Herald

Who we choose to be and where we end up depends on us. It is easy to consume amongst other things, supposed happiness. There are those who suggest that the legitimate purpose of life is to seek enjoyment, and keep hoping that dreams will be fulfilled and good fortune and excitement will abound. The truth is that when we are too comfortable, we get lulled into a complacent stupor much like the way one feels after a filling and very satisfying meal.

It might be prudent to keep in mind that nothing is lastingly satisfying or completely reliable. Not the body, or mind or the ‘happiness’ we are so fond of chasing. Sooner or later, things are bound to go awry, and if we are not careful, the desire for happiness and freedom from difficulty is apt to make things even tougher than they might be. While there is nothing wrong in seeking peace and joy, we ought to remember that these come about not despite but because there is pain. If there were no pain, we would not know joy or freedom from suffering.

This means that we stay open to joy and pain. Without wishing for them to either last or cease to be. Our way of practice seeks to prepare us to be ready for whatever may arise or whatever we just get, without resorting to contrivance or falsity. The tone of presence and absence is ever present, and the contemplative practice we advocate helps one to negotiate the coming and going or the arising and ceasing that is actually our true reality.