Hi what is the difference between zi zuo and perservance ?
Is zi zuo = perservance ?
To my understanding, perserverence is a strength to move on and
continue with whatever we are doing, and as a forummer said
'determined'... but we must always observe whether there is
attachment involved, like whether there is attachment,
unwillingness or reluctance to lose something, etc. Is our mind
obsessed with external seeking that it loses itself in the future
and reduce this moment as a means to an end?
Whenever we do anything, don't let fear be the driving force..
Is there joy or is it fear or greed that drives you? Is there peace
and contentment or resistance and discontent.
Ask yourself -- is there joy, enthusiasm, or acceptance in what
you do? (see below) What is the state of consciousness or driving
force of perserverence.
Always be aware of your inner state.. mindfulness/awareness is
important, and whenever negative states/emotions/thoughts arise we
must learn how to drop, dont let it pollute your inner state and
affect what you do. Stay mentally clear and mindful and just do
your best.
Eckhart Tolle: "The modalities of awakened doing are
acceptance, enjoyment, and enthusiasm. Each one represents a
certain vibrational frequency of
consciousness. You need to be vigilant to make sure that one of
them
operates whenever you are engaged in doing anything at all – from
the most
simple task to the most complex. If you are not in the state of
either
acceptance, enjoyment, or enthusiasm, look closely and you will
find that
you are creating suffering for yourself and others."
I hope the following helps:
AWAKENED DOING
Awakened doing is the outer aspect of the next stage in the
evolution
of consciousness on our planet. The closer we get to the end of our
present
evolutionary stage, the more dysfunctional the ego becomes, in the
same way
that a caterpillar becomes dysfunctional just before it transforms
into a
butterfly. But the new consciousness is arising even as the old
dissolves.
We are in the midst of a momentous event in the evolution of
human
consciousness, but they won't be talking about it in the news
tonight. On our
planet, and perhaps simultaneously in many parts of our galaxy and
beyond,
consciousness is awakening from the dream of form. This does not
mean all
forms (the world) are going to dissolve, although quite a few
almost certainly
will. It means consciousness can now begin to create form without
losing
itself in it. It can remain conscious of itself, even while it
creates and
experiences form. Why should it continue to create and experience
form?
For the enjoyment of it. How does consciousness do that?
Through
awakened humans who have learned the meaning of awakened
doing.
Awakened doing is the alignment of your outer purposewhat
you do
– with your inner purpose – awakening and staying awake.
Through
awakened doing, you become one with the outgoing purpose of the
universe.
Consciousness flows through you into this world. It flows into your
thoughts
and inspires them. It flows into what you do and guides and
empowers it.
Not what you do, but how you do what you do determines
whether
you are fulfilling your destiny. And how you do what you do is
determined
by your state of consciousness.
A reversal of your priorities comes about when the main purpose
for
doing what you do becomes the doing itself, or rather, the current
of
consciousness that flows into what you do. That current of
consciousness is
what determines quality. Another way of putting it: In any
situation and in
whatever you do, your state of consciousness is the primary factor;
the
situation and what you do is secondary. “Future” success is
dependent upon
and inseparable from the consciousness out of which the actions
emanate.
That can be either the reactive force of the ego or the alert
attention of
awakened consciousness. All truly successful action comes out of
that field
of alert attention, rather than from ego and conditioned,
unconscious
thinking.
THE THREE MODALITIES OF AWAKENED DOING
There are three ways in which consciousness can flow into what
you
do and thus through you into this world, three modalities in which
you can
align your life with the creative power of the universe. Modality
means the
underlying energyfrequency
that flows into what you do and connects your
actions with the awakened consciousness hat is emerging into this
world.
What you do will be dysfunctional and of the ego unless it arises
out of one
of these three modalities. They may change during the course of a
day,
although one of them may be dominant during a certain stage in your
life.
Each modality is appropriate to certain situations.
