I was once in New York City on a visit. After a few days, I was completely caught up in the fast-paced whirl of life in that mega-city. One day, as I was entering a bookstore through a revolving door, through the glass I saw a book on sale on the counter— the price looked so low that I pushed the revolving door faster; in my anxiety to get into the store to get the low-priced book, I stubbed my toe in the revolving door. When I finally got to the book counter, my toe aching with pain, I found that I had misread the price of the book. It was actually $2.00 higher than I had seen it priced in Albuquerque! Sometimes we get caught up in trying to get somewhere so fast that we stub our toe, if not literally, then metaphorically. When we feel out of control, remember that we can slow down; we can go slowly and remind ourselves that the good we seek will never elude us. 

A friend of mine called her spiritual mentor with a serious problem for which she had no solution. None of the perceived options seemed workable. After five tries, she finally got her mentor on the phone and explained the situation and her anxiety and her fear about the possible outcome. Instead of offering a specific answer or rehearsing the various options, her mentor said simply, "Just take it easy." And my friend felt an immediate relief and release from all the heaviness of her situation. Sometimes, when we are faced with troublesome situations or difficult decisions, what we need, above all else, is the light touch. We need to let our fears and anxiety be dissolved by the innermost conviction that all will turn out well regardless. We need to take our situation not so hard, not so seriously, but to take it easy—to relax enough so that we can see calmly and clearly our solution. 

William Blake said, "If the sun and moon should doubt, they would immediately go out," meaning that trust is a basic component of life. We do trust that things will work out for us each day pretty much as we planned. We expect the newspaper to be delivered, the mail to come, the trash to be picked up and, in general, people to do what they say they will do. Indeed, it's always a shock when something doesn't work out as we expect it to. If we really stop to think about it, most of our life is based on trust. We trust that we will wake up tomorrow, that daylight will come, that the world will still exist and that everything and everyone will more or less be as we expect them to be. We trust that our bodies won't forget to breathe and somehow they will digest and assimilate our food for us. Since we really trust this life in so many ways to take care of us, why not relax and trust that things are working out for us now and will work out for us in all the areas of life— what else can we do but trust? 

Pascal, the 17th century French philosopher, once defined the "Error of Stoicism" as "thinking we can do always what we can do sometimes." We've all experienced times of high energy, momentum and enthusiasm in which we are flowing in seemingly perfect harmony with ourselves and our world. It's as if we can't miss, our timing is so perfect; everything is working together for our own good, inwardly and outwardly. During these peak times, it's easy to be positive, self-assured and to radiate well-being and joy. Yet there are other times, when we are going through a more gradual unfoldment, and things don't seem to come together so quickly or easily. Yet we have a tendency to expect ourselves to be just as we were when things were flowing with such ease and speed. We tend to become frustrated and impatient with ourselves for it not all working out as well as it did before. Yet these are precisely the times when we need to be most gentle and patient with ourselves. When things are working, it's easy to like ourselves; when things aren't working, let's also like ourselves. 
 

Sometimes we envy others' apparent ease or success in this life compared to our own. Others sometimes seem to have it so much better than we do that we can tend to devalue our own achievements or place in this life. There was once a man who bought the latest underwater diving equipment. As he tried out his equipment in forty feet of water, he saw another man who had no equipment at all. Filled with envy, he walked over to the other man and wrote with his underwater pen and notepad: "How can you stay under water without equipment?" The man grabbed the pen and pad and wrote, "I'm drowning, you idiot!" We don't need to compare ourselves—we just need to let ourselves be OK. 

Someone once said that the nice thing about pain is that you feel so good when it goes away. It's true. We've all felt the incredible relief when we are released from physical or emotional pain. Someone once said that pain pushes and pleasure pulls. It's interesting to think that pain can be an ally, helping us with our breakthrough experiences in life. We learn not to push too hard when we have pain in doing physical exercises; we learn to back off and ease up; the pain itself becomes our guide. So, too, with relationships— if there is too much pain, we learn to ease up, to not try to force things. We learn by pain (and other ways too) to be easier and kinder to ourselves and to others. Pain is really a kind of intelligence that keeps us on track or helps us to get back on track when we lose our way. We don't always have to resist pain or fight it with drugs; we can also let pain be a teacher guiding us to our freedom. 

We can develop an inner reservoir of strength, courage and peace— a spiritual bank account— by setting aside time each day to turn within, become quiet, relaxed, calm and let go to the oneness of all life. Just as we add to our financial well-being by setting aside money in a savings account or certificate of deposit, so can we add to our spiritual, mental and emotional well-being by setting aside time, energy and intention to allow our inner being to be nourished and replenished. Whether we call this quiet time prayer, meditation, contemplation, reflection or simply sitting still doesn't matter. The important thing is to take the time out of our busy schedules to get still and let go and let ourselves be at peace. 

