Motivation Mondays: POSSESSIONS #mondaymotivation

“Unnecessary possessions are unnecessary burdens. If you have them, you have to take care of them! There is great freedom in simplicity of living. It is those who have enough but not too much who are the happiest.” Peace Pilgrim

Motivation Mondays: POSSESSIONS #mondaymotivation

Happiness resides not in possessions, and not in gold, happiness dwells in the soul. Democritus
A free life cannot acquire many possessions, because this is not easy to do without servility to mobs or monarchs. Epicurus
You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give. Khalil Gibran

What do Possessions mean to You? We come naked into this world and after we spend decades working, sweating, and accumulating possessions, we leave our objects of pleasure on earth when we pass on to the other side. If our possessions carry more weight than our family relationships and our friendships, they become all-consuming because things can never satisfy that hollow yearn for something more that we feel inside our being. Sadly, some of us forget that while our possessions can give us some satisfaction, they only offer temporary joy. Our possessions remain with us until we lose them, give them away, or leave them behind. Their values/rewards are external, extrinsic, and limited. The great sages have always held that true joy and satisfaction come from our  intrinsic values; qualities that give us pleasure within our own being and that are not based on external toys and pleasures. When we spend time taking care of our responsibilities, serving our communities and doing good for others, we feel the reverberations inside; it is a feeling of contentment that no sparkly object can fulfill. What motivates you to accumulate things and what will motivate you to dispense with them? Share your thoughts in the comments.

A Story: Possession Is Not Ownership
Once Zen master Bankei spent several nights sitting under a crucifix in an execution ground, testing his Zen mind. After that he lay down on an embankment surrounding a corral. Now it so happened that there was a warrior in the corral beating a horse. Seeing this, Bankei hollered, “Hey!
What do you think you are doing?”
This happened three times before the warrior stopped and got off his horse. Approaching the Zen master, he now saw that Bankei was not an ordinary man. The warrior said, “You were yelling at me. Do you have something to tell me?” Bankei said, “Rather than beat your horse for being unruly, why not chastise yourself and train your own mind right?”
When you see a man selling handkerchiefs and still sweating profusely in traffic, it tells you that possession is not the same as ownership! The warrior might ride the horse but he is not the ultimate owner of that horse… All stories via Goodweb.cn
“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.” Epictetus

Motivation Mondays: POSSESSIONS #mondaymotivation

Treasure your relationships, not your possessions. Anthony J. D’Angelo
Physical comforts cannot subdue mental suffering, and if we look closely, we can see that those who have many possessions are not necessarily happy. In fact, being wealthy often brings even more anxiety. Dalai Lama
Anything you cannot relinquish when it has outlived its usefulness possesses you, and in this materialistic age a great many of us are possessed by our possessions. Peace Pilgrim

Which possessions do You Value Most? Some of us spend an inordinate amount of time accumulating things that make us feel powerful and important but what do those possessions truly represent in our lives? If we had to choose just one thing to take with us when we leave this earth, what would we take? What about one item to take to a desert island for a year or two? When we are at our most vulnerable time in life, we can see with acute clarity what truly matters to us. I remember a time when the popular saying was: “He who dies with the most toys wins!” How ironic and pointless! Why would anyone want to die with the most toys when they would have no way of knowing that they won anyway…?  Plus, it would not add one iota of dignity to a lifetime of hard work!  Besides, what kind of goal is that to set for ourselves? So, as this year progresses, let’s take some time to contemplate what holds true value in our hearts and minds and then work hard at protecting them. What do you value most today?
A Story: The Last Wishes of Alexander the Great…
On his death-bed, Alexander summoned his army generals and told them his three ultimate wishes:
1. The best doctors should carry his coffin …
2. The wealth he has accumulated (money, gold, precious stones) should be scattered along the procession to the cemetery …
3. His hands should be let loose, so they hang outside the coffin for all to see!
One of his generals who was surprised by these unusual requests asked Alexander to explain.
Here is what Alexander the Great had to say:
1. “I want the best doctors to carry my coffin to demonstrate that in the face of death, even the best doctors in the world have no power to heal…”
2. “I want the road to be covered with my treasures so that everybody sees that material wealth acquired on earth, will stay on earth…”
3. I want my hands to swing in the wind, so that people understand that we come to this world empty-handed and we leave this world empty-handed after the most precious treasure of all is exhausted, and that is: TIME.
We do not take to our grave any material wealth or possessions. TIME is our most precious treasure because it is LIMITED. We can produce more wealth, but we cannot produce more time. When we give someone our time, we actually give a portion of our life that we will never take back . Our time is our life. The best present that you can give to your family is your time and to Creator your life.

