Aging Gracefully - With Wisdom and Ease

In our society, aging is an ugly word, synonymous with: inferior, done with, not useful, ugly, etc....As life expectancy is growing, we need to ask ourselves: how can we put it to profitable use as individuals and as society?

Successful aging can be manifested as:

·         low or disease free living

·         great mental clarity

·         active engagement with life

In the East Indian culture, when your hair turns white and you become grandparents, this is the time to detach yourself from the world and go into the "forest", isolation, concentrating on spiritual matters.  By abandoning all attachments, one is now free to focus on union with your higher self (Spiritual aging).  When we are young, we are so obsessed with making money; there is no time for deeper thoughts or contemplation.

However, the kids grow and up move away, colleagues disappear, loved ones pass away.  We get surpassed by the younger generation and our sense of power and ego takes a hit.

In the West, we fight to overcome these losses, while in the East we embrace these changes.

Ask yourself: Who am I? If not Mom, or the /Vice-President, who is this wrinkled face in the mirror? Is there a true self that transcends this? According to the spiritual model, we need to confront such questions.

The elder Hindu sets off on a contemplative quest for introspection. The Native American remains within the bosom of the tribe, serving as a spiritual guide. Such a person, detached yet compassionate, is a blessing to the community. Despite such differences, these cultures share a vision of aging spiritually. 

The West, with all of its violence, alienation and injustice, desperately needs such a model of elders.  We are afraid of the older generation as a drain on our resources.  However, these white heads could be very valuable to a world where everything has gone hay-wire.

Growing older does not mean that we automatically become wise. This demands a process of spiritual growth. There will always be people telling us how to fight off old age, but amongst the losses of old age there are precious lessons and graces.  To find these is to age gracefully.

Power of Presence

The past is past; it’s only a memory and does not exist at this moment.

It's a tragedy when you carry negative memory of the past into the future

(book: Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle)

Clear out all waste thoughts, as any negative thought gets rid of purity.

Ask yourself:

1. What thoughts increase purity?

2. What thoughts decrease purity?

3. Am I responding or resisting?

Think about a challenging situation in your life and ask yourself, or write:

1. How would I like this situation to be?

2. What qualities do I need to make it happen?

                                  Every situation in life is to help me grow.

Worrying about what other people think disempowers your values. It places control in their opinion and their reaction. Let people think what they like, they will anyway. Instead, act as honorably and correctly as possible, and let them react the way they want. Don’t let it influence your own behaviour and thoughts. We are energetic beings; thoughts and feelings is energy that can be locked into our body.

I am responsible for my feelings. How do you clear up negative feelings? By observing your feelings and stay with the feelings, even if they are painful, as they will pass.

Don’t compare yourself with others, because when you do, you lose your own uniqueness. Stay present, observe what is happening in your life from moment to moment and decide how you will react to it with your thoughts, feeling and behaviour. When you do that, the law of attraction (The Secret by Rhonda Byrne) will kick in and bring forth more of the positive situation that you are now consciously creating for yourself.