Taking the Edge Off
It doesn’t seem as if the world will continue to spin the way it has been spinning for a long time. Yes, I know. There are so many indications that it will become worse. Whether its political landscapes that radicalise, hostile and destructive communications patterns that manifest, an upheaval in societies, a questioning of societies. Yet, it often times has to get worse before it really becomes better because “awakening” in the sense of us letting go of our hold habits, thought patterns, perspectives is just not happening without some chaos. That’s how we appear to function as human beings. We don’t put things into question, we don’t create change, if everything runs smoothly.
A meditation teacher of mine once said that it took us 500 years (or more) to get to the point we are at now. It will take another 500 years (or more) to get out of it again. Don’t nail me on the numbers, but you get the point. Patience is required, persistence, and a bit of Leidensfähigkeit (capacity to suffer).
The one change that we need to make to create the necessary paradigm shift, is to move from the material to the spiritual. And when I say spiritual I mean the focus on our human spirit, our inner truth, the connection that we have to us and others, understanding love and interconnection, knowing that this is where our ultimate fulfilment and freedom comes from. Emphasising the spiritual dimension does not mean to let go of the material completely. This is impossible. We wouldn’t have to be in this planet, if we disregarded it.
However, the emphasis on the physical and the material, that what we can see and touch, has been too heavy for centuries. Leading to the deprivation of the soul for many.
Hence, in times like ours, where the evident, obvious, manifest is in so much upheaval, we can only counter it by re-connecting to our very own spirit. To me there is no other way if you want to stay sane.
So here are a few suggestions that I integrate into my life for more balance:
Be in nature, breathe fresh air, as much as you can. A walk around the block every 1-2 hours and doing so with a focus on the walk is incredibly refreshing. You’re not meant to be an animal of the office/house.
Meditate. 1-2 a day for 10 minutes (at least). Finding a quiet spot, closing your eyes, and focusing on your breath and the space, in which you can feel it the most, is all it takes.
Eat fresh. Eat with enjoyment and stop when you have had enough. That’s all your body needs and it is grateful when it doesn’t have to chew/ to waste energy for more than it actually wants.
Sleep. 8 hours a night. 10pm-6am. Full stop. (Plus: forget about any type of media an hour before you go to bed. You know it’s true! :)
Observe your life, observe what is going on around you, observe politics, society. There is no need for you to categorise, analyse, refuse, judge anything. We’re loosing an incredible amount of energy by critically overthinking what is going on. Plus: Our lamenting is not going to make a difference. Just try to be the audience for once and see what other avenues of thoughts and perceptions it opens up for you.
If you’re feeling the edge and triggered by current events, you always have the choice. You can react at the same speed and with the same amount of “mindlessness” as the information bombards you…or you take a step away from it, realising that the one thing you can always do and be responsible for is to get some space to respond skilfully. Have fun!