10 things to do daily

1. Read a good book

Reading a good inspirational or motivational or spiritual book daily a few pages can do wonders for you. Such books create a positive aura around you as it helps in develop positive thoughts. Especially when the chips are down or you are feeling low it works as a tonic to bring your emotions on the track. It enhances focus in your life. It slows down your thought process.

1. Regular act of compassion

Compassion is a very important quality which can be done daily. It creates peace of mind. Compassion does not mean doing big charity daily. It means small things which you can do while going for office or a walk. Like giving small alms to the poor, or just talking to them to divert there mind for some time or even sending out a small prayer in his name.  Just think when we have difficult times even if someone talks to use compassionately we feel good.

1. Non judgmental

We are always in a judgmental mode, for other people and incidents also. It is mostly negative and toxic. In most cases our judgement is based on limited information and therefore our judgments mostly go wrong. When we judge ours it hovers in our mind for a long time and creates a agitation in our mind. This is not good. It is important to develop a non judgmental way of looking at things, to accept everything as it is. You will now find peace within yourself.

1. Spending time in nature

Nature is a great healer as somewhere inside we are connected. So it is important that you spend some ‘me’ time alone with nature. Walking in a park or going for a hike. Even sitting under a tree for some time. You should be alone and you should try to calm you mind so that it is not sprinting with a trail of thoughts. Just slow down your thoughts and enjoy the moment. You should forget about your work life, near and dear ones, just you and nature only.

1. Contemplation

Nature can be a good place to contemplate. Contemplation means thinking about something important or profound about life and its meaning. Also about your life and the way you are living. It helps you to go deep inside you and forget everything. Here you will find glimpses of you quality of life and its purpose. Your mind becomes focused and the ego dissolves temporarily. It’s a very important tool for those who don’t meditate.

1. Silence

Silence gives us space for the universe to provide us act on you. The first stage is the physical silence. Actually the more we speak the more thought trails our mind creates. Our aim should be to create the least amount of thoughts, only those are necessary. So observing silence is important. The next stage is to create an aura within yourself where you listen and appreciate the sound of silence. It is extremely important for people like us living a busy lifestyle in cities. Silence and contemplation shows the way to the inner self.

1. Let go

Attachment in all forms, physical emotional and ambitions can be a recipe for toxicity. Not only for you but also for others also. We fail to understand that we are not the masters of this universe and not even a leaf is actually in our control. But we have a habit of controlling everything our way. Non attachment to outcomes, surrendering desires, accepting the present opens the door way to the presence of the higher being.

1. Prayer

Prayer is not limited to any faith but is present in all faiths in different forms. But the common man mostly prays the wrong way. Prayer is a powerful tool if done the correct way. Prayer is not about making request or demanding to God. Prayer is to accept and be happy with what you have and thank God for it. Prayer is to rise above our selfish requirements and connect to the higher being in an unassuming way. Prayer is to maintain a balance and peace within our self. Prayer is to wish for the well being of all life forms, the earth and the universe.

1. Yoga or something similar

Yoga or any sports or Tai chi whatever you can do, you must do once a day. It helps in switching off the mind from our daily mundane tasks and works on the conditioning of the body. Someone said a healthy body is required for a healthy mind. He was absolutely correct. These practices discipline ourselves and make us more focused in life. It helps in getting over the stress and strain of mind and body which we continuously go through daily. It rejuvenates the inner organs and regulates its functioning so that we can stay away from preventable diseases, especially lifestyle diseases.

1. Meditation

A lot has been written about meditation and no one doubts about its benefits. It is the ultimate tool to go deeper and connect to our soul. God is not outside but inside and meditation helps us seek God the correct way. There are various forms of meditations and everyone is free to choose what suits him best.  All paths lead to the same place. The most common type is just to watch one’s own breadth, control the thoughts and quieten the mind. If this is done daily for sometime it will have a miraculous effect on you.

You will notice that almost all the things I have said above will slow your breathing. Once your breathing slows your speed of thoughts also slow down. A calm person will breathe slowly and when you are agitated you will breathe fast. The faster you breathe the faster you think, the faster you think the quicker you get emotional and agitated and reactive and judgmental. That’s when you take wrong decisions. The crux is to be calm and these activities make you calm.