you have content -- and notice three things that you would like to have -- what does that tell you
On Temperance
October 4: Pema Chodron
Quote:
For one day, or for one day for a week, refrain from something you habitually do to run away, to escape. Pick something concrete, such as overeating or excessive sleeping or overworking or spending too much time texting or checking e-mails. Make a commitment to yourself to gently and compassionately work with refraining from this habit for this one day. Really commit to it. Do this with the intention that it will put you in touch with the underlying anxiety or uncertainty that you've been avoiding. Do it and see what you discover.
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Notice something that you habitually do to run away or escape -- see Pema's suggestions above.
On Temperance
October 3: Ambrose Bierce
Quote:
"Self-restraint is an indulgence of the propensity to forgo"
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Notice yourself in the act of forgoing something -- what habit did you see that needs some work in self-restraint? How would you benefit by that?
On Temperance
October 2: Frances Gray Patton
Quote:
"Restraint is the better part of beauty"
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Notice yourself restraining from a temptation today and what that feels like inside at the end of the day.
On Temperance
October 1: Aristotle
Quote:
1. You can delight in the wrong thing.
2. You can delight in something too much.
3. You can delight in the wrong manner.
The Awareness Exercise for Today
Notice 2-3 thoughts about desires that you have and may or may not have acted upon:
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Are these desires the "right" thing, according to your own belief?
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Would you delight in this desire too much?
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Would you delight in this desire in the wrong manner?