Take a break from yourself: rest that will change your life

Rest in natural great peace

“Rest in natural great peace.

This exhausted mind,

beaten helplessly by Karma,

and Neurotic Thoughts,

like the relentless fury

of the pounding waves

in the infinite ocean of samsara.

Rest in Natural great peace.”

—Nyoshul Khenpo Rinpoche

It’s likely you’ve never really experienced true rest. Most people never do. I’m not talking about checking out and watching TV. Or going on vacation, but doing so much while away that you come back even more tired than when you left in the first place.

The most energy you spend any given day is maintaining an identity of yourself. You’re usually not even aware of how exhausting it is to maintain multiple identities. Trying to be someone at work, someone at your kid's school, and even someone when you’re alone and no one is looking.

It requires a ton of mental, emotional, and spiritual energy to keep all of these identities alive. If you’ve ever been in a play or acted in a film, you know it takes a lot of energy to play a part. Maintaining an identity is like playing a part, your whole life, and it’s exhausting. In life, the “lines” become: what’s appropriate to say as this character I’m playing? Which clothes will tell others who I am?

Who you are on any given day changes constantly, often based on who you’re having an interaction with; but more importantly based on what you’re thinking at any given moment. You tend to believe your thoughts and even when you’re alone you can become an identity simply by having a thought like: “What have I accomplished in life” or “I need to be the perfect mom”.

These thoughts come relentlessly, like “the pounding waves in the infinite ocean of Samsara.” And each time you believe a thought, enormous energy is required of you to pretend you’re something, that at its core, is just an illusion.

This exhausting way of being is not exclusive to negative thought patterns. It also happens with positive thought patterns: like “I’m killing it!” or “I’m the best professional in town!”. The moment that something happens in your life, and you’re not “killing it” or being “the best” then your self-worth takes a major hit. The love you have for yourself is relying on your performance, and it robs you of peace as a sovereign divine human being.

Is it necessary for you to play parts in life in order to function in everyday society? Sure it is, but what’s important is to be conscious that that’s all it is; a part. It’s not who you are. Because if you believe that’s who you are, neurotic thoughts begin to run your life and drain your energy to the point of exhaustion.

What you are at the root of your existence is unborn and undying. Impossible to describe in words. That’s what the masters teach us, and it’s what you can experience for yourself, by allowing yourself to truly rest.

True rest happens when we let go of any identity and relax into the root of our being. That which remains when we remove all layers of illusion and is ever-present. No matter how many times we’re unconscious of it, or playing different roles, awareness remains. All we need to do is rest in our breath for a few moments to feel the energy of awareness.

Awareness is what remains once we let go of any idea of who we are, who we’re supposed to be, and simply notice what’s left. What’s there when these thoughts dissolve?

“Rest in natural great peace. Finding the rest, the comfort and ease, to just naturally be. You’ll notice the mind quietly settle, just like a glass of muddy water, if you don’t stir it, the dirt will slowly settle. in the same manner, If you let the mind be in the spacious openness, slowly the confusion or the turbulence of thought emotions settles.”

—Sogyal Rinpoche: Commentary when narrating the poem: Rest in Natural Great Peace.

I’d like to welcome you to explore this for yourself in our Allowing Ease Retreat in the Sacred Valley. The style of meditation we teach focuses on resting on the ground of awareness.

Pacha Munay Wellness is a place designed for you to get true rest. Rest from yourself, rest from your identity, rest from the imagined life so you can deeply relax into what you truly are, Natural Great Peace.