The medieval symbol for worry was a wolf. If we think of a wolf in the zoo, pacing back and forth, always seeming to be agitated, we can see the appropriateness of the image. The Hasidic mystics say: Don't worry. The only permissible worry is to worry only when you find yourself worrying so that you will stop. During this summer, we can choose to observe an inner fast from worry itself. Let's keep in mind that worry is a fleeting state of mind, not our permanent condition. We can't really change anything by worrying about it. We exhaust ourselves and diffuse our energy when we spend time needlessly worrying about situations over which we have little or no control. When we relax and let go of our worry, we begin to trust the universe to take care of its own. We are each a part of the cosmic scheme of things. We can feel a deep sense of peace and rapport within ourselves as we let go and let this life itself support and nourish us. 

Mark Twain once said, "I've had many worries in life; most of them never happened." Indeed many of our worries are projections into a future that never occurs. In the early 1960's social analysts were predicting that due to automation, within a very few years, there would be a major societal upheaval because of the vast amounts of leisure time most people would be experiencing. As current statistics show, many of us have less leisure time then we experienced in the 1960's. Not only are many of our worries about things that never happen, they are about things over which we have little or no control. We come to realize that there are vast segments of life over which we have no say. And worry itself does not seem to change anything for the better. In fact, we find that the less we worry about things, the more likely things are to come into balance, harmony and order. Releasing worry frees up tremendous energy and vitality from within ourselves, and we are able to see solutions where previously we only saw dilemmas and contradictions. So we can choose not to worry and let a new way of life begin for us. 

As we celebrate this 4th of July with outer displays of fireworks symbolizing the freedom of our nation, let's also remember to recognize and give thanks for our inner freedom, our freedom to choose to transcend the limitations in our lives. This 4th of July, we can choose to realize an inner skyrocket to joyous freedom launching us beyond the bounds of a restricted sense of purpose. We are each in this life to pursue a profound and limitless inner spiritual fulfillment that will outpicture in the transformation of our society and our world. We are here on this earth to demonstrate our freedom to be all we can be, to reach beyond the humdrum routine of our days and discover a deep truth and beauty right in the midst of our being, call it God, or the oneness of all life, or what you will. As we watch with widened eyes and joyous hearts the outer display dazzling our city's sky this 4th of July, let's also, with equal amazement, wonder and appreciation, realize the hidden splendor within each of us, the skyrockets of freedom within our hearts. 

When our hearts are anxious, when we don't know how things are going to work out for us, we can always turn within and find the place of peace inside ourselves. We don't have to hunt for a needle in the haystack. The peace we seek is already here. We just give our attention to it, be aware of it, let it fill our minds, hearts and bodies. We can't find peace because we already are the peace we seek. So, let's take a moment to let go to this peace now. Let's allow the deep, abiding peace within each of us to spread throughout our whole being: let our bodies, our minds and our hearts be at peace: let our thoughts be at peace: let our concerns and cares be infused with peace. We can let the power of peace bring each of us clarity and joy. We can release ourselves to this peace; we can trust it to guide and direct our steps now and always. We are grateful for this new feeling of well-being, and we accept this peace for ourselves, for each other and our for world, this moment. 

Where are we grounded? Many of us rest on a foundation of anxiety and worry. We find that underneath, deep down inside of ourselves, no matter what is happening in our lives, there is always a subtle feeling of worry. lf we are too anxious, we can decide to change the resting place inside of ourselves from worry to peace. We can relax our fearful hold on life and decide to trust this universe. This world grew each of us as surely as it grew the tree in our backyard. There is a wisdom, intelligence and goodness in this life itself that will take care of each of us. So we can let go and let our hearts, our minds and our bodies be at peace. 

During those "dog days" of July, as the temperature climbs over 100°, we can sometimes feel worn down as if the heat is too much for us. Yet we have the capacity to let go of our need to mentally resist the heat—instead we can let go to the heat itself and feel an instant sense of relief. I once spent a very hot summer in a part of South India where there was almost no air conditioning. Some days the temperature would reach 110° or 115° with 100% humidity and I would feel like I was melting into the pavement. One day, I just quit fighting and let go to the sheer oven of heat— as I let the heat penetrate my every pore without struggle or protest, I suddenly felt in harmony and at peace in the midst of that tremendous warmth. So, too, with our spiritual life. Sometimes we are resisting a spiritual breakthrough because it feels uncomfortable. And when we finally decide to just relax and let go, suddenly we find ourselves inwardly in harmony and at peace. Let go to a spiritual heat wave and be at peace. 

