One of the reasons why we all, why man, suffers, is that we insist on acting on our own volition, which usually means acting as our mind tells us to act. We depend on our mind to offer us advice that is good for us.
The problem is that our mind—which is to say our ego-mind—virtually never gives us good advice, in the sense of being in our best interest, because it is totally controlled by our emotions, our insecurity, our perceptions. Because of that, we never see things as they really are, we have no idea what "reality" is, because our senses are filtered by our ego-mind before we make a decision on how to act or react in a situation. Often these emotions are inhibiting, at other times they create unreasonable expectations. (See my post, "Reality - It's Not What You Think It Is.") And if one acts on emotion, rather than reality, problems are going to result. That is the source of our cravings and our suffering.
As anyone reading this blog will know, the answer lies in freeing oneself from the control of your ego-mind, of being able to see things as they really are, free of emotion, and so act in a way that is in your best interest, which is to be at peace and happy, free of cravings.
Part of the answer to this problem, as I've written, is to connect with your heart/your true Buddha nature/the child of the universe within you. And I've written about ways to do that.
Perhaps the most basic thought in this process, which I just realized I have never written a separate post about—and it is so important it deserves its own post—is turning your will and your life over to the care of your true Buddha nature/your divine essence/the child of the Universe within you.
This is so opposite to the way in which we are used to—trained to—operating that even for those who are serious Buddhist practitioners, making this change in our modus operandi is very difficult. Even if you believe you have Buddha nature/divine essence/the child of the Universe within you, handing control over just doesn't compute.
You may be comfortable seeking advice from your Buddha nature, but the decider has to remain you. But this doesn't work, because your ego-mind will usually override whatever guidance you get from your heart. And so you continue to operate as a creature of your ego-mind and suffer.
Even if you have gone through the process of understanding that your ego-mind is not your true self and that instead your heart/your true Buddha nature/your divine essenceI/the child of the Universe within you is your true self, if you do not hand your will and your life over to its care, you will not be free of the control of your ego-mind.
If your goal is to have a life of peace and happiness, then you must come to understand that there is no other place for you to achieve that goal than placing yourself in the hands of your true self.
This does not mean that you are no longer a player in your present or future. You can still indicate what you would like to achieve. Indeed, its necessary that you put some skin in the game; you can't just sit back and wait for it to happen. But how and when it happens will not be within your control.
I have written that I first became aware when examining my past that everything good that has ever happened in my life happened by happenstance, but later realized that that happenstance was not accidental but rather was part of the flow of the universe as it pertained to me, See my posts, "Happenstance" and "Happenstance - Part II."
This is very different from the intervention of the Old Testament God in response to prayer; the master puppeteer. This instead is the Universe acting in accordance with its laws as well as our being subject to the laws of man's developed nature. The Universe presented me with opportunity—regardless whether I was in touch with my true self—and it was up to me to see it and act on it or instead be guided by my ego-mind and reject it or accept it but be filled with doubt. See my post, "It's Just the Way It Is - Take III."
When the characters in Star Wars say, "May the force be with you," it is essentially saying the same thing—hand your will and your life over to the care of the Universe." Don't use your mind to decide what to do; let yourself be guided by this natural force. It sounds very strange to us, scary, and yet to be in that space is to be at peace, because I know that my true self—the child of the Universe within me—would never do anything that would hurt me.
The problem is that our mind—which is to say our ego-mind—virtually never gives us good advice, in the sense of being in our best interest, because it is totally controlled by our emotions, our insecurity, our perceptions. Because of that, we never see things as they really are, we have no idea what "reality" is, because our senses are filtered by our ego-mind before we make a decision on how to act or react in a situation. Often these emotions are inhibiting, at other times they create unreasonable expectations. (See my post, "Reality - It's Not What You Think It Is.") And if one acts on emotion, rather than reality, problems are going to result. That is the source of our cravings and our suffering.
As anyone reading this blog will know, the answer lies in freeing oneself from the control of your ego-mind, of being able to see things as they really are, free of emotion, and so act in a way that is in your best interest, which is to be at peace and happy, free of cravings.
Part of the answer to this problem, as I've written, is to connect with your heart/your true Buddha nature/the child of the universe within you. And I've written about ways to do that.
Perhaps the most basic thought in this process, which I just realized I have never written a separate post about—and it is so important it deserves its own post—is turning your will and your life over to the care of your true Buddha nature/your divine essence/the child of the Universe within you.
This is so opposite to the way in which we are used to—trained to—operating that even for those who are serious Buddhist practitioners, making this change in our modus operandi is very difficult. Even if you believe you have Buddha nature/divine essence/the child of the Universe within you, handing control over just doesn't compute.
You may be comfortable seeking advice from your Buddha nature, but the decider has to remain you. But this doesn't work, because your ego-mind will usually override whatever guidance you get from your heart. And so you continue to operate as a creature of your ego-mind and suffer.
Even if you have gone through the process of understanding that your ego-mind is not your true self and that instead your heart/your true Buddha nature/your divine essenceI/the child of the Universe within you is your true self, if you do not hand your will and your life over to its care, you will not be free of the control of your ego-mind.
If your goal is to have a life of peace and happiness, then you must come to understand that there is no other place for you to achieve that goal than placing yourself in the hands of your true self.
This does not mean that you are no longer a player in your present or future. You can still indicate what you would like to achieve. Indeed, its necessary that you put some skin in the game; you can't just sit back and wait for it to happen. But how and when it happens will not be within your control.
I have written that I first became aware when examining my past that everything good that has ever happened in my life happened by happenstance, but later realized that that happenstance was not accidental but rather was part of the flow of the universe as it pertained to me, See my posts, "Happenstance" and "Happenstance - Part II."
This is very different from the intervention of the Old Testament God in response to prayer; the master puppeteer. This instead is the Universe acting in accordance with its laws as well as our being subject to the laws of man's developed nature. The Universe presented me with opportunity—regardless whether I was in touch with my true self—and it was up to me to see it and act on it or instead be guided by my ego-mind and reject it or accept it but be filled with doubt. See my post, "It's Just the Way It Is - Take III."
When the characters in Star Wars say, "May the force be with you," it is essentially saying the same thing—hand your will and your life over to the care of the Universe." Don't use your mind to decide what to do; let yourself be guided by this natural force. It sounds very strange to us, scary, and yet to be in that space is to be at peace, because I know that my true self—the child of the Universe within me—would never do anything that would hurt me.
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