Amidst the Chaos, Here is How You Can Achieve Mind Tranquillity
A little piece of advice from philosophers.
‘The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence, his power for good. The calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom.’ — James Allen
At one point or the other in our life, chaos will inevitably set in our life which is why being able to achieve mind tranquillity goes a long way. But in achieving mind tranquillity, we need to ask ourself the question.
Can we ever achieve peace of mind?
Our mind harbours our thoughts, and our thoughts come and go like the clouds moving through the sky.
Worry, action, judgement, expectation, desire, and things all around us give rise to what goes on in our mind.
The more we consume a lot of from our environment, the more our minds becomes compacted with thoughts.
We are exposed to millions of pieces of information a day. We have our personal moment, problems, desire, and the likes. The more these things keep growing, the more striving to achieve a stable mind decrease.
“Wherever your mind goes, your body follows. Wherever your thoughts go, your life follows” says Benjamin Hardy, PhD.
Mind tranquillity and focus go hand-in-hand. Thus, when you learn how to stay focused and gain control of your thoughts, you are able to experience peace of mind. If you lack the ability to focus, it’s difficult to experience peace.
“Peace is liberty in tranquillity.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero
Ever wonder why the monk is always in a silent temple to practice their meditation? That’s because the slightest noise can divert their attention away from their meditation.
So, whatever you give your attention to, clogs your mind.
Epictetus put it best when he says “care about your mind more than your body”
In this modern era, we waste our attention a lot, especially to trivial things. Things that don’t matter.
When we blather about trivial things, we ourselves become trivial, for our attention gets taken up with trivialities. You become what you give your attention to. Epictetus
The monks in the temple are able to practice their meditation because they allow nothing else to get their attention.
To achieve Mind tranquility one must put to note a few things;
Stop negative Judgement on yourself
“The ability to observe without evaluating is the highest form of intelligence.” — Jiddu Krishnamurti
Negative judgement towards ourselves and others is a major factor that leads to mind restlessness.
I know these because I was once a victim of it. We experience mind restlessness when we judge ourselves in a negative way or especially when negative things happen to us.
Now, what happens when something good happens to you? do you experience mind restlessness? No.
Negative judgement on ourselves leads to low self-acceptance. And when you can accept who you are, you can’t be at peace with yourself.
A perfectionist also is an example of people who practice negative judgement. If it is not perfect, I am no good. And what this leads to is mind restlessness.
Rather than giving negative judgement learn to observe before you judge, open yourself to possibilities. Acknowledge that your opinion is not a fact rather that it’s how you choose to see the world.
When you stop judging, you also stop caring about what other people think about you.
In the article how judgement clouds the mind. Dr Cynthia Thaik says self-criticism leads to negative thought patterns, self-doubt, and anxiety. Which in turn can wreak havoc on the heart and the immune system and prevent us from leading the lives that we truly deserve?
Find a way to stop negative judgement on yourself and you are on your way to experience mind tranquillity.
How easy it is to repel and to wipe away every impression which is troublesome or unsuitable and immediately to be in all tranquillity. Marcus Aurelius.
Associate yourself with good people
Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it is better to be alone than in bad company. Booker T. Washington
The people we associate ourselves with goes a long way in deciding whether we can be at peace with ourselves or not.
Associate yourself with people who complain and nag a lot and it tells on you. Associate yourself with growth-minded and good people and it rubs off you as well.
We must, therefore, be especially careful in choosing people and deciding whether they are worth devoting a part of our lives to them. Whether the sacrifice of our time makes a difference to them. Seneca.
Learn to do what suits your nature
“If you cannot find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else.” — Marvin Gaye
A lot of people go against what suits their nature and this can sometimes lead to mind restlessness.
Getting yourself into the zone of your thoughts is what’s important. Maybe hiking a trail or laying down in the grass is what gets you there.
However, you must consider whether your nature is more suited to a practical activity or to quiet study and reflection. And incline in the direction of your natural faculty and disposition says, Seneca.
Marcus Aurelius put it best when he says “The nearer a man comes to a calm mind, the closer he is to strength”.
Practice Contentment
“Until you make peace with who you are, you will never be content with what you have.” — Doris Mortman
When can you say you have enough. The power to be content with ourselves is a powerful tool. And this a major thing humans lack in this modern time.
We always want more, more, more and more because that’s what society tells us. But the truth is more only compounds our misery and the truth is LESS IS MORE.
Marcus Aurelius put it best when he says “occupy thyself with few things if thou wouldest be tranquil”
When you are unclear on how much is enough, your only answer will be more.
We are never satisfied with what we have acquired or possessed. We crave for more. We always want more of what our friends have.
When you start practising contentment with yourself, you will start to appreciate what you have.
He who is contented is rich. Lao Tzu
Derek Sivers put it best in his book anything you want when he told a story about Kurt Vonnegut.
Kurt Vonnegut and Joseph Heller were at a party at a billionaire’s extravagant estate. Kurt said, “Wow! Look at this place! This guy has everything!” Joseph said, “Yes, but I have something he’ll never have… Enough.”
“Health is the greatest gift, contentment is the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.” Buddha
When can you tell yourself you have enough? Because it goes a long way in achieving mind tranquillity.
“To be pleased and content with what happens is what is peculiar to the good man” Marcus Aurelius
Are you content with what you have?
The paradox of pursuing peace of mind will never go away.
At the end of the day, bills need to be paid, validation is important to our ego, fast cars are fun to drive, and so forth. There’s no shortage of people willing to sacrifice what’s necessary to make sure their goals and dreams are attained. Even if it means forgoing peace of mind in the short term. We are animals with material wants and needs and tend to be driven by them says Tomas Laurinavicius.
In the end, it all depends on what you are willing to sacrifice to achieve mind tranquillity.
If you can carefully align yourself with what suits your nature by avoiding negative judgement also closely looking at the people you associate with and you are contented. Best believe you are on your way to achieving mind tranquillity.
