Article by
KAYSOON KHOO
There is a yoga called "the art of letting go" which teaches us how to live in peace with ourselves and with the world. It reminds us that all material things are impermanent and subject to the law of change. What we hold in our palm one moment may evaporate into nothingness the next.
We have to learn how to "let go" of that which we should not hold on to -- or that which is no longer ours to keep.
The first refers to unwholesome traits and outlooks which most of us possess in some degree or other. Only we ourselves can determine what they are. We know they make us less than what we can be as humans, yet we cling on to them and refuse to change. Again only we ourselves can explain why we maintain this perverse attitude.
The second refers to irretrievable loss -- the death of a loved one, the loss of property or missed opportunities. We know all these can never be ours again, yet we continue to indulge in grief, futile yearning and regret. We sieve through our pile of memories, even though they are like shards of broken glass which cut us and make us bleed.
In both cases, we have to let go. No other formula will work. We have to relinquish our way of thinking, release the past and focus on how we may use the present.
Letting go is not impossible, nor as difficult as we make it out to be. It all has to do with being honest with ourselves and not being afraid to face the truth. The truth about ourselves and the way things are for us.
Think of it as relinquishing our hold on a capsized boat which is fast sinking. If we persist in holding on to that boat, we sink with it. We have to let go before we can swim to shore and to a life worth living.
