Day 55: Follow Up on The Untethered Soul

Have you read the Untethered Soul yet? Man it’s so good. I have about 30 minutes left.

These books that are so heady are very disruptive. As mentioned yesterday, compare to The Power of Now, this book is better at explaining how to get to enlightenment.

Is that what you want to attain? There was a part of the book today where the author asks, “Do you want to be happy for the rest of your life? If you say yes, you have to commit to it. Even if your wife leaves you or your husband dies.”.

Seems drastic. If you’re living a life only of happiness, how do you experience true happiness because there is nothing to contrast with it.

Enlightenment is probably what Catholics say heaven is. Eternal bliss. But with enlightenment, you still croak. In catholicism, you’re guilted and threatened into living a certain way with the promise that when you reach the finish line you will THEN be rewarded with bliss.

That’s odd. Especially the significant amount of undertones that suffering and martyrdom (especially for women) are admirable traits.

Live a pious life. If you can’t, which no one can except the clergy (and don’t get me started on that), then you must confess your sins to a priest. And he’ll absolve you through God’s ordainment.

When I was 12 or 13 going through the confirmation process I thought back then that having to share my sins with a man to get god’s blessing was backwards. Why couldn’t I just follow the teaching church’s teaching that at any time I could talk to God.

ONE HOUR LATER

Paused writing to make dinner for one of the kids.

Listened to more of the audiobook. The Tao Te Ching and Yin Yang came up. So good.

What I’m taking from the book: be the watcher + release and relax. Those are the two resounding and recurring messages from the author.

Be the watcher means of the inner monologue. Instead of associating your “self” with the mind’s thoughts, just watch her (or him). Your true self is the watcher. And basically, you can’t out-think thoughts.

When unhealed and unresolved experiences present themselves to you and you have a response (either with thoughts or physiological…or both), release and relax. Don’t attach more emotion and attention. Always release. And always relax.

I’m going to give it a try and will keep you posted.