What is Desire?
We all know that it’s a strong wish to get something or for something to happen.
My question is: How to differentiate desire from illusion? Or is desire an illusion itself?
Have you observed a camel running in desert on a hot sunny day? It sees a mirage at a far away distance and lives in an illusion that it is water and it keeps running towards it, to quench its thirst. However will it ever be successful? In reality it is just an optical illusion.
Are we not living like camels in desert? We run behind our desires and when finally achieve them, we get hungry for something new and the chase continues. Our goals keep changing with age and time. Nothing seems to give us ever-lasting satisfaction.
As kids we crave for things like toys, chocolates, bicycles. What happens when we see the situation from a point of view of a parent? We find their crying for a chocolate as a silly behaviour but its a serious matter for a kid😄 Don’t you think God must be feeling pity on us when we cry over worldly desires not getting fulfilled?
While humans can focus on their spiritual growth and learnings, they waste their precious time in being entangled in these illusions meant to distract us. Guess what! We are easily letting them win.
Ways to overcome the trap of desires/Illusion/Maya:
- Awareness: A person with heightened awareness will not easily fall into this trap. Awareness comes with practising mindfulness. Life is like a river and we are flowing with it. When in doubt ask yourself: Are we going with the flow or against it? If you are struggling from a long time and all the circumstances seem to be against you, you have given your 100% still things are not working out; it’s time for you to let go of your control.
My father recently suffered a huge loss in real estate however to my surprise he was sharing the news with total ease and no resistance or suffering. When I enquired that how is he not feeling miserable, he said, “I believe that whatever is mine will be mine. It was not meant for me, hence I lost it. So why to complain?” - Constant reminder: It is imperative to constantly remind yourself that our life is a blessing and hence we cannot afford to waste it. It is like our final exam and we cannot afford to get distracted.
Whenever in doubt, ask yourself: Does this action/ thought align with my life path/goal? If the answer is no, don’t waste your valuable time and energy on it. Stop chasing!
Rather focus on what can be done with this valuable yet finite time and energy. - Acceptance: Accept the fact that our lives are governed by a higher power/consciousness. If we have done all the hard work with commitment and consistency and still fail to bring changes, its best to accept the situation with an understanding that all facts are not revealed to us.
There is a famous saying, “When your life goes by your plan its good but if your life doesn’t go as per your wish, it’s even better😇because in that case your life will go by God’s wish which is always better and for our highest good.”
Just like parents guard their kids from doing certain things which they are fond of or are excited about, because those actions may harm them in the long run. Similarly, God does that for us. We may not realise this now, as we humans have a limited understanding based on this lifetime(irrespective of our wisdom). We might realize later that it was a Blessing in disguise - Align your desires with Universe: I follow a simple principle whenever in doubt. I align my desires with the collective and if there is incoherence, that’s a sign of illusion. I ask myself that does this benefit humanity or is it a personal goal?
Other way of asking is: Will this bring happiness to God or only me?
Sometimes, we don’t realize that our desires might cause misery or pain to our loved ones or people in our close proximity, or may be humanity in general. We would never do that intentionally therefore its better to ask the above question to yourself. This brings immense clarity and strength to rise above the situation/trap. Actions stemming from such desires will lead to accumulation of bad karma, hence better to be aware of it, rather than realizing at a later point. - Faith: Faith plays a major role in loosening the grip over a desire which needs to be released for our highest good.
In the movie, “A Walk to Remember” in 2002; I loved the way Jamie had faith in God that he surely has better plans for her. All she keeps in heart is, gratitude for all her blessings and magic she got to witness! - Tapping into the power of Nature: This is the most potent ways of coming close to God or higher vibrational states which in turn does the magic of releasing you from the trap of illusion.
- Journaling: This brings us close to our own authentic self. We become more aware of our own feelings, thoughts, hidden emotions. The things which cannot be measured, can’t be changed. If you want to come out of a problem, you need have some clarity, specially in terms of the root of the problem, and what can be the possible solutions.
Spend good quality time on it. This will act as a therapy session(easy on your pocket!)
If we maintain this habit, we truly learn a lot about our own self and also the cycles we tend to be trapped in. In today’s fast paced life, it’s very easy to lose yourself. Journaling helps us by being our anchor.
When we write down how we feel, things become very clear. Emotions are there in our own minds but writing has a power to bring clarity.
I have solved many problems through journaling, it’s worth a try and once you find solutions, it’s even more important to write them down. They will act as our navigators ahead.
