Podcast: Play in new window
“If I could just get rid of this pain or limitation, if I could just get what I want, I would be happy and safe.”
Buddha taught that this type of thinking is the root of all suffering. We must get rid of craving and aversion in order to become free.
But the very mechanism of seeking to get what we want or get rid of what we don’t want is the primary driver for all human action.
You look out at the throngs of people on the freeways, in the streets and the highways and byways of life, and that is their primary objective. In fact, really the only conscious objective is to get more of something or to get less of something, to get more good stuff, and to have less bad stuff.
…Or so it seems.
Most of us have been conditioned into believing that what we really want and what we really need is some kind of change in our experience, in our condition. It’s to have more money, or a better job (or a job at all), improved health, a relationship, a different relationship.
But even when you know what you want, you have been conditioned to believe that you must purchase that state of consciousness through some external condition. (For example, “Yes, I know I want freedom, peace and joy, but I’ll never have freedom, peace and joy until I have enough money…”)
This pattern is what will ultimately rob us of real freedom, real peace, real joy, and that’s what Buddha, Jesus, and all the masters were teaching.
Today’s episode, “What Everyone Really Wants,” shows you how to pursue your true soul’s goal …when you do, you’ll no longer have to wait for any condition to change in order to have exactly what you desire.