posted June 16, 2007 09:42 PM         

“Judge not by appearances, but judge righteous judgment.”

-- Jesus

We know the power of thoughts to create. Consider, then, the impact of our judgments. When we judge someone critically, those judgments have the power to affect the one being judged, if they are open to our perceptions. This is the case even when we don’t say what we’re thinking.

For example, if I judge someone to be fat, and that individual perceives him or herself to be fat and is sensitive to the opinions of others, my thoughts will reinforce their ‘fat’ experience.

Being aware of the impact of our judgments helps us let go of our tendency to judge.

“There are three kinds of violence: one, through our deeds; two, through our words; and three, through our thoughts. …The root of all violence is in the world of thoughts, and that is why training the mind is so important.”

-- Eknath Easwaran

posted June 17, 2007 11:59 AM         

There is a theological misunderstanding regarding judgment and what Jesus meant when he said " do not judge, least you be judged."

Maybe later I will make a post regarding the topic of judgment vs condemnation and what those words of Jesus' actually mean. Because judgment is both good and bad depending on how it is meted out.