Buddhism and Love
Buddhism isn’t just a religion of dry commentary…it has much to offer that is applicable to everyday life, including relationships.
Even applying just a few of Buddha’s quotes can create radical shifts in how you live.
Love Yourself First
You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.
While it’s easy to get carried away with excitement when entering into a new relationship, it’s not always for the best if you don’t have your act together.
The most important aspect of involving yourself with another human being is recognizing that you cannot give yourself to them without having first given that love to yourself.
Feeling that wholeness in yourself, you can share that wholeness with others in a healthy way.
If you’re having trouble stepping into that, here are a few suggestions:
Focus on your positive qualities; consider writing them out and creating a list.
Pick up yoga and meditation, and give it a certain amount of time morning and night (even if it’s 5 min).
Serve others in need. This is a wonderful way to boost your happiness and confidence.
Create a reminder to be kind to yourself- something small like a note on your mirror, or a bangle with the mantra of love, or anything else that works for you.
Accept that which You Cannot Change
Those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace.
When we engage in relationships, it’s not all peaches and cream everyday.
In fact, it sometimes takes a lot of hard work.
Things are bound to come up that trigger us, and may cause us to question why that person just can’t change into something we want or need them to be.
But in the end, that’s not realistic.
Hoping and wishing someone changes when they wont can lead to serious resentment, which can make the situation worse.
It’s better to accept them as they are, and live your life as an example of how you’d like them to be.
Regardless of the outcome, you can at least know you’re doing your best.
Practice Honesty
Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.
It’s easy to believe that smoothing over issues or lying will help a situation; after all, there’s no confrontation.
But if there’s an issue that bothers you, it’s best to bring it out and discuss it.
It’s important to remember that sweeping things under the rug will make one or both of you resentful- which can lead to anger down the road.
Better to bring it up now and get it taken care of, instead of letting it fester.a
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