Symptoms of inner peace
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I came across the following in my chiropractor’s waiting room. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Be on the lookout for symptoms of inner peace. The hearts of a great many have already been exposed to inner peace and it is possible that people everywhere could come down with it in epidemic proportions. This could pose a serious threat to what has, up to now, been a fairly stable condition of conflict in the world.
Some signs and symptoms of inner peace:
- A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than on fears based on past experiences.
- An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.
- A loss of interest in judging other people.
- A loss of interest in judging self.
- A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.
- A loss of interest in conflict.
- A loss of the ability to worry. (This is a very serious symptom.)
- Frequent, overwhelming episodes of appreciation.
- Contented feelings of connectedness with others and nature.
- Frequent attacks of smiling.
- An increasing tendency to let things happen rather than make them happen.
- An increased susceptibility to the love extended by others as well as the
uncontrollable urge to extend it.
WARNING: If you have some or all of the above symptoms, please be advised that your condition of inner peace may be so far advanced as to not be curable. If you are exposed to anyone exhibiting any of these symptoms, remain exposed only at your own risk.
Copyright © 1984 Saskia Davis. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. For permission to republish, contact Saskia at sweetamazinggrace (at) earthlink.net.
Also see:
- Top 10 celebrity Buddhists
- Why meditation works
- Walcott: “You will love again the stranger who was yourself”
- Top 10 myths about meditation
- Einstein: “A human being is part of a whole, called by us the ‘Universe’ ”
Comments
Comment from graceonline
Time: November 5, 2007, 1:03 am
Wonderful! Serene. Thank you.
With hands folded …
Comment from Jeff
Time: November 5, 2007, 4:51 pm
So how am I supposed to make this happen for myself if one of the things I want to achieve is not making things happen? Am I to wait around for inner peace? Or get it myself? Or just stumble past this page and not look back?
Comment from Bodhipaksa
Time: November 5, 2007, 5:27 pm
Hi Jeff,
That’s a good question. Saskia is probably the only person who knows exactly what she meant by “An increasing tendency to let things happen rather than make them happen,” but in my experience there can be an unhealthy grasping after results that can actually get in the way of getting what you want.
A mundane example is the person who desperately wants a romantic partner and whose desperation has the unfortunate effect of putting people off. A more spiritual example would be the way in which grasping after happiness can cause great suffering.
The solution for the desperate seeker after love is perhaps to relax and to be him or herself, and to stop trying so hard; to learn to be happy while single and to let that relaxation and happiness attract others.
With spiritual seeking the solution seems to be to stop grasping after results and to simply enjoy the process of working with whatever’s going on in the present moment, being less concerned about where you want to go. It can still be very important to have goals — without them we rarely achieve anything — but goals need to be held lightly and not grasped after.
That’s what I’d take that passage to mean.
Comment from Anne
Time: November 28, 2007, 3:53 am
I have read the “symptoms” that were enumerated above and felt like I was reading about myself. I have only found myself in this situation recently and actually considered myself as a “worry wart” before.
Comment from Chad Reitsma
Time: November 29, 2007, 12:50 pm
Excellent framing :)
Comment from david
Time: January 1, 2008, 2:47 am
This is truly charming. So glad to have found it.
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