“Before enlightenment I was depressed. Now I continue to be depressed but there is a difference… I am not attached to it any more” – Antony de Mello

The topic of our Kundalini Yoga classes these past few weeks has been inner peace. Something we all desire. And it is simpler to achieve than you may think.

The greatest obstacle to finding inner peace is the belief that there is something wrong with our experience right now or with the way our life is. That is seems obvious, doesn’t it! As long as we are searching for an experience other than the one we have, we will never be content in this moment. “If only this was different… if only someone would change… then I could experience more peace.!”  My peace is dependent on something being different.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inner peace does not come from self-improvement or changing the other, it comes from  acceptance.We are programmed with so many beliefs that we never stop to question.  For example “Feeling sad is a bad thing.” or “There is something wrong with being angry.” Who says so? A little voice in our head does. And the truth is that it is not the feeling of sadness that robs us of our peace …it is the little commentator that tells us something is wrong. The amazing thing is that we can experience sadness, depression, anxiety and feel completely peaceful. If there is no judgement, then what is the problem?

Peace is experienced when we allow everything to be as it is without resistance, when we learn to say Yes! to every experience. How do we achieve that? If you step out of yourself for a moment and objectively watch your own mind you will see what happens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Say you are feeling down for example. First you are aware of the feeling and then comes the commentary “This is bad.”, “Everybody seems to be OK except me.”, “What ‘s wrong with me” …

It’s not the feeling that is bad. It is the ‘story’ around the feeling that robs us of our inner peace.

It’s all about awareness

Becoming aware of the commentator creates space between ourselves and the commentary. When we watch the commentary objectively we are  less involved. Instead of “This is bad” we could say ” There is that  annoying little commentator again.. ”

Finding inner peace is not about changing any of the thoughts, feelings or emotions – that’s far too difficult!. but more about changing your relationship with your mind. What we understand, we become free of. This is a habit to cultivate, and takes constant awareness. But by understanding how suffering is caused, and cultivating acceptance we can become free of it.