A Simple Key to a More Meaningful Life

Dr. David Hawkins, psychiatrist, physician, and spiritual teacher, said, "Make a gift of your life and lift all mankind by being kind, considerate, forgiving, and compassionate at all times,in all places, and under all conditions, with everyone as well as yourself. This is the greatest gift anyone can give."

At all times, in all places, under all conditions? What a tall order. Isn’t that beyond reasonable reach?

Let’s consider what happens when we are not as kind, considerate, forgiving and compassionate as we could have been. Every time we step over the line by acting in a way that is not healthy we are left with an uneasy feeling. It’s that “after-the-fact” let down that we process with the “should-haves” that we did not do. Many people claim that not everyone gets these feelings. I no longer believe that. I believe that everyone receives feelings of ill will when they step over the line, yet some people cover their feelings up with alcohol, other drugs, and withdrawal.

Within us there is a cosmic guidance system that includes a governor monitoring all of our actions. When we do something good, that governor delivers uplifting feelings and when we do something wrong the result is a let-down. We depress ourselves by repeatedly doing unhealthy things.

As a child, did you ever shoplift a candy bar? What was your emotional after effect? The same sort of thing occurs when we blow a fuse at someone who has let us down. Our negative emotions spill into something we say … that we later regret.

Who is hurt most when we verbally bite the hand that feeds us? It is us. What we do to another we have done to ourselves. To be forgiven we must forgive. To be understood we must first understand the other person’s view. In all human interactions it is our mental position and our mental stance that determines harmony. When we are kind, considerate, forgiving, and compassionate other people open up like flowers and our results are truly rewarding.

A simple key to a more meaningful life: Treat everyone as if they were the most important person in the world … and the world will return the favor.