Does Comfort Kill Curiosity?
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I read a quote in the book Apprenticed to a Master by Sri M this week that really got me pondering:
“You are so full of knowledge that you have acquired, that there is no space to retrieve the truth which is waiting to enter.”
As I have been walking the path of minimalism for over a year now downsizing all my material stuff I wondered - could it be that I also need to let go of some of the knowledge and stuff in my head? I certainly haven't downsized my physical books yet - the last pieces of stuff I've been hanging onto because part of me is struggling to let go of the source of wisdom and information. What if in future I want to refer to that book again or look something up?
I wonder, could it be possible that the burden of knowledge, education and scholarship that we carry in our heads could also act as a barrier to our understanding of reality and a barrier to being truly being present in the moment? Isn't it true that when we believe we 'know' something, we shut down our learning and curiosity because we already have that knowledge? Could it be that we have become comfortable with our knowingness and in doing so have lost the childlike curiosity and exploration that gives life its delicious zing?
So should I unburden myself and embrace emptiness? Could I leave my comfort zone of knowing and once again venture in unknown territory? Which knowledge should I purge and what should I keep? Will my ego cope? Will I feel more or less the seem, act the same, be the same?
I'm willing to try. I am willing to experiment. It's time to begin letting go of the final pieces of "stuff" I've been holding onto. To truly surrender perhaps we have to let go of thoughts and beliefs and not just physical stuff. Could it be as my mindfulness practitioner @CharlotteThaarup suggested to me that "we have to surrender what we think we know, to really know, to know that which transcends our dualistic knowing."Can I even begin to sit with no words, no thoughts?
The truth is out there, or is it in here? Only one way to find out. It's time to let go of comfort, to embrace curiosity and to empty all the garbage which I carry around in my brain, to become still and quiet and to make space for whatever is next to be birthed and manifest. Shhhhhh.
“I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive.” ~Joseph Campbell
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About the Author
Heidi Alexandra Joy is the author of the amazing plane ride read an illustrated business book All Starts With UQ Power and the soon to be released book in 2018 UP Yourself. Discover Your Unique Power and Use It. She and her team are the secret super power for many of the world's most innovative cultures and brands. Heidi Alexandra created a simple model, called The UQ Powerhouse, that codifies what makes healthy, happy and productive workplaces for the future. She believes it is possible for businesses to balance people, planet and purpose with profit and that together we can end workplace bullying, depression, anxiety and suffering. Find out more at www.UQPower.com.au
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