12. A clue: All emotional suffering is from thought

Do not seek the truth.
Only cease to cherish opinions.
- Sang-Tsan

Throughout history the Ancients have seen that the reality of life is that the world is what it is. It rolled along on its own long before we ever arrived, and will continue long after we’re gone. Yet we come along and think we know how it should be: My grandkids don’t come over often enough. The woman I’m dating works too many hours. He drinks too much. She’s too much of a flirt. And on and on it goes.

What I like about authentic teachers is that they don’t ask you to believe them. Instead, they say check it out for yourself. Have a good look. Does your opinion about how things should be really have an effect? Do we really know how it should be? Would it be kinder to let others be who they are? That doesn’t mean we have to be with them, but we also don’t have to try to change them. That’s not our job, and it’s controlling and manipulative.

We say, “Don drinks too much.” Is that true? Isn’t that like saying the sun shines too bright, or the sky is too blue? What’s the truth? The sun is as bright as it is, isn’t it? And the sky is as blue as it’s supposed to be, obviously. That’s it. Also Don drinks as much as he does. Without your opinion you just see the facts don’t you? That doesn’t mean you don’t help Don if he wants help and you’re moved to do so. But the results of that help are not your business.

Do we really know that if things were the way we thought they should be they’d be better? I think we’ve all had times in life where we’ve said, “Wow, that was a real blessing in disguise.” Other times we see no benefit for a certain happening. But do we really know even then?

In short, can we know more than God, or whatever you want to call that Intelligence-energy that is the One Source from which all things arise? Our thoughts aren’t a problem. After all, what created those thoughts of rejection and disagreement that you might have? Did you? Or are they just thoughts, meant to disappear into the same source they came from, like a cloud in the sky? All we need to notice is that they’re part of the happening of the world, always changing. We just don’t need to be attached to them as “mine”.