A Love Letter to the Universe.

Dear Universe (replaceable with god, nature, the Sun, the Brahman, the Tao, the Spirit or You) 

Image by PineForest

Namaste 🙏🏽. You cruel, heartless, unforgiving, cold, ruthless, capricious vile bitch of an enormous entity, I have never enjoyed this ride more than I am enjoying the ride now. Right now. 

The ride that I gladly call my humble life- fully embracing my joys and sorrows and everything else in between.

Looking back, it seems like I have been living several lifetimes in just one lifetime. 

Through my own doing or undoing I have cast myself into a multiverse of sorts, meeting several different individuals and groups of people, cementing deep and meaningful relationships over the span of seven years thus far. Though I’d like to think that I was conscious and complicit in my actions leading to the family break up, and my solitary life, I can’t help but to instinctively feel that a larger entity was in play, to have ordered this chaos that has launched me on a wild trajectory of cosmic proportions. And that was when I met you the cosmos aka the universe and began to see myself minus the veil of thought, shrouded in pain and suffering.

What a sight to behold the great nothingness. The formless. Eternal consciousness. You and I are one. 

I am a scion of the universe. 

I am eternal as the universe is. I am consciousness. I am formless. I am the divine. 

As formless as my source, I am made manifest in the form of an earthly being fully equipped with six levels of sense perception to fully explore and experience this world. Of Maya. Karma and Anava. Illusion, action and ignorance. 

Ignorance truly is bliss. For in our ignorance in executing our actions, in a world of illusions, we are meant to explore & experience anything, knowing that we will always be taken care of. No matter the outcome, it always works out in our favour. 

A thought now pops into my head, relating to the medicinal herbs startup I founded and recently shared it with a guest- “May we never know what evils or ills that could have befallen us had we had our desires fulfilled.” On the back of that thought, I know the outcome in the present moment is always favourable. It is always what it is. No matter how joyful or painful it is, it will pass-  It is not I, not me, not myself. 

I never fully experienced the joy of being truly happy deep inside, since I chanted this mantra given to me at the start of my spiritual journey towards the end of the last century. … 

“ I am healthy, happy and enjoying every moment of my life, may all beings be blessed with good health, prosperity & spirituality. In full faith so be it.”

 Now I do. 

To put my lifelong quest into words; I now know that I have been seeking spiritual wisdom. Not just wisdom as expounded by the ancient Greeks but spiritual wisdom espoused by the Hindus. 

Buddhism, the more scientific methodology of contemplation, of mind and being, has its roots in the deep history of Hinduism. So while my left brain is intellectualised and grounded by the daily practice of Buddhism, my right brain takes flight on the myths, stories and ideologies of Hindu lores called Sanatana dhamma, a way of life aimed at living a civilised life. Which is a way of ‘being’ as opposed to chasing and doing. 

Although already aware of the being state, I have never fully immersed myself in being, until now. To be fully centered in ‘being’ most of my waking hours brings clarity to the quality of life. 

To be fully conscious and connected to everyone and everything around me yet detached. Mindful of first taking care of oneself in thought, word and deed. To be slow to react, to be impeccable in words and deliberate in actions. 

It’s such a liberating feeling to be; immune to criticism, beneath or above no one and to fear nothing. 

Yet I still feel a deep yearning for my loved ones to give my life meaning and purpose and share in it. 

Right now I know that every one of us will have to sit alone in solitude in silence or in chaos to contemplate life, when the time comes. I pray it be better sooner than later, no matter what condition our lives are in. It is an irrefutable truth. One of life’s guaranteed path to enlightenment aka ending suffering. 

We are more in a state of fear than in a neutral state of mind, let alone being in a joyful state most of the time. When we sit in silent contemplation, we learn how to enjoy it coming full circle to be - 

- immune to criticism 

- beneath or above no one. 

- Fearless. 

