We live in a world obsessed with action. A desperate need to always be seen “doing”, and yet our constant busy-ness seems to primarily result in “never enough”. Never enough time, never enough money, never enough acceptance, never enough stuff.
Our lives become controlled by lists, goals and productivity hacks – the constant pressure to do something can leave us feeling burnt out and perpetually one step behind. But what if the key to real progress lies not in frenetic activity, but in cultivating stillness?
“From our immersion in scarcity arise the habits of scarcity. From the scarcity of time arises the habit of hurrying. From the scarcity of money comes the habit of greed. From the scarcity of attention comes the habit of showing off. From the scarcity of meaningful labour comes the habit of laziness. From the scarcity of unconditional acceptance comes the habit of manipulation.” – Charles Eisenstein
“I am saying that there is a time to do, and a time not to do, and that when we are slave to the habit of doing we are unable to distinguish between them.” – Charles Eisenstein
As a society we have worked ourselves into a corner of fear (scarcity), from where we are reactively “doing”. The compulsion to act without having a deep understanding is what creates our hurrying, our greed and our manipulation. Without wisdom, our compulsion of doing creates and re-creates the same old problems again and again…
“The situation on Earth today is too dire for us to act from habit—to reenact again and again the same kinds of solutions that brought us to our present extremity. Where does the wisdom to act in entirely new ways come from? It comes from nowhere, from the void; it comes from inaction. When we see it, we realize it was right in front of us all along. It is never far away; yet at the same time it is in a different universe—a different Story of the World.” – Charles Eisenstein
“Here is another paradox: We become better people only when we give up the quest to become better people.” – Charles Eisenstein
The solution is not to try harder, but to try softer. Seek out “the void”, the silence, the nothingness from where you can practice being the observer. Be patient, give it time and from observing will come seeing. And from seeing we realize where our action will be helpful and where not.
It absolutely is a paradox yes, but if you want to be more effective you have to first stop trying, and just observe. When you act (react) from a place of scarcity, your energy is spent re-enforcing the habits of scarcity. Become the observer, and your actions will be inspired from clarity. This is where the wisdom comes from.
Here are some guiding mantras to remember on your journey to really seeing:
- Before I act, I will pause and observe.
- My true power lies not in rushing, but in quiet awareness.
- First clarity, then effective action.
- The answers I seek are often revealed in the space of stillness.
- I am a powerful observer, and from observation comes wisdom.
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: Finding silence.
(image credit: https://www.shutterstock.com/g/intueri )