He who is without attachment, who does not rejoice when he obtains good, nor lament when he obtains evil, is firmly fixed in perfect knowledge.
Bhagavad-Gita, Chapter 2, Verse 57
How Duality influences our Life
Everyday we are confronted by the state of duality. Most of the time we are not aware of it. And of course in a world which is based on dualities we live with them. It is cold, it is warm, we are happy, we are sad, we are loud, we are silent, we are fast, we are slow. Anchored in human behavior a tendency to jump into dualities can be observed. To play with dualities, to challenge dualities and to experience dualities. Obvious examples are bungee jumping, bathing in ice cold water (hello to Wim Hof), sweating in the 90 degree celsius hot sauna or car racing. Just to mention a few situations.
But why Confrontation?
Why do you seek for these confrontations with duality? To be more present? To feel the reactions of your material body and to observe the minds reactions? There might be several reasons for that. Giving yourself to these experiences could bring you to a state of absolute presence and awareness. Again the example of driving very fast: Racing with 300km/h – there is no space for „Oh let me think of my grocery list“ …let’s say usually there is no space. Or while deep water diving 100m „Oh tomorrow is my grandmas birthday I need a present“. It is very unlikely that these thoughts will come up while being absorbed in extremity. The place on the far edge of duality. But what about Balance? Balance seems to be boring. Because in a neutral state thoughts could come up. Our mind is not distracted by duality we experience. It is the presence with what is. Maybe this can bring you to your inner room where you find oneness in the absolute.
Addiction to Duality
Yes, we are addicted to dualities. Hot and cold. High and low. Loud and silent. Bright and dark. Fast and slow. I bet you could find more examples. But are these modes of duality in some cases a way to distract us from seeing what is? Our purpose? To find out about the true meaning of existence. In this world there are many ways to find distraction. I know that myself. But what I can also say is I lost the taste in things that I did a few years ago. Like bungee jumping. Today I wouldn’t do it again. It was a big thrill when I was in New Zealand ten years ago. But luckily through the presence of Bhakti Yoga in my life and the timeless knowledge of the Bhagavad-Gita priorities in my life changed. Sometimes I can feel this fire for dualities and extremes rising. And it is ok. But I know this fire will not keep me warm until my life’s end. So I guess I found my „fire“ which will nourish my heart until the end and beyond.
