The stress we feel in life is caused by arguing with what is. We suffer when we embrace a thought that argues with what is. When we argue with reality, we lose. Opinions and theories come to pass. They come out of nothing and go back to nothing. Projections, fantasies, predictions, and all the other untested methods of harnessing and controlling the future only harness and control you. Whenever you hold on to something, you suffer. Whenever you try to change someone or something outside yourself, you suffer. Whenever you believe you’re other than what you are, you suffer. When the heart and the mind are open, pure, and clear, what is is exactly what you want.
If a storm is coming, you might as well be wishing for a storm, or you’ll be disappointed. If you’ve just been downsized, you might try feeling inspired to take up a hobby and simplify your life. If you’ve just been fired, you may as well be in the mood for big changes in your work, or you’ll be devastated. If your children get sick, you might tell yourself it’s going to strengthen their immune systems. Let go of your resistance and welcome the experience. Do not be attached to a consistent reaction to life’s twists and turns. Stay fluid and adaptable, and respectful of the bigger picture. Draughts and raindrops and accidents aren’t personal. Don’t take reality personally.
And adversely, what you think shouldn’t have happened should have happened because it did. When you stop arrogantly opposing reality, you stop experiencing tension and frustration and your actions become simple, balanced, fearless, patient, kind, and useful. Whenever you don’t know which direction to take, how to choose which way to go, ask yourself which direction makes you happier, lighter, freer, more excited and reassured. If you feel hurt or abandoned, it means you’re separating yourself from your life. Embrace everything that’s out of your control.
Live free of past and of future, alive to everything the moment has to offer. The less you try to control, the more you’ll thrive. Channel all your emotions into love. Follow your joy.
God is desire. In devotion, you are desire. At your best, you desire everything that you see, hear, touch—at the same time that you see, hear, and touch nothing personally--and you sense that everything desires you back. You don’t touch your hairbrush the same way if you’re full of desire for it. You don’t push the elevator button the same old way if you’re brimming with desire for it. That’s the ecstatic life. It’s the lover’s way. Your gaze is open and ardent. You are speechless.
Reality is God. Dive into it. Bathe in it. Float on it. Surrender to it. God leads you through life to your highest purpose by lighting up your path with pleasure and joy. The outer world is a mirror for the inner world. The most direct way to know yourself is to know your bliss. The most direct way to discover your true self is to discover and follow your bliss. The one easy answer is: Let it be. God is reality. And so are you.
