When we are grieved we can sit with it rather than rush out to relieve ourselves. When anger manifests we are able to investigate the cause of anger instead of externalizing it. Once the fear has gripped the chest, we can just breath into the chest and ask, in a kind tone, what we are afraid to lose. By so doing we establish a distance between ourselves and our emotions. We are the consciousness in which the emotion manifests itself; we are not the emotion itself.

This difference is revolutionary. When we associate wholly with our feelings they determine our actions. When we see them, we are given option. Releasing is a possibility when we realize that no feeling is ever-lasting. Feelings are waves in the sea, like waves. Opposing them leads to us being caught up in the whirlwind. Their freedom of movement is possible.

Attachment to control is one of the most important attachments that we have to release. Since our childhood, we are taught how to cope with the surrounding to feel safe. We organize, plan, strategize and foresee. These are problem-free skills. Indeed, they are needed to operate in the world. The challenge is that when we feel secure we are fully reliant on our capabilities to control what happens.

Life is uncertain. Bonds change, the bodies get old, prospects change and unplanned circumstances change our plans. When we force life to live according to our expectations, we cause conflict within ourselves. Relinquishment of control does not equate to abdication of responsibility. It is taking action with our best and letting go of the outcome.

Relief is enormous in this change. When we realize that it is our actions that cause us but not all consequences, a weight is lifted. We are able to be ethical without fearing of the consequences of certain actions. We are able to love without guarantees. We are able to work toward our goals without our value being linked to success.

Another vital aspect of letting go is forgiveness. Resentment is like a heavy rock in the heart. To justify our anger we can remember how we were harmed. We might think that we save our dignity or establish our limits by refusing to forgive. And resentment is the thing which mostly incarcerates the one who harbors it. It re-experiences previous traumas, bringing them to life in the current time.

Forgiveness does not imply condoning harmful behavior. Neither does it require reconciliation in all cases. Instead, it is a choice of the heart to loosen the emotional grip, which is holding us to the past. It is an acknowledgment that clinging to anger perpetuates suffering. With forgiveness, we recover our energy and channel it back to healing.

Pure light and infinite love be with us!