Freedom In Thinking
“We must be willing to think differently about any given person, situation or circumstance.”
This is where freedom lies, in being flexible with our thinking. Re-interpreting events, changing perspectives… it’s a creative process that can literally change our lives. Our thoughts translate into our actions. Suppose I see you, and I’ve seen you every day for the last year. You’d probably say I knew you well, but how can I really know who you are? We are so infinite, we have the capacity to be anything, do anything, think anything, and though much of us is written all over our faces and our bodies, much of us is hidden, even from those who are looking. The difficulty is actually even more profound, because I can only see you as well as my eyes (and mind) allow. Chances are I’ll see what I want to see, see what I expect, and be blind to things I do not like or cannot get along with. What I believe will impact my perception filters. If I’m caught up blaming you for your lack of generosity with me, I might assume that is how you always are and be blind to any displays of generosity you bestow on others (and even on me, if I can explain it away as something other than generosity - duty, guilt, etc.).
Zen masters talk of the need to return to being like a child, innocent and fresh, without ideas of who we are seeing or what we are seeing. They call it “Beginner’s Mind”. So that’s what it’s all about really. Being willing to see the people you think you know afresh, as if you have never seen them before, or as if you don’t actually know all there is to know about them (because in all likelihood you don’t!). This gives you the freedom to change and grow rather than getting into locked ideas and stagnation.
The same applies not just to people, but to situations. Even if you think you know something, of have a definite idea about something, be willing to think differently. Be forever open to new ideas and interpretations. What once was seen as bad often comes around to be something of value (the illness that forced you to learn all the subtle ways you were defeating yourself with negative thinking, for example). Even if it seems you’re in a bad place, maybe you’re not. Maybe you’re right where you need to be. Or maybe it’s something good that turns out to be bad. You win the lottery, you think your troubles are over, but soon you have new problems, people begging for money, expecting you to pay for everything, perhaps you have worries about losing the money, or maybe you thought it would make you happy and it didn’t.
And what about yourself? This is perhaps where the rewards will be immediately obvious. You might think you’re not talented, that you aren’t outgoing, that you aren’t a good singer or public speaker. But then, maybe you are. Don’t be so quick to label yourself, and experience the freedom that brings.
And finally, what brought this insight to me in the first place. Be willing to think differently about the world around you: the earth, the sky, the spirits all around, even God. Perhaps then you’ll come to know why some people call Life the Big Mystery.