To Michael and all on respect

[Guest guest]

Swamiji wrote (to a question from Michael):

Can Swamiji define the highest meaning of the word respect. Swamiji's

response:Emulation is the highest form of respect. Following the

example so closely that one cannot tell who is the guru and who is

the disciple, becoming one with the object of our respect, is the

highest respect.

I LOVE Swamiji's responses to our questions. First they are Truth.

Second, they are efficient, succinct. Third, they give guidance with

Compassion. I'm sure I could think of more, but I'll stop with

these.

 

Respect is an interesting issue to bring up. One thinks of respecting

one's parents, teachers, holy people, those who help others, those

who do well at their jobs, those who are humanitarians, even for the

lady down the road who so carefully keeps her flowers growing, weeded

and beautiful, or for our fellow devotees who provide such good

examples of sadhana.

 

My issue today, after my stepfather treating my hubby very rudely on

the phone, and my mother talking at me and not with me, is where does

respect come in for people we would normally respect but who behave

inappropriately or badly. Do we respect them for holding a mirror up

to us to show us what we have not dealt with yet?

 

Jai Swamiji ~ Linda

[Guest guest]

Linda said:

> My issue today, after my stepfather treating my hubby very rudely on the

> phone, and my mother talking at me and not with me, is where does respect

> come

> in for people we would normally respect but who behave inappropriately or

> badly. Do we respect them for holding a mirror up to us to show us what

> we have

> not dealt with yet?

 

You are exactly correct. They are teaching you about yourself. If you

weren't attached, their disrespect would have no affect on you.

 

I like the idea of imagining that Kali has posessed the unconscious to try

and press our buttons to make us aware of them.

 

In Reality, everyone who is disrespectful is just testing us to see if we

can be respectful even when they aren't. Its how we break down their

barriers, by meeting hostility with love and showing them that those who

taught them they are unlovable are wrong. Loving a mean person is the seed

of destruction for that person's mean-ness samskara.

 

The highest respect we can pay the Goddess is to love and respect a form

of Her that appears to disrespect us.

 

That's a real head turner for Her. She'll stand up and say, "Wonderful

child!" if we fail to react to Her actions through those people.

 

Its much more difficult to not react to parents though. We are conditioned

by them and if they are adversarial, then we are programmed to be

adversarial with them. Not reacting is a very difficult thing because

there are so many samskaras to overcome. And we cannot overcome them, only

Consciousness can. We must desire non-reaction, then she can unite with

our minds enough to stop the mechanims of reaction and eliminate the

samskaras.

 

So the energies you are working with here are the most difficult. That

means Maa is testing you with a level of difficulty. That's good news. She

must be very close for Her to push you so hard.

 

Don't worry so much about the results, just allow your desire for peace to

go up with every reaction you feel. That's the best you can do.

 

The rest is up to her. Keep nagging her for enlightenment. Sooner or later

she'll grant it, she has to.