The Art of Letting Go

Article in Stretton Focus, June 2013

It could be said that one of life’s important lessons is learning to let go. So I’ll say it, and try to show what it means!
As babies we instinctively grab whatever is there, and hold on to it for comfort and security. Then through childhood we begin letting go of some things and holding on to others. Learning to let go of ‘childish things’ is an essential part of growing up. If it doesn’t happen, what should have been left behind, but wasn’t, will be an obstacle to having healthy and wholesome relationships with other people.
Growing up, we let go of our dependence on the parental home and learn to support ourselves. Then, as the years go by, wisdom prevails (we hope!) and we learn the art of letting go in other areas of life. As we grow in self-knowledge we might let go of some of our prejudices and defences: we might let go of those beliefs which we realise are no longer appropriate in view of new experiences and a wider understanding.
I call it an ‘art form’ because you are working on your humanity and creating something closer to the Ideal. The ultimate achievement of this art form is learning to let go of yourself. This is where religion can have something helpful and positive to offer.
A good religion will help you to let go of seeing yourself and your preoccupations (and even your own salvation) as the be-all and end-all. Letting go of your ‘self-centered self’, you can discover the freedom (and even the ecstasy) of being part of a greater whole: part of an inter-connected Oneness of all things – which you may want to call God.
One day, of course, we will have to let go of life itself. By then we could have had a foretaste of the Great Ideal, which at present is beyond our understanding, but not beyond the reach of our spiritual awareness. So learn to let go and let God!

Donald Horsfield

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