We depend on change in order to live, so we need to acquaint ourselves with the fact that everything is inconstant and inconsistent. Pleasure isn’t for sure; pain isn’t for sure; happiness isn’t for sure; stillness isn’t for sure; distraction isn’t for sure. Whatever arises, we should tell it: Don’t try to fool me, you’re not for sure.
But beneath the surface of our perceived limitations, suffering, and unhappiness, does lie a purer nature. By connecting with this essence, we can blossom into compassion and skillful action, interacting with others and the world in a more free, open, and fluid way. In a word, our work is finding this within.
By seeing our sense of craving and grasping, and finding a way to be with it but not in it, the sense of self also diminishes. In this way, we can see the sense of self as something conditioned rather than a fixed, certain, continuous self.
Our search for happiness is not about looking at life through rose-colored glasses or blinding oneself to the pain and imperfections of the world. Nor is it a state of exaltation to be perpetuated at all costs; it is the purging of mental toxins such as hatred, negativities and obsession that literally poison our minds and self. Prejudice isn’t caused by something. Our fragile happiness depends on things happening a certain way. But there is something else: a happiness not dependent on conditions.
Can we let go of negativity, our need for it, it’s hold on us. Do I have the courage to live without it?