How would you like your 2022 to be? Let’s take the opportunity of the first full moon of the year to reflect on this question.
This is the time of the year that we express good wishes for ourselves and our loved ones – wishes such as “good health”, “happiness”, “everything goes smoothly”. While we intend well when we send out those positive messages, rarely do we look into what they truly mean and how to turn them into reality.
What does “good health” mean to you? Do you mean the body experiencing no symptoms or illness? Or do you mean a strong and healthy Qi, body, heart and consciousness? What does “happiness” mean to you? Is it the pleasure you feel when your senses are stimulated and satisfied? Or is it the peace and harmony and the sense of oneness you feel deep within when you are relaxed and calm and when you feel trust, openness, love, gratitude and Gongjing in your heart? What does “everything goes smoothly” mean to you? Do you picture that as getting everything you want to have or achieve at the exact time you expect? I can tell you that no one can grant you this wish as this could only happen in fantasy land, not in reality. But if this wish could never come true, why do we all have it? Perhaps the underlying mentality behind is that we see obstacles as negative and we don’t want them. But, are they really negative?
It turns out that the obstacles we perceive hold the key to the good health and true happiness we long for. How so? It’s because they may very well be the obstacles that are in the way of good health and true happiness.
In this brand-new year of your life, I would like to encourage you to focus on identifying those obstacles. Notice when you get frustrated. Notice when you feel disappointed. Notice when anger arises. Notice when fear rears its head. Notice when you go down the path of avoiding and hiding. When you notice any of those, you have found a gateway to knowing yourself a little more than before, especially the patterns that cause them. More importantly, you can start working on removing those obstacles at the root by transforming those patterns.
Don’t be afraid of obstacles. Instead, call them opportunities. Embrace them whole-heartedly. Even better if you can be grateful to them because they will help you turn the wishes of good health and true happiness into reality.
Life will present all kinds of “obstacles” no matter what year we are in. Make 2022 the year for embracing obstacles. Embracing obstacles is a true way to embrace yourself. Do this till the day when all you see is nothing but opportunities. That’s the day the wish that ‘everything goes smoothly’ comes true.
I send you my best wishes for your 2022 and look forward to working together with you to realize them.
Yuan Tze
Experience this message as a meditation on REN XUE TV
