Peace of mind
Something which has become a rare commodity nowadays is peace of mind. This is especially true in urban areas where a large number of people share a relatively small physical space. One would think that living in a densely populated area would increase one's chances of increasing one's circle of friends. This is not the case and it has served to erode the one area in human life which fosters peace of mind. One feels secure when surrounded by people that one knows. One can confide in friends who would be sympathetic. Family is always a given when talking about comfort and security but we find more and more that there can exist conflicts between members of the family. In the light of family conflicts, would people would rather seek comfort at home or take their chances with strangers? How does one find real peace of mind? Alcohol and drugs have become the bane of society precisely because this. Peace of mind is difficult to find. Alcohol and drugs offer the numbing quality of oblivion and cause unhappy people to become even more unhappy when they get hooked on these vices.
People need people. This is not just frue in song but in real life. The need to communicate, to reach out, to belong, to be part of something is an inner need that doesn't seem to be served by living alone in a big city. In a big city, there is the added danger of being mugged, raped, assaulted and harmed physically. This is truly an irony.
Small wonder that more and more people socialize through the Internet. One doesn't have to leave one's home to be with someone. In the millions of chatrooms in cyber space are millions of souls seeking connection and meaning in others who feel the same need. Sad to say, predators that abound in the streets also have their counterpart in Cyber Space who find plenty of prey in the Internet. The anonymity of the net makes people even more vulnerable because they would tend to let down their guard and be ensnared by the glib words of someone who may be pretending to be what they are not. Add to that the overwhelming need to be loved or needed and you have a recipe for pain. How is one to find peace of mind?
Peace of mind is just that. It exists in the mind. One cannot find peace of mind outside of oneself. Trying to find happiness and satisfaction in people or things would only set one up for disappointment and betrayal for it is a fact that people look for their own advantage and people in need of loving are very vulnerable to predatory advances. Things might bring a measure of satisfaction to a person but this is merely transitory because toys become boring very quickly. How then is one to find peace of mind? How is one to achieve that very difficult Holy Grail, so to speak?
One must look inward to find peace of mind. One must realize that the very thing that drives a person to look for satisfaction is desire. The desire to be happy and satisfied drives a person to run here and there looking for that ephemeral quality. It is a real paradox. The need for peace of mind drives a person to find happiness externally. Failing in this again and again one must realize that real happiness is to be found inwardly by looking deep inside oneself.
Meditation involves shutting out the noise of the outside world and to tune in to the internal world. It involves looking at one's mind and trying to make sense of it. It involves watching one's thoughts and realizing them for what they are: mere thoughts, expressions of desire. The mind has been described as a thought machine which takes input from external and internal stimuli triggering the mechanism of desire. Each thought therefore pushes the self to run after the object of that thought. This goes on endlessly without let-up. Little wonder then that peace of mind seems to be something unattainable. It is unattainable for those who chase after it in the external world. People and things cannot give one peace of mind. Peace of mind can only be won after a heroic struggle in one's inner arena.
People need people. This is not just frue in song but in real life. The need to communicate, to reach out, to belong, to be part of something is an inner need that doesn't seem to be served by living alone in a big city. In a big city, there is the added danger of being mugged, raped, assaulted and harmed physically. This is truly an irony.
Small wonder that more and more people socialize through the Internet. One doesn't have to leave one's home to be with someone. In the millions of chatrooms in cyber space are millions of souls seeking connection and meaning in others who feel the same need. Sad to say, predators that abound in the streets also have their counterpart in Cyber Space who find plenty of prey in the Internet. The anonymity of the net makes people even more vulnerable because they would tend to let down their guard and be ensnared by the glib words of someone who may be pretending to be what they are not. Add to that the overwhelming need to be loved or needed and you have a recipe for pain. How is one to find peace of mind?
Peace of mind is just that. It exists in the mind. One cannot find peace of mind outside of oneself. Trying to find happiness and satisfaction in people or things would only set one up for disappointment and betrayal for it is a fact that people look for their own advantage and people in need of loving are very vulnerable to predatory advances. Things might bring a measure of satisfaction to a person but this is merely transitory because toys become boring very quickly. How then is one to find peace of mind? How is one to achieve that very difficult Holy Grail, so to speak?
One must look inward to find peace of mind. One must realize that the very thing that drives a person to look for satisfaction is desire. The desire to be happy and satisfied drives a person to run here and there looking for that ephemeral quality. It is a real paradox. The need for peace of mind drives a person to find happiness externally. Failing in this again and again one must realize that real happiness is to be found inwardly by looking deep inside oneself.
Meditation involves shutting out the noise of the outside world and to tune in to the internal world. It involves looking at one's mind and trying to make sense of it. It involves watching one's thoughts and realizing them for what they are: mere thoughts, expressions of desire. The mind has been described as a thought machine which takes input from external and internal stimuli triggering the mechanism of desire. Each thought therefore pushes the self to run after the object of that thought. This goes on endlessly without let-up. Little wonder then that peace of mind seems to be something unattainable. It is unattainable for those who chase after it in the external world. People and things cannot give one peace of mind. Peace of mind can only be won after a heroic struggle in one's inner arena.
posted by underdog at 10:05 PM
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