Life in two Directions

There is simultaneously no difference and every difference between the world outside your head and the goings-on of your mental life. I don't mean this in some nebulous, everything-is-one sort of way. While that experience of oneness is revealing, this particular train of thought isn't about our relationship to reality; it's about our daily interactions with reality.

Three layers of perception and reality

First, we have the world as it is: devoid of the meaning we observe within it, or project onto it – this world is the tree that falls in the forest when no one's around to hear it. That tree is what it is, nothing more, nothing less. At this level, it doesn't matter if our universe is a simulation, hallucination, or the "real" reality, that tree is there, no matter which world is the "real" one.

Next comes the layer of abstraction – the assumptions and assertions that ground your outlook on life. This is the realm of concepts and sociocultural beliefs we've been taught represent reality. Despite what we like to believe, our attitude is rarely the result of careful deliberation. Our outlooks tend to be an automatic emotional reaction to perspectives we assume are true. It's in this sphere where we distinguish "this" from "that" – the tree from the ground – good from bad.

To human beings, this layer is instinctual, doesn't require language, and is our first point of contact with the world as it is. It's the default reality we're born into, the reality mainstream society further indoctrinates us to, and it acts as the foundation for all our ideas and "understandings." This is the level that hypothesizes the nature of reality.

Finally, there's the realm of thought, emotion, and action. This is our interpretation of, and response to reality. It's where we spend most of our time. It's where our values come from, and it's where we like to assume that this world is the real one. We like to think our thoughts reflect the real world, but they don't; thoughts reflect the abstractions of the world we've internalized over a lifetime.

Why you feel bad sometimes (or often)

The picture below illustrates how the three realities typically manifest in life. We tend to start within our thoughts and emotions. We then imply our abstractions from that cognitive activity, and, believing those abstractions, paint our picture of the world.

We feel agitated because we approach life from inside ourselves. Our emotions lead us to apply our thoughts in search of justifications for the arbitrarily held abstractions that we've (often) based on our singular perspective of reality. We feel agitated because, by starting in our heads, we abstract ourselves so far from the world as it is that we lose ourselves in the stories we've told and been told about reality.

Agitation is only the start of the discontented feeling that your life isn't right, no matter what it looks like. The real emotional distress comes when we identify with entities other than the sensation of being. We're inclined to believe our opinions because the human instinct is to identify with our opinions - to question your beliefs is to question your existence.

Pessimism and optimism: if you think the world is crumbling, you'll think, feel, and act as if it is. You'll infuse circumstances that challenge your belief with meaning that supports it. Beautifully, this works the other way. If you believe the world, despite all its flaws and tragedies, is a hopeful place, then your abstractions attach positive meaning to challenging circumstance.

How to live a peaceful life in our crazy world

So how can you feel at peace in any circumstance? Remove the knee-jerk reactions of thought and emotion your abstractions generate (mindful meditation and unbiased awareness). Observe and question those abstractions (intentional cognition). See the other side of your beliefs.

Instead of identifying with your perspective, identify with the fluid awareness that gives rise to your perspective. Consciousness isn't attached to any label, so it's free to change its abstractions, thereby shifting our reactions to them. This doesn't transform the world as it is, it reshapes our approach to that world.

Approach life forwards and allow the world to shape your mind. Let the world contain your thoughts. Understand and appreciate that your perception of the world is most often a reflection of you, rather than of it. By grounding your mind in the world rather than the world in your mind, you create space to reflect on the stimuli entering your nervous system. You do this by meditating.

Delaying the impulse of thought and emotion creates space to non-judgmentally reflect on the abstractions that guide your awareness. This is the state of inner peace: witnessing without labelling. Peace frees you from preference, so you can choose what world view you'd like to hold. The more you remind yourself of this, the deeper your intentionality embeds into your subconscious, increasing the level of both your awareness (of consciousness and world) and the decisiveness of thought and action (being in the world).

For first-time meditators

There's no need to start this practice with a mind as still as a pond on a windless day – that's impossible given the mind's tendency to action. As you continue to reflect on the beliefs you assent to and choose the outlook you prefer, you'll notice the wind settle a little more with every session. Life is too short to live the one you've been given instead of the one you'd love.

For seasoned meditators (and first-timers, too)

Trigger the meditative state as you go about your day. Observe the flow of perception from the world, through your beliefs, to your response as thought and emotion; then invert that flow. Entertain a perspective directly opposed to the one that arose. Then, find or invent a belief that supports the new perspective, and see how your definitions of the world change.

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