Bear the lightness of being

Does your day usually start this way? You wake up late. Rush out without breakfast. Miss the bus. And the auto. The day starts on a note of anger.

Don’t despair. Don’t scrunch up your face in frustration. That bitter cocktail of frustration, stress, helplessness can catapult into a possible future illness. Be aware, stay alert. Let common sense take charge — why let events control feelings just because YOU can’t control these events?

Relax. Stay in the moment. Be quietly content with where you are, as though you had planned it that way — this is the attitude of wellness. Avoid forming an opinion on every bit of information given, as opinion triggers anger. Let the lightness of being spread within you, not heat.   

Lightness is a state of awareness, an illumination that liberates the self from the pettiness of preoccupations.

To receive light, meditate every day. Sit in a comfortable position with eyes closed. Focus on your breathing until the mind clears up and calms down and the body relaxes. Imagine a sphere of white light of purity, of healing and wellness hovering above. Visualise it entering your space and filling your body.

Visualise your body dissolving and slowly being lifted. Linger in the fresh, peaceful luminosity.

Carry clean thoughts of wellbeing and grace wherever you go. Meanwhile, organise your schedule efficiently. So the next time an occupied auto whizzes past, remain unfazed, observe the scene with patience.

Taoism calls this a ‘state of exuberance’, or the ‘Ha-Ha-Ha’ state. It teaches one to embrace the world as it is, all the while experiencing a quiet state of calm.

When in crisis, control the need to overreact to situations — like screaming, flinging and breaking objects, wanting to strike. Correct your perspective and count to ten. Watch others and learn from the way in which they deal with a problem. Life lessons, we call them. Stretch your heart wide and deep enough to embrace the inconveniences, paradoxes, absurdities, and the games people play. Strive to maintain the beautiful balance of body, mind and environment.

Preacher Joyce Meyer relates the lightness of being to spirituality, “When God saw darkness everywhere, he did not say, ‘What a mess!’ He uttered four simple words: ‘Let there be light’.”  She asserts, “Light always overcomes darkness. Positivity always overcomes negativity, so come on!” Believe that the universe has your best interests at heart. The universe wants you to be prosperous and comfortable in mind, body and spirit.

Eat right. Exercise right. Think positive. Think big. Think well. Think love. And observe delightedly as the universe brings it to you.  The writers are authors of ‘Fitness for Life’ and teachers of the Fitness for Life programme.