As I’ve been searching for the why and the how of the world we live in today, trying to wrap my head around all that’s happening, an answer bubbled up like the prophetic triangle in a Magic 8 Ball.
Continue reading “What’s the point? Finding meaning in a meaningless world”
I’d resigned myself to the idea that it wasn’t possible. No matter what anyone else said, inner peace couldn’t be real. It could not exist. If it did, that would mean there was something wrong with me. I had tried every strategy, philosophy and technique I could find. One might uplift me for a short while, but I inevitably slipped back into my deep, dark pit. Buddhism and meditation have offered me the most support, but still I couldn’t find that lasting serenity. Perhaps this was the burden I was meant to carry: I would struggle with depression for life.
Then, I discovered that inner peace is possible, and it’s not about a specific practice, technique or affirmation. For me, it was two key insights that finally unlocked my healing. With these keys, I can find comfort in any practice, technique or affirmation that resonates with me during rougher periods. And I believe that with awareness, practice and time, I will no longer need to find solace in the words of others, because that equanimity will grow to be a part of who I am. I will always be able to find it within. Maybe these two keys can help unlock your own healing.
Continue reading “The two keys that may finally unlock healing”
“Humans have a creative mind that is unmatched, a mind with the power to invent stories about what it perceives. In fact, this storytelling power of the mind happens automatically and without ceasing. This is why, in the Toltec tradition, we say that the mind is constantly dreaming and that our reality is a Personal Dream.” — don Jose Ruiz, “Shamanic Power Animals: Embracing the Teachings of Our Non-Human Friends”
Something happened that afternoon as I sat on the porch swing reading don Jose Ruiz’s book. I had never heard of the Toltec tradition, but its words reached out and emboldened an inner voice that before only whispered from the darkest corners of my soul. It had been too afraid to be seen or heard, because it didn’t conform with the world around me.
But that afternoon, this voice finally stood up from the shadows, and it no longer mattered what anyone else thought. I was seeing my past experiences and beliefs — I was seeing life — for what they truly were.
Continue reading “I woke up from a nightmare to find …”
I recently experienced something … beyond words. Truly, it can only be felt.
Call it an epiphany, an awakening, an enlightenment. What’s most interesting is that it was incredibly mundane, in the sense that it was a quiet, average day. I wasn’t doing anything unusual. But maybe that’s the point. It was unexpected, not forced and couldn’t be explained away by the environment or the people around me; in fact, I was mostly alone.
Continue reading “The fourth wall is real! And you can break through it”