A World Beyond Want

Notes from a park bench

I want.

I spend so much time as want. I want this. I want that.

Although I am want, I could just as easily be that gentle tree, the roaring seas, and even the universe in its entirety.

Want is illusory, for the self is illusory. There is nothing permanent to it. It could easily dissolve into whatever—breezy plains, an Earthworm, the sky.

To be want is partially from choice and partially from circumstance.

Importantly, want is not all that there is or will ever be. When we are able to let go of distractions—specifically, to know and continually recognize distraction—we discover a world beyond want.

Want is our default, and the longer it is our reality, the harder it is to see beyond it.

Want is the reason for suffering. When it is our world, it causes us to chase endlessly—to no avail—for something we can never get. We want something we are blinded from seeing.

So, extend beyond the boundaries of want. Feel what else there is. You might need to crawl in the dark.