My journal: How to hold my tongue

[Guest guest]

One of the most used muscles in the human body must be the tongue. It is tiny compared to the rest of the body, but oh the damage it can do! It is given to me for good reasons – to talk and to taste, but in the name of talk and taste, my entire day and my entire life itself seems to revolve around it. From the moment I wake up, to the time I sleep, I talk-talk-talk, and eat-eat-eat.

 

If I take a step back into silence and think about it, it’s really appalling how much talk is just pure drivel – talking just for the sake of talking, talking to please people, talking to say something even though I mean something else, talking hard when the other person doesn’t agree with me, talking to convey my point across. It all seems too much. I think about what I should do about it, how to control it – and I heard a voice inside very clearly say – “Listen!†What a brilliant piece of advice! It is so much more loving to listen, to pay attention, to be there for someone. When I listen, my tongue is quiet, and I give room for other's thoughts, but God’s thoughts as well. The more attentively I listen (instead of talk), the more I can

hear.

 

And why are we all such slaves to taste? I have fine-tuned my tastes so much that I know exactly what I don’t like. I used to pride myself on having definite opinions – likes and dislikes, but now I realize they’re just traps to confine me into more rigidity. Shirdi Baba used to have just one tin container he went door to door begging with, and whatever he was given was all mixed up together, into one dish of mush. Buddha taught his disciples to eat only one meal a day – whatever was given to them in their begging bowls. When I’m focused on taste and texture, I lose sight of what’s important and instead my desires increase – my desire to eat a certain dish, or to try a certain ingredient, or to taste a certain exotic fruit. Swami says “food is Godâ€, but he doesn’t say certain foods are

God and others are not. Then why should I be picky about what I eat? And why do I constantly crave to eat all day long? Instead, he teaches us to understand moderation, and limiting oneself, to eat natural, healthy foods, and that what we eat affects our temperament. Greasy, fatty and excess food makes me lethargic (tamasic), spicy, hot foods make me short tempered (rajasic), and natural, healthy, small portions make me even tempered (satwic). I can literally feel the difference when I pay attention to what I eat.

 

So I have new controls on my tongue – to talk less, and to crave less. To listen better, and to be more alert. Controlling my tongue will mean that I can open my eyes, ears and heart more, to be more receptive to what’s going on around me.