( soft music)
- So, what is self-discipline?
The common misconception thinks that
it's about self punishment.
But I see that self-discipline is not self punishment,
it is self respect.
It is you respecting your commitments to yourself.
It is you living a life that is in harmony
with your highest goals and values.
It's living a life of integrity of authenticity.
It is your ability to focus your time, your mind,
your energy on the things that are most important for you.
So, in this framework we start by figuring out
what are your core values?
What are the things that are most important for you?
The things that really matter.
And then we begin to shape your life so that
the things that are most important, get their space,
get enough time and attention and energy
so that you can grow to be the being you aspire to be.
And it's interesting that the word discipline
and the word disciple, they both have the same root.
And for me this means that for you to be a disciple
you need to have discipline.
In other words discipline is what allows you to learn.
It's what prepares you the ground
so that you can truly receive the teaching,
apply it and transform your life with it.
Discipline for the Greeks, it comes from the word enkrateia
which means power.
And in Hindu tantra, which is the tradition
that I am connected with the most,
there's the word Shakti.
Which also means power or energy.
Now, needless to say
this is nothing to do about power over other people.
It's not that.
It's about power over oneself.
It is self-discipline.
So, self-discipline is aligned with spiritual principles
in almost all traditions in the planet.
And if you look at Buddhism, there's one word that they use
which is virya.
And virya means intense effort.
So, self-discipline is very connected
with the idea of virya.
Means energetic, diligent, effortful.
So for us to transform the nature of our mind
for us to transform our lives,
we gonna have to apply effort consistently
over a period of time.
And this virtue of virya made it to many of
the virtual lists of the Buddha.
It's part of the list of six perfections
of the bodhisattva, the five strengths,
the four basis of spiritual power.
And that's the name in poly for those of you
who can't read that.
And it's also one of the seven factors of enlightenment.
So, self-discipline is connected to virya
because virya is effort (bird chirping)
and self-discipline is maintaining rightful effort
over a certain period of time until you get the result,
the transformation that you're after.
(bird chirping)
If you're curious about the sound
I think this is a bird somewhere around here..
Now, what is mindful self-discipline?
So that is my approach to this topic,
because if you go and read most of the books
on self-discipline out there, you will feel that
the way that they approach this topic is more military,
more and more marshal in nature.
And that works for some people at some times
it definitely works for me sometimes
but at the same time, I feel that there was,
there was a need for an approach to self-discipline
that is more awareness based.
And that was the birth of mindful self-discipline.
It's more gentle.
It's more approachable for most people.
So, I've been running these classes for a while now
and many people who are not at all interested in the topic
of self-discipline and willpower, and yet they needed it.
They tell me that with this mindful approach
with this awareness based approach,
they are able to connect with it
and see how that's beneficial for them.
So, we can say that self-discipline
is a combination of two elements.
It is awareness and is willpower.
It is to see, to know and to do.
To put in the effort.
Now, mindful self-discipline is awareness first,
because if you just try to, let's say you're trying
to build a positive habit and you keep skipping,
or you're trying to break a negative habit.
You're trying to say no to a temptation
that you know doesn't serve you anymore
and you find yourself indulging in it all the time.
The willpower approach
is a little bit like pushing a boulder uphill.
It's possible and you're gonna get stronger over time
and maybe you can do it but if you first work with awareness
and then you bring in willpower,
then that's more like rolling the boulder downhill.
So, the three pillars of this framework
of mindful self-discipline they are;
aspiration, awareness and action.
Aspiration is like having a north.
It is a compass for your life.
The compass of your deepest values of your goals,
of the vision that you have for yourself.
Awareness is you keeping those values in mind.
Awareness is mindfulness.
It's keeping them in mind, remembering them
so that when you're making decisions
in your day-to-day life,
those values are influencing your decisions
that you are acting in harmony with those values.
And then action.
Well, this is where the rubber meets the road.
It's you having an action plan,
you knowing what you need to focus on
so that you can achieve your goals.
It's you having an action plan and it's also you knowing
how to build positive habits
and how to break negative habits so to speak.
So, I define self-discipline as
your ability to live in accordance
with your highest goals and values moment after moment.
And that is aspiration.
It is a purpose driven life.
It is also the power that you have to overcome internal
and external obstacles.
To commit to what is meaningful to you.
And that's the awareness piece.
And then to let that guide the way you think,
the choices you make and the actions you take
until you bring your goal to fruition.
- [Narrator] We provide you with the certification
and the credentials you need to teach mindfulness
in professional settings.
I invite you to check out our webpage at
teach.mindfulnessexercises.com
to learn more about the program
and I look forward to seeing you on the inside.