One Pearl I've Learned

     A precious key pearl I've picked up along the way:

    "The Great Way is not difficult
      for those who have no preferences..." Sengstan

    It's natural, universal & harmless to have mild preferences eg to want chocolate more than vanilla ice cream, or medium-roast more than dark-roast coffee. IF however your world falls apart - even briefly - when you can't get what you prefer, then you are creating UNNECESSARY SUFFERING for yourself & those around you. And most of us take our meaningless preferences way too seriously!

    A MAJOR reason for this is that, in lock-step with our current Western society, we're very left-hemisphere dominant - totally dependent on controlling the external environment. The fact that we have minimal control over the most aspects of life, perfectionism in general, but especially over the most important, most meaningful aspects of life, is frustratingly unattainable.

    Most of us have no idea how powerfully our usual way of thinking & living is handicapped by the dominant materialist reductionist worldview. We are saturated with, & drowning in it, regardless of whether we consider ourselves spiritual, religious, atheists or undecided. The chronic frustration of desperately wanting 'complete control' manifests as: cynicism, nihilism, impatience, anxiety, depression, angry outbursts, addictions, illness anxiety disorder (hypochondriasis), burnout, thanatophobia (intense fear of death or dying), violence, suicide, etc.

    A major brilliant corrective attempt is Iain McGilchrist's book, “The Matter with Things. Our Brains, Our Delusions, and the Unmaking of the World.” Perspectiva Press, 2021. It is a detailed, intelligent, wise attempt to free readers from simplistic, meaningless materialist perspective most of us mistake for "science."
    In my & many others' opinion, this is the most interesting & most valuable book you will ever come across. (I bought the relatively-inexpensive Kindle version.)
    McGilchrist's book IS a long, patient read, but as he says, “Wisdom is always going to be relatively rare and involves a lot of things."

    A deeply meaningful, worthwhile spiritual life - is yours, IF YOU'RE READY to immerse yourself in wisdom.

 

"Morning has Broken"