All Conflicts are Self Conflicts
Ego creates conflicts, freedom doesn't. Ego isn't bad, freedom isn't good. It isn't good or bad. It's all about the question.
1.1. People are looking for Freedom, not Prescriptions.
We tend to externalize the problems and tend to solve them in external world. There are certain practical problems like food, shelter which need to be solved in the external world. But beyond a certain basic level, all problems we are solving are internal. Even if we managed to solve all the external problems, new problems will pop up tomorrow.
Everyone's looking for truth, whether they profess to look for truth or not. And the evidence for that is that everyone is looking for a way out of their problems. If they weren't, then there wouldn't be 14,000 prescriptions on every single corner, from spirituality to self help, the very fact that those things exist. And the very fact that they are populated by millions means that there's an enormous appetite for relief from problems.
This relates back to prescriptions. No human being actually wants to be told what to do. There's something within a human being that rejects the idea of being told what to do, quite frankly, even when you do give prescriptions, most don't follow it. And they will beg you for years to get the prescription. And when you give it they won't do it. People look at that and say, See, you've been given the prescription and you didn't follow it. That's your fault. No, it's not. The fault is believing that that's what they really wanted. No one wants prescriptions.
Freedom, really is what everyone is looking for. It is just that they've been sold many lines, they've been sold many lies, that it's about meditating, and it's about practicing mindfulness, and it's about doing all these things. And none of those things are wrong. It's all about the question. If your question is, I like to feel better for 20 minutes a day, it gives me a sense of peace. What can I do? There's nothing wrong with that. If the question is, I really want to have peace in my life. I don't want to have problems every single day, my entire life is spent putting out fires, I don't want that anymore. That's a different question, then those prescriptions are invalid for that.
1.2. How do you get over anxiety?
This persistent nonspecific anxiety is probably the single most common problem. Initially, you think you’ve anxiety because you don’t have money. Once you have money, for some reason you are still anxious.
The idea that someone should get rid of anxiety is the problem. The problem is not how do I get rid of anxiety? The way is actually to learn where anxiety comes from. The people who have conquered anxiety are the ones who had a clear understanding of what it is and where it came from. The solution to a problem is never the solution. It's always the problem. The solution to any problem lies squarely deep within the problem. There are not two things there's only one, everyone is taught to look for solutions. And they believe that the solution is independent of the problem. But ingeniously nature has hidden the problem inside the solution. And maybe it did it because it wanted human beings to look inside the problem. The definition of the problem is the key.
For ex: In case of anxiety, problem isn’t they have anxiety. The problem is that their anxiety will never end as long as they look for a solution to it. The solution is to go backwards to look what actually is this anxiety, but a name on it? When does it arise? What part of your body does it arise in? In what situations does it arise? Know the face of anxiety, not run from it. It's just something that's been solved on an individual basis.
There's no solving, it is simply the understanding the solution to any problem lies diving deep into the problem. The prescription is so subtle, that any attempt to follow it removes you from the solution. Even as you're listening to these words, it isn't about finding out what you are listening to. It is about understanding. And through understanding, you can take your destiny into your own hands. It is about very quiet, very serious examination of what actually is being said, never just listen to the words. Go into the source of why it was being said, for yourself. It is never about the words. It's where they come from.
1.3. All Conflicts are Self Conflicts.
There is no problems outside yourself. All conflicts are within, self conflicts. These things in which pain arises from a circumstance aren’t really caused by the circumstance. The circumstance does not cause pain, it reveals it. If someone's intention is that I wanted to inspire him, that's a problem. If the intention is that I didn't care to inspire him or not, then that's not our problem. The problem arises in the individual. Because if he tried to inspire, then that came from a place of ego. Ego isn't bad. But if a person tries to inspire someone, they're really trying to attain significance in their own mind. That isn't bad either. The problem is it creates problems. If you did not care whether you inspired or not, you'd be free. And freedom isn't good either. It's just that freedom does not create problems.
One ways to know that you are finding truth is that problem is solved for good. You don’t have to revisit the same problem again. Both your internal/external state improve/change. The more they change internally, the quieter it gets. And externally life is less complicated.
Related: It’s not about the Journey, it’s about the Destination.
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