Skywalker Storyteller Works

Reflective Haiku

Posted on March 2, 2014     8 Comments

To improve the world

equanimity is all

power that transforms

To improve the world with one action is quite a challenge. If one is spiritually inclined one might want to enable people to transcend their physical limitations. If one were oriented toward health, one would provide everyone with a healthy life style. If one were oriented toward business and money, one would have the power to provide everyone on earth with one million dollars.

But if I had one power to improve the world, it would be the power to remove discriminating judgment from human beings, to empower people to respond to every thing and every one with equanimity.  Defined in the Encarta World English Dictionary as “evenness of temper, even under stress,” equanimity enables people to think before responding. Equanimity means putting a hold on emotional, knee jerk reactions and calling upon one’s higher abilities to interact with discernment, analysis, and patience.

If we look at most problems that exist in the world from the beginning of recorded history, they can be related to the failure of humans to practice equanimity. Men kill each other fearing a lack of resources, rather than seeing the vastness of this world and the capacity for people to cooperate rather than to combat. Equanimity requires humans to utilize our superior mental functions, rather than to descend to our elemental, primitive, animal impulses. And yes, equanimity requires a mindset that realizes life is short, in the end all die, so why not make this life a pleasant experience.