The Self-Love Habit

There is one self that is the illusion, which is the identification with the mind and the ego, which is the unobserved mind that says ‘what about me?’ … but I refer to who you are beyond the form, beyond the thoughts and emotions. You as the consciousness is the self. The self has no form ... you can never say ‘there it is’, because who is saying this? You are the consciousness! You are it!

Making insights through self-knowledge is imperative for your happiness and for those you love.

Imagine living free of guilt and being wisely kind and compassionate to the tender parts of yourself rather than harsh and unforgiving.

Rousseau also wrote, ‘What wisdom can you find greater than kindness?’

Rousseau’s concept of the ‘noble savage’ contradicts this notion. Essentially, he states that humans are born into nature pure, innocent and good and become corrupted by ‘civilisation’ and religion.

We are constantly looking to fix what is wrong with us, both externally and internally, and this creates a harsh, persistent message of ‘I am not good enough as I am’.

I would add to Pascal’s quote above that much of our misery also comes from our inability to look at our own reflection without judgement.

Resisting fear does one thing only: it creates more fear.

Fear itself is what we fear most.

Love and fear are deeply and intrinsically interconnected – one cannot exist without the other.