A life filled with projects becomes a life mired in delusion and stress. Projects are merely part of our life’s content, not the essence of life itself.
Julie Nelson
I stumbled upon this here, and it made me pause and reflect. It serves as a gentle reminder that the essence of life is living, no matter what form it takes at any given moment. A gentle acceptance of whatever arises, however your mind shapes what’s in front of you, can create room for reality instead of losing yourself in an imaginary existence filled with ‘shoulds,’ ‘needs,’ and ‘wants.’
What kind of project are you turning your life into today? And what ‘you project’ are you working on?
What if you paused and remembered that you are a living being, and that’s all the identity you need?
How about honoring the being that is you, flaws, shortcomings, and beauty, without turning it into another project?
I was in the midst of improving my financial mindset and my approach to success when I realized that “Project Aylin 2.0” has to come to a halt after the encounter with that instagram post. And now we’re all stuck with this version of me. Am I truly a stagnant program in need of an upgrade? Even my cells renew themselves constantly as I march towards my wrinkly self. Yet I have a fixed image of who you and I are in my mind. That’s how I operate. I carry my idea of you and the world around me everywhere I go. But it doesn’t work, you see. It causes me to miss out on what’s right in front of me.
So, here and now, I’m attempting to let go of that fixed version of myself, and of you and allowing my mind to be curious and form new impressions of the world around me every day. That, it seems to me, is the ultimate freedom—to start anew every moment.
The beginner’s mind concept in Zen Buddhism is a refined version of this. The term was popularized by Shunryu Suzuki, a Japanese Zen master, in his book “Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind,” and emphasizes the value of approaching meditation and life in general without the burden of expertise or preconceived ideas. I enjoyed reading it years ago and realize I would like a refresher.
Yet I can’t help but wonder if this, too, has become another project for me now. What do you think?
