Thursday 15 August 2019

FULL MOON – Goodness

Having performed a wholesome act
it is good to repeat it. 
Enjoy the pleasure of its memory. 
The fruit of goodness is contentment. 

Dhammapada v.118

To do good is easy: a moment of intentional kindness, or the effort to be a little bit more patient. And the fruits of such wholesome acts is contentment. Hence the Buddha encourages us to take time to savour the fruits of goodness. We readily ascribe value to characteristics such as cleverness and popularity, but we should check and see if investing in these qualities actually leads to contentment. Isn’t it the case that trying to always be the winner and be noticed leads to more discontentment? Let’s not assume that cultivating goodness is so difficult or that it will have no effect.

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