Towards Inner Peace

“Inner peace

doesn't come from getting what we want,

but from remembering who we are.” Marianne Williamson

All wisdom traditions teach this, however, we're thoroughly programmed to hungrily chase after material comfort & security, and fearfully run from all that threatens. We're so caught-up playing the hunter or the hunted that we actually believe that we can't survive without this stress-filled game. We're so completely identified with it that any other option feels insanely dangerous.

Our self-concept, which is intricately intertwined with our worldview, makes all the difference. Probably the less we're consciously aware of these, the greater impact they have on our lives.

"... Einstein was asked what he thought the most important question was that a human being needed to answer. His reply was, ‘Is the universe a friendly place or not?’ And indeed, our answer to that question is the cornerstone on which many of our values and beliefs inevitably rest. If we believe that the universe is unfriendly and that our very souls are in danger, peace will be elusive at best."

Joan Borysenko. “Fire in the Soul. A New Psychology of Spiritual Optimism.” Warner Books, 1993.

But what if we're NOT hunters/hunted? What if this sense of being hunters/hunted were merely a transient energy which we're unwittingly clinging to & perpetuating?

What if we're actually more like good gardeners? What if our our core nature & main activity were kind aware nurturing? Nurturing is being like a loving parent or grandparent always there to provide all that's necessary for their child or grandchild to flourish. Can we practice to consistently ensure that we & all else thrive?

What if our mistaken identity (hunters/hunted instead of kind aware nurturing) is the fundamental cause of all 'discretionary' suffering?

What if all we have to do is keep remembering who we are and behave accordingly?

Nature is said to be at play, manifesting itself in extraordinary variety, & marveling at itself. Imagine each one of us being simultaneously nature AND its manifestation. Are we not simultaneously the kind, wise gardener AND the garden being nurtured with unconditional love? Are we not then profoundly at home? Then it's not all shall be well, but all is well!