Friday - Law of Detachment

Photography by William Walther
WjW Photography

“I want to sing like the birds, not worrying about who listens or what they think.” ~ Rumi
 
Friday is my favorite of Deepak Chopra’s Seven Spiritual Laws of Success – The Law of Detachment.  It builds upon Thursday’s law of setting intentions; you set your intentions, but you detach from the outcome of how they come to fruition. Detachment is not apathy; it is a state of non-attachment.  The goal is to live your life with passion, but don’t be passionate about the outcome. If you are attached to your desire, then you limit yourself. Have a desire and then release it to the Universe. I have found that when I release my intentions and desires to the Universe, the outcomes are far superior to what I imagined. When you detach, you are open to the infinite possibilities of life. When you relinquish your attachment to the known, you will experience the fun of life– the magic, the celebration, and the adventure.
 
Attachment is based on fear and insecurity and we experience this when we worry.  Brene Brown shares, “the problem is, worrying about things that haven't happened doesn't protect us from pain. Ask anyone who has experienced a tragedy; they'll tell you there is no way to prepare.”  Practicing the Law of Detachment has really helped me worry less and if I catch myself worrying, I stop and detach and tell myself that I will deal with the situation if it actually arises. 
 
I saw how far I have come with detachment a few weeks ago.  I went to a show and took a different purse.  The next morning I got up to go to yoga and when I went to move my wallet back to my everyday purse it was not there.  The old me (prior to a daily meditation practice and following these laws) would have freaked out and I would not have gone to yoga class.  I did a quick check on my credit cards and there were no new purchases and I put a hold on my credit cards. I called and left a message at the restaurant. The restaurant  didn’t open until 11:00 AM and Centennial Hall didn’t open until 10:00 AM.  So, I could have stayed home for the next few hours and worried about what might happen.  I have had my wallet stolen from my office at NAU, from my shopping cart and from the Cancun airport when the security machines were down.  Therefore, I know the realities of having my wallet stolen, but I stopped the worrying in my mind and said to myself, “okay, if my wallet actually was stolen, then I will begin the process of canceling cards, getting a new license etc. when I know for certain this has happened.” Having done all I could at the present time,  I went to yoga class.  During class, I really worked on living in the present moment and focusing on the mind-body connection.  Sure, thoughts about the wallet popped into my head from time to time, but when they did, I took a breath and came back to the present moment and said “nothing bad is happening in this moment.” After yoga, I went grocery shopping and while there my bank called.  My first thought was that they were calling to say that there was unusual activity on my accounts (okay so I still need more practice on positive thinking and not catastrophizing), only to have the bank representative tell me the restaurant had found my wallet and I could pick it up at 11:00. Detaching from worrying really helped me enjoy my morning yoga workout and accomplish tasks before I went and picked up my wallet. It was a happy ending and because I detached I didn't spend hours worrying for no reason.  Friday is a great day to let go of worrying about things that might happen or what others think.
 
The mantra for the Law of Intention and Desire is “Om Anandham Namaha” which translates to “My actions are blissfully free from attachment to outcome.” The affirmations for success are:

• I commit to detachment - I  participate in everything with detached involvement and surrender to uncertainty.
• I accept uncertainty – I am okay with ambiguity – through the wisdom of uncertainty, I find security and faith.
• I step into the field of all possibilities - I anticipate the excitement that can occur when I remain open to an infinity of choices.  My meditation practice helps open and connect me to these infinite possibilities.

 
How can you detach from worrying?
 
How can you practice the Law of Detachment when you set intentions?