The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for December 2015 and January 2016 are:

12/07  – GIVING SEASON –
12/14 – AWARENESS –
12/21 –  HOLIDAY SPIRIT –
12/28 – THE JOURNEY –

01/04 – ANEW –
01/11 – POSSESSIONS –
01/18 – TBA/TBD –
01/25 – TBA/TBD –

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“Of all possessions a friend is the most precious.” Herodotus

Motivation Mondays: POSSESSIONS #mondaymotivation

Happiness, true happiness, is an inner quality. It is a state of mind. If your mind is at peace, you are happy. If your mind is at peace, but you have nothing else, you can be happy. If you have everything the world can give – pleasure, possessions, power – but lack peace of mind, you can never be happy. Dada Vaswani
Material possessions, winning scores, and great reputations are meaningless in the eyes of Creation, because Creator knows what we really are and that is all that matters. John Wooden

Which Possessions still hold you captive? If we are honest with ourselves, we will all admit that we have our weak spots. You know, those things we can’t do without. For some, it’s designer wear, cars, shoes, food, travel and a long list of sundry possessions that we accumulate over a lifetime.  While there is nothing wrong with having desires and owning things that give us pleasure, we must remember to put them in their right perspective and not allow our things to own us. Remember the Baron who valued his flowers over all else? Or King Midas and a legendary list of others? Their stories offer a cautionary tale that we can learn from. Own your possessions BUT never let them possess YOU. Be motivated to grow beyond your possessions. What will you do differently this year?

A Story: Possessed By Chrysanthemums
Once there was a baron who was extremely fond of chrysanthemums. He had the whole rear garden of his mansion planted with them, and spent a lot of time and effort cultivating them. In fact, the baron paid more attention to the care of his chrysanthemums than to his wife and concubines. Many of his retainers were punished for inadvertently breaking off a blossom. In short, the baron’s passion for chrysanthemums made life miserable for everyone around him.
On one occasion, when a certain retainer accidentally broke off a blossom, he was ordered into confinement by the furious baron. Enraged by this treatment, the retainer resolved to disembowel himself in protest, according to the traditional warrior code. Now it so happened that Zen master Sengai heard of this and hastened to intervene, preventing the retainer from committing suicide over such an affair. Not content with a temporary measure, Sengai resolved to effect a permanent solution. One rainy night when the chrysanthemums were in full bloom, Sengai sneaked into the baron’s garden with a sickle and cut down every single chrysanthemum.
Hearing a strange sound from the garden, the baron looked out and saw someone there. Rushing out wielding his sword in great alarm, he demanded to know what Sengai was doing. The Zen master calmly replied, “Even weeds like this eventually become rank if they are not cut.” Now the baron realized how wrong he had been. It was like awakening from a dream. From that time onward, he no longer raised chrysanthemums. Never Let Your Possessions Possess You!
Source: Zen Antics All stories via Goodweb.cn

Positive Motivation Tip:  Don’t let our possessions own you. Own your possessions and dispense of them when they are spent.

Motivation Mondays is open to anyone who wishes to share a motivational quote, photo, personal challenge or a post that encourages others to start the week on an upbeat note.
Basic Instructions: Each week, I will have a motivation word to help us create a response. (See listed words for the months above/below)
Email address: You may email or share your post as a comment and I will add it to the round-up of related posts. email it to: contact(@)mirthandmotivation(.)com
Category tag: – Share your post using Motivation Mondays
Twitter hashtag: – Use this on Twitter #MotvnM
Dedicated Page: There is a dedicated page for Motivation Mondays. It has the same instructions and will include other helpful tools and a link to the round-up
Facebook Page: MotivationOnMondays Join our page and add your post and/or any motivational piece you think will be helpful to others.
Facebook Community: We have a Facebook community forum to compliment the page. It serves as another way to share uplifting posts and thoughts. Please join in and add your voice.

Badge: – I created a fun badge using PicMonkey’s free photo editing tools. You can create your own, use WordPress’ integrated tool on your blog or you are welcome to use mine. (see dedicated page)
Tag: – Motivation Mondays
Hashtag: – #MotvnM

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PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: Stories via Zen Stories on Goodweb.cn   Quotes via  All Photos: From my Personal Collection,  and/or Tesoro de Villena02, Tesoro de Villena04, Środa Treasure, Hofburg Palace Treasures, Pietroasele Treasure, Eberswalde Hoard, Gold bars, via Wikipedia

Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet