The Key to Love and Joy.

A new day has dawned. In reality nothing has changed, but the mind continues to progress, cycling through fear, doubt, depression, happiness, contentment, and peace. These are the cycles of delusion. Break free from the cycle. Be silent and at peace, calm like a river. The river flows endlessly, the currents on the surface being turbulent. But the deeper you go, the more still it is. It is at the bottom, at the core that you find existence as it is. When you penetrate into the depths of the mind, you find that there is nothing there. And that nothing is everything. It is the core of existence. The empty nature that is full of life and bliss and happiness and peace. That is the true nature of reality.

    And so your job is not to separate yourself from the world and try to evolve independently. It is simply to connect with what already is. And by this I do not mean the man made structures of politics, economics, society, culture – the daily world of gossip and news. This is a fad, an illusion; it will soon dissipate to dust and vanish, as with all structures in life. But reality is ever present. Always glowing brightly, like the sun, except it is eternal. We are manifestations of this eternity, of this one true essence. You are not separate from life, from reality, from the world. All is one. You are not different in kind, only in degree. And that degree is measured by consciousness, vibration, energy.

    And so, to find peace, bliss, love, you simply have to connect with what already is. You don’t have to travel to distant lands, buy fancy products, or achieve some outward goal of success. It is difficult to connect with true reality when you are locked up in your room. If you want to really connect with nature, with life, with your true nature, go outside. Nature is the unaltered form of reality. Humans, in recent years, have become increasingly separate from nature, and therefore their true essence. It is only by returning to the true self, the clear mind, the ultimate reality, that you find real peace, real happiness, real love. Because these are not things that are achieved or attained, they are discovered and realized. For they already exist, in your bones, in your blood, in the oxygen you breathe, in the trees and the birds singing. It is already there, waiting for you.

    If you want truth, happiness, joy, peace, bliss, love, reconnect with your true nature. If this is difficult to understand or relate to, think back to when you were a child. How blissful you were, unaware of the troubles of the world. Every moment was fresh, every experience was an adventure. Life, for a child, is not a grueling 9-5 job, an arduous task, an endless series of suffering and hardship. Life for the child is a joyous dance, a playful game. We often look down on children, believing we are knowledgeable and they are not, that we have more experience and wisdom than them, and that we are the teachers and they are the students. And to a certain extent this is true. We are more experienced in life and have better judgment and a better sense of how to navigate social circumstances and survive.

     But there is also something very valuable that children can teach us. And that is the simplicity and joy that comes with simply being alive. To not take things too seriously. To laugh more often, to play and have fun. Of course, with being an adult comes more responsibility than being a child. We have no choice but to work in order to keep going on. We have to take care of ourselves and our family and friends, we have responsibilities and duties to society. These are all things that children are unaware of. But there is also something blissful about their lack of knowledge, and that is that they are completely free. They are completely unburdened, not constrained by social expectation, judgment, standards, and rules. They simply do what makes them happy. And by doing so they make other people happy. It is very difficult to be angry or upset when in the presence of a baby or young child that is smiling.

    Nevertheless, some of the rules and expectations we live with as adults are needed and necessary. But we must also remember not to take life or ourselves too seriously, and to let go. Life, and the universe, are not cold and meaningless and indifferent. The universe is warm and smiling and compassionate. Realize this and you will be free. You can’t be free, and therefore at peace and truly happy, if your mind is constantly being bombarded by worries, stress, anxiety, expectations, and judgments. This is a restless mind. And as I mentioned earlier, the cure to a restless mind is to dive deep into its core. To go beneath the surface of turbulent thoughts, and to that place where everything is pure. And that is where you will find reality, and therefore peace. Take a deep breath… and let it out. Clear your mind, and all will fall into place.

    Life is a dance between opposites. As you get older you become more aware of the suffering and hardships of life, of responsibilities and tasks, of work and expectations. And this is something that you can’t avoid. It is simply a part of being a responsible adult. But we must not lose touch with our true selves, our true nature. And that is our clear mind. The joyful bliss of the inner child. This message is reflected by Jesus when he says “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3). Upon first reading this, we may be inclined to take the message literally and see it as entering a physical place called heaven. Whether or not heaven exists is a discussion for another time. But we can also see this message another way, where the kingdom of heaven is not a literal place, but a state of mind. Another way of reading this quote is that if you want to truly be at peace and find love, you first have to clear your mind and return to your true nature. And your true nature, as I already mentioned is reflected by the child: spontaneous, joyous, innocent, pure. Remember this. Follow your bliss… and you will get to where you need to go.

Much love,
Soroush

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