Preksha Dhyana: Therapeutic Thinking: [20] Exercise For Acquiring The Virtue Of Freedom From Greed @ HereNow4U

Greed is insatiable desire for food, money, power or material possessions. It is one of the characteristics of life but is an evil in itself. Man shares this instinct with other species of living beings, but, unlike non-human species, man, thanks to being rational, can be aware of his greed. He can be made aware that greed is destructive and therefore evil. A greedy person would not hesitate to use unethical means to fulfil his desire and man go to the extent of satisfying his lust for money or power by violence and force. This is detrimental to the health of social life. To promote social health, one must make a moral effort to practise freedom from greed by self-retraint

Instructions for the Exercise

1-2.	Steps 1-2 as in exercise no. 1.
3-4.	Steps 3-4 as per exercise no. 9, except that the colour to be visualized and inhaled is peacock-neck blue.
5.	Focus your full attention on the Centre of Celibacy (tip of the tongue) and recite the following sentences first loudly (nine times) and then mentally (nine times): My desires are being sublimated by self-restraint My selfishness is diminishing.
6.	Contemplate on the high moral value of this virtue on the following lines: Greed is an evil characteristic of life. It produces desire and self-centredness. It compels one to hoard material possessions. Self-centredness is a great impetus for worldly success, and a man of the world cannot totally forsake it Fulfilment of one's selfish interests may often involve injuring the interests of others. A greedy person would not hesitate to use force and violence to satisfy his lust for money or power. Thus one's selfishness is a danger to the social peace. Unlimited greed of a selfish person begets violence, stealing, lying, criminal mentality, ignoring of social responsibilities, bitterness and such other anti-social instincts. Selfish actions may result in short-term gains but not permanent ones. Selfishness can be extended to embrace the entire universe ^[1]. The narrow boundaries of selfishness can be extended by following the footsteps of those great men who renounced their self-centred interests adopting these as one's ideals. I must, therefore, practise freedom from greed.
7.	Step 7 as in exercise no. 1.

Footnotes

Extension of selfishness (egoism) means what is good (or evil) for myself is also good (or evil) not for all fellow-men but also for all non-human living beings of the entire universe.

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