The modalities of awakened doing are acceptance, enjoyment,
and
enthusiasm. Each one represents a certain vibrational frequency
of
consciousness. You need to be vigilant to make sure that one of
them
operates whenever you are engaged in doing anything at all – from
the most
simple task to the most complex. If you are not in the state of
either
acceptance, enjoyment, or enthusiasm, look closely and you will
find that
you are creating suffering for yourself and others.
ACCEPTANCE
Whatever you cannot enjoy doing, you can at least accept that this
is
what you have to do. Acceptance means: For now, this is what this
situation,
this moment, requires me to do, and so I do it willingly. We
already spoke at
length about the importance of inner acceptance of what happens,
and
acceptance of what you have to do is just another aspect of it. For
example,
you probably won't be able to enjoy changing the flat tire on your
car at night
in the middle of nowhere and in pouring rain, let alone be
enthusiastic about
it, but you can bring acceptance to it. Performing an action in the
state of
acceptance means you are at peace while you do it. That peace is a
subtle
energy vibration which then flows into what you do. On the
surface,
acceptance looks like a passive state, but in reality it is active
and creative
because it brings something entirely new into this world. That
peace, that
subtle energy vibration, is consciousness, and one of the ways in
which ti
enters this world is through surrendered action, one aspect of
which is
acceptance.
If you can neither enjoy or bring acceptance to what you do –
stop.
Otherwise, you are not taking responsibility for the only thing you
can really
take responsibility for, which also happens to be one thing that
really
matters: your state of consciousness. And if you are not taking
responsibility
for your state of consciousness, you are not taking responsibility
for life.
ENJOYMENT
The peace that comes with surrendered action turns to a sense
of
aliveness when you actually enjoy what you are doing. Enjoyment is
the
second modality of awakened doing. On the new earth, enjoyment
will
replace wanting as the motivating power behind people's actions.
Wanting
arises from the ego's delusion that you are a separate fragment
that is
disconnected from the power that lies behind all creation.
Through
enjoyment, you link into that universal creative power
itself.
When you make the present moment, instead of past and future,
the
focal point of your life, your ability to enjoy what you do – and
with it the
quality of your life – increases dramatically. Joy is the dynamic
aspect of
Being. When the creative power of the universe becomes conscious of
itself,
it manifests as joy. You don't have to wait for something
“meaningful” to
come into your life so that you can finally enjoy what you do.
There is more
meaning in joy than you will ever need. The “waiting to start
living”
syndrome is one of the most common delusions of the unconscious
state.
Expansion and positive change on the outer level is much more
likely to
come into your life if you can enjoy what you are doing already,
instead of
waiting for some change so that you can start enjoying what you
do.
Don't ask your mind for permission to enjoy what you do. All you
will
get is plenty of reasons why you can't enjoy it. “Not now,” the
mind will say.
“Can't you see I'm busy? There's no time. Maybe tomorrow you can
start
enjoying....” That tomorrow will never come unless you begin
enjoying what
you are doing now.
When you say, I enjoy doing this or that, it is really a
misperception. It
makes it appear that the joy comes from what you do, but that is
not the case.
Joy does not come from what you do, it flows into what you do and
thus into
this world from deep within you. The misperception that joy comes
from
what you do is normal, and it is also dangerous, because it creates
the belief
that joy is something that can be derived form something else, such
as an
activity or thing. You then look to the world to bring you joy,
happiness. But
it cannot do that. This is why many people live in constant
frustration. The
world is not giving them what they think they need.
Then what is the relationship between something that you do and
the
state of joy? You will enjoy any activity in which you are fully
present, any
activity that is not just a means to an end. It isn't the action
you perform that
you really enjoy, but the deep sense of aliveness that flows into
it. That
aliveness is one with who you are. This means that when you enjoy
doing
something, you are really experiencing the joy of Being in its
dynamic
aspect. That's why anything you enjoy doing connects you with the
power
behind all creation.
Here is a spiritual practice that will bring empowerment and
creative
expansion into your life. Make a list of a number of everyday
routine
activities that you perform frequently. Include activities hat you
may
consider uninteresting, boring, tedious, irritating, or stressful.
