New perspective on life?

Question

I wanting to find a more stress free way of viewing life.

I am sick of wishing my life away, you know can't wait for weekend, summer holiday, christmas, wedding, house move, kids. Its making time go too fast. I want to start enjoying everyday and making the most of life - not letting my mind get caught up in trivial things and the 'rat race'.

I don't want to abandon my career and family and go and live on an island or anything, but want to look at my life from a new perspective. I think I need to establish some sort of spirituality (not in a religous sense though), maybe some sort of meditation etc.

Any ideas please?

Answer 1

Yes. In our culture in India, this is considered as one of the signs of improvement.

The regular activities however successful leads to a hollow in terms of completeness and satisfaction.

The remedy of course is with spirituality (and also religion, for it gives or rather is supposed to give the spiritual practices).

Stress is an agitation in the mind, a hush of thoughts uncontrollable and not conducive to the natural state of the individual which sometimes is also of the nature of blank or a dull state of mind.

To avoid stress immediately (and temporarily) breathing techniques like pranayama would help. This would work out because the source of thoughts and breath is the same.

But a permanent solution to stress and vacuum in life can be achieved only when we expand to get identified with our true source.

In Hinduism, our saint Adi Sankara says that man throughout runs towards gaining happiness (Sukha Prapti) and removal of sorrow (Dukha Nivritti). But he rarely understands that his basic nature is Happiness (Ananda) only and all troubles, doubts, unhappiness is created by his thoughts.

We are happy when asleep. We say I slept happily. Now after waking up from sleep, we say I am sorrowful, stressed. So what is the reason for stress. We cannot say that I was not conscious when asleep. If so how do you feel that you slept happily. Modern science and western psychology may call it subconsciousness or through other terms. In our culture we say that it was our natural state, but we most of the times colour ourselves with thoughts and assume that thoughts are us.

Anyway the problems are because our identification with the thoughts. So the solution to the problems are always because of I and mine. The solution can be by understanding who is that I which is referred, whether it is our thoughts or whether it is our real nature. Thoughts cannot be us, because it keeps changing and flowing in front of us. Anything which could witness is apart from ourselves.

This is meditation in Indian terms, finding out "WHO AM I" also called as Gnyana Yoga, the path of knowledge. In this way we find that we are our true nature and sorrow is only because of identification with useless temporary thoughts chain parading before us.

Devotion is complete surrender as everything is yours (including me). Even in that case there is no stress because we see everything as a gift of the primordial cause (GOD), so there is nothing for me separately, there even I am His. This also leads to the same goal.

If all this sounds too much or irrelevant, simple tips could be
1. Breathing exercise (Pranayama or others) to calm the mind
2. Karma Bhava (Performance of Duty to work towards our cherished goal) alongwith Prasadha Bhava (Acceptance of the results of action without reserve or prejudice).
3. Accomodate and grow by identifying with everyone we love, every one in the family, everyone in the groups that we work with, every human being, every living being and then with every being around. This way we love everyone and what is more fulfilling than love.
4. Welcoming every situation as a honorouble guest coming to us and returning the best that we could do to that situation, treating it as a service to that guest.
5. Consistent study of holy scriptures and association with saints and sages (whom we consider holy).
6. Dedication towards a Higher Goal (as envisioned by us).

List can go on but in my perception this has enough choices to start with.

(One point: even if you go to an island, you cannot leave your mind. The problem is in our mind and not in the beings. It is in our perception. So let us expand our perception and live contended in the midst of the challenging surroundings. How to do this is the entire teaching of our Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita, where a demoralised man of action is raised by the wisdom words of the Lord). There is a download the installation version of this book with English translation and commentary. If this can help you, you can have it.

http://www.chinmayauk.org/Resources/Downloads.htm

This is only my perception. I believe that everyone should take up their ancestral religious study alongwith other study that they feel could assist them in order to grow spiritually. The Kingdom of Heaven is within us is the experience of all saints. May we all reach that natural state of ours with our own efforts.

