You’re in the right place

Seat down, breathe in, close your eyes. Everything is alright. You’re in the right place, at the right time, just now.

I took decades and numerous battles with your inner demons to arrive in this place. Finally, though, you are at peace. You have attained a profound sense of clarity that comes from facing disappointment. The veil of illusion rips in front of your eyes. Everything turns to dust. No fireworks, no music, life is just what it is. Chop wood, carry water, forever.

Where am I going with this? Do you expect another ‘how-to’ succeed in life? I have no answers to that. I’ve always been ambitious, my friends, but I had also given up when things got too hard. Failure is a necessary part of learning.

Let me tell you about one of my favourite teachers of all times, Alan Watts. His books opened my mind to the Eastern thought, especially to the concept of Taoism, a beautiful idea that the Universe is in a state of harmony. Everything is where is meant to be, all things ruled by the invisible life force of Tao, the emptiness and the void from where all the existence emerges and where it disappears, eventually. All you need to do is surrender your ego and go with the flow. It’s a bliss to abandon the struggle.

I remember reading these words, at the age of sixteen, feeling ecstatic as though I found the doorway to Narnia. The land of endless possibilities was opening in front of me. When, many years later, I found out that Alan Watts died an alcoholic, I had clarity.

His addiction is a subject of ongoing controversy, not unlike Crowley’s heroin habit. How could they claim to be enlightened and yet prove so weak, so incapable of fighting such a small obstacle? What happens to the inner harmony of the Universe, when someone decides to fuel their body with poison and pain? Perhaps that’s what the Universe wants them to do. Perhaps we misunderstood the meaning of harmony.

How many of us had been deceived by the promise of Heaven, eternal life and eternal happiness? What if the world is what is meant to be: a beautiful, and also a cruel place? Best you can do is, accept it as it is. There’s nothing else. Harmony comes when you’re at peace with your demons.

Seat down, breathe in, breathe out. It’s alright. Then, when you feel ready, get up and dance.

The existence is pure joy. That’s another lesson, from a different time. The joy appears when you abandon the struggle. The whole world is a dream of Brahman, the Godform, who manifests themselves through all of existence. When they finally wake up, the Universe dies. Brahman’s dream is a play, a stage show, and we’re all actors. What part do you play in this dream?

Breathe in, look around. You’re in the right place, at the right time to play your part. Play it well.