Where do you search when you look for answers to life questions such as who am I, what makes me happy, what is my mission on earth, etc?
If you are like most people, you ask Google, don’t you? Or maybe you devour one book after another!?
For the first time in human history, we have the world at our fingertips, we can access whatever information we want.
We use a search engine to find what we look for, and an answer comes up.
But, does it always work for you?
Or, do you sometimes feel even more confused and overwhelmed?
You see, we tend to spend so much time looking for answers in the outer world that we distract ourselves from what’s going on in our inner world.
We are all such unique human beings, with unique needs, fears, desires, hopes, life experiences, and much more.
So, how could it be possible to find tailored answers suitable for each of us outside of ourselves?
It’s high time we slowed down and we took the time to look for the answers we are looking for within ourselves, instead of out there.
“There is nothing outside of yourself, look within. Everything you want is there. You are That”. - Rumi
Bottom line: the more we search for something outside of ourselves, the more we run the risk of getting lost.
Let me stress the above concept through the following enlightening Zen story.
THE YOUNG MONK LOOKING FOR ENLIGHTENMENT
Once upon a time, there was a young monk who was distressed with his life.
Since he joined the monastery he had been looking for enlightenment.
He read every book he could find about the subject and asked for his peers’ advice.
Yet, the more he searched for enlightenment, the more confused he became.
One day, the oldest monk, noticing how frustrated the young disciple was, approached him and said:
“Dear brother, there was a time in my life when I also felt lost. I was looking for enlightenment, day in, day out. But, no matter how determined I was - how many books I read - enlightenment seemed to stay away from me”.
The puzzled young monk asked him: “What did you do to move from being lost to being enlightened”?
“I embarked on a journey to meet a Zen Master. He taught me how to find enlightenment!”, replied the old monk, and added: “why don’t you pay him a visit”?
The young monk, without thinking twice, left his monastery to find the place where the Zen Master lived.
Once he arrived there, the Master asked him: “What are you looking for”?
"Enlightenment!”, replied the young monk.
“You have your own temple! Why do you visit me?”, said the master.
The young monk was bewildered.
“My temple, master”?
“What you are looking for is in your temple”, said the master.
The young monk smiled; he had understood what the master meant.
Enlightenment, as well as the answers you look for, can only be found within ourselves, in our own “temple”.
He returned to his monastery and shared with all his friends what he had learned, i.e. visit your own temple instead of others’!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Way too often we think we have to look around to get all the answers we need when actually the first place to look for is within ourselves.
Let’s shut ourselves off from the noise around us, from the high speed of our day-to-day lives, and let’s take the time to tune into our inner world.
The answers we look for lie within us!
When we slow down, it’s easier to get to know ourselves on a deeper level and become aware of the kind of thoughts, emotions, and feelings we experience in our day.
“Remember, all the answers you need are inside of you; you only have to become quiet enough to hear them”. - Debbie Ford
Awareness enables the answers we look for to bubble up through our consciousness.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying you must stop reading or keeping updated and developing your skills.
What I am saying is that you shouldn’t rely simply on the information you find around you.
You should adjust it to what’s going on within you.
We and we alone have the power to unlock all the answers we need to know.
Are you ready to wake up? Are you ready to become aware of your inner world and understand who you truly are, and what you want to achieve in life?
If so, eventually you’ll find the answers you look for.
On the contrary, if you keep outsourcing your questions to the outer world you are most likely to never find the answer that suits your true self.
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