Living a Normal Life

Hold the idea that everything is one simultaneous process. At the same time, lead a normal everyday existence.

When you first come across someone spouting off about how “everything is one thing” and “we’re all connected”, it’s very easy to think that doing normal everyday things and exploring ideas like this are mutually exclusive activities. However, they DO happen simultaneously. They need to happen simultaneously. You need to do normal everyday things to survive, or you wouldn’t be able to explore these ideas. If you don’t eat and drink and breathe, you will be ill-equipped to examine this stuff.

Even the most ascetic monk is human and needs to eat, breath, drink, and go to the bathroom.

It’s like the title of Jack Kornfield’s book: “After the Ecstasy, the Laundry”. People often search for spiritual truth, trying to beat the universe at its own game. It’s easy to think that with enough spiritual discipline, you might be able to be one up on the universe (and your fellow neighbors while you’re at it!).

Remember that the universe is all inclusive (meaning it includes YOU). You’re an integral part of the universe, so there’s absolutely no way you can get one up on it. You might be able to get one up on certain aspects of the universe but doing so is temporary and illusory.

Getting one up on the universe is akin to a pair of eyes trying to see themselves without a mirror or teeth trying to bite themselves. Getting one up on the universe requires a fulcrum—and there’s no fulcrum outside the universe.