Motivation Mondays: ABUNDANCE

“Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into.” Wayne Dyer

Motivation Mondays: ABUNDANCE – Give. Share. Receive

Whatever we are waiting for – peace of mind, contentment, grace, the inner awareness of simple abundance – it will surely come to us, but only when we are ready to receive it with an open and grateful heart. Sarah Ban Breathnach
Talent is always conscious of its own abundance, and does not object to sharing. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Many a man curses the rain that falls upon his head, and knows not that it brings abundance to drive away the hunger. Saint Basil

What does Abundance mean to you? Is it found in your acquisitions? Is it found in your surroundings or in your spirit of gratitude for all that you are? Are you aware of the limitations of material things to make you truly happy? This is a great time to contemplate the meaning of Abundance as it is the season of holiday gift-giving, excesses and regrets. If the holidays is a time you break the bank to impress or gift those you love, you might want to pause and consider a new approach this year. How can you make this a truly memorable holiday season for your spirit and for those around you who might be broken in spirit? It is easy to forget as we wander, from store to store, laden with our packages of items we saved all year for or items our loved ones shared with us on a list from here to eternity.

Don’t get me wrong, we can celebrate each other and raise a glass to toast all we have accomplished this year but, have you considered stepping out of that malaise of sameness into a new spirit of abundance that focuses on altruism? It is never too late to try a new approach to celebrating the holidays, by sharing our abundance with those whose needs are greater than our own. But then, it is a choice we have to make and, granted, it is not an easy one for most people.

When I was a kid, my mom used to buy gifts and clothing for us during the holiday season. She’d get things we imagined, fantasied about and/or asked for, and then she’d give them away to others. As a child, it really bothered me as I couldn’t quite understand the point of it all but as I grew up, it became clearer that the lesson she was trying to teach us was to remember that instead of adding more abundantly to our coffers, it was far more important to provide enough for those who had so little during the season of merriment and gift giving. She wanted us to become acutely aware of our blessings and to share them. While this might not be everyone’s ideal approach, we can create our own traditions of giving to others and pass it on to our family. It is never too late…

A Story: The Thief of Abundance and Awareness by Osho – Zen Antics stories via Goodweb.cn
There was one great master, a Buddhist master, Nagarjuna. A thief came to him. The thief had fallen in love with the master because he had never seen such a beautiful person, such infinite grace. The thief asked Nagarjuna, “Is there some possibility of my growth also? But one thing I must make clear to you: I am a thief. And another thing: I cannot leave it, so please don’t make it a condition. I will do whatsoever you say, but I cannot stop being a thief. That I have tried many times–it never works, so I have left the whole sport. I have accepted my destiny, that I am going to be a thief and remain a thief, so don’t talk about it. From the very beginning let it be clear.”
Nagarjuna said, “Why are you afraid? Who is going to talk about your being a thief?”
The thief said, “But whenever I go to a monk, to a religious priest, or to a religious saint, they always say, ‘First stop stealing.'”
Nagarjuna laughed and said, “Then you must have gone to thieves; otherwise, why? Why should they be concerned? I am not concerned!”
The thief was very happy. He said, “Then it is okay. It seems that now I can become a disciple. You are the right master.”
Nagarjuna accepted him and said, “Now you can go and do whatsoever you like. Only one condition has to be followed: be aware! Go, break into houses, enter, take things, steal; do whatsoever you like, that is of no concern to me, I am not a thief–but do it with full awareness.”
The thief couldn’t understand that he was falling into the trap. He said, “Then everything is okay. I will try.” After three weeks he came back and said, “You are tricky–because if I become aware, I cannot steal. If I steal, awareness disappears. I am in a fix.”
Nagarjuna said, “No more talk about your being a thief and stealing. I am not concerned; I am not a thief. Now, you decide! If you want awareness, then you decide. If you don’t want it, then too you decide.”
The man said, “But now it is difficult. I have tasted it a little, and it is so beautiful–I will leave anything, whatsoever you say. Just the other night for the first time I was able to enter the palace of the king. I opened the treasure. I could have become the richest man in the world–but you were following me and I had to be aware. When I became aware, diamonds looked just like stones, ordinary stones. When I lost awareness, the treasure was there. And I waited and did this many times. I would become aware and I became like a buddha, and I could not even touch it because the whole thing looked foolish, stupid–just stones, what am I doing? Losing myself over stones? But then I would lose awareness; they would become again beautiful, the whole illusion. But finally I decided that they were not worth it.”

“Not what we have But what we enjoy, constitutes our abundance.” Epicurus

Motivation Mondays: ABUNDANCE – Give. Share. Receive

When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears. Anthony Robbins
Even the smallest shift in perspective can bring about the greatest healing.  Joshua Kai
There is enough for everyone. If you believe it, if you can see it, if you act from it, it will show up for you. That’s the truth. Michael Beckwith

Do you give from a place of Thankfulness or a place of Pride? When we give joyfully to others, we experience a surge of sweetness and gratitude because we have been able to help someone in need and that sensation reverberates from us to others; it is deep and satisfying feeling of fullness in knowing that we have shared freely and it is unforgettable; unlike gifts that excite us for a moment until something else draws our attention to the next acquisitive toy. Yet, so many miss the opportunity to experience the sensation of an inner abundance because we get caught up in things; material and mental constraints that give us only temporary satisfaction.