But don't
include anything that you hate or detest doing. That's a case
either for
acceptance or for stopping what you do. The list may include
traveling to and
from work, buying groceries, doing your laundry, or anything that
you find
tedious or stressful in your daily work. Then, whenever you are
engaged in
those activities, let hem be a vehicle for alertness. Be absolutely
present in
what you do and sense the alert, alive stillness within you in the
background
of the activity. You will soon find that what you do in such a
state of
heightened awareness, instead of being stressful, tedious, or
irritating, is
actually becoming enjoyable. To be more precise, what you are
enjoying is
not really the outward action but the inner dimension of
consciousness hat
flows into the action. This is finding the joy of Being in what you
are doing.
If you feel your life lacks significance or is too stressful or
tedious, it is
because you haven't brought that dimension into your life yet.
Being
conscious in what you do has not yet become your main aim.
The new earth arises as more and more people discover that their
main
purpose in life is to bring the light of consciousness into this
world and so
use whatever they do as a vehicle for consciousness.
The joy of Being is the joy of being conscious.
Awakened consciousness then takes over from ego and begins to
run
your life. You may then find that an activity that you have been
engaged in
for a long time naturally begins to expand into something much
bigger when
it becomes empowered by consciousness.
Some of those people who, through creative action, enrich the lives
of
many others simply do what they enjoy doing most without wanting
to
achieve or become anything through that activity. They may be
musicians,
artists, writers, scientists, teachers, or builders, or they may
bring into
manifestation new social or business structures (enlightened
businesses).
Sometimes for a few years their sphere of influence remains small;
and then
it can happen that suddenly or gradually a wave of creative
empowerment
flows into what they do, and their activity expands beyond anything
they
could have imagined and touches countless others. In addition to
enjoyment,
an intensity is now added to what they do and with it comes a
creativity that
goes beyond anything an ordinary human could accomplish.
But don't let it go to your head, because up there is where a
remnant of
ego may be hiding. You are still an ordinary human. What is
extraordinary is
what comes through you into this world. But that essence you share
with all
beings. The fourteenthcentury
Persian poet and Sufi master Hafiz expresses
this truth beautifully: “I am a hole in a flute that the Christ's
breath moves
through. Listen to this music.” 1
ENTHUSIASM
Then there is another way of creative manifestation that may come
to
those who remain true to their inner purpose of awakening. Suddenly
one
day they know what their outer purpose is. They have a great
vision, a goal,
and from then on they work toward implementing that goal. Their
goal or
vision is usually connected in some way to something that on a
smaller scale
they are doing and enjoy doing already. This is where the third
modality of
awakened doing arises: enthusiasm.
Enthusiasm mans there is deep enjoyment in what you do plus
the
added element of a goal or a vision that you work toward. When you
add a
goal to the enjoyment of what you do, the energyfield
or vibrational
frequency changes. A certain degree of what we might call
structural tension
is now added to enjoyment, and so it turns into enthusiasm. At the
height of
creative activity fueled by enthusiasm, there will be enormous
intensity and
energy behind what you do. You will feel like an arrow hat is
moving toward
the target – and enjoying the journey.
To an onlooker, it may appear that you are under stress, but
the
intensity of enthusiasm has nothing to do with stress. When you
want to
arrive at your goal more than you want to be doing what you are
doing, you
become stressed. The balance between enjoyment and structural
tension is
lost, and the latter has won. When there is stress, it is usually a
sign that the
ego has returned , and you are cutting yourself off form the
creative power of
the universe. Instead, there is only the force and strain of egoic
wanting, and
so you have to struggle and “work hard” to make it. Stress always
diminishes
both the quality and effectiveness of what you do under its
influence. There
is also a strong link between stress and negative emotions, such as
anxiety
and anger. It is toxic to the body and is now becoming recognized
as one of
the main causes of the socalled
degenerative diseases such as cancer and
heart disease.
