Courage.
Start by taking a moment to settle and relax before you begin.
Find a comfortable sitting position and listen to what the body needs,
Shifting position to be comfortable and balanced if necessary.
Begin by bringing attention to the body in relation to the space it's in,
Sensing the room and any objects around.
Begin by bringing attention to the body in relation to the space it's in,
Sensing the room and any objects around.
And now shift the attention to the entire body as it sits here.
Now move the attention to the breathing process in the whole body,
Breathing naturally and leaving the breath to find its own rhythm.
And then come back to the sensation of the entire body.
And now bring to mind your reasons for doing this exploration on courage.
What is motivating and inspiring you to engage with this process of inner development?
And finally wish yourself success in this process.
This exploration is to help you understand how courage is an expression of self-confidence and independence,
Which depends on self-respect,
Self-trust and self-esteem and encourages you to stand up to the norm when needed.
It will also encourage you to question your life and open up to possibilities of change and fulfilment,
Helping you build a picture of what your potential might be,
What may be helping you develop your potential and what may be limiting you at the moment.
Courage is inner strength that can enable you to oppose and overcome inner and outer obstacles to personal transformation and,
Through this,
Social transformation.
Courage means the capacity to stand your ground against adverse forces and is empowered by meaningful relationships.
Courage involves confidence in your capacity to change life for the better.
It takes courage to hold positive human values and goals and requires a sense of confidence and independence not to conform or submit to negative social conditioning,
Such as overvaluing possessions.
To cultivate courage you need to develop self-respect,
Self-trust and self-esteem.
Self-respect is knowing that you have the potential and capacity to develop positive human qualities and inner resources to a high degree.
This knowledge can empower you to become your better self as you have the freedom to choose to develop and fulfil yourself.
Just valuing this potential and capacity can give you dignity and self-worth.
However,
To sustain this self-respect you need to be inspired by yourself and others.
You gain courage by being encouraged and then in turn you can encourage others.
Self-trust is basic self-confidence,
The capacity to trust your own feelings,
Aspirations and convictions as legitimate.
This requires you to investigate your inner life and discern which of your thoughts,
Emotions and so on are trustworthy and which are mistaken or harmful to yourself and others.
Self-esteem is the basic sense that what you do and want to do is meaningful and worthwhile and having this reflected back to you by others.
Developing courage has many benefits.
Courage can empower you to cultivate beneficial personal and social values and to put your positive motivations into practice.
The key is to develop awareness of your vulnerability to adverse social conditioning and protect yourself from it,
Seeking relationships,
Communities and educational opportunities where leading a life with worthwhile aims is valued.
Courage helps you overcome feelings of discouragement,
Hopelessness,
Inferiority and indecision.
And remember,
From just one individual's courage and effort can come great change that benefits many people.
So,
Take a moment to think of an instance where you went against the norm and stood up for something.
And this does not have to be a visible act or a bold stance.
It could be an inner act of courage and could be something very small.
Merely thinking differently or simply not going along with the common view,
For example.
Did you have trust and self-confidence in your decision and judgement?
And why or why not?
Was this taking a stand worthwhile and meaningful for you?
And why or why not?
Did anyone reflect this back to you?
And if they did,
How did this make you feel?
Did it give you a sense of your self-worth and higher potential?
And why or why not?
Did you draw on any inspiration or encouragement,
Either in the moment from another person or from your underlying values?
Now,
Take a moment to really appreciate the courage you've given to your decision-maker.
And any positive qualities you embodied at the time.
Now,
Think about the positive qualities you've been trying to cultivate within yourself recently,
Such as forgiveness,
Apologizing,
Patience,
Contentment,
Kindness,
Balanced empathy,
Equanimity,
Universal love and basic awareness.
Now,
Think of your act of courage within a longer term and broader perspective,
One that considers yourself,
Others close to you,
Those across the planet and all other creatures,
As well as the wider ecosystem.
Taking this perspective into consideration,
Is there anything you might have done differently?
And how might this exploration help you in daily life?
And remember,
We're using the image of the spiral to show how certain personal qualities build on and reinforce each other in an upward spiral towards positive potential,
A positive reinforcement spiral.
Likewise,
Certain personal qualities also build on and reinforce each other in a downward spiral,
A negative reinforcement spiral.
So,
Using your learning from the previous exploration on courage,
Simply note whether this may be helping you develop towards the top of the spiral or if it may be limiting you towards the bottom.
And finally,
Taking a moment to reconnect with your posture,
Rebalancing,
Relaxing and gently releasing any tension if necessary.
And becoming aware of the body breathing.
And taking a moment to recall your motivation for doing this exploration.
And now bring to mind what you have experienced and learnt in this exploration.
Have you discovered anything about yourself?
Have you begun to cultivate any helpful qualities or overcome or let go of any unhelpful qualities?
And how might this process be beneficial and meaningful and contribute to the welfare and wellbeing of yourself and others,
Your family,
Friends and those close to you,
Those who inspire and nurture your positive development and all living beings and the environment they rely on?
And as this exploration ends,
Try to carry this with you wherever you go,
By recollecting it occasionally.
