Who amongst us has not been convinced at one time or another that obtaining that new car, house, job, new lover etc., would fulfil us?

Who amongst us has not been convinced at one time or another that obtaining that new car, house, job, new lover etc., would fulfil us? And who, two, three or six months later, has not been just as seemingly unhappy and unfulfilled after obtaining our heart's desire? And who amongst us has not struggled with the existential struggle over the inevitability of our own death? All these struggles, blind alleys, and frustrations are a result of our unexamined desires.
If, as is possible, we "master" desire, writes William Irvine, "we will experience what . . . has been the goal of most of those who have thought carefully about desire - a feeling of tranquility . . . marked by a sense that we are lucky to be living whatever life we happen to be living - that despite our circumstances, no key ingredient of happiness is missing."
"With this sense, comes a diminished level of anxiety: we no longer need to obsess over new things - a new car, a bigger house, a firmer abdomen - that we mistakenly believe will bring lasting happiness if only we can obtain them. Most importantly, if we master desire, to the extent it is possible to do so, we will no longer despise the life we are forced to live and will no longer daydream about living the life someone else is living; instead we will embrace our own life and live it to the fullest."

Related articles

• We cannot drop a ball unless we are holding it in our hand.
• Half way through the course after meditations we will start practicing using our newly found intuitive voice
• At the Ten Stages we recognise that meditation uses words, images, and feelings to evoke a lovingkindness and friendliness toward oneself and others is the healing balm of our practice.
• The essential difference between animals and humans is the ability to self-reflect.
• Sometimes the child in us needs all our attention.
• We, are mistreated as infants and children, treated inappropriately for our species.