Focus on the higher

Letting go of things can be difficult, even when we know that those things bring us down. But there are many things that we all need to let go of if we want to go higher. There are weights tied to our ankles that need to be discarded.

To eat healthier, we have to eliminate or minimize junk food; to have more time for creative pursuits, we have to watch less TV; to have a happy family, we have spend less time thinking about work when we are at home.

But it’s not easy. Even though we want to let go of these things, it often feels too difficult. Why?

Firstly, we are used to these things; they have become habitual, second nature. Even after recognising that too much of something is causing us harm, we continue to pursue them.

Secondly, we often lack determination and drive. Yes, we may know that we need to stop doing so and so, but after a hard day’s work, we really can’t be bothered. But we have to. We have to summon the energy reserves from within our souls in order to overcome the sense of complacency that allows our habits, desires, obsessions and addictions to rule our lives.

But determination is not the only thing needed because is not enough. We need to see, truly see and understand that there is a higher dimension where our true happiness lies. This might be a debt free life, a healthy life, a happy marriage or creative expression. Whatever it is, we have to really have that thing in mind to remind us of why we need to kick these old habits that have sabotaged our destiny.

Seeing the higher give us the perspective to let go of the lower. If we only focus on the things we need to let go of, we will lack the drive and incentive to let go of them. This is a negative way of approaching personal transformation because it involves continually focusing on the thing that we don’t want in our lives.

If we focus more on the thing we want to attain, we have adopted a positive approach. We are placing our energy and attention on what we want to manifest.

I don’t believe this is some kind of magic that by simply imaging the positive, it will be manifested. I think our visions must be followed by actions. We can’t get our dream job just be sitting on the couch all day and fantasizing about it. We have take our positive vision out into the world and do our best to make things happen.

But this kind of vision can often be missing or at least it fades as we pursue our goals. We might set out to accomplish something but along the way, once we get involved in the nitty gritty of moving towards the prize, we actually lose sight of it and then the steps along the way become too difficult because they are no longer imbued with inspiration. If we are running on empty, nothing can be accomplished.

This idea of being goal centred is often debunked in the form of modern spirituality that tells us that we are fine as we are in the present moment, and there is nothing to do, just be. While I think our true self is present right now within us all, accessing it does take time, and there may be many things we need to do “out in the world” to attain to it.

Another thing that many modern minds don’t want to admit is that we can’t have it all. We can’t always have our cake and eat it too. If we want to accomplish something or be something, there are naturally opposing things and states that we have to let go of; they can’t coexist – their very nature cancels out the things we want.

This is also true on a global scale. We say that we want to continue to live on this planet; we say that we value biodiversity; we say that we care about the well-being of others. But often when it comes down to it, we choose short-term comfort and wealth over the long-term well-being of future generations of people and animals. We can’t continue producing copious amounts of CO2 and methane AND have a healthy planet. We need to sacrifice many of our modern comforts and conveniences so that others will have a chance at survival on this planet.

Each and every day, we must remind ourselves of what it is that we believe in and live for, for the sake of ourselves and each other.