Understanding No Man is an Island

We need to understand that with every action we have an effect on others in the world. The major effect may only be on those closest to us, but it expands like a rock thrown in a pond and starts effecting people from farther and farther away from us.

It's like the idea of energy--that our thoughts and our feelings and way of being influences the world. Our actions have a more direct impact. We may not think that our choice of food or our choice of brand has any relationship to the amount of peace of in the world, but it can. If we choose mindfully and are aware that every action has far reaching implications, then we start realizing the interconnectedness of everything.

As realize the interconnectedness of everything, we realize that the people we dislike, the people we judge, the people we refuse to believe that we are like (though we are), are all connected to us in this huge web. When we really get that, we start understanding how important respect and empathy and compassion are in our small world.

Mindfully take one small task today and see if you can see the ripple effect it could have. Smile at the woman who sells you coffee and then think about how that might effect the rest of the world. Or not.