Unlike stress, enthusiasm has a high energy frequency and so
resonates with the creative power of the universe. This is why
Ralph Waldo
Emerson said that, “Nothing great has ever been achieved
without
enthusiasm.”2 The word enthusiasm comes from ancient Greek – en
and
theos meaning God. And the related word enthousiazein means “to
be
possessed by a god.” With enthusiasm you will find that you don't
have to do
it all by yourself. In fact, there is nothing of significance that
you can do by
yourself. Sustained enthusiasm brings into existence a wave of
creative
energy, and all you have to do then is “ride the wave.”
Enthusiasm brings an enormous empowerment into what you do,
so
that all those who have not accessed that power would look upon
“your
achievements in awe and may equate them with who you are. You,
however,
know the truth that Jesus pointed to when he said, “I can of my own
self do
nothing.”3 Unlike egoic wanting, which creates opposition
indirect
proportion to the intensity of its wanting, enthusiasm never
opposes. It is
nonconfrontational.
Its activity does not create winners and losers. It is
based on inclusion, not exclusion, of others. It does not need to
use and
manipulate people, because it is the power of creation itself and
so does not
need to take energy from some secondary source. The ego's wanting
always
tries to take form something or someone; enthusiasm gives out of
its own
abundance. When enthusiasm encounters obstacles in the form of
adverse
situations or uncooperative people, it never attacks but walks
around them or
by yielding or embracing turns the opposing energy into a helpful
one, the
foe into a friend.
Enthusiasm and the ego cannot coexist. one implies the absence of
the
other. Enthusiasm knows where it is going, but at the same time, it
is deeply
at one with the present moment, the source of its aliveness, its
joy, and its
power. Enthusiasm “wants” nothing because it lacks nothing. It is
at one
with life and no matter how dynamic the enthusiasminspired
activities are,
you don't lose yourself in them. And there remains always a still
but
intensely alive space at the center of the wheel, a core of peace
in the midst
of activity that is both the source of all and untouched by it
all.
Through enthusiasm you enter into full alignment with the
outgoing
creative principle of the universe, but without identifying with
its creation,
that is to say, without ego. where there is no identification,
there is no
attachment – one of the great sources of suffering. Once a wave of
creative
energy has passed, structural tension diminishes again and joy in
what you
are doing remains. Nobody can live in enthusiasm all the time. A
new wave
of creative energy may come later and lead to renewed
enthusiasm.
When the return movement toward the dissolution of form sets
in,
enthusiasm no longer serves you. Enthusiasm belongs to the outgoing
cycle
of life. It is only through surrender that you can align yourself
with the return
movement – the journey home.
To sum up: Enjoyment of what you are doing, combined with a goal
or
vision that you work toward, becomes enthusiasm. Even though you
have a
goal, what you are doing in the present moment needs to remain the
focal
point of your attention; otherwise, you will fall out of alignment
with
universal purpose. Make sure your vision or goal is not an inflated
image of
yourself and therefore a concealed form of ego, such as wanting to
become a
movie star, a famous writer, or a wealthy entrepreneur. Also make
sure your
goal is not focused on having this or that, such as a mansion by
the sea, your
own company, or ten million dollars in the bank. An enlarged image
of
yourself or a vision of yourself having this or that are all static
goals and
therefore don't empower you. Instead, make sure your goals are
dynamic,
that is to say, point toward an activity that you are engaged in
and through
which you are connected to other human beings as well as to the
whole.
Instead of seeing yourself as a famous actor and writer and so on,
see
yourself inspiring countless people with your work and enriching
their lives.
Feel how that activity enriches or deepens not only your life but
that of
countless others. Feel yourself being an opening through which
energy flows
form the unmanifested Source of all life through you for the
benefit of all.
All this implies hat your goal or vision is then already a reality
within
you, on the level of mind and of feeling. Enthusiasm is the power
that
transfers the mental blueprint into the physical dimension. That is
the
creative use of mind, and that is why here is no wanting involve.
You cannot
manifest what you want; you can only manifest what you already
have. You
may get what you want through hard work and stress, but that is not
the way
of the new earth. Jesus gave the key to the creative use of mind
and to the
conscious manifestation of form when he said, 'Whatever you ask in
prayer,
believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”4