Daily Mindfulness 10/1/12 – Mistakes

We all make mistakes.  It is inevitable.  We hurt people when we do not intend to, we hurt ourselves without realizing it, and we create suffering.  We must not be too hard on ourselves.  We deserve to be treated with compassion and forgiveness.  Practicing mindfulness, we find where we have made an error, and love ourselves through it.  Recognizing our mistake, we love ourselves by correcting it, and not carrying the guilt or pain around.

Practicing mindfulness, we feel how the mistake makes us feel.  If we hurt somebody, we must first do what we can to make it better.  If we owe somebody an apology, we must do so.  If we hurt ourselves, we must likewise apologize to ourselves.  With mindfulness, we can touch our compassionate heart, and see that love is the way to handle the situation.  Next, we must change the behavior.  Practicing mindfulness, we are able to see how our behavior does not serve us nor our fellows well.  We see how a change in our personal attitude and behavior may cause less suffering.

The important thing to remember when practicing mindfulness of our mistakes is to not be hard on ourselves.  Just as we may comfort a loved on in pain, we must do so to ourselves.