What does a Red Traffic Light Mean to You?
Whenever I fly to New York I cannot help but notice all the adverts for HSBC, "the local global bank", or something like that. What impresses me is that they show how the same thing can give either a very good or very bad connotation, depending on our frame of mind / social conditioning. Just for one example, the idea of 2 weeks lying on a beach is my idea of a terribly boring holiday. At the same time, others may find a cycling tour through the swiss Alps, perfect hell.
There are many things that we consider to be a bad thing, but is it actually fair to maintain this attitude? Is it possible to see good things in everything?
For example, my instinctive feeling is that a red traffic light is a bad thing: it delays our progress, it is a waste of time. If all our lights are green then we feel the Gods are smiling on us. If all the traffic light are red, we feel perfectly miserable and become convinced the whole world is conspiring against us. As a cyclist, a red light at a pedestrian crossing, only creates a temptation to ignore it and cycle through anyway.
Reading this essay from Everest Aspiration, by Sri Chinmoy, inspired me to look upon red traffic lights in another light(pardon the pun)
"The red stoplight discourages me when I am in a hurry. The same red light soothes my life when I am not in a hurry..." [1]
Instead of seeing a red light as an obstacle on the journey, it is an opportunity to be mentally still, not exactly meditation; but rather than entertaining thoughts of frustrations and impatience I can, at least, try to hold neutral / positive thoughts. A red light is not a meaningless obstacle but a necessary item to allow a smooth journey.
The great spiritual traditions teach us that real happiness is not dependent on external circumstances. Real happiness stems from our state of mind. Whatever may befall us in the outer life, it is our inner attitude that determines whether it is a good thing or not. We may go through life, metaphorically praying all the traffic lights will be green, but God may not want to fulfil this desire. If we pray for all obstacles to be cleared we will never learn that even red traffic lights can be an opportunity for reflection, inner poise and an inner self transcendence.
So even commercial adverts can have a scope for spiritual instruction, it just shows that our mental perceptions will determine our outlook quite significantly.
[1] The Red Stoplight - essay by Sri Chinmoy: from Everest Aspiration Part 3 by Sri Chinmoy.
There are many things that we consider to be a bad thing, but is it actually fair to maintain this attitude? Is it possible to see good things in everything?
For example, my instinctive feeling is that a red traffic light is a bad thing: it delays our progress, it is a waste of time. If all our lights are green then we feel the Gods are smiling on us. If all the traffic light are red, we feel perfectly miserable and become convinced the whole world is conspiring against us. As a cyclist, a red light at a pedestrian crossing, only creates a temptation to ignore it and cycle through anyway.
Reading this essay from Everest Aspiration, by Sri Chinmoy, inspired me to look upon red traffic lights in another light(pardon the pun)
"The red stoplight discourages me when I am in a hurry. The same red light soothes my life when I am not in a hurry..." [1]
Instead of seeing a red light as an obstacle on the journey, it is an opportunity to be mentally still, not exactly meditation; but rather than entertaining thoughts of frustrations and impatience I can, at least, try to hold neutral / positive thoughts. A red light is not a meaningless obstacle but a necessary item to allow a smooth journey.
The great spiritual traditions teach us that real happiness is not dependent on external circumstances. Real happiness stems from our state of mind. Whatever may befall us in the outer life, it is our inner attitude that determines whether it is a good thing or not. We may go through life, metaphorically praying all the traffic lights will be green, but God may not want to fulfil this desire. If we pray for all obstacles to be cleared we will never learn that even red traffic lights can be an opportunity for reflection, inner poise and an inner self transcendence.
So even commercial adverts can have a scope for spiritual instruction, it just shows that our mental perceptions will determine our outlook quite significantly.
[1] The Red Stoplight - essay by Sri Chinmoy: from Everest Aspiration Part 3 by Sri Chinmoy.
Labels: spiritual perspective
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