just cut the strings and get focused
“Understand at last that you have something in you more powerful and divine than what causes the bodily passions and pulls you like a mere puppet. What thoughts now occupy my mind? Is it not fear, suspicion, desire, or something like that?” — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 12.19
We live in a time and era where countless sources and forces are vying for our money, our time, and our attention. Although there are several temptations and seductive entities lurking around, here are some things that we’re all struggling with: newspapers and tabloids, social media, video streaming apps and websites (especially YouTube), fast food companies, news channels, banks and retailers, and the advertisement industry as a whole. And the bad news is that they’re not going to stop anytime soon. In fact, they are only going to get more powerful, more addictive, and even harder to resist as time passes.
These distractions constantly mislead us and pull us away from the things that truly matter. Apart from these, we must also deal with negative emotions such as lust, fear, worry, greed, and our own demons, energy blocks, unproductive and self-sabotaging behaviors, and habits.
In this day and age, each of us is pulled by these internal and external forces. As a direct outcome, we feel stuck and lost, and in spite of our repetitive efforts, we never succeed in awakening the hero within us.
It’s crucial that we create a life focused on our sacred purpose and shut off all the external noises that sway us away from it. We must constantly fight these distractions and temptations that keep us anchored in our previous patterns and stop us from living our truth and living a meaningful life that leads to glory. We need to be able to cut the strings for good so that we don't live anymore like a puppet who has no control over the way he acts.
The bottom line is that if we don't take charge and design our life, other people and society will design it for us. So, ultimately each of us has a choice: either we live a fearless and heroic life that aligns with the divinity within us or we give up our power to forces, within and without, that distract us from our values and our goals. What will you choose?
