The representative of the 14th Dalai Lama in Russia, CIS countries and Mongolia, the supreme lama of Kalmykia Telo Tulku Rinpoche is absolutely right: “he pandemic has dealt a powerful blow to the world community, changing the course of our daily lives and depriving us of any confidence in tomorrow. It generated fear, anxiety, stress and all the imaginable and unimaginable destructive emotions that have flooded our hearts."Fear has captured us all, and where there is fear, there are stresses and nervous breakdowns resulting in panic, which is not surprising. Today, only iron and kettle on the stove do not talk about coronavirus, pandemic, about sick and dead around the world. The statement of a major official who told the head of our state that "the authorities intentionally underestimates the data on the real level of coronavirus infection in Russian regions" did not add confidence in tomorrow.
And what do we, ordinary citizens, do after such a statement? Where shall we run, where shall we hide?
Yes, we cannot control the spread of COVID-19. However, we can and should wash our hands more often and thoroughly, take care of our health, eat properly and timely and sleep as much as we need for a good rest.
And the most important thing today is a critical attitude toward scary news. It is in our power. We can control this ourselves. It is not about disconnecting from the outside world, wearing pink glasses and being completely ignorant of everything that is happening around. But to spend all your time reading news on the Internet for days on end is completely unnecessary.
A period of time should be set aside to read the news. But after reading, watching, or listening to the negative news , do something that boosts your endorphins, makes you feel good, and distracts your mind from stress. Take a walk, read a book, or call a friend. Engage in positive thinking, give your mind a rest.
The spiritual leader of Buddhists around the world, the 14th Dalai Lama recommended that all believers recite the Tara mantra as often as possible. At the same time, His Holiness emphasizes that this advice is based on Buddhist traditional beliefs and is addressed to Buddhists. Representatives of other religious faiths have the opportunity to find spiritual support in these difficult days in the Bible and the Qur'an.
One of the advantages of this situation is that we now need less or even completely no need to rush somewhere. The cancellation of various mass events, sporting events and public gatherings is not really a disaster, but a blessing, because it gives us all the opportunity to spend our time on ourselves. For a long time, we wanted to think something over thoroughly, but we put it off for lack of time “until better times”. Maybe it’s not the best, but still, this time has come?
Neuropsychologist Rick Hanson says the brain is more responsive to bad news than good news. Studies show that the ratio of positive and negative emotions should be five to one, so that we can respond robustly to the flow of negativity and overcome the negative mood. Hence the advice: be positive! Look for the positive in every situation, find and keep it all day. And then fear would be extinguished in your soul.
