The secret to inner freedom
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Struggle is as inevitable as gravity. Suffering, on the other hand, is optional.
By “suffering” I mean psychological pain, which is my mental/emotional resistance to not having what I want and not wanting what I have. I create my own suffering when I demand that life should be different than it is.
I’ve learned (usually the hard way) that I cannot escape struggle, but I can live with freedom on the inside and conscious ambition on the outside despite even the most challenging circumstances.
The secret, which I stumbled upon years ago, is this:
I don’t mind what happens. That is the essence of inner freedom.
-Jiddu Krishnamurti
In other words…
Do not be attached to any outcome.
Do not make your inner freedom dependent on what does or doesn’t happen according to the way you think things should be.
Don’t make demands on the world (and the 8+ billion people who fill it) to meet your expectations.
Instead, anchor your freedom within yourself. Take radical responsibility for your own peace, joy, and freedom. When you don’t demand that the entire universe bends to your liking, all the pressure comes off. You can finally relax. You can live.
How can someone “not mind what happens” without becoming indifferent to life or others?
Being unattached to “what happens” isn’t the same as detachment or indifference or being a sociopath. God knows we have enough of those. It means letting go of your own demands on the world.
When you free the world from the demands you place on it, you have more compassion, creative energy, and love to meet others where they are. You also free yourself from needing to control the whole world in order to maintain your happiness and sanity.
Instead of fighting life, you have energy to care more, not less, for others. Your personal boundaries become clearer and your capacity for peace expands.
Does that mean you shouldn’t desire anything?
Many assume being unattached to outcomes means we shouldn’t have any desires or preferences. Many also mistakenly think that’s what some philosophers and spiritual teachers meant when they said desire is the root of suffering.
It leads some to believe that being free means not having any desires, preferences, or wants at all. However, a desire-less life is impossible. Even the desire to have no desires is a desire. Many spiritual seekers fall into the trap of chasing a desire-less life, thinking it is the way to enlightenment. That’s like searching the world for water that isn’t wet.
Desire isn’t the root of suffering. Our attachment to our desires is. Desire is a primal urge of existence. Life wants to live and actualize its potential. You are no different because Life is living you, too. You are Life/Life is you. Your desires must expand, not contract, as you realize your inner freedom.
However, your desires will fundamentally shift if you’re living with an orientation toward freedom, because most desires emerge from a sense of lack. Typically, I want something I don’t have, and so I set out to get it through new experiences, relationships, and possessions, hoping to satisfy that gnawing sense of lack. I make my freedom and happiness dependent on the outcome.
When you start with the knowledge that you are already whole and free inside, your desires become an external expression of that freedom and wholeness. You’re no longer seeking freedom through the pursuit of desires because your sense of freedom depends on no thing and no one.
Instead, your actions become a creative expression of your already free inner vitality. Life becomes more playful. You experience more flow and less striving. And in not minding what happens, you free yourself to be more alive, engaged, and intentional.
LOVED this! Will restack!! 🤍
This has been my philosophy forever, but you've done a much better job of explaining it. When people can't understand why I'm not outraged when someone lets me down, I struggle to tell them where I'm coming from. So I've started by sharing this with one of my best friends, and expect that he will share it with others! Sandy from The Nature of Us Substack