“Be. Drop becoming.”
With the amount of information that gets spewed forth these days – emails, blogs, videos and books – you would think we were all hungry to understand.
I don’t mean about our work.
I mean, to understand who we are.
But, few people, seem interested in pursuing a spiritual path.
When I say ‘spiritual’, I don’t mean in a religious sense (although it could be), I mean to understand more about our inner-selves.
Sure, you can regale me with a bushel of facts about your work, and your interests outside of work, but, if you go behind the veil, who are you?
When I first started looking at the ‘self-help’ paradigm (Hill, Carnegie and Robins), it was all about becoming something to get something.
None of it was properly about self-enquiry.
My reading of late has all been about the question ‘Who Am I’? (see the teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi); and my daily actions have been focused on quietening my mind, and moving away from a dualistic way of seeing the world.
In doing so, I have felt a peace that has escaped me for a very long time.
I recognise there is a risk that in revealing my journey some people will assume something has come upon me but it couldn’t be further from the truth.
Now, my way of seeing is all about letting things be, and not allowing my ego-centric mind to control my actions. (I know that sounds easy but trust me it isn’t. There isn’t a day that goes by that my mind doesn’t seek to coerce me to do something – always grasping, always clinging – and is one of the greatest challenges I’ve ever faced.)
I know that next year will be different.
It won’t be about getting or becoming.
Of course, I will still be pursuing an economic path (I have a family to support) but I intend to go much deeper in understanding who I am beyond the physical presence.
Beyond that I don’t feel I need to say more.
Right now I’m in a different place. If I can live out the rest of my life in this state then I’m happy to say that I’ve awakened to a new way of being.