LOOK FOR YOUR TRUE ROLE OR PURPOSE.
A life crisis can also bring us a major realization. We might realize that we lack real meaning in our lives! We often lack a sense of purpose in our life! Without such meaning & purpose in our life, we feel incomplete & unfulfilled. This may just present as a subtle dissatisfaction or discontent. Or it can be there in the background as a low-grade angst. But all this adds to our load of suffering. So, we might need to address this too.
After a crisis, we might aim for more meaning and purpose in life. We might ask ourselves: “What is it that gives my life meaning, purpose & joy”? This inner inquiry can take some considerable time! Our time of quiet contemplation will allow such a deeper search.
There are ways to speed our recovery and build long term happiness. One way to help ourselves is to discover what we value most in life. This helps lift our spirits and adds more gratitude & joy to our life. We will explore this in more detail later.
…What do you value most in life?
WE MUST LOOK DEEPLY WITHIN OURSELVES.
We can start an ‘inner quest’ during our time-out, after a crisis. This pause is an important part of resetting our life. But it takes time to fully realize our true role or purpose in life. This cannot be rushed! This will come naturally & spontaneously. We just need to be sufficiently open or ready. We might need to be patient, and to quietly contemplate this regularly.
Opportunities for inner contemplation will likely increase after a major crisis. We may no longer have our usual work routine. We no longer have our usual distractions & diversions. Or these distractions no longer seem as interesting or as engaging! All this will help to quieten our mind, and allow more insight to come through, if we just allow this.
A crisis can help us face ourselves, or even compel us to do this. In this contemplative process, the answers we really need can surface into our awareness! These might come as insights or a deep inner knowing. Allowing this quiet contemplation is an important part of our recovery. Some call this process the practice of ‘mindfulness’ or ‘meditation’.
MAKE TIME FOR DAILY QUIET CONTEMPLATION.
We may be naturally drawn to reflect after a crisis. In this way, a crisis can accelerate our personal transformation. Taking time for quiet contemplation will seem more inviting & natural to us. We will likely have more free time for this. Otherwise, we can schedule this ‘personal time’ for ourselves. This is our personal ‘time out’ that we allocate just for ourselves.
We start by relaxing and sitting quietly with ourselves! We learn to ‘be’ with ourselves. This can be sitting quietly alone or being out in nature. We then practice just being alone with our thoughts. We try to observe our thoughts without interacting with them. We allow our mind to quieten further by not engaging with our thoughts. This allows our mind chatter to settle naturally. We don't force or control our thinking. We just allow any thoughts to just pass through our mind. In this natural and gentle way, we tame our restless ‘monkey-mind’.
…Have you tried to quieten your monkey mind?
START CONTEMPLATION ANY WAY YOU CAN.
Try not to engage with any thoughts that arise. Just impartially observe those thoughts that do arise, as an objective or neutral observer. Then let those thoughts fade away naturally. They will just pass across the ‘screen’ of your mind and then fade away. In this simple way, we learn to ‘just BE’ with what remains. This is our pure inner self! Remember not to engage with any thoughts. Just practice letting them pass through. Give this a try!
The recommended minimum ‘quiet time’ required for silent contemplation is about 15 minutes daily. We might initially start with 5-10 minutes of quiet contemplation, or whatever feels right for us. The technique of inner contemplation is discussed again later, in more detail. But the sooner we start this process, the better! Just start this in any way you can! Even if this means going for a quiet walk or sitting peacefully under a tree.
QUIET CONTEMPLATION INVITES DEEP INSIGHTS.
Our time-out for quiet contemplation is very important. Quiet contemplation will allow deep insights to unfold. These insights originate from the space or gaps between our thoughts. That's why we need to slow down our thoughts. Slowing our thoughts helps to expand these gaps.
Our insights arise from the gaps between our thoughts. If these thoughts are quiet enough, then these insights can surface to our conscious awareness. The insights can present as a deep intuition, inspiration or realization. This is our ‘quiet inner voice’.
INSIGHT CAN FEEL LIKE AN ‘INNER NUDGE’.
Sometimes this inner voice or wisdom presents as an ‘inner nudge’ or a heartfelt knowing. We might feel a persistent urge to do something, or to go somewhere. This can lead to quite a beneficial result! So, we should anticipate and heed these synchronistic opportunities.
This deep contemplative process can also uncover our deep inner needs, and even our life purpose. These further realizations can dramatically change our outlook and enhance our recovery. But what are these ‘deep inner needs’ that we might uncover?