Letting Go
"Let go of what?"
"Of the things that is making you suffer!"
Introduction
Defining Letting Go
Letting go is about releasing ourselves from our attachments, whether they are towards an object, a person, an idea, an emotion, and so forth.
In this article, we will explore the ways to let go of what we are attached to and the reasons for doing so.
Letting Go In Depth
The root cause of suffering is attachment. This is an ancient piece of wisdom.
And it's true. When one has become attached to something, one will eventually experience unhappiness.
But let us define what attachment is so we can understand the context better.
Attachment is a state of mind when we find ourselves unable to let go of a particular thing.
For instance, when we find ourselves unable to release ourselves from the desire for money, then we have become attached to money.
For instance, when we find ourselves unable to quit drinking alcohol, then we have become attached to alcohol.
It can be difficult to know what we are attached to because one would rarely ask oneself:
"What am I attached to?"
So usually, one would only find their attachments when they try to let go of something and find themselves unable to.
Attachments can happen at various levels of The Self.
Learning about the ways one can become attached to something can help one to discover their attachments,
So, let us explore some of the ways attachments can be created.
At the Physical Level: One can become attached to the objects and activities of the outer world. For instance, money, sex, drinking, gambling, buying expensive clothes, art collections etc.
At the Emotional level: One can become attached to certain emotions, i.e. the emotions to do with pleasure or emotions to do with anger etc.
At the Mental level: One can become attached to one's beliefs or habit patterns. I.e. one can become attached to ideas that some races are more superior to others or that one must always look beautiful all the time etc.
So, attachments can happen at the various levels of The Self. That is why the practice of meditation is helpful because through the practice one will be able to discover the emotions and wandering thoughts that one cannot let go of and learn why one has become attached to them.
It is important to become aware that attachments can happen at all levels of The Self so that when one is learning to let go, one can remember that letting go is a journey done at all levels of The Self.
Without this understanding, one can simply end up only practising letting go at the physical level, i.e. by abstaining from the objects and activities one has become attached to and forgetting to also address the attachments towards them at the emotional and mental level.
The seed cause for one's physical attachments will always begin within the Mind. So by also exploring the cause for one's attachment within, it can help one to accelerate the journey of letting go.
See Catalyst - Attachment for more details.
The journey of letting go is not easy
Try letting go of your anger when it comes.
Try letting go of your judgement towards someone you don't like.
Try letting go of your impatience.
Try letting go of the relationships that are currently doing you no good.
It is only when we discover that we cannot let go of something that we realize just how little control we have over our minds.
To be the Creator of our lives is to use our powers to create the reality that we wish.
The more attachments there are to certain realities, the more limited one will be able to freely use their powers.
So realize that when we are in a state of attachments, we are no longer in control—the Mind, its habit patterns are in control.
Path Of Creator
Letting Go In Relation To The Path Of Creator
The journey begins by first understanding more about what attachment is and how it is created.
To understand the seed cause of one's attachment is to understand that attachment will always begin first within the Mind.
From this deeper perspective, attachment begins when one has become attached to a Negative Idea, an Idea which promotes Self-Rejection.
To understand more about Negative Ideas, you can explore the Catalyst - Discovering Your Negative Ideas.
For instance, the Negative Idea that “It is not ok to not have plenty of money” will create the need for more and more money.
If The Self becomes attached to this Negative Idea and does not have "enough money", then this is when the State Of Rejection will be experienced in many different ways—as fears, anger, judgement, unhappiness—all of which will create a Suffering Experience.
Thus, at the deepest level, to let go of our attachments is to let go of our Negative Ideas.
And how do we let go of them?
We learn to Transform the Negative Ideas into the opposite of what they are: Potentiating Ideas—ideas that promote Self-Acceptance.
So the journey of letting go is about developing Self-Acceptance.
Realize that any journey you embark on to create greater happiness in life will always require you to ultimately develop Self-Acceptance. This is because the all kinds of negative states of Mind will always be caused by the state of Self-Rejection.
One can face many confusions and questions on one's journey of letting go.
For instance, one may question:
"Why do I have such an attachment?"
"Why can't I let go?"
"Why do I need something to be happy?"
"Why can't I just be happy with nothing?"
"Why can't I accept all situations in life?"
So, by embarking on the journey of letting go, one will face many questions and thus learn many things about themselves.
One will also learn that the journey is about learning to be content, to be happy no matter what happens in life.
The destination is towards the state of mind where One can accept all there is. When one can accept all there is, then one is no longer attached to anything because everything is acceptable, even if one has nothing!
Thus, the journey of letting go is not so much about what one does in the outside, i.e. requiring one to live like a monk abstaining from everything, requiring one to give up everything that is precious to them, and so forth.
Rather, it is about learning to develop the ability to accept all there is.
And one can do this by using life experiences. This is when one can use the experiences of abstaining oneself from doing the things one has become attached to with the intention to develop Self-Knowing, i.e. to know why one cannot let them go.
However, if one simply abstains from everything without the intention to develop Self-Knowing, then such practices will be just mechanical rather than transforming.
The more one can let go, the more one will experience greater happiness, which will provide even greater motivation for one to let go. So the journey will only become easier and easier, though, it can be greatly confusing at first!
Once one can let go of everything, then one can live with all the things they love in a state of calm and wisdom rather than the fear of losing them, or the need to have them.
Know and Transform The Self!
Reading articles helps with understanding, but to transform the mind, one realizes the truth from experience.
For such an enlightening journey, the Self-Transformation Course has everything you will ever need!