Sometimes, it seems that no matter what we do, it's not enough. We feel like we are pedaling backwards. Nothing seems to be happening; nothing seems to be working. We all go through these times when everything in our life seems on hold. And we don't quite know how to get things moving again. Perhaps we need to just not do for awhile. As I like to say to my students about meditation: "Don't just do something, do nothing." When things in our life seem to have come to a standstill, maybe we just need to stand still too; get quiet inside, let go of our needing to make it happen, relax and listen. This may just be a time to rest, release and let go. During these times of rest from outer effort, we can begin to feel a profound sense of inner renewal; a new energy begins to magnetize a new outer momentum, and soon we find ourselves back on track and moving forward with new enthusiasm and joy. 

When we go out into nature into a forest somewhere far away from the noises and sounds of our usual everyday city life, if we are far enough away, the silence we experience in such a setting is almost palpable. It's almost as if we are actually hearing the silence itself. There may be bird sounds and insect sounds, but underneath we hear a deep stillness, and this stillness of nature is so very peace-filled and soothing to us. Yet that same quietude and soothing stillness we experience in the depths of nature also exists deep within ourselves. While it's healing and uplifting to go into nature and feel the stillness of the forest or the desert, it can be equally healing and uplifting to turn within and discover that stillness within ourselves. Just take a few moments each day to settle down, relax the body, release all our cares and concerns and turn within, resting in inner peace, calm and serenity. That's all we need do to feel that same peace we felt in nature. 

How do we accept guidance in our life? We receive many offers of advice; everything from TV commercials to our fellow workers to our close family and friends. Whose advice do we take; whose guidance do we follow? Some people have earned our trust, and we tend to seek them out when we need advice. Yet other people are not always able to give us advice— there may be issues that only we can decide, and perhaps our decision comes only after we allow ourselves to get in touch with our own inner guidance. While outer advice is at times necessary and very helpful, there are these other times when we may need to turn within and listen to our hearts and accept inner guidance and direction. It's interesting that while outer advice is usually very specific and direct— do this or don't do that— inner guidance is often much more subtle and non-directive; so we need to listen that much more intently and patiently to receive inner direction. Regardless of situations, we can always listen inwardly and receive and accept the guidance of our hearts. 

Sometimes for us silence isn't listening; it is waiting, waiting for the other person to quit talking so that we can talk. We listen when we really want to hear what someone is saying. When someone who is very important to us is telling us something that is of burning interest to us, we are very intent on hearing every word. If our boss is saying something about a promotion, a raise or a transfer, he or she has our total attention. When we go to a concert or play, or poetry reading, we become very still so that we can hear and absorb every sound, every word. We can also allow ourselves to be silent and listen to what our insides— our deepest thoughts and feelings— are telling us. We are important enough to learn to silently listen to our own inner voice. 

My wife took our gray cat to the vet recently. When the vet started to give him some shots, the gray cat hid his face in my wife's coat— he just didn't want to see what they were doing to him. Sometimes, in our lives, we are overly-sensitive and aware of what 'they' are doing to us. We become conscious of the smallest imposition or slight; we bristle at the tiniest carelessness when it is directed at us. If we are too aware of the frictions of this life, we can find peace and ease by taking time to turn within, get quiet and release our connection to the outer world for a while every day. Turning within daily gives us a feeling of inner calm and clarity, a sense that we are in control of ourselves and our lives. When we are feeling too sensitive to the outer world, let's remember to take the time to find peace and harmony and order from deep within ourselves— and then we let this inner peace out-picture into our world. 

Lao Tzu once said, "Who would prefer the jingle of jade pendants if once he has heard stone growing in a hill?"-- meaning that as we come to realize our capacity for profound inner, spiritual experience, the outer experiences of life no longer exercise so much fascination for us. As we see into the depth of our inner selves through meditation, prayer and contemplation, we develop a sensitivity that takes us beyond the usual planes of the material world. Not that we deny the material world, but we gain a richer perspective on the whole of life by learning to take the time to turn within, get quiet and feel the peace and stability of our inner life. 

Meditation is the act of inner self-listening. Are we spending enough time listening to ourselves each day? Are we worth taking the time to listen to what we have to say to ourselves? Who do we pay attention to in this life? We get calls from people trying to sell us something— we hardly hear what they are saying. But then there are messages we take very seriously, that we listen to with total attention; if someone is saying to us, "I love you" or "You're fired" or "You're hired" we pay very close attention to these messages. We always have the time to hear these very important pieces of communication. So, too, with ourselves. What could be more important than taking the time to sit down and relax and listen to what our inner life is telling about ourselves? We can make an appointment with ourselves each day for a few minutes to quietly sit and listen to our innermost self.