Don't Hurt Them

                                                                  NAMASTE'  (I bow to you)

The Dalai Lama said: " Your mission in life is to live with others and help them. If you cannot help them, at least don't hurt them." Could words be more simple than these? Could their meaning be more clear, easy to understand? But... Do you really understand them? Let us examine these uncomplicated words, this elementary idea. Live with others. Think about your own life. Do you actually live with others? Of course you do. But... "how" do you do it? And, "to what extent"? How much are you willing to share, to give of yourself, to be a real participant in "their" lives? Do you put conditions to the love you give to your fellow human beings? Then the Dalai Lama says, Help them. What do you do in this respect? Are you available to extend a helping hand when it is needed, even if it is not clearly requested? Aren't you afraid that helping others might sometimes jeopardize your position or decrease your control over the situation? Do you expect something for the help you give? And, finally, Don't hurt them. In my opinion this is the most meaningful, the most important of all. It also reflects the Apostle Paul's belief about the greatest virtue being love. As "love" means deep affection, a profoundly tender feeling for another, how can you say that you love them if your ignore their needs, if you use unkind words while speaking to them, if you control them, if you have expectations in return? Any time you get a negative reaction, or you see a sorrowful expression on someone else's face as a result of your words or actions, you haven't been loving them. You have hurt them. The Dalai Lama encourages us all to review our behavior, to examine our motivations, to improve ourselves. We all need to become better human beings, to create, nurse and express more compassion (= empathetic love) in our own lives, if we want to actively and positively contribute to the progress of "our" world.