Do you know why it’s called INNER peace? Because you can have it while the OUTER world seems to be going to hell.
Well, it doesn’t have to be so extreme. Recently we told someone about a couple of very tiring weeks we had had and they said it was so nice we could overcome these “obstacles”. We smiled, because we didn’t think of them as obstacles. It was simply life, a bit more demanding and tiring than usual, and sometimes we got crabby, but “inside” we always knew that all was well.
It’s sad that some people believe that once they’ve “got it”, or are of an expanded consciousness, that “bad” things won’t happen anymore, that people around them won’t die, that they won’t lose their jobs, that they won’t be angry at anyone, etc. They are looking for a field of bliss that can only exist inside, not in the outer world. All sorts of challenges continue to happen. However, our definition of whether they are “good” or “bad” changes when we realize that they are all part of the ebb and flow of life. It’s really how we view them and handle them, rather than whether or not they are in our life that matters. As Shakespeare observed, “There’s nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”
The phrase, “In This World But Not of It”, comes to mind. This certainly doesn’t mean we become cold fish, emotionless and unfeeling. In fact, we usually feel more intensely, are more fully engaged in life, because we know our inner immortal essence. We don’t have to keep experiences at arm’s length because of fear. It’s sort of like being on a roller coaster, we “know” we won’t be harmed and so we can yell and scream and truly feel the excitement.
We told someone recently we don’t get upset by being upset. We just look at these things as experiences. They are our experiences. They are not US.
* From our book “Freedom through Contemplation” [ISBN 0-595-15161-2] by Helen and Peter Evans.
Helen and Peter are teachers of on-line classes and workshops are also founders of OneCenter, a non-profit dedicated to developing human potential.
* From our book “Freedom through Contemplation” [ISBN 0-595-15161-2] by Helen and Peter Evans.
Helen and Peter are teachers of on-line classes and workshops are also founders of OneCenter, a non-profit dedicated to developing human potential.