Answer 2

I strongly urge you to ask GOD to reveal Himself to you, in so doing, that you are made aware of WHY Jesus came, died, and rose again to live as an advocate to the Father on our behalf.

GOD loves you so much, ignore the other posts that say you need to try some NEW AGE practices. They are witchcraft, and an open door to many evils. This is very real, and even so--there is a power more real, more omnipotent, and that is Christ Jesus, and the life he CHOSE to give in replacement for ours. He took on the punishment of the sins we deserved to die for.

I honestly think that what you are experiencing is the Holy Spirit, gently calling you to seek God. You should pray; FIRST and foremost, pray that God would speak to you, and show you what you must do to be reconciled to Him, to see that Jesus is that bridge that covers the gap and re-united us to the place where we can have fellowship with our Maker.

I now what I am saying probably makes no sense to you, but if nothing else...make a way to daily read the Gospels, which are the first 4 books of the new testament (KJV or NIV), and this will give you much insight into the birth, life, ministry and death and resurrection of Jesus, and do this daily.....prayerfully. As you read, maintain the flow of communication with the Lord, asking along the way if what you are reading is true, and what HE wants specifically for you to do with your life.

Without JESUS, and without the Holy Spirit, we cannot know the things of GOD as they are meant to be known by HIM. He says in the scriptures that such things are "foolishness" to those who are perishing. Before you try anything else, [I implore you---pray that Jesus will come into you life, your heart, and forgive you of the sins which have severed the lines of communication between you and GOD!.....It is in believing in Jesus, and following and seeking Him in the Word of GOD (the bible)---that we are then entered into a personal relationship with God. IT IS REAL, it is LIFE.

GOD BLESS YOU!~

Answer 3

Meditation is definitely a good place to start. It doesn't require any specific belief or commitment to an organization, you can do it at home (provided you can find a peaceful spot - you say you have kids, so that might be difficult), and it's absolutely free.

It's a good way to clear your mind of those excess thoughts and nagging worries, and see things the way they really are.

Answer 4

A voice says, "Cry out."
And I said, "What shall I cry?"
"All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers and the flowers fall,
because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever."

Life is just a moment in the light of eternity. Get to know God, read his word, pray, ask him to reveal himself to you...

Answer 5

There can be no peace without Jesus Christ. Meditation without Christ is a momentary escape, for if you cannot meditate on Christ and the word of God, what can you meditate on? Meditating on the world will only bring you increased strife.

Answer 6

You could visit your local library. They should have plenty of books on meditation ect. Just look in the spirituality section.

Answer 7

If you got out of the hoping part of life, you'd have zippo.
You'd see the world for what it really is.
Go on, be part of your own mental island, where you're thinking about what's coming for you.

Answer 8

Read 'The Power of Now' by Eckhart Tolle

Answer 9

You Need to Learn About God
To be God’s friend, you need to learn about him. Do your friends know your name and use it? They do. God wants you to know and use his name too. God’s name is Jehovah. (Psalm 83:18; Matthew 6:9) You must also learn what he likes and dislikes. You need to know who his friends are and who his enemies are. It takes time to get to know someone. The Bible says that it is wise to set aside time to learn about Jehovah.-Ephesians 5:15, 16.
God’s friends do what is pleasing to him. Think about your friends. If you treat them badly and do the things that they hate, will they continue to be your friends? Of course not! In the same way, if you want to be God’s friend, you need to do what is pleasing to him.-John 4:24.
Not all religions lead to friendship with God. Jesus, who is God’s closest friend, spoke of two roads. One road is wide and is filled with people. That road leads to destruction. The other road is narrow and has few people traveling on it. That road leads to everlasting life. This means that if you want to have God’s friendship, you must learn the correct way to worship him.-Matthew 7:13, 14.

Answer 10

Meditate on God, pray in a conversational way with God. You don't have to be religious to do it.