04-27-2015, 11:42 PM
Gemini Wolf's recent thread got me thinking a bit.
namely, a few thoughts about the nature of Regret.
on the surface, there would seem to be 2 types of regret:
1) regret for things done - because they hurt someone, you hurt yourself, or you got into a situation that is still ongoing (and unpleasant/unwanted).
2) regret for things not done - either opportunities not taken, for not being adventurous enough, or bold enough
at the end of the day, what was done (or not done) can't change. That's history. But the nature of regret begs the question - how can I approach this feeling/emotion of regret?
I think that if one utilises and processes experience for it's understanding and learning potential, the feeling of regret should fade. After all, at the end of the day, we are living in a transient physical experience, and all that will be left are the memories and our interpretations of them. There is nothing, quite literally, we can take with us.
If we process experience for case 1) above, regrets about things we did, and wish we didn't, we can learn which things were harmful, naive, ill-advised, poorly thought out, or were lacking love. We can choose to not take that path of action in the future, if similiar circumstances presented themselves.
if we process experience for case number 2), then maybe we will be more responsive and more ready to take opportunities, when they arise in the future. And opportunities will always arise. Maybe not the exact same ones, but the material experience is always in flux, and things will present themselves if they are willing. But the feeling of regret will linger if the past experiences are not processed for a certain understanding of wisdom.
namely, a few thoughts about the nature of Regret.
on the surface, there would seem to be 2 types of regret:
1) regret for things done - because they hurt someone, you hurt yourself, or you got into a situation that is still ongoing (and unpleasant/unwanted).
2) regret for things not done - either opportunities not taken, for not being adventurous enough, or bold enough
at the end of the day, what was done (or not done) can't change. That's history. But the nature of regret begs the question - how can I approach this feeling/emotion of regret?
I think that if one utilises and processes experience for it's understanding and learning potential, the feeling of regret should fade. After all, at the end of the day, we are living in a transient physical experience, and all that will be left are the memories and our interpretations of them. There is nothing, quite literally, we can take with us.
If we process experience for case 1) above, regrets about things we did, and wish we didn't, we can learn which things were harmful, naive, ill-advised, poorly thought out, or were lacking love. We can choose to not take that path of action in the future, if similiar circumstances presented themselves.
if we process experience for case number 2), then maybe we will be more responsive and more ready to take opportunities, when they arise in the future. And opportunities will always arise. Maybe not the exact same ones, but the material experience is always in flux, and things will present themselves if they are willing. But the feeling of regret will linger if the past experiences are not processed for a certain understanding of wisdom.
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