Charm vs. comfort.
Is following charm always comfortable?
Today I’m publishing my response to an astute question that arose during group meditation about my recent letter on fearlessness vs. familiarity, which explored the roles that challenge and discomfort can play in our evolution.
A Quick Recap From Said Letter…
Nature has one objective, and that is “evolve”.
Often, retreating into to the ever-repeating known of our old ways seems so much easier.
The known is comfortable, and we feel secure. We have control there.
But comfort is the enemy of growth, and control is opposed to evolution.
Discomfort is not a sign of failure, but an invitation to evolve.
Following Charm
In response to the above, a student asked, “if I’m following charm, shouldn’t that always feel comfortable or easy?”
In the Vedic worldview, we define charm as “a spontaneous desirable pulsation toward a specific action.“
→ Read my introduction to charm and advanced studies on charm.
It’s charm which guides us toward that which is most evolutionary for us and most relevant for the need of the time.
The caveat to that is that when we’re stressed, or not sufficiently grounded in Being, it’s difficult to hear that inner voice, and we’re more likely to make decisions from a place of stress reactivity, which are almost always anti-evolutionary.
In fact, that stressed out voice is usually loudest, begging us to just give up, hide behind conflict, or retreat to safety—the fight, freeze or flee reactions.
With the practice of Vedic Meditation, we become more finely tuned to the quiet inner charm compass.
Is Following Charm Always Comfortable?
The essence of following charm is to move us toward that which is most evolutionary—not necessarily that which is easiest or most comfortable.
Following charm doesn’t mean we get to live life on cruise control.
Sometimes, what’s charming is also easy and comfortable—like learning Vedic Meditation.
But oftentimes, the more charming choice is also more challenging—like preparing a healthy home-cooked meal.
When we’re stressed, we crave the ever-repeating known of easy, low-effort comfort foods, but when we’re following charm, we’re usually led to salubrious foods which require more effort to prepare but fuel the body and support its evolution.
“Hanging about and having lovely experiences typically is not what happens to people who have fully awakened creative intelligence. Typically, they find themselves engaging at quite dynamic levels with the need of the time.”
—Shri 1008 Mahamandaleshwar Maharishi Vyasanand Giri Maharaj
Oftentimes, evolutionary action requires dynamic engagement.
The things that present challenge, discomfort, or loss of control tend to be the most evolutionary for us, because they’re showing us where we still need to grow or let go in order to make ourselves relevant to the need of the time.
The more we follow the charming fine level of feeling and engage, the more we evolve.
The more we follow the blaring stress-reactive voice and take the easy road, the longer we delay our evolution and continue repeating the same patterns.
The more we release stress through Vedic Meditation, the more clearly we receive guidance from our inner charm compass, and the more we replenish our reserves of adaptation energy through deep rest, increasing our capacity to dynamically meet these evolutionary demands, despite their challenging nature.
This is the stay-and-play response, which allows us to interact with the needs of the time and open ourselves to whatever opportunities for evolution its demands are presenting us, instead of fighting against or running from them.
The greater our capacity, the greater the challenges we’re presented with, perpetuating the cycle of growth and evolution.
It’s not always easy, but it is always evolutionary.
Let’s discuss these and other ideas during Collective Effervescence, our online group meditation series, this Sunday March 30 at 12PM ET. Drop in for meditation only (first 30 min) or stay for discussion + Q&A on this and other life topics from the Vedic perspective. Join the WhatsApp group to receive reminders 24 hours before each session, or use the below links to have all upcoming dates automatically sync to your calendar.
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