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True Happiness

KnightofBuddhaKnightofBuddha
edited December 2005 in Faith & Religion
"We must put others before ourselves in order to find true happiness"

St. Francis

Do you agree with this? I agree with this partly but I do believe that you must take care of yourself first before you are capable of helping others.

Comments

  • federicafederica Seeker of the clear blue sky... Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt Moderator
    edited November 2005
    Yes Knight, I'm in agreement with you on this one. Even HH the DL says that the 'Purpose of Life is to be Happy and to make others Happy.'
    In that order.

    Because if you can't find Peace, Contentment, Compassion, Love and Acceptance for yourself, it's going to be so much harder to develop those Unconditional qualities for others.
    But we should strive daily for improvement, and still show Compassion and Love towards others. It doesn't mean that we discard others and discount them until we feel ready. Always a two-edged practise.....
  • twobitbobtwobitbob
    edited November 2005
    Give all profit and gain to others
    Take all loss and defeat for oneself

    When i first saw these words they scared the hell out of me that i was following such a difficult path
  • SimonthepilgrimSimonthepilgrim Veteran
    edited November 2005
    The bit of management advice that made most sense to me was: "Pass on the praise and take the blame."
  • NirvanaNoobNirvanaNoob
    edited November 2005
    I agree beacause people who are self asorbed and self centered are usually unhappy for most of there lives.
  • poetslietoomuchpoetslietoomuch
    edited November 2005
    it is easy to tell someone what to do. so it makes sense that it would be easier to help someone, than it would be to help yourself. for all the things i've read, i've never smacked my head and said "thats it; etc...." i have had bits and pieces of realization, some of them, resulting from reading something and putting it into practice (usually not knowing i was putting it into practice until i reflected upon it, after the fact)

    but, when do you draw the line in helping others, where do you begin to hurt them by pulling them along?
  • zenmonk_genryuzenmonk_genryu
    edited December 2005
    Knight of Buddha wrote:
    "We must put others before ourselves in order to find true happiness"

    St. Francis

    Do you agree with this? I agree with this partly but I do believe that you must take care of yourself first before you are capable of helping others.


    If self and other are not separate, who are you taking care of?
  • ECMECM
    edited December 2005
    I think it is possible that someone is helping someone else for their own purposes. The issue is separation. We can say "we are all one" -- we are all part of the ocean. But we are also individual waves. If someone wants to commit suicide, you wouldn't want to hand them a gun.

    What I have found in my own life is that in helping others, we also gain in wisdom and compassion and the understanding of kindness and the expression of it. Sometimes going out to help someone is not what I really want to do -- I would rather be at home -- but if I do go out there and help, then I encounter the great joy that runs along with compassion. Then I know why I went.

    EM
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