How can one be happy in this terrible world of war and terror? And how can one be happy when the head is filled with all kinds of urgent problems? Maybe one has serious money problems, maybe one has a lot of problems at work, maybe one doesn’t have the time to take care of one´s elderly parents, whatever. Is it really the ego that construct all these problems?
Born again Christians and people who belong to certain religious sects are often very happy. Should one become a born again Christian, or should one adopt some other ecstatic belief system? Should one start to eat Prozac pills? Should one simply skip all the problems or let someone else solve them? Should one go and get drunk and let the problems hover over the head like vultures? Witch strategy is the best?
How can one be at peace in the “Now” with a lot of problems? It is of course a different story if all people around you where awakened, but how shall one deal with it today?
Well, this is what I have arrived at: one can have a lot of problems, deal with them, and be in the “Now“. To be in the “Now” is not an escape. To be in the “Now” is not necessarily pleasant.
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The following passage is from Byron Katie in her book "A Thousand Names for Joy," pg.75.
"I've heard people say that they cling to their painful thoughts because they're afraid that without them they wouldn't be activists for peace. 'If I felt completely peaceful,' they say, 'why would I bother taking action at all?' My answer is 'Because that's what love does.' To think that we need sadness or outrage to motivate us to do what's right is insane. As if the clearer and happier you get, the less kind you become. As if when someone finds freedom, she just sits around all day with drool running down her chin. My experience is the opposite. Love is action. It's clear, it's kind, it's effortless, and it's irresistible."
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