Wherever You Are, Be There Totally. — Eckhart Tolle
The best description of a focused life.
Becoming Aware of the Constant Inner Voice:
- We often assume that a person is mentally ill only when they visibly mutter to themselves in public. However, even the majority of ‘normal’ people are excessively controlled by their minds—always thinking, judging, and comparing—mostly about useless and repetitive stuff. It’s not uncommon for this inner voice to be someone’s own worst enemy, tormenting and draining vital energy.
- Your mind is a tool, but when you’re addicted to thinking, you’re no longer able to lay it down. It negatively runs your life.
- Your habitual mental state attracts certain vibes and circumstances in your life. For example, observe the case of ‘gratitude’ vs. ‘ingratitude’. Sit down for two minutes with an ungrateful 60-year-old, and they will complain and decry how negative and hopeless life is—but this is merely their mental state. Another 60-year-old may be so grateful to have even reached that age. It’s a miracle to them.
- The greater part of human pain is unnecessary and self-created through some form of non-acceptance and unconscious resistance to what is.
- Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it — work with it, not against it. This is how resilience and courage are built into the human soul.
A Summary of Fear:
- The ego-dominated mind cannot afford to be wrong. To be wrong is to die. This manifests as fear of loss, fear of rejection, defending mental positions, and ultimately fear of death, which is non-acceptance of what is.
- Observe the habitual tendency of your mind to escape the NOW, either by imagining a better future, which gives hope, or a worse one, which causes anxiety—but ultimately, both are illusory.
The Joy of Being:
- The moment you realize you are not present, You Are Present. Be present as the watcher of your mind and thoughts. Otherwise, fear will dominate your mind.
- Adopt this as a daily exercise: Ask yourself— is there joy, ease, and lightness in what I am doing? Because the moment your attention turns to the NOW, you feel a presence, a stillness, a peace. You do not derive your sense of worth from the material world—through fame, wealth, or success—you are whole and satisfied with yourself now.
- Gratitude for your life now, your current self, and everything you have will open gates unimaginable to you.
- Check out the song: Blessings by Hlengiwe Mhlaba
Discovering Yourself:
- You discover yourself not by digging through the past—that’s an endless quest. Instead, you discover yourself by paying attention to the NOW: your desires, your reactions, your fears, etc. For example, if [name] says, “Let’s go rock-climbing,” my reaction to that will reveal a lot about my inner state and my past beliefs about heights and risk-taking.
- Egos are drawn to egos. Darkness cannot recognize light. Your circle of friends (and mentors) says a LOT about you.
- To attract decent, mindful, kind, and loving people in your life, be all of that first.
Benefits of Inner Peace:
Aging also comes from overthinking and laziness, which is overthinking even simple actions.
"We suffer more often in imagination than in reality." - Seneca
The vastness and stillness of the universe is also within you—not in size but in depth—as peace, as love, as joy.
Conclusion
"What stops us from saying that the happy life means having a mind that is free, confident, fearless, and steady? A mind that is beyond the reach of fear and desire...
A person with such a mind will naturally be cheerful and deeply joyful, finding delight in their own resources and desiring no joys greater than their inner joys." — Seneca, Letters From A Stoic
Cancelo Alvarez
Reading time: 3 minutes
- Words: 600
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