PICKING A SIDE:

[Pravin Kumar]

Picking a Side:

When you stop picking sides the mind settles into a state of just being with what’s in front of you. After all no side is right or wrong so when none is picked all you are left with is peace...

When a person picks a side, it’s always done with the intention that it’s the right side. What happens next is anyone who isn’t on that side is automatically considered to be on the wrong side. What’s missed when a side is picked is the awareness that there really isn’t a true right or wrong side; there’s only a perception. Get this though, what side is picked is not really the issue, it’s the picking a side that’s the issue. This is because picking a side instantly causes separation, even when people pick the same side. Whether it’s a religion, a political party, for or against something, or just about anything, issues arise because when a side is picked attachments energy begins its control, and with attachment being the root of suffering, well let’s just say there you have it.

The Conditioned Mind has to pick a side, it’s the nature of the conditioning. It cares little what is picked just as long there’s a side picked. It needs to define itself by attaching to something so picking a side falls right in line with its nature. A quiet mind needs no such definition. Quietness isn’t picked, not picking a side simply results in the mind settling and thus quieting. An example would be driving a car and constantly switching (picking) lanes, if you stayed in one lane and simply drove, you would still get to where you were going, there would just be a lot less noise so more peace would naturally take the place of the noise. When you stop picking sides the mind settles into a state of just being with what’s in front of you. After all no side is right or wrong so when no side is picked all you are left with is peace...

MICHAEL CUPO