I could give a synopsis of the book and summarize it that
way but, you could just google that. So I am just going to touch on the points
that were and have become relevant to my life. You should read the book if you
are an active mind that worries/becomes anxious or even find yourself obsessing
over the details of things that have happened in the past and you now feel disappointed
about. If you wish to strengthen your meditation practice or quiet your mind, read the book! You will undoubtedly learn something from this book and most likely,
something different than what I learned.
*Disclaimer: it is definitely a “deep” book – he says things
like “time is an illusion”... so unless you can go into it with an open mind and
heart, don’t bother picking it up. I found myself inwardly rolling my eyes a
couple of times but I reminded myself to have an open mind and heart, and I am
glad that I did!
The biggest takeaway for me personally is the understanding
of where my anxiety stems from. He talks about how when you obsess over a time
that is not here yet (the future) you become anxious because you tear yourself
in half. You let your mind be THERE (the future) while your body is obviously
still HERE (the present). Once I let that realization truly wash over me, I have
felt so much more free. ALL the time we have is right here, this very second,
so to obsess over the details of the future is only causing me pain. I now
actively seek to remain mindful of the present moment and only the future as it
is necessary.
The other is deepening my conviction that positivity is THE
MOST important quality I can work on; by positivity I mean gratitude, love,
joy, and happiness. I had already started the process before reading this book but
if you find yourself struggling with complaining or just feeling negativity in
general, this book will definitely give you tools to kick start your own light.
“See if you can catch yourself complaining, in either speech
or thought, about a situation you find yourself in, what other people do or
say, your surroundings, your life situation, even the weather. To complain is
always nonacceptance of what is. It invariably carries an unconscious negative
charge. When you complain, you make yourself into a victim. When you speak out,
you are in your power. So change the situation by taking action or by speaking
out if necessary or possible; leave the situation or accept it. All else is
madness.”
I started practicing yoga at the beginning of May and this helped build on those fundamentals as well. It had allowed me to become more spiritual
and really helped me focus on my meditation. It has become a lot easier to clear
my mind of noise and focus on the Now. I realized that I was creating a lot of
my own problems. My mind was wanting problems because it gave my ego something to
fix, something to feel good about. I was causing myself so much stress and for
what? For nothing. I was allowing my mind to control me by creating problems
aka creating pain. I am now actively working on listening to the mechanisms of
my mind and shutting it down when it tries to create imaginary problems.
EXAMPLE: when I start to have anxiety over my fitness progress, am I doing this
right or that wrong etc… that is not a real problem. I know what I need to do
every day to reach my goals and I am working on focusing on the day to day rather
than allowing my ego to take over and make it a stressful situation. Imagine if
EVERYONE took the time to focus on these issues – on finding true inner peace.
“The pollution of the planet is only an outward reflection
of an inner psychic pollution: millions of unconscious individuals not taking
responsibility for their inner space.”
And lastly, the biggest place in my life where this book helped
was in my romantic relationship. I found myself judging him where I didn’t used
to. (Again, my mind creating problems out of nothing) I found myself trying to pick at things that do not matter. “You cannot
love your partner one moment and attack him or her the next.” It really opened my eyes to behaviors I had developed and it
allowed for a discussion between Jeff and I which really did bring us closer
and brought a lot of new respect to the relationship.
Hope you will be picking up a copy soon so we can chat about it!
XO
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