Simplifying our lives and reducing stress
People who have reached an advanced stage of happiness invariably lead simple lives.
Hugh Prather — How to Live in the World and Still Be Happy
Desire for more comes from a sense of restlessness, busyness and over-stimulation. The agitated mind seeks comfort in accumulating things and experiences. Collecting also stems from a desire to display our wealth through an outward show of things. For some endless shopping means real freedom. Buying sprees, over-accumulation, clutter and chronic disorganisation are decisions based on fear.
Too many possessions diminish our peace creating clutter and disharmony and requiring energy and attention. All possessions are subject to loss and deterioration. Devices malfunction, cars fall apart, jogging shoes go out of style. All things require maintenance and replacement. Everything we own have attendant consequences. Even cut flowers have ramifications. In what will they be placed? Must we add something to the water to keep them fresher? Where should we put them?
Household environments and personal affairs that are free of chaos and clutter give us a greater measure of happiness. Women who are attuned to this awareness eat simply, dress peacefully, and follow a harmonious routine. If compassion requires a temporary interruption of the flow, they do so quickly and easily, because for such persons simplicity is not a fetish, it is an enduring inner state. According to Hugh Prather, “Whenever we are afraid, we are to some degree tense and intractable, and that’s why a scattered approach to life is rigid, whereas, a simple one is not.”
Simplicity is clarity
“Simplicity is deep inner clarity about one’s purpose. It gives one space to see. Simplicity is freedom from mental and emotional litter. The heart has room to love and enjoy. Simplicity is guileless, carefree and straightforward. It is the uncomplicated way, the easy step, and this soft internal order is expressed outwardly in an instinctive avoidance of excess or its counterpart, deprivation and self-imposed loss,” he offers.
We are often tyrannised by our home and, therefore, not comfortable in it. We walk into a room and see only a collection of mistakes. The décor is stale and we’re unsure what to do. Our mind is filled with equal parts of fear and decorating hints. Is our home a place of rest and relaxation, or is it a showcase of our talent, creativity or wealth? Do we feel welcomed by our own home? Possessions also have an emotional impact, each object reminding us at an unconscious level of a theme in our life. It is beneficial to surround oneself only with objects that evoke the highest virtues. Whatsoever things are pure and lovely think often on these things.
In simplifying our life we should not neglect the things we own because we no longer care about worldly things. We will only feel distressed in withholding our love from our surroundings. Equally we need not fear or hate our possessions refusing to acquire those things providing comfort or help to us. Simplicity is the openness that allows us to see what adds to our freedom or what complicates our life.
Simplify your life
This exercise can be applied to things, projects or relationships. Start with something or an area of the home that has the least importance. Relax and with eyes closed take in the atmosphere around the object/room. Wrap yourself around the possession. How does the room feel…congested or light? Does some part need cleaning? Is there happiness or sadness around the object? Is something being neglected? Describe in writing the various atmospheres you sense above, below and around you. Notice your desire to alter, throw out, clean, repair or add without doing so.
Close your eyes and imagine undertaking one of the alterations. Project into the future how the change affects you. Imagine not making the change. Write down the effects of both actions. This is a deliberate mental process that will allow you to see how peaceful you are now about making the change. Contemplate the two lists without ranking. With eyes closed ask yourself what your peaceful preference is. A peaceful preference does not include decisions of right or wrong, safe or proper. It is simply your peaceful inclination of what feels good to you.
Sit quietly and look honestly at the item, asking the following questions:
Do I still use this? (As a decoration, a tool, a symbol of memories). Am I still taking care of this? (dusting, servicing, polishing). If I neither care for it nor use it, in what specific way do I fear letting it go? (I may use it someday; someone gave it to me; it’s costly). If after answering these questions one is still doubtful, ask what action will add to your present peace. Fear of the future need not cause us to hang onto many things we don’t need. To become consistently happy we must trust our present sense of peace more than our anxieties.
