Purpose

Whenever you "do" something, you have a purpose  that is clear in your mind. If you read the news, your purpose is to be informed, when you watch a movie, you want to be entertained, in meeting a friend you look for company, you eat to get energy and survive. All this, in the physical world. What about the spiritual world? Here the detection of a purpose is not as easy. In undertaking a task, is your primary goal the achievement of material benefits such as money, success, praise, fame? Is your hidden purpose the glorification of your ego? If you check your ostensible beliefs and what your ego identifies as 'needs', you can have a clear idea of what is the psychological 'fuel' that makes the engine of your 'self' run. You will thus realize whether your deepest aim is to enrich your spirit or just your body.

To Ask or Not to Ask

To ask questions is a natural feature of mankind's. Or, at least, of a part of mankind's. Not all people, in fact, are interested in 'knowing', in asking 'simple' questions such as Who are we? -Where are we coming from? - Where are we going? - What is the meaning of life?, etc. They are blessed with the gift of "ignorance", in its etymological meaning of "lack of knowledge or information". They don't know and and don't want - or they don't need - to know. Many of us, though, do want to know, do have the wish to understand why we are here and what we are here for. Unfortunately, these questions do not - probably - have any answers. So... why ask? There is no answer to this question, too! Nevertheless...

Weather and Moods

An interesting reflection can be suggested by observing the weather.  One day it's sunny, another day it's cloudy. It can be dry, wet or foggy. It can be warm or cool, hot or cold. It can also be windy or snowy. That surely is a big array of possibilities! You might say that you like one kind better than another, but you have to face them all and accept the fact that they are all natural and even necessary. The same can be said for your moods and feelings. As hard as you try to avoid those that you dislike, you won't succeed because you need to experience them all: joy and sorrow, cheerfulness and sadness, pleasure and pain.... As Life is manifested in Nature, so it is in your own Self. The sooner and more willingly you do accept such truth, the better you will experience your earthly adventure.

Impermanence

When you hear of the sudden passing away of someone you know, no matter how close they were to you, you are forcefully brought to think about your (as well as everybody else's) "impermanence". You are here, now, but you could just disappear a moment later. Be no more. As frightening as this awareness may be, it must also encourage you to appreciate the present instant and endeavor to make the best of it. Realize that complaining, criticizing, resenting, rejecting, despising, are all harmful feelings that prevent you from experiencing life in its positive aspects. You are here for a reason, although you don't know for how long. Try (really "try"!) to understand what is the contribution you can give to the world. The world may just mean your family, your neighbors, friends, simple acquaintances. Your presence is necessary as long as it is required. When you have done what you "know" you had to do, you can serenely wait for what comes next.

Un-awareness

Wondering about our awareness of death, a thought came to my mind: how wise Nature is in making us "unaware" of it most of the time. If it weren't so, we wouldn't probably be able to live our lives. Realizing that you might "go" at any given moment, leaving everything and everybody behind, might make you keep on asking yourself why even bother to set goals, to struggle. to endeavor, to... But, on second thought, you realize that, actually, it is worth "bothering". Why? Because - if you have been put here on Earth - it means there is something that you - and only you - need to do. Although you might not understand the reason of it, a reason (and a "good" one) there certainly is. Find it!

Perfection

If you pay close attention to Nature, you can't help feeling in awe. The perfection of a flower, of a leaf, the majestic shape of a tree, even the structure of a rock, suggest the presence of a mysterious order that underlies everything. So, if the presence of such "order" can't be logically denied, how can you not be certain that it affects all aspects of Life? Perfection is everywhere, revealing itself in its numerous forms and manifestations. If you think about the chaotic energy at the center of a star, you may want to compare it to certain aspects of your life. Yet, as a star - in its whole - is beautiful, so is your life, in spite of its seemingly negative moments and occurrences. A hidden wisdom is behind it all. To discover it - and try to understand it - is your task.

Life & Change

Without Expectations

Saying that you should not have any expectations about people and events can seem not so easy to accept. When you start a project, you can't help wishing to see a positive outcome. When you meet a person you like, it's only natural to hope that your feeling is reciprocated. Wishing and hoping are natural sentiments, therefore they cannot - and should not - be avoided. In fact, what kind of life would it be without them? Dull, boring, totally devoid of enthusiasm. What should be avoided, though, is the belief that your happiness, fulfillment, wholeness depend upon the realization of such wishes and hopes. If you get it, wonderful. If you don't, you are still OK. Nothing has changed in you. Your life continues (with  or without other projects and other people). You are you. Successful or unsuccessful events don't define you. Loving or indifferent people don't make you what you are. Isn't this good news?

Unpredictable Behavior

People are strange and you never know what to expect. Someone who at first seemed a nice person, may turn out that they aren't. On the other hand, another you didn't like at first, may result to be a lovely human being. This is one of the many mysteries of Life. Keeping on asking why and wishing to understand is not enough to allow you to do so. Certain answers are more difficult than others to get and many questions don't even have an answer. So, what to do when you can't make up your mind about some people's behavior? Simply, don't expect anything. Let them be who they are, want to be or even just want to appear. It's none of your business and you shouldn't make it your concern. In fact, with no expectations, human relationships become definitely easier to (or "not" to) establish.

Wanting vs. Happening

When you want something badly and you don't get it, you feel sorry, you get upset. But here is a thought that might console you: If you didn't get it, it "may" mean that it was not right for you. Check it out: think of your past and bring back to your memory an episode where there was a certain person, situation, thing that you  really wanted and... got it. But also remember how, after the first exhilaration, it turned out as - if not the worst - at least not the best of your life's occurrences. Be a bit of a philosopher and take life as it comes... If you can't help analyzing things, go ahead and do it. But then, when you finally realize that there is really nothing to understand - because stuff happens as it is supposed to, and you have no power over it - just "allow" and accept it, possibly with a smile.

"The Winter of Our Discontent"

The title of a book recently came to my mind, "The Winter of Our Discontent", by one of my favorite American authors - John Steinbeck. My reflection is not connected to the novel's plot because such title (inspired by Shakespeare) already suggests the core drama. What I wonder about are the highs and lows that take place in our lives. A clear pattern is visible - a pattern that is reflected also in History and Nature. Winter means 'cold', discontent refers to a feeling of 'un-fulfillment' that most (probably all) human beings have an experience of. A time comes in your life when you are dissatisfied with what you have, with who you are, with what you are doing, with what you have or haven't achieved. But, as winter moves on into spring - according to natural laws - you, too, after allowing your negative feelings to manifest, can move up towards a new "high" because you, too, are part of the "natural" unfoldment. 

Mental Wandering

Reflecting once again upon the nature of our "being", the famous Descartes (Latin) quote came to my mind, "Cogito, ergo sum." (I think, therefore I am). Some modern philosophers and Positive Thinkers have suggested to switch it into "I am, therefore I think." Trying to decide which one appealed to me the most, I came up with this, "I am (= exist) independently from my mind but in order to experience such existence I need to be conscious, therefore I must think and become aware of my "being-ness". Consequently, both interpretations are correct. Being is independent from thinking, but thinking is necessary to acknowledge such 'being'. One cannot be without the other, at least in the 'reality' we live in.