Symptoms of inner peace

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.

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  • Namaste Bodhipaksa,

    Thank you for your guidance. Can you please elaborate about metta bhavana - is this about being soft and gentle in apporach !!! or maybe something else. Would be very keen to hear from you, please. Thanks once again.

  • sir, I wanted to improve my concentration and so have started doing meditation
    I am practicing cross legged position and I have been doing it for 3 days but I feel very tired After practicing meditation
    what is the problem please help!!!!

    • Hi, Indresh.

      It's very hard to say, from a brief description. It's possible that you're just noticing how tired you are, but that would usually cause you to feel tired during meditation, rather than afterward. It's more likely that you're making too much effort during meditation, and leaving you feeling tired afterward.

  • Hi my name is JJ and I am 14.
    I'm currently experiencing all of these symptoms and I do feel at peace a lot of the time. I can slip into meditation at any second I decide to but I have also recently noticed that I do not feel more calm and peaceful..I generally just feel the same now. I am also curious but why are you talking about inner peace as a disease like isn't it a good thing? Sorry if I misread it but yes I am experiencing all of these symptoms and I am currently focusing on opening my third eye. Have I found inner peace because if you said yes I would not be surprised because I hae noticed a lot of changes in myself and if you say no I still wouldn't be surprised as meditation just doesn't make me feel as peaceful anymore. Thank you :)

    • Lol I thought I was the only one who caught that...u know how this type of info can be seen as needed to be kept "secret". If only ppl knew they already know the secret just need to remember how to access it. Meditation reminds you as the vision is clearer each day

  • hello.
    this has made me concerned about meditation, because i feel you would need to judge self and others to make an appropriate decision on trusting them or learning from an experience. therefore losing interest of this is a bad thing.

    i am 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.

  • Hello,

    I feel at peace, but at the same time I don't feel emotions deeply, like I am numb, but I don't feel emptiness. Will I start feeling full range of emotions despite feeling peaceful? From the moment I started feeling peaceful, I felt connection with God.

    Thank you!
    M

    • Hi, Marta.

      What you describe isn't uncommon. Partly it can be a personality trait and partly it's habit. We can develop habits of spending a lot of time in our heads, thinking, and not so much time in the body, experiencing sensation and feelings. Those are habits we can change, and because life is more fulfilling when we're more mindful of our bodies and feelings, and therefore have a more feelingful relationship with ourselves, others, and the world, it's a good idea to learn to feel more.

      The ability to monitor our inner sensations, including feelings, is called interoception. It's an ability that can grow with practice. One study showed that meditators had greater awareness of their bodily sensations even than professional dancers. An awareness of our feelings is like a muscle: it develops with practice.

      So I'd recommend something like yoga, which trains you to be more aware of the body. Since feelings are sensations that are internally generated in the body, this kind of physical activity does help us to have more awareness of feelings.

      Mindfulness of breathing meditations involve awareness of the body, as do body scan meditations. Those are essential.

      I'd also recommend lovingkindness and compassion meditation, with an emphasis on practicing empathy. You can do this outside of meditation as well: try imagining what others might be feeling, and try and bear in mind that everyone you meet experiences happiness, unhappiness, and a whole range of emotions.

  • Hi,

    I completely agree with you about not experiencing life fully because of my thinking habits. I had some anxiety & depression problems in the past. I am very analytical person so I overanalyse every thought and sensation, although not as much as before. I spend lot of time in my head. I noticed that sometimes full range of emotions appears almost out of nowhere so I am really interested how to feel them anytime. Strange thing is that I don't know what kind of "switch" happens when I experience them. Because I really like "seeing the world in colors" as I call my emotional state when I feel fully, I am very happy for your recommendations :)
    Not far ago, I started listening to binaural beats to raise my emotional state and frequency in hope that it will help me with emotions.

    I am very thankful for your insightful reply!

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