…this was the poem that was read by Marc. It was a poem that was written by the late Charlie Chaplin on his 70th birthday on April 16, 1959. This poem was read in its german translation during the wedding and I wanted to post it on this site in the original english version. It’s a beautiful poem and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
As I Began To Love Myself
As I began to love myself
I found that anguish and emotional suffering  are only warning signs
that I was living against my own truth.
Today, I know, this is “AUTHENTICITY”.
As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody
As I try to force my desires on this person,
even though I knew the time was not right and the person was not ready for it,
and even though this person was me.
Today I call it “RESPECT”.
As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life,
and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.
Today I call it “MATURITY”.
As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance,
I am in the right place at the right time,
and everything happens at the exactly right moment.
So I could be calm.
Today I call it “SELF-CONFIDENCE”.
As I began to love myself I quit stealing my own time,
and I stopped designing huge projects for the future.
Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do
and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in my own rhythm.
Today I call it “SIMPLICITY”.
As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for my health –
food, people, things, situations, and everything the drew me down and away from myself.
At first I called this attitude a healthy egoism.
Today I know it is “LOVE OF ONESELF”.
As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right,
and ever since I was wrong less of the time.
Today I discovered that is “MODESTY”.
As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worry about the future.
Now, I only live for the moment, where everything is happening.
Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it “FULFILLMENT”.
As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me
and it can make me sick.
But as I connected it to my heart, my mind became a valuable ally.
Today I call this connection “WISDOM OF THE HEART”.
We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems
with ourselves or others.
Even stars collide, and out of their crashing new worlds are born.
Today I know “THAT IS LIFE”!
7 Comments
I have a friend who decided to change his life - over 20 years ago. Particularly, as he tells it, the first 5 years were more difficult just because he thought he was the no-good bum that people told him he was. A friend told him "Every time you pass a mirror, I want you to say out loud, to the guy in the mirror "I love you. When you start to make eye contact with him, you are on the right path."
I tell you this story because as I read the poem (thanks Linc), it seems to describe the life that my friend leads now.
Thanks Bob for sharing that story with us. I think loving oneself is one of the most important missions of life. I've learned a great deal about this and believe that if more people could look themselves in the eye and say that to themselves, we would have fewer problems in this world.
Could you please email me this poem in the german text if you have it. I am english speaking, but am hosting a yoga workshop where most of my clients are german speaking and i would like to give it to them.
Thank you
Shelby
Hi Shelby,
Here it is:
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
habe ich verstanden, dass ich immer und bei jeder Gelegenheit,
zur richtigen Zeit am richtigen Ort bin
und dass alles, was geschieht, richtig ist –
von da an konnte ich ruhig sein.
Heute weiß ich: Das nennt man VERTRAUEN.
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
konnte ich erkennen, dass emotionaler Schmerz und Leid
nur Warnungen für mich sind, gegen meine eigene Wahrheit zu leben.
Heute weiß ich: Das nennt man AUTHENTISCH SEIN.
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
habe ich aufgehört, mich nach einem anderen Leben zu sehnen
und konnte sehen, dass alles um mich herum eine Aufforderung zum Wachsen war.
Heute weiß ich, das nennt man „REIFE“.
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
habe ich aufgehört, mich meiner freien Zeit zu berauben,
und ich habe aufgehört, weiter grandiose Projekte für die Zukunft zu entwerfen.
Heute mache ich nur das, was mir Spaß und Freude macht,
was ich liebe und was mein Herz zum Lachen bringt,
auf meine eigene Art und Weise und in meinem Tempo.
Heute weiß ich, das nennt man EHRLICHKEIT.
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
habe ich mich von allem befreit, was nicht gesund für mich war,
von Speisen, Menschen, Dingen, Situationen
und von Allem, das mich immer wieder hinunterzog, weg von mir selbst.
Anfangs nannte ich das „Gesunden Egoismus“,
aber heute weiß ich, das ist „SELBSTLIEBE“.
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
habe ich aufgehört, immer recht haben zu wollen,
so habe ich mich weniger geirrt.
Heute habe ich erkannt: das nennt man DEMUT.
Als ich mich selbst zu lieben begann,
habe ich mich geweigert, weiter in der Vergangenheit zu leben
und mich um meine Zukunft zu sorgen.
Jetzt lebe ich nur noch in diesem Augenblick, wo ALLES stattfindet,
so lebe ich heute jeden Tag und nenne es „BEWUSSTHEIT“.
Als ich mich zu lieben begann,
da erkannte ich, dass mich mein Denken
armselig und krank machen kann.
Als ich jedoch meine Herzenskräfte anforderte,
bekam der Verstand einen wichtigen Partner.
Diese Verbindung nenne ich heute „HERZENSWEISHEIT“.
Wir brauchen uns nicht weiter vor Auseinandersetzungen,
Konflikten und Problemen mit uns selbst und anderen fürchten,
denn sogar Sterne knallen manchmal aufeinander
und es entstehen neue Welten.
Heute weiß ich: DAS IST DAS LEBEN !
-Charlie Chaplin
It is a beautiful poem!! Very meaningful...very insightful!!
It is a beautiful poem, but is actually originally a Brazilian Portuguese poem misattributed to Chaplin. I believe the poem is a collection of chapter openers... Thought that should be known.
http://comoutrosolhos.multiply.com/journal/item/59
Just read a Greek translation of this poem, which led me to this page. I am trying to follow this path and I find it very easy. The effort is not to accept myself but to avoid myself, which means that I just had to simply stop fighting against my will, and follow the feelings..
Thanks for the post!
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