I Find Peace Like This
I have always been a very vehement person. That’s why I turn normal conversations into arguments very often. In my mind I’m not arguing, of course. Let’s say that I’m just expressing my thoughts in a very passionate way… And if I don’t have a personal opinion to state, then I enjoy contradicting people’s opinions because I always feel I must play the devil’s advocate.
You know it is not good for you. You promised yourself that this will be the last time. And still, there is always a next time… Addiction might sound like a harsh word. You might not even be willing to admit that you have an addictive relation to it. Still, each of us experienced this strong need towards something that might not be very useful either for our health, mental and physical integrity nor for our personal growth.
Anger is often a reflection of our disagreement with either our circumstances, or opinion and behavior of others. It reflects our inability to connect with our larger real nature, which remains ‘complete’ without any need for a change, without an opinion or need for one, beyond good and evil, right and wrong, and is actually pure-unadulterated-love.
Well, let’s admit, who was not dealing with addictions right after the meditation retreat was over? Addictions of any kind, ready to lure your senses all the time. World is full of them, especially when you live in one of those post-communistic countries.
“You are bad at alcohol!” a Finnish friend of mine said seeing me sipping Tequila when I was supposed to drink it as a shot. I was 18 at the time, and my alcohol “skills” were indeed bad.
A sociedade moderna se encontra em um estado de busca de prazeres e satisfação pessoal. Estamos diretamente condicionados a valorizar o que é novo, excitante ou romântico. Assim, criamos a sensação de apego. Agarramos a algo sem largar se é aquilo que gostamos, em contrapartida, descartamos e/ou desejamos ficar livres daquilo que nos incomoda.
Yes it can. Thanks to Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) studies it has been established that practising meditation contributes to reducing activity in the amygdala, as a study published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience underlines. So, meditation affects that area of the brain governing stress response and often linked to feelings of unhappiness and stress.
“It will cost you 2200 rupees, ma’am,” a shopkeeper says.
“2200 rupees for an adapter?” I ask once more, and I am not sure whether those are the rupees that worry me or the fact that this comes in the worst time possible: my life in India is unsettled as never before, I am jobless, I have debts to pay, and I have not yet found my own place to stay. Not to mention the internet.
Can you recall the last time you felt anxious? What was that related to? How did you feel at that moment? We all go from time to time to short-term anxiety. Is this useful, I would ask? Does being anxious help you better cope with ambiguity and clarity? That is a question for you to let sink and observe what happens in your daily life.
It’s not easy to let go while we meditate, that’s because our mind has been used to unorganized things around us. We can improve the stillness of our mind by organizing the things around our room, house and office.
