Comments on: Effort results in effort

By: SF

SF — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 18:16:48 +0000

What I take away from this article is the re-emphasis that our aim should be self-improvement and development by using the tools at our disposal to motivate ourselves to action, making every effort we can to fulfill our duties without concern for the end result.

@MF

You pose a very interesting question that is actually addressed in the book Malek Jan Nemati (pp. 144-145 in Farsi and p. 116 in French-last paragraph in both). My understanding of Malak Jan’s teachings on this matter is that it is better for us to not concern and occupy ourselves with achieving spiritual goals (paradise/heaven, reaching God are referenced) but rather focus on fulfilling our duties, leaving the outcome to God.

The first paragraph on p. 153 in Farsi (last paragraph pp.125-126 in French) also addresses how maturation results from either experience or pressure and how misplaced or improper expectations (like thinking that in exchange for our efforts, all of our spir/mat needs will be taken care of) can lead to fatigue on the spiritual path.

I hope that revisiting these two references will assist in addressing the questions posed.

By: NN

NN — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 23:09:43 +0000

@MF
As individuals trying to take life one step at a time and better ourselves, how can we go through this process without any form of motivation? In answer to your question, I do feel we should have goals. There are different degrees though, since it is ultimately up the the individual how much effort they put into it. If I go through life and “want” to change and “want” to learn something new, how can I do this? By simply saying it will happen one day? This approach is equivalent to wishful thinking. But on the other hand, when I want to learn something for example another language, I set realistic goals, and ultimate goals. I “gradually” do things on a daily basis, and as a result I see some progress has been made. I don’t get discouraged and it motivates me to put in more effort, and set higher standards.

At the end of the day, bettering ourselves is a “gradual” process, and no one said it’s going to be easy. Patience is also very important because it helps to achieve the goals we want to set.

This was my thought to the question you asked, a question that I have often asked myself.

By: MF

MF — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 01:32:35 +0000

Thank you very much for this very very good piece of work. It did help me a lot to see things the right way. But I do have a question, which I openly adress to everyone who reads this!
Does this mean we should have goals? But we should set them very high such as gaining perfection (spiritually seen) and however the end result we get from it, we should be thankful because it did get us a bit closer to our goal / we became a better person, athlete…
Or does this mean, we should not set any goals, because goals lead to dissappointments?

By: Juneone

Juneone — Sat, 01 May 2010 03:41:48 +0000

@Tiara Thank you for that comment! A hard week has passed, and instead of sleeping… I am here searching for answers. This article gives me hope. There have been moments in my life, when I have been slammed with some major complications—I have taken pride in the way that I ask for help, and manage through. I have even, sadly, tried to set myself up as an example to other people, and as soon as that pride gets validated–WHAM–a tiny, insignificant (related) issue consumes my every thought: the imperious self claims the comfortable domain that I have allowed for it. It’s embarrassing—i feel so weak.
But reading this, I am encouraged: a chance to have a dialogue, to learn, is far more valuable than what I call success.

By: Mel

Mel — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 22:15:36 +0000

To M.S,

I also have practiced yoga for many years. How do you integrate Ostad Elahi’s teaching into a daily practice of yoga?

By: Tiara

Tiara — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 08:59:56 +0000

This might be repeating what everybody has been saying so far but I do think we are mainly here on earth to expand our consciousness. Struggling against the imperious self contributes to this end. It is not important whether we accomplish overcoming any shortcomings or faults, just that we try and gain knowledge and as a result expand our consciousness. I was thinking the other day that just the fact of receiving a different terrestrial body each time we are born and and as a result a different imperious self is evidence enough that the main goal is learning. Each different terrestrial body provides different opportunities for learning.
Actually, it is a blessing being preoccupied with different issues, having our attention on the Source, having a dialogue with Him, and struggling against our domineering self throughout the day.
What does it matter if we succeed in eradicating a certain fault as long as we are learning and expanding our consciousness?

By: Zulu

Zulu — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 06:46:26 +0000

I think another reason that explains why effort is so important is what I call “God Factor,” meaning we can’t accomplish anything without His approval. Therefore, all we can do is to focus on our effort and leave the final result to Him. It is up to Him to decide whether our effort is good enough to receive a particular result. So the equation would be something like this:
Effort + God’s approval -> Result
Since we have no control on God’s decisions we shouldn’t expect to see results just based on our effort.

By: G.

G. — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 11:14:35 +0000

To M.S:

Thank you for your comment. I however would like to clarify that I was not trying to advertise yoga as a spiritual practice because I personally only use this activity as a sport to strengthen my body and release physical fatigue.

The point of my comment was to make an analogy between a bodily practice and a practice of the mind/conscience in the following matter: Although I do not succeed in doing the yoga postures perfectly (which could be seen as my goal – being able to do the postures perfectly in order to master this form of exercise), I still get undeniable physical benefits from trying (for example, by body is becoming stronger). In the same way, if I am working on myself to become a more altruistic person I might not achieve this goal quickly and in a complete manner, but just by trying to be more altruistic I get benefits (better self knowledge, or better interactions with others etc). The harder I try the more benefits I get. For example, if I try to consciously be benevolent towards others only once a month, I will surely acquire less self knowledge then if I were to try it every day. Seeing these benefits can in themselves be motivating to continue the efforts!

By: Zulu

Zulu — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:27:16 +0000

@polo
Well here is my explanation:
We all know that imperious self does not have a creational existence. It comes into existence when celestial soul can’t control the harmful impulses of the terrestrial soul. It is easy for celestial soul to control the harmful desires of the terrestrial soul in sheer isolation, because such desires are more or less dormant in isolation. How could I be jealous, cunning, or aggressive when there is no subject out there to stir such negative emotions in me?
As we interact in the society and deal with different daily scenarios the imperious self manifests itself in a form of inner imbalances or negative emotions and it is up to the celestial soul to control such inner imbalances. One may argue that the more mature the celestial soul becomes, the easier it controls the imperious self. Sounds reasonable, but only if the imperious self had a definitive and fixed personality. But, this is not the case.
My understanding is that the interaction of the following variables defines the characteristics and the strength of our imperious self:
1. Terrestrial soul
2. The maturity level of the celestial soul
3. Environmental/external influences (material and spiritual)
4. Divine system that devises our daily scenarios
Terrestrial soul provides the ingredients of the imperious self. An immature celestial soul brings the imperious self into existence. The degree the terrestrial soul is fed by the negative environmental forces may bring out a stronger or weaker imperious self. Being the target of negative forces can be the result of immature choices of the celestial soul — such as going to an environment that is spiritually poisonous for us — or designed by the divine system for us. The life scenarios the divine system devises for us always target our weaknesses. I believe it is essential to have an imperious self that matches the stamina of the celestial soul, because without struggling the celestial soul does not mature. Just like weight lifting, in order to develop more muscles you need to lift heavier weights.
I hope this explanation makes it clearer.

By: Emily

Emily — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:44:25 +0000

I was very inspired by the athlete analogy of the article. I do think that the process of working on one’s inner self is akin to an athlete training for a sport. Just the other day I was in a gym and picked up a copy of a runner’s magazine with an article that was full of recommendations such as positive mental attitude to use when a runner wants to go for a run but her mind or body does not. Again, I was inspired by the recommendations of the magazine and thought to myself, I can use these strategies for making an effort in my daily inner struggles when I intend to do something but my mind fails me.