When we take ourselves too seriously,
We limit our options on how to respond to a given set of circumstances.
If we take offense to something,
We bring ourselves in the position of having to defend ourselves.
Once we're being defensive,
We're trying to protect something that doesn't really exist.
That being the self.
And this idea of no self can sound somewhat mystical,
But it's really not.
Just consider the last time you felt defensive about something,
And compare that to how you felt when you were happy.
Carefree,
Perhaps on vacation somewhere.
The selves present in those two situations are entirely different.
We assume that the characteristics that make up those selves are somehow consistent.
That they're ticking along in the background somehow.
Even when we're not feeling them,
When we're not maintaining them,
When we're not fabricating each of them.
But how do we know?
We see a pattern.
We may fabricate the same characteristics of self at various times.
This does not mean that they're permanent.
We cannot prove that they're permanent.
How is it possible for people to change?
Well,
The truth is,
When a self is created,
It is created in that moment.
And it's entirely unique,
Even if it seems consistent with the past self.
And it dissolves upon arising.
Take a snapshot in an instant of who or what you take yourself to be.
All the thoughts,
Feelings and sensations that make up you.
Try to keep those thoughts,
Feelings and sensations the same for longer than a moment.
If you look closely enough,
You will find that it can't be done.
There is only an ever-changing pattern of thought,
Feeling,
Sensation.
And any attempt to put a finger on any specific pattern that occurs and call it me,
Is erroneous.
So,
Don't take yourself seriously.
There is no self to take seriously.
No one to be offended.
No one to defend.
No one to be right.
No one to be wrong.
And when all of this is held lightly,
We find that we're free to respond to circumstances in so many ways.
We can smile at those who disagree with us.
We can love those who we used to hate.
Because we have no personal stake in things.
It is a great paradox,
That the less we try to control,
The more content we are with our circumstances.
We are trained to believe that happiness is to be found in the arrangement of circumstances.
But circumstances never stay the same.
And so in this paradigm we become like a dog chasing its tail.
Or a child whose motor skills are yet to develop fully,
Trying to stack bricks.
And always failing.
True happiness,
Which is better expressed with the word contentment,
Is found in accepting circumstances as they are.
And accepting that they will change.
Discover your inherent contentment that is your birthright.
With no dependence on circumstances.
And don't take yourself too seriously.
