We attribute meaning to the insignificant things and miss out on the significant things. By us living simply, the simple life, we can choose to put the right emphasis on aspects of our lives that bring about peace, harmony and stability.
We are defined by 'things'
We accumulate things, things have become a religion substitute to those who like material things. We are no longer defined by our thoughts, but by things. We are defined by what we have rather than by who we are. Money, fancy cars, have replaced us even thinking, or contemplating emotional and spiritual growth.
Things will satisfy your needs 'temporarily'
But where emotional and spiritual growth will catapult you into a healthier place, money and fancy cars, will only ever temporarily satisfy your needs. The more you have a need to want and buy nice things, the more you will overlook spirituality.
Where you may seek to fulfill your desires, you will ignore the fact that those things are insatiable. It's easy to understand what happens when you put material possessions before emotional and spiritual growth. Things can never replace how you feel emotionally, unless you're already healed. For a finite time, you may begin to feel better, but that feeling doesn't last.
Ownership of Possessions
Ownership of possessions, the simple life a life without things, will help you to get rid of the junk, the noise and the excess you’ve spent a life capitalising on. The older we get the more we want to trade in superficiality for simplicity, gratitude and mindfulness.
The process helps us to cultivate a sense of appreciation for our life rather than the clutter we accumulate. It will also help us to understand that we already have what we need to be happy, satisfied and fulfilled.
Simplicity bundled with our favorite possessions is not necessarily a bad thing.
However, we should understand that material things will not enlighten us or make us happy, especially if we lose our souls obtaining it. It's real easy to get lost.
Thanks Tim. Yes, this is where we're going wrong. We've introduced material things into our lives thinking those things will make us happy, but they never can.
Material things will never enlighten us or make us happy. The more we insist, the more we get lost. I agree.
We should all strive to live a simple life, one which is based on the things that matter, void of complications and distractions.
I agree paring back unnecessary accumulation of stuff is a great place to start, so we can concentrate on quiet contemplation. A few less 'toys' never hurt anyone.
Thank you. Yes, we absolutely should. As you rightly say 'a few less toys never hurt anyone.' When we put too much importance on material things, we will start to lose sight of why we're here and what life means in the spiritual context.
If you understand that we are spiritual beings having a human experience, you will understand why it is important to pare back on the 'unnecessary accumulation of stuff.'
It's not just 'stuff' it's also behaviour traits. If the pandemic teaches us one thing, it's that we must support and be there for each other moving forward.
Too many lives lost, not enough camaraderie and pulling together for the greater good including supporting and looking after the natural world.