Our “happy” thoughts may be crude or refined, but happy thoughts evolve over a lifetime.
In an addictive world like ours, we may like our beer or sex or whatever, but at some point the thought of beer and sex is better than the beer and sex itself. Then we have a choice: we can either move on to more potent, more addictive beer and sex, or we can consciously ritual with what we already have – we can bring new life and new perspective to old habits.
Consciously ritualing means focusing on new qualia, not new matter. We set aside a moment, separating ourselves from the routine, when we can notice qualia – that is, some new idea or thought, some movement or sound, some new insight or perception – and, to be sure, it will reveal itself to us. It may or may not be right or good, but we play with it, experiment with it, and its value or meaning (or lack thereof) becomes apparent.
Once you have found this or that, you may pat yourself on the back and return to the routine…but the routine is no longer routine. It has come alive again – the new qualia that revealed itself has changed it, or us, or everything!
This works for all addictions, sex, drugs, shopping, gambling, eating, gaming – you name it. If we consciously ritual with them, instead of looking over the