Irritated during lockdown? Here is the way out:
You are not alone if you feel irritated during the current lockdown or indeed at any time in your life; we all do, regardless of whom we are, whether poor or rich, powerful or powerless, ill or healthy, old or young. The difference is that some can immediately get over it or even not be bothered about it at all, but others can, unfortunately, be crushed by it. Practice loving kindness and you will have a way out of this conundrum of worry, anger, anxiety, irritation, jealousy etc.
Focus on love and kindness mentally and act physically wherever you are and whenever you can, starting with your family and extending to any being on the planet.
Give your full attention to positive things and positive sides of things and never allow negative thoughts to creep in. Keep reminding yourself, as soon as you approach the negative zone, that negativity drags you down whereas positivity raises you up. Do not ask why; the why question is left to the morons. You single-mindedly pursue peace and happiness. The why question fills you up with horrible pictures of beings, their acts whilst you expound them.
Get a role model whom you want to live up to, with the assurance and comfort that they would, like you are doing, return hatred with love, and, in pursuing peace, they too forgive and forget and are fully committed to their own life rather than the pathetic life of the horribles.
Paint a picture mentally of the wonderful people who have valued you and whom you may have helped and created a smile on their face. Include, if you can, the virtual smiling face of the person who annoys you, instead of the wry and ugly face of them when they annoy you. Tell yourself that no one is perfect including yourself. you may have annoyed others as much as they have annoyed you; you would want them to love and value you as your true self, regardless of your mistakes which are made inadvertently or unintentionally or simply out of goodwill. Likewise, you certainly want to act likewise with respect to others’ annoyance. Do to others as you would have others do to you.
Read a good book to enthuse you or inspire you. The world has treasures for us to explore. Personally, I feel that formal education has wasted our time for so many years, media has been killing our lives, and on many an occasion and in many senses, society has been brainwashing us for political ends. I enter a church and read a Bible, I feel another world has showed up; though not all my questions are answered, I feel inspired and encouraged, and above all, I feel love. I enter a temple and read Buddha, I feel yet a different world has opened up; again, though not all my questions are answered, I feel inspired and encouraged, and above all, I feel love. I read Laozi, I read Emerson, I read Shakespeare, and I realise that modern books are simply copies of the classic and as shallow as flesh; though they may gladden the spirit or sweeten the heart, that is only temporary.
Lockdown teaches us nothing; we’ve been locked down day in and day out. Reflection is what we need, and it is loving kindness that is the vaccine that we need to keep irritation away and to invite beauty into our lives.
