The Intangibles
As we get older the intangible things in life mean more. The feelings and emotions, not the materiality, of life are what matters most.
We are constantly bombarded with marketing and social media emphasizing that materialism is good, consumerism is good. Now I’m not proposing a new age, live naked in the rainforest, type of solution, but what I am proposing is an understanding that consumerism and materialistic gains, provide short term pleasure and do not have the trappings of long term happiness.
I’ve seen it time and time again in the martial arts world. When a person starts martial arts it is the goal to reach Black Belt, and rightly so should that be the goal. Train hard with a vision in mind and achieve what you never thought you could. There is nothing wrong with this. However what happens to 9 out of 10 students on reaching black belt? They come back proud as punch to the next lesson showing off their black belt. They continue to train for the next few months and then something happens…..the enthusiasm begins to wane….they start to realise they are the same person they were when they were a green belt or brown belt, and that the ‘mysterious’ black belt doesn’t seem to be so mysterious anymore. How many times have you heard an instructor say that this is where the training really begins? But no one ever really explains what this means. 9 out of 10 students are still looking for material gains, new techniques, perhaps the Five Finger Death Punch will be revealed to them. But this is where the intangibles should start. I admit as a 25 years old, I didn't understand this myself and drifted away from the Martial Arts, but now in my late 40’s I am starting to understand, and with a glimpse of the intangibles (called Satori in Buddhist instruction) comes a renewed enthusiasm for seeking a higher level of self-awareness and confidence that is not achievable from any material gains. It all comes down to the intangibles...the things that make us feel...the emotions that make us act…..the acceptance of what is…..and the understanding of non-duality (a topic for another time).
So seek the intangibles……….