I recite these two mantras recently: ‘I am not this body’, and ‘it doesn’t matter’. The former, I came across while reading (very slowly too, not finishing this one) lectures of Maharashi, an Indian guru I heard about I don’t remember where. He talks about things I don’t understand but the mantra I’m keeping because it means that I am not getting old even if my body does. So there, getting old taken care of without any intervention from western medicine. And if you are wondering who I am (or you are for that matter), apparently, according to gurus that is, among other things, not my age, not my resume, not my relationships, and certainly not my past. So good luck figuring it out, I haven’t…
The latter is from Rules for Aging by Roger Rosenblatt. It is rule number one; he writes, and I agree, it will add decades to your life.
It doesn’t matter whatever you think matters. It does not matter if you are late or early; if you are here or there; if you said it, or did not say it; if you were clever, or if you were stupid; if you were having a bad hair day, or a no hair day; or if your boss looks at you cockeyed; or your boyfriend or girlfriend looks at you cockeyed; if you are cockeyed; if you don’t get that promotion, or prize, or house, or if you do. It doesn’t matter.
This one works wonders because it really doesn’t matter! It strips the pettiness out of you and leaves room for ‘what matters’. So far I gathered that it doesn’t matter that I eat (it certainly surprised me when I felt completely fine during a 36 hour fast), it does matter that we cook together once a week. It doesn’t matter that I exercise, it matters that I move. It doesn’t matter that I lose weight (I’m not this body so…, you see why I’m keeping this one:)), it matters that I’m not hanging on to things, including weight. It doesn’t matter that I mess up, it matters that I clean the mess, and make amends. And the list goes on. But sometimes, and at the expense of being perceived as a nihilist, in the grand scheme of things (oblivion for example) I think that none of it matters really. Maharashi also says so, something to do with being in the moment, and the rest being a dream… So we do the best we can at any given moment, the rest we let go…
What is your mantra these days?
