Friday, July 20, 2007

When-Then Zen

Seeds IX, 29

Seed: When-Then Zen

You’ve heard of If-Then Statements. It’s a set-up for logic. I want to talk about something I read in the writing of Dr. Barbara White Steinberg. She writes about When-Then Statements, and my take is that it’s a set-up for illogic.

Try these out:

When I lose ten pounds, then I’ll . . .
When I retire, then I’ll . . .
When I clean out the garage, then I’ll . . .

When-Then, as a rule, sets up a thoroughly false premise which leads to a false, and less than satisfying result. This is mostly because the When part of these statements puts into the future something you actually want right now.

The universe is not set up on a reward system unless you set up your universe that way. Try rephrasing your When-Then Statements into what I call Zen-Then Statements.

Now that I am losing ten pounds, I’m . . .

Placing your good in the future . . . well, places your good in the future. There is no When; there is no Then; there is only Zen—now.

Be serene,

Dr. Susan Corso

Seeds are remarkable gifts. Sown in consciousness, they bring you to the most important part of your being—your Divine Spark.

When you have friends you would like added to the Seeds e-mail list, send their addresses to me at SeedsDrCorso@comcast.net and please visit my blog entries at Ode Magazine.

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