Buddhist Wisdom on Positive Thinking

I don’t subscribe to any particular religion. So, I would sometimes read different religious books, as there’s always valuable insights and wisdom in each religion.

Recently I was reading a book about Buddhist Wisdom and would like to share some of the guidelines from the book on positive thinking. It’s a free booklet which I picked up in my neighbourhood. For those who are interested in the book, the title is “Glimpses of Buddhist Wisdom” written by Ven. Dr. P. Gnanarama and published by Ti-Sarana Buddhist Association, an association located in Singapore.

On the section that talks about positive thinking, it mentions that Buddhism’s view is that one’s mind should remain stable in good times and bad times. Of course, everyone knows how difficult it is to be put into practice. We can be happy and calm during good times but who don’t get flustered, anxious or angry when some bad incidents happen to us? But the good and the bad are all part of the cycle in life. We cannot wish one exists without the other as each have a reason to exist. Most of the times, we learn and grow the most during bad times.

We can practise positive thinking by:

  • Cultivating a positive outlook and contentment
  • Maintaining an easily supportable life
  • Having fewer undertakings for effective performance deriving satisfaction
  • Organizing our work
  • Adjusting the environment to suit the orbit of one’s career
  • Prioritizing to avoid arrears and ease the burden of workload

All these guidelines are interconnected and I find that practising one will have positive effects on the other. For example, if we have a positive outlook and are grateful for what we have, we will be contented with our lots. When we don’t take on too many liabilities (eg loans and debts) and live a simple life, we should be able to support ourselves with the job we have. When we have fewer liabilities, there would be less stress. With a less stressful life, we will have peace of mind and thus able to cope better in our daily lives. Changing our environment to suit our own physical and mental health will enable us to perform better. When we plan and prioritize our work and do what we need to do each day, we don’t overburden ourselves by letting work pile up.

Ultimately, practising all these guidelines on positive thinking will lead to happier selves.