The Illusion of Control
A life spent focused on achieving security with respect to time, when in fact such security is unattainable, can only ever end up feeling provisional – as if the point of your having been born still lies in the future, just over the horizon, and your life in all its fullness can begin as soon as you’ve put it, in Arnold Bennett’s phrase, ‘into
... See moreOliver Burkeman • Four Thousand Weeks
As our brother Job learned, our presumptive contracts are delusory efforts by the ego to be in control. We learn that life is much riskier, more powerful, more mysterious than we had ever thought possible. While we are rendered more uncomfortable by this discovery, it is a humbling that deepens spiritual possibility. The world is more magical, less
... See moreJames Hollis • Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life
I don’t mind what happens. Perhaps these words need a little unpacking; I don’t think Krishnamurti means to say that we shouldn’t feel sorrow, compassion, or anger when bad things happen to ourselves or others, nor that we should give up on our efforts to prevent bad things from happening in the future. Rather, a life spent “not minding what... See more