And conduct oneself in a manner; 'to be as wise as serpents and as gentle as doves' holding loving compassion in our hearts for all beings. 

What a great way to live.

Thank you, 

With Love,

SL Peter Gan

Amen. 🙏🏽 

I love you. A Flower.

Of Impermanence and Unconditional Love.

Pix: PineForest

If you love a flower do not pluck it. 

Appreciate her beauty as it is. 

If you truly love the flower then you water it daily.

 

Even though you know you will never possess the flower 

That will eventually wither and die. 

Such is impermanence, such is life. 

When you love someone seek not to possess them. 

Instead nurture and help them grow into their natural beauty. 

Then constantly admire & enjoy that beauty for all eternity. 

This is unconditional love. 

I Love You. Zeno of Citium.

Stoicism.

I have fashioned my blog in the manner that Marcus Aurelius has penned his thoughts which he called his "Meditations."  I write in honour of the philosophy and ethics that guided our lives and is still guiding mine. 

The Stoics have been known to be seekers of happiness or blessedness a term they call "Eu~daimonia" derived from the greek language of Eu (good or well) and Daimon (spirit). This is attained by accepting the moment as it presents itself. 

Living in the moment or in the now.

Living fully in the moment simply means being fully present by not allowing oneself to be controlled by the desire for pleasure or by the fear of pain. Because both sensations only exist in the mind. 

Therefore, control the mind and you control the power of pleasure or pain. Otherwise it is the mind that controls us in meeting out pleasure or pain. 

It is also the practice of consciousness using one's mind to understand the world and to do one's part in nature's plan, and by working together and treating others fairly and justly. (Read kindness & compassion)

Perhaps the most evidently compelling case for Stoicism are two main principles;

1. It is not what a person SAYS but what he DOES that defines a person.

2. To live a good life, one had to understand the rules of the natural order since they thought everything was rooted in nature.

"Virtue consists in a will that is in agreement with Nature.This principle also applies to the realm of interpersonal relationships; "to be free from anger, envy, and jealousy, and to accept even slaves as "equals of other men, because all men alike are products of nature".


Here are more timeless Stoic principles that clearly reflect the rules of nature;

• Memento mori - Remember you will die. We all die. Sooner or later. We just don't know when. So remember to live. This life that we have been given is so fleeting.  For the conscious it is way too short. 

In a heartbeat or in one breath we can just disappear like the night at dawn. Or the day at dusk. 

• We will face challenges - Expect to meet people who are ignorant, arrogant, angry and fearful. Know that no one can hurt us. They're just ignorant. Just continue and Stay with breath. Overcome those challenges daily with consciousness of breath and...

• Daily ethical mindfulness - by paying attention. To everything.  Ethical dimension. Stay present. Stay with breath. Stay centered with kindness of heart.  Perform each action as though it were your last.  

• Amor fati - means Loving faith. Take a view from above. Transcend thoughts and emotions. Connect with your inner self often.  Give yourself advice from your inner being or higher self. 

• Meditate. To meditate is to spend time with yourself. Not your mind but your true self. When we get to spend time with our true self, only then can we begin to understand this life within us. This alone is enough to bring bliss into your life. Seek not anywhere else.

•  Daily evening journal - At day's end, Reflect on and write down;  What have I Done wrong. Condemn the action not the person. Question What did I do right?  What did I miss. 

• Kaizen - daily marginal improvements. Focus on just 1% improvement everyday. Small steps daily lead to huge long term benefits. This last one is more Japanese than Stoic but it fits.

Started as a philosophy of personal ethics in 3rd Century BC by Zeno of Citium in Athens, Stoicism lasted until the 3rd Century AD. It went into a decline when Christianity became the state religion of the Romans in 4th Century AD. 

Strong advocate of the stoics philosophy and ethics was the great Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, and other Stoics like Seneca and Epictetus. Throughout history Stoic principles and thinking lived on and held true during the Renaissance period and in the contemporary era today.