This morning I was contemplating the folly of asking why. Since I wrote a book of questions (Meditative Questions), I decided to check my book to see how many questions I had asking why. I found only two (both on page 41) asking why you want what you think you want. I can’t argue with those ;)
The reason I think asking why is frivolous is because it usually involves wondering why something has happened. Or why someone has done what they have done. It’s focused on the past. It relegates you to detective…trying to piece together a mystery.
But the reality is that the why usually doesn’t even matter. It’s a distraction that gets you trapped in a cycle of unproductive thought. And it usually doesn’t help you move forward. (A notable exception is if you use the lessons learned from the why to make different decisions in the future.)
So ok, how about an example? Let’s say you figure out why someone has wronged you. Does knowing why change the wrong that was done? Does it help you feel better about why the person wronged you? Doubtful. Does it give you real closure? Maybe (unless you see it for the excuse that it probably is; however, they probably don’t know why they did it either). But could you have gotten that closure on your own by deciding to move on for you? Yes.
Every puzzle doesn’t need to be solved. And every past decision doesn’t need to be analyzed. Your peace and happiness are worth more. Trust your intuition and be brave enough to move on without the receipts that you think you need. By the time you get the proof that confirms what you felt, you’ve probably wasted more time and energy and allowed the situation (you don’t really want) to grow.
And you will get to a place where you find that nothing is worth your peace. Let it all go.
Photo source: At Piece