How to Use Your Emotions for Your Highest Good – 10/23/82
How to Use Your Emotions for Your Highest Good – if you can you get to the center of an emotion or feeling, and really accept it for what it is, suddenly you discover that it’s gone.
Part 1 – Talk
Swami Kriyananda gave many talks on how to handle our emotions and this one takes a different twist.
He said it helps us to think of this topic in relationship to our spiritual development. Instead of thinking of conquering, rising above or suppressing your emotions, it’s better to approach them with the idea of using them for your highest good.
The difference between emotional joy and true joy is that true joy is from within and centered in the Self. It’s the joy of the soul. If you have a kind of joy that is like an extension “out there” somewhere, there is tension involved in it, and as a result you have to pull back from it sooner or later. If you can find a joy that’s centered in yourself, a spiritual joy, then there isn’t any opposite to that.
Part 2 – Questions
Swami asked for questions at the end of his talk. We made the questions a separate MP3 for your convenience.
Here is a sample question: Would you talk about the difference between emotion and feeling?
Answer: Emotion is agitated or ruffled feeling. Emotion is feeling and reacting, instead of just acting. You say something and I react to it, I like it or I don’t like it – that’s emotion. Taking it inside and feeling, and realizing well, what you said was right, or was not right, that’s not a reaction, that’s being centered, it’s being calm. That kind of feeling is good.
