This is the first in a series of three blogs that describe how the Bible saved my life and sanity. I was facing some exceptionally harsh treatment by people who would have liked me to commit suicide. The Christian teachings I practiced were instrumental in preventing that from happening.
Judge not that you be not judged.
This teaching regarding not judging people happens to be a particular favorite of mine. I have written on this topic earlier but I have some additional points to add and this is a subject that bears repetition.
I will start by saying that I initially used this teaching not because I was particularly spiritual but as a self defense mechanism. I had been harassed on the job and otherwise and had to maintain relations on a day to day basis with the people who had treated me very badly. I had to be subservient to them. I needed some way to maintain my self respect and I did so by telling myself that it is God’s job to run the Universe and judge my tormentors, not mine.
And my judgment turned out to be perfectly right. I benefited manifold from practicing this teaching. The main benefit was loosening the grip of the ego.
The Bible also says that if you follow its teachings you will have life more abundantly. I can testify through experience that this promise holds good. Below are the ways in which I benefited:
- First I was able to live without bothering or brooding about right and wrong. This is a world full of injustice but there is little or no point in brooding about it. I told myself that and got on with living my life and doing something constructive. According to Bertrand Russell in his book The Conquest of Happiness constructive achievement is one of the most satisfying pleasures of life. This satisfaction is also more lasting than the joy of destruction. In addition I filled my mind with (for want of a better word) virtuous and pure thoughts. This resulted in my being much happier than I would have been had I brooded about the wrongs done to me.
- This teaching is therefore a good self defense or coping mechanism. I have referred to my experiences above. Almost nobody goes through life without suffering injustice and so this teaching is universally useful.
- You also get into the habit of not judging yourself. You learn not to beat up and condemn yourself when you act badly (as all people do sometimes). This is another reason why you will be much happier than you would have been otherwise.
- Since you are not judging anyone you will find it much easier to empathize with others. This will help your relationships.
So these are the practical benefits of following just one of the teachings of Jesus. I am not a Christian and I don’t plan to convert. But the Bible belongs to all humanity. This teaching can be used even by an atheist or agnostic purely from a self help point of view.
Now for some practical advice. What I am asking you to do is to guard your thoughts on a moment to moment basis as you go through life. Doing so is far from easy. If you like reading it may help you if you read the spiritual classics repeatedly. Don’t just skim through the books. Contemplate and reflect on these concepts as you go through the day.
The other practical tip is to learn and practice Buddhist mindfulness methods. The best book – if you are a beginner to meditation and mindfulness – is by Thich Nhat Hanh. Link is below:
So these are the practical benefits of not judging people. In my next blog I will list down the theoretical reasons why not judging people makes sense. Below is the link to my second blog
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