ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE CITY OF ANGELS

Häromdagen fick jag ett wake-up-call när jag gjorde något så enkelt som att googla "peace of mind". Det fick mig att inse att det är jag som styr över mina tankar och inte tankarna som styr mitt liv. Jag har stått och tippat över mot en väldigt mörk sida i mitt inre, men några kloka ord fick mig att ta ett stort kliv mot ljuset istället. Välja välmående och lycka. För att må bra och känna mig genuint lycklig måste jag lära mig att släppa negativa tankar. Bara släppa dem. De senaste dagarna är detta precis vad jag har gjort och jag känner mig mer tillfreds med livet just nu än vad jag har gjort på länge. Det är helt otroligt vad fort man kan slå om. Det finns en oro inför framtiden, men den har jag lagt på hyllan för ett tag. Allt löser sig. Que sera, sera. Jag vill leva i nuet. Vara rättvis mot mig själv. Om detta nu är mina sista månader i LA (för det här kapitlet i mitt liv) så vill jag minnas dessa som lyckliga månader. Jag känner mig faktiskt lycklig igen. Och jag har börjat meditera.

Most people would be glad to have some peace of mind in their life. They would be happy to forget their troubles, problems and worries, and enjoy a few moments of inner calmness and freedom from obsessing thoughts.

What is peace of mind? It is a state of inner calmness and tranquility, together with a sense of freedom, when thoughts and worries cease, and there is no stress, strain or fear. Such moments are not so rare. They may be experienced while being engaged in some kind of an absorbing or interesting activity, such as while watching an entertaining movie or TV program, while being with someone you love, while reading a book or while lying on the sand at the beach.

 

The question is, how to bring more peace of mind into our life, and more importantly, how to experience it in times of trouble. You might also ask whether it is possible to make it a habit, and enjoy it always and under all circumstances. First, you need to learn to bring more moments of inner peace into your daily life. Later, you will be able to experience these moments in times of trouble or difficulties too, when you really need inner calmness and tranquility.

 

Here are a few simple things that can help you:

• Reduce the amount of time you read the newspapers or watch the news on TV.

• Stay away from negative conversations and from negative people.

• Don't hold grudges. Learn to forget and forgive. Nurturing ill feelings and grievances hurts you and causes lack of sleep.

• Don't be jealous of others. Being jealous means that you have low self-esteem and consider yourself inferior to others. Jealousy and low self esteem, often lead to lack of inner peace.

• Accept what cannot be changed. This saves a lot of time, energy and worries.

• Every day we face numerous inconveniences, irritations and situations that are beyond our control. If we can change them, that's fine, but this is not always possible. We must learn to put up with such things and accept them cheerfully.

• Learn to be more patient and tolerant with people and events.

• Don't take everything too personally. Some emotional and mental detachment is desirable. Try to view your life and other people with a little detachment and less involvement. Detachment is not indifference, lack of interest or coldness. It is the ability to think and judge impartially and logically. Don't worry if again and again you fail to manifest detachment. Just keep trying.

• Let bygones be gone. Forget the past and concentrate on the present moment. There is no need to evoke unpleasant memories and immerse yourself in them.

• Practice some concentration exercises. This will help you to reject unpleasant thoughts and worries that steal away your peace of mind.

• Learn to practice meditation. Even a few minutes a day will make a change in your life.

Inner peace ultimately leads to external peace. By creating peace in our inner world, we bring it into the external world, affecting other people too.

 

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