A reading from class by Mark Nepo from The Book of Awakening
Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you. -Lao-Tzu
Beyond what we need to survive, to better ourselves has become to mean having as much as one can store. and as such has turned into an addiction in our modern world. Such a want to have things comes from a sense of scarcity, and anxiety that something is missing, which owning will somehow soothe.
But to better ourselves inwardly is another matter. The closer to the heart we take this, the more we find ourselves trying to inhabit what we have carried since the beginning. This want comes from a sense of abundance, a yearning to unlock the mystery of what is already there.
- Feel the reality of your life right now.
- Let the breath take you, for the moment, beneath your dreams of betterment.
- As you exhale, feel the soreness around all you want.
- As you inhale, feel the mystery at center where nothing is lacking.
