Ethics and values.
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 you.
Shift the attention to the entire body as it sits here.
Move the attention to the breathing process in the whole body,
Breathing naturally and leaving the breath to find its own rhythm.
Come back to the sensation of the entire body.
Now bring to mind your reasons for doing this exploration on ethics and values.
What's motivating and inspiring you to engage with this process of inner development?
And finally,
Wish yourself success in this process.
This exploration will encourage you to explore your values,
How you enact them as ethical actions in the world and whether they are universal.
It will also encourage you to question your life and open up to possibilities of change and fulfillment,
Helping you build a picture of what your potential might be,
What might be helping you develop your potential and what might be limiting you at the moment.
Long-term inner happiness is based more on internal than external sources.
It is more lasting and fulfilling than shorter-term happiness,
Which stems from the more pleasure-based simple joys of life.
Cultivating positive qualities is a way of developing long-term inner happiness.
For happiness to be truly meaningful,
However,
You need to take other people,
Animals and the planet into consideration.
One way to cultivate positive inner attitudes is to look at your own values and how they impact your ethical decisions and behavior in the world and how this impacts others.
In other words,
Ethics are your values in action.
By values,
We mean the idea of what is ultimately good,
Proper or desirable in life and by ethics,
We mean behaviors that avoid harm and are intent on goodness.
Exploring these can give you an indication of how you consider others.
So meaningful happiness links your best inequalities with your compassionate engagement in the world and is therefore inseparable from an ethical life.
You might like to have a pen and paper ready in case you wish to note anything down during this next exploration.
Start by asking yourself what is most important to me in life.
This could be anything such as a relationship,
A job,
A hobby or a passion.
You Now choose just one of these and think about what it means to you.
As an example,
You may have thought that volunteering is important to you because it means that it allows you to help others.
You you Now think about a specific example of how you are currently living and bringing that value to life.
For example,
If your value is kindness,
You may enact it by offering people a seat on public transport when it's crowded.
So think about how you are enacting your particular chosen value.
You Now ask yourself if your value is universal.
In other words,
Could it appeal to anyone,
Regardless of age,
Ethnicity,
Education,
Religion or gender?
You So,
Was your personal value also a universal human value?
And why did you think it was or was not?
Why is it important to consider whether personal values are also universal?
Is it possible to be happy if people around you are not ethical?
Is it possible to be happy if you are not ethical?
Does acting ethically add meaning to your life?
And how might this exercise help you in daily life?
You And remember,
We are 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 of ethics and values,
Simply note whether the values you enact in the world may be helping you develop towards the top of the spiral or if they may be limiting you towards the bottom.
Finally,
Taking a moment to reconnect with your posture,
Rebalancing,
Relaxing and gently releasing any tension if necessary.
Being aware of the body breathing.
Taking a moment to recall your motivation for doing this exploration.
Bring to mind what you have experienced and learned 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?
How might this process be beneficial and meaningful?
In 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.
As this exploration ends,
Try to carry this with you wherever you go by recollecting it occasionally.
