I heard a wise man say that there was ultimately only one true distinction to constantly be aware of. That is the distinction of “out there” on the front side of my eyeballs, and “in here,” on the inside of my eyeballs.
Those are two distinctly different universes.
I was explaining to Sue that I once read that some spiritual schools of thought call the world out there the world of “ten thousand things.”
Sue: “Why?”
Me: “I dunno. Maybe there are ten thousand things out there. I haven’t counted them all, all the things. I usually get to four and I get bored and go do something else. I’m like, ‘house, dog, car, tree… ok I’m bored and am going to go do something else…’. Maybe if someone counted every thing, they’d have to stop at ten thousand. I think it was more of an artistic expression. It seems to me like there’d be more than ten thousand things, but I guess we’ll never know.”
That’s the world out there, where all the stuff is. That is one universe.
And then there is the world in here, where my consciousness resides, wrapping meaning around all the stuff I see and witness going on out there.
Who I think I am is in here. In here are emotions, feelings, thoughts, and sensations. There’s a whole universe of that sort of stuff in here.
If I meditate on it a bit, I’ll notice that I am not my emotions, feelings, thoughts, and sensations. “I” am just the one noticing such things, with my head stuck inside my thoughts and wrapping meaning around everything (sometimes correctly, even).
“Who I think I am” is in here, along with my thoughts of self and thoughts of how I measure up to others.
“What is my status with this person I’m engaging with?” is what I am most often thinking about in the background of my thought processes.
I’m “presenting to be” the identity that I am portraying to others, displayed out there. When those two “me’s,” who I honestly think I am and who I’m proclaiming to be, are in authentic unison, I experience internal peace.
If any part of me is inauthentic out there, I won’t have peace in here. I will always be on guard for someone discovering my true identity.
So knowing the difference between the world out there and the world in here is a powerful distinction to have and be aware of.
In this present moment in time and space, there is peace. That means I’m mentally focused on what’s here and now, in this present moment in time and space.
The closer to right here and right now I get, I experience more and more internal peace. That is why in meditation, we often focus on our breath at some stage.
That is for two reasons.
That is both focusing in the world in here, and it’s also right here right now.
That’s why there is typically the most peace I experience that day, when I am meditating and in that phase.
See, there is peace in here. Out there, there are problems. There is also beauty, connection, and wonder, but the mind often notices problems first.
I don’t know if problems count against the ten thousand things as one thing, “problems,” or if each problem gets its own number. Again, I quit counting at “dog.”
There would be more than ten thousand problems out there. That’s what life is, a series of problems. The end of one problem is the beginning of the next.
Fixing problems is what makes me feel like I have purpose in life. It is tempting to spend the whole of one’s existence out there fixing problems, lost in that world. It’s easy to do for those who are seemingly unaware of the universe in here, and the distinctions between the two.
In here, peace is available. Out there, there are challenges.
The good news is, in here is always available, and I can retreat into it like a bear in a cave any time I want as simply as focusing on my own internal breath.
Peace is always inside me. Jesus said the kingdom of God is internal, and in that kingdom there is a well. Per Jesus, if someone finds the well and drinks from it, they will never be thirsty again.
“The King” is in His Kingdom. If one is seeking their Higher Power, or God, I highly recommend looking inside the Kingdom that Jesus said was internal.
I never found my Higher Power out there. He wasn’t hiding behind a tree or in a church. I found my Higher Power when I gave up looking for Him out there. It’s like I stepped inside, turned around, and bumped right into Him.
That is the most important distinction to be aware of, or so I was told. Out there, and in here.
Oh, out there there is pleasure, which can lead to ruin if one chases it.
Joy is internal, and cannot be chased.
Tomorrow, I’ll talk about the three choices available to anyone with a decision to face.
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