By Paige Leigh Reist┃Posted: February 12, 2019
Some say that the only certainty in life is change. So why are so many of us troubled by it? Change is uncomfortable: it challenges us to grow, to develop new perspectives, to look at ourselves and the world with honesty and vulnerability.
Mona Shah Joshi, a senior director for Art of Living, joined Dr. David Ault at the Spiritual Living Center in Atlanta to talk about getting comfortable on the path of change by tapping into a deep, still part of ourselves that is always unchanging. When you can reach that place, it’s so much easier to accept and welcome all of the changes happening around you.
Why getting used to change is a good thing
“When we start making comfort with the uncertainty, then we gain more confidence, we’re able to welcome that. When things are certain, things are definitely stable, but they’re also predictable. It can bring up boredom and dullness. When things are uncertain, sure, there’s chaos involved, but there’s also excitement, there’s a thrill. When you’re in a chaotic situation, that’s when your skill sets come up.”
The WOW! factor
“This I learned from my Guru, my mentor, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar--to bring up the wow factor in life. When we’re woke, we live life with a sense of awe, a sense of astonishment. When we don’t bring up that sense of wonder, that sense of awe, then life becomes mechanical. We miss this creation, which is steeped in mystery, which is steeped in possibilities. How many of you are watching the playoffs today? Would it be any fun to watch the games if you already knew the outcome? No! Life loses its joy when we know the results. So this wow factor opens up possibilities in us. Sri Sri showed us this breathing technique to bring up the wow factor inside of us.” (HINT: skip to 24:22 to learn this technique!).
Cleaning the slate of your mind
“Meditation is vital for cleaning the slate of our mind. Because meditation brings us to a non-judgemental space, and then we’re free. We have all these impressions that we collect--I like this, I don’t like this, it’s not going the way I thought it would--yes? And meditation just wipes it off. Meditation is that which puts us in touch with that non-changing self inside.”
During this talk, Mona outlines four different ways in which we can become more comfortable with change: self-study, wonder, courage, and faith. Check out the video for detailed explanations of each!
Paige Leigh Reist is a writer, editor, blogger, and creative writing instructor.
