Welcome to the Buddhist Boot Camp Podcast. Our intention is to awaken, enlighten, enrich,
and inspire a simple and uncomplicated life.
Discover the benefits of mindful living with your host, Timber Hawkeye.
I often hear people say they're trying to find balance in their lives,
whether it be a balance between work and play, between excitement and relaxation,
or between companionship and solitude. But, a healthy balance isn't something we "find"
one day like loose change between the couch cushions. nor do we "find" balance and
then maintain it forever. Balance actually requires constant adjustment,
flexible shifting, and sharp awareness. We understand this concept when it applies
to a balanced diet or balancing a checkbook, right? You don't eat a salad one day
and then your diet is magically balanced; we've got to stick to a regular routine
of MAINTAINING balance, not of constantly losing it and then looking for it all over again.
The most common question I get about this, is how to balance a spiritual life
in this fast-paced and technology-driven world? Well, making sure that
you are in control of the technology in your life instead of it being in control of you
requires discipline and creative time management skills.
We, after all, are the ones responsible for the imbalances in our lives, so it's up to us
to adjust the scales. From turning off your cell phone when you go to bed at night,
to limiting yourself to one hour on Facebook each day, for example.
The list of suggested boundaries is not only endless, but it varies greatly depending
on your digital drug of choice. Be it Instagram, the news, YouTube,
Netflix, Twitter, and so on. A few years ago, I saw a bumper sticker that said "If you're not
"outraged then you're not paying attention." Does this mean we must stop paying attention
if we want to remain calm? Initially, that's exactly what I thought it meant,
which is why I blocked all of my exposure to media for many years.
I don't think we need to completely unplug from television, Internet, and cellular phones,
but we DO need to safeguard ourselves from getting swept away, submerged,
and finally drowned in the insistent ocean of information that we consume
with our eyes, our ears, and our energy.
So, where do we draw the line? How much television is too much television?
How little news is too little news? We need to limit how much negativity we are exposed to,
and then balance it with some positive. The same way we filter out harmful germs
and chemicals from our drinking water, we need to install some sort of filter in our lives
to keep out harmful information that is found in our media. We can pay attention
without being outraged, because rage has never made any situation better.
In fact, everything you're currently angry about is stopping you from being happy.
And the moment you decide to let go of your anger, you'll find that happiness was patiently
waiting for you to rediscover it all along. There's no need to react to everything we see,
hear, or read. We can act, by all means, don't get me wrong; certain things in the world
will continue to upset us, at which point we can make decisions in line with our values,
but we don't need to do it with anger.
Compassion is an equally good motivator without the negative side effects.
So, I say promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate;
that's how you create and maintain balance. Struggle is NOT a requirement.
These podcast episodes are available without commercials thanks to listeners just like you,
who donate only one dollar a month through Patreon.com/BuddhistBootCamp. You can link
to our Patreon page from the bottom of BuddhistBootCamp.com, where you can also
find links to subscribe to our YouTube channel, with new, Mindful Kitchen episodes,
sharing plant-based recipes for a balanced life and planet. Remember: balance is
something we create, not find. By not being part of the pollution, we are automatically
part of the the solution. Namaste.
Timber Hawkeye is the bestselling author of Faithfully Religionless
and Buddhist Boot Camp.
For additional information, please visit BuddhistBootCamp.com,
where you can order autographed books to support the Prison Library Project,
watch Timber's inspiring TED Talk, and join our monthly mailing list.
We hope you have enjoyed this episode
and invite you to subscribe for more thought-provoking discussions.
Thank you for being a Soldier of Peace in the Army of Love. 🙏