We got to be worried too much when there are too much uncertainties. Whlist we got to be so damn bored if we know too much certainties.

The point is we need both, the certainties and the uncertainties, so that our life would be more interesting. Paradox.

Good post Leo. Thanks.

The Buddha taught that we can not avoid pain. Life is painful. When his companion on the journey of their mutual enlightenment and best friend of 50 years died, the Buddha described the pain of it as the sun going out. Pain is inevitable and all beings feel pain.

But the Buddha, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hahn, and so many other past and present spiritual teachers have figured out that we can free ourselves from suffering by not trying to control things, by not acting from craving or aversion, but by acting from a place of love and compassion.

In the Art of Power, Vietnamese Buddhist monk and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hahn wrote that we want things like money, career, power, sex/love, fame because we think those things will make us happy. But too often we give up our happiness and choose these goals over the wellbeing of ourselves, our families, and our communities.

Worse. Our impatience and fear-based conditioning lies to us. Fear and insecurity supersizes our suffering and makes us believe:

(a) there is a problem not having what we want (non-acceptance, craving);

(b) we don’t have what we want because we or our habits suck (aversion and self-hatred); and

(c ) the world or particular people suck (hatred, aversion, misperception, learned helplessness).

In short, fear tricks us into thinking there is something wrong with us or our life, and we suffer for it. We beat ourselves up and send our fear and our sucky messages out to the universe. Everything feeling and thought is a prayer. Every time we let fear take over and act or not act in fear, we are broadcasts the opposite of what we want to the universe and to the people we interact with.

Not accepting what is does more to prevent us from seeing what is and from attaining our prayers, dreams, and goals than a shitty organizational system or a problem with procrastination.

That is why when we define our goals, we should take time to not only figure out what we want to have, but also who we really are and how we want to spend our precious gift of life. The Buddha, Jesus, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hahn, and so many other good historical and contemporary spiritual teachers tell us that happiness, peace, and freedom from suffering boils down to the power of love, compassion, forgiveness, understanding, and acceptance.