Einstein’s equation is simple. The understanding and application of it is what is complex. And simple is not the same as “easy”. If it were easy, there would be no suffering in the world, right?

I am writing this article to bring some clarity to this conundrum. The Buddha taught that life is suffering, but he pointed out that we can control the amount and intensity of our suffering through how we respond to our environment. If we don’t resist what’s happening, there will be no suffering. For more on Buddha’s teachings, check out the Four Noble Truths. One website that makes it fairly easy to understand is https://www.zen-buddhism.net/buddhist-principles/four-noble-truths.html. 

Our suffering begins with an attachment: “The attachment to the desire to have (craving) and the desire not to have (aversion)“. The intensity of the craving or the aversion will either increase or decrease our suffering; thus resistance is the key variable in the equation.

As imperfect human beings living in an imperfect world, desires are inevitable. The goal, then, is not to deny ourselves what we desire, but to control our desires through non-attachment. 

Part of the complexity around suffering is the effect on our future lives. Carl Jung contended that “what you resist not only persists, but will grow in size.”  That statement seems counter-intuitive. It seems to be saying that it’s a good idea to accept what is, if only to put yourself in the best possible position to change it—or to achieve the freedom to move past it. Is your head spinning yet? 

Essentially, we attract to us whatever we are focusing on and giving our attention to. So, if we resist something that we don’t like, we have placed our attention on what we don’t like, and actually will attract more of what we don’t want. If we focus on our negative thoughts and images, we will remain under that cloud. If we focus on positive thoughts and have set goals that we aim to achieve, we will find a way to achieve them with massive action. This phenomenon is known as the Law of Attraction, which you probably have heard of.

Quantum physics helps prove that the Law of Attraction is real. 

The work of quantum physicists during recent years has helped to shine greater light on the incredible impact that the power of the mind has on our lives and the universe in general. The more that this idea is explored by scientists and great thinkers alike, the greater an understanding we have on just how significant a role the mind plays in shaping our lives and the world around us.

From the website http://www.thelawofattraction.com/what-is-the-law-of-attraction/

While most of us will not be able to truly understand the Law of Attraction, we can still take advantage of the power it has over our lives. It’s like believing in the existence of a God. It’s difficult to prove, yet is still powerful.

We are the artists of our own lives! We create pictures in our mind of what’s possible. From those images we make choices of which ones we want to attract. Then we can take action to make those images a reality.

No matter what you are looking to have or achieve or be in life, if you can hold onto an idea and see it for yourself in the mind’s eye, you can make it yours to have… with some effort on your part.

From the website http://www.thelawofattraction.com/what-is-the-law-of-attraction/

It’s both scary and exciting to know that we have so much control over our lives. If we acknowledge the truth of this Law, we are without excuses. Our lives are what we have created for ourselves. Our circumstances are the results of the choices we have made.

We can manifest love, abundance, good health, or a great job if we apply the principles of The Law of Attraction. Like anything else, we can get good at this through practice and persistence. In reality, success is inevitable if we believe in it and keep our faith. The only true variable is time. 

Circling back to the theme of this article, suffering is one of the emotions that we can control. By focusing on the positive, our resistance to what we don’t like decreases. We use the awareness of the problem or situation that could cause the suffering to fill our mind with images of what we want instead. Then we go about creating it. The first step is “awareness”. We can then use tools like visualization to create the images of what we want.

Sounds easy, but it’s not. Why not? The world we live in conspires against us. We have to overcome the paradigms that keep us stuck, which can be a big job, but the rewards are worth it!

What are your thoughts on this subject? Please comment below.

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