During this holiday season, take a chance to go out of your way to volunteer, donate time, money, and goodwill to those who need it most. Act as if your life depended on it and don’t expect accolades or showers of thanks; then reflect on your own inner experience. I trust that the experience will fill your heart and soul with the deepest sense of satisfaction and abundance. Another way to spread this tuning into our inner abundance is to encourage our loved ones to do same. The more we give of ourselves, the more we learn about ourselves and what really triggers our inner wisdom.

A Story: The Giver Should Be Thankful
While Seisetsu was the master of Engaku in Kamakura he required larger quarters, since those in which he was teaching were overcrowded. Umezu Seibei, a merchant of Edo, decided to donate five hundred pieces of gold called ryo toward the construction of a more commodious school. This money he brought to the teacher.
Seisetsu said: “All right. I will take it.”
Umezu gave Seisetsu the sack of gold, but he was dissatisfied with the attitude of the teacher. One might live a whole year on three ryo, and the merchant had not even been thanked for five hundred.
“In that sack are five hundred ryo,” hinted Umezu.
“You told me that before,” replied Seisetsu.
“Even if I am a wealthy merchant, five hundred ryo is a lot of money,” said Umezu.
“Do you want me to thank you for it?” asked Seisetsu.
“You ought to,” replied Uzemu.
Why should I?” inquired Seisetsu. “The giver should be thankful.”

The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for October and November 2016 are:

NOVEMBER
11/01/6 –   01 All Saints Day/Day of the Dead,  02 All Soul’s Day, o3, Culture Day, 05 Guy Fawkes Day
11/07   –  07 Chocolate + Almonds Day, 11 Martinmas/Remembrance Day/Veterans Day/Armistice Day, 13 World Kindness Day
11/14 – 14 Full Moon, 15 Republic Day, 16 Day of Repentance 20, National Black Consciousness Day/Revolution Day
11/21 –   21 World Hello Day, 23 National Cashew Day, 24 Thanksgiving Day
11/28  –   29 New Moon/E-Greetings Day/National Day of Listening

DECEMBER
12/05   –    01 World AIDS day,  02 Intnt’nl Abolition of Slavery Day, o7 Pearl Harbor/Remembrance, 08 Immaculate Conception,
12/12   –    10 Human Rights Day, 12 Green Day,  16 Day of Reconciliation,
12/19   –    18 Intnt’nl Migrants Day, 21 Winter Solstice, 24 Start of Hanukkah,  25  Christmas Day
12/26  –    26 Start of Kwanzaa Day, 31 End of Year!

Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2016?

– Join the Daily Post Post-a-day or Post-a-week Challenge.

— Join the BlogHer Writing Lab

More Below!
“Abundance is a process of letting go; that which is empty can receive.” Bryant H. McGill

Motivation Mondays: ABUNDANCE – Give. Share. Receive

The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much it is whether we provide enough for those who have little. Franklin D. Roosevelt
The key to abundance is meeting limited circumstances with unlimited thoughts. Marianne Williamson
You pray in your distress and in your need; would that you might also pray in the fullness of your joy and in your days of abundance. Khalil Gibran

Do you treat Adversity and Abundance the same? When we think of abundant riches, we often forget that those riches could varnish in the bat of an eyelid and so we must rise above our riches and not let them define us. There is nothing wrong with abundance. Frankly, we live in an abundant word and if we would set aside greed and selfishness, everyone on this planet would have enough to eat and a place to sleep so our abundance is someone else’s adversity when we forget to give back to the earth and its inhabitants. So think about it: What we would do if abundance came knocking on our door? It would be very easy to get caught up in our reverie and imagine a life filled with opulence and untold excesses… We might linger on our fantasies for a while or if we are fortunate, gain a moment of lucidity; remembering that our abundant blessings are to be shared.

What about if adversity came knocking? I bet we would hope for the kindness of others to help us make a breakthrough… one ladle can feed many if we are willing to empathize and share. I love Roosevelt’s quote above because it is a reminder that true abundance is not just about our gains, but also about whether we provide enough to those who have too little. So this season of joy, be an abundant giver to those in dire straits. It will boomerang back to you in abundant ways.

A Story: The Carrot, Egg, and cup of Coffee – via Anon
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as when one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each
on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil.

In the first she placed carrots,
In the second she placed eggs and
In the last she placed ground coffee beans.
She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners.

She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl.
She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl.
Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.
Turning to her daughter, she asked, “Tell me what you see.”
“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots.
She did and noted that they were soft.
The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it.
After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.
Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee.
The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.
The daughter then asked, “What does it mean, mother?”

Her mother explained that each of these objects
had faced the same adversity: boiling water.

Each reacted differently.
The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting.
However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.
The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.
However, the ground coffee beans were unique.
After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

“Which are you?” she asked her daughter.
When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond?
Are you a carrot, an egg,or a coffee bean?”
Think of this: Which am I?

Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and
adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat?
Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup,
a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean?
The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor.
If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.

When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest
do you elevate yourself to another level?
How do you handle adversity?

Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best
of everything; they just make the most of everything that
comes along their way.

The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can’t go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
When you were born, you were crying and everyone
around you was smiling.
Live your life so at the end, you’re the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying. Anon

Have a Happy week ahead!

Any Zen Antics stories via Goodweb.cn

Positive Motivation Tip:  Every day in even a little way,  be an abundant blessing to someone…

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: All Photos –  Abundance via Wikipedia, and/or  Abundance  hearts, via Pixabay

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

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