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Slow down and look within promise to put us on path to gaining contentment in life
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IF we allow ourselves a few minutes for meditation, we would find the Earth we inhabit is perfectly tuned for life. So perfect that the slightest tweaking of any constants of nature cannot but give rise to a very different universe, a chaotic world that almost certainly would not support us.
As astronomers would tell us, with the slightest tweaking, everything will be torn apart by antigravity.
The mysterious conditions favoring life have led to very different attitudes toward life: celebration of, and gratitude for, life as nothing short of a miracle, or an unquenchable thirst for knowledge that seeks to rationalize this miracle, by constructing ever elaborate theories.
We used to erect magnificent edifices to express our fear of supernatural forces. If you are in Beijing, you may still hear about the temples of Heaven, Earth, the Sun, and the Moon. These are obeisances paid by our ancestors to the mysterious forces behind the universe.
They used to scour the sky for signs that might be seen as a censure for the mismanagement of the earthly affairs, or a warning against human excess.
In our own time, universe is more a source of growing knowledge that testifies to the triumph of human rationality. We build ever more powerful telescopes, titanic rockets, manned spaceships, or unmanned rovers. There are talks of the US intending to set up lunar or Martian nuclear base in 2018, or talk of mining asteroids for human consumption.
When we become fearless and can safely dismiss the meaning question as irrelevant, this fearlessness gives us a free hand to flatter ourselves by constructing so many theories.
For instance, we received exciting news recently from the Kepler Radar Observatory in the form of Kepler-186f, an Earth-like planet in its sun’s happy zone, just right for the promise of life. It’s a cozy 500 light years from our own planet. In the eyes of modern astronomers, 500 light years is a small distance, because many of them no longer conceptualize the universe in reference to the transience of our own tenure on Earth.
Hence the need to put our feet back on Earth and reconceptualize our life in balance.
“A Life in Balance: Nourishing the Four Roots of True Happiness” by Kathleen A. Hall explains how to develop strength and mental and physical flexibility.
She focuses on enhancing happiness by nourishing what she calls the “roots of self”: exercise, serenity, love and mindful eating. To achieve this, we must first of all be aware of cycles and speed that are natural to our biological existence.
“We can no longer keep running faster than our bodies and souls were created to travel. The mind, body and soul have a rhythm, a cadence, which cannot be ignored or disrespected,” she explains.
Natural rhythms
To discover your natural rhythms and become aware of your authentic self, the first move is to slow down and listen to what nature tells you. Given our obsession with so many external distractions, it is increasingly difficult for us to confront our own self.
This week I encountered one of most hellish crowds in the history of my decade-long subway travel. It was to no small degree due to the overwhelming number of tourists flowing in from outside the city. They jostled and pushed, staggering under the weight of their luggage, trying to experience the pleasure expected of a tourist. Meanwhile, privileged locals are fleeing the abysmal heat and crowds in favor of the hustle and bustle at other tourist destinations.
Each of us, in our own way, try to escape our own messy home and find satisfaction by being in someone else’s shoes. And the urge to escape, as some of those tourists will admit, probably privately, only exacerbates the very condition from which escape was sought. According to Hall, achieving serenity is the first root of happiness.
It would involve a change in attitudes. As she explained, “It is small shifts in awareness and simple practice that will guide you to a level of happiness and balance that will dramatically change your life.”
Only change in attitude will effect a complete freedom from the fear about failure to keep up, or of being left behind. In the philosophy of success, who accelerates, wins; who stays put, loses.
We will be in a constant state of bondage if we continue to regard wealth as the benchmark for success, or happiness.
As Hall observes, “Workaholism is the accepted addiction of our time. It is the socially accepted method of escaping from yourself, your family and your life.” Only when we transcend the worldly drive for success can we awaken to the primal need of humans as social beings, the need to belong to something greater than our individual selves.
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