Making mistakes is an interesting concept.
Byron Katie says that when she first experienced her huge shift of perspective, quite on its own without her help, people started knocking on her door.
Many of them would say “namaste”. She thought they were saying “no mistake”.
She hadn’t been a part of any scenes that said “namaste” so it was an entirely foreign word. but “no mistake” worked just as well for her.
Kind of hilarious, though, to realize that she was thinking everyone was so brilliant and they were all bowing and saying No Mistake to each other….
And they were brilliant, of course.
Namaste means, roughly, “I bow to your form and the light in you”. In India (or here as well) you might bow with your hands together and this will mean the same thing, even if you don’t say “namaste” out loud.
Mistake is defined in the dictionary as making a blunder in judgment, action or opinion. By definition, it means that it should have or could have gone differently….with more knowledge, or more awareness, or less negligence, a different opinion, an alternative action, or SOMETHING.
But imagine walking about and seeing someone before you and bowing, whether you really do it or not, with the idea that there are no mistakes.
Imagine doing this with that person who really bugs you. That person from 20 years ago, that mean boss, that difficult teenager, that angry son, that ex-partner, that nasty neighbor.
Have you had the thought that a relationship in your life was a mistake? That you made a mistake? They made a mistake? One big blunder?
What if you open to turning that thought around. It doesn’t mean jumping into believing immediately “I did NOT make a mistake, that relationship was NOT a mistake….that was a FABULOUS wonderful relationship, one of the BEST!”
No, that might be a bit far at the beginning.
But if you find yourself experiencing deep stress when you consider that mistaken time you spent in the past, or that mistaken action, with that mistaken person….then you know you can do The Work, and find out what’s really true.
That was a mistake. Is it true? Can I absolutely know that this is true?
How do I react when I believe the thought that there’s been a mistake?
Oh boy. Busy mind. Sad, unhappy, frustrated, regretful. Busy feelings. Many images. Worried energy. Tight. Planning ways to fix it. Self-critical. Wishing things were different.
Who would you be without the thought that a mistake was made? Without the thought that it could or should have gone differently, could have gone better, could have not hurt so much?
Who would you be without the thought that you made a mistake, or THEY made a mistake?
I did not make a mistake, that period of time was not a mistake, he did not make a mistake, she did not make a mistake, it’s nobody’s fault.
Can you find examples of how this might be true? What if everyone is always doing the best they can? Were there any advantages to it going the way it went?
“Our parents, our children, our spouses, and our friends will continue to press every button we have, until we realize what it is that we don’t want to know about ourselves, yet. They will point us to our freedom every time.”~Byron Katie
The thing happened. It went the way it did.
Without any mistakes, I am in this present moment. Open and empty, filled with peace. Moving with the wave.
I bow to the mistake. Namaste. Thank you for being there, to show me where I have believed in mistakes.
“Open yourself to the Tao, then trust your natural responses; and everything will fall into place.” ~ Tao Te Ching #23
Love, Grace