“I suppose in the end, the whole of life becomes an act of letting go.” — Pi Patel from the movie “Life of Pi”
Impermanence of people impermanence of thoughts, things.
Exploring loss! The concept of loss becomes fascinating at times. A few cry for loss of time, may be loss of someone close, a few for money, a lucrative job, property, opportunities, but it becomes more interesting when merely a thought of loss makes people unsettled rather rattled.
Someone told me once, put your heart on to something which is not going to perish…..and when I went deep into it found nothing fits in this category. Nothing is permanent ..money, food, property, relationships, to … humans, animals, nature, absolutely nothing.
I understood the concept of Mandalas then, which I was fascinated by and occupy a major part of my life as Art Therapy for myself and my clients, that’s why the Mandalas made by Buddhists with intense craftmanship are destroyed after they get completed, so as not to not get attached to them…letting go.
As Surya Lama Das puts it, “In life, pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.”
It sounds simple. I wish that by actively acknowledging this fact we dont suffer, but that would be the lie of the century. There may be times in our lives, which may be painful even devastating…when my Mom passed away few years ago was really a trying time for me.
However, that awareness gave me an understanding that life will not stop and if I need to make her & myself proud…then I need to move forward. I learned that moving forward didn’t negate or do away with the beautiful times that we experienced, rather, it opened new doors that will lead me one step closer to my ultimate destination whenever it will be.
Letting go comes in so many forms. It can mean letting go of a limiting conception, a habit, an addiction or object, a person, a place, an era, and the list goes on. Our human brains get so wrapped up into our comfort zones and patterns that we’d rather obliterate our authentic selves than let go.
This behavior begins when we were small babies with our parents, pacifiers, and comfort foods. When adults now, we fear losing our properties, jobs, our iPhones, our computers, love, marriage, and the list goes on.
When faced with the loss of any of these, we assume that it is going to be all over. That we are going to cease to exist. But this is the great lie.
We will lose things. Life will continue to change. That is one of the only things we can be sure of. Loss and change occur every single day on this planet.
I think the key to surviving is this…
We often forget the root of the root of our beings. But if we can be silent for a moment and dive inside we can experience it and that’s what I did, during self introspection…within me I found my breath to be a constant companion, something close to indestructible life source till the time I will survive. Constantly warning me at times, like a good friend, that things are not ok with my body and mind and will remain with me till the thinking entity or consciousness is alive within me.
We just have to take out time to connect with the strength within. And when we can’t find it, ask for help.
For some of us a part of letting go is asking for help and admitting that we just don’t know. We get so wrapped up in our glorified conceptions of who and what we think we’re “supposed” to be that we keep everything inside.
In the end, letting go means releasing all the bullshit stories we keep telling ourselves of right or wrong, those that keep us making the same mistakes over and over again.
Stay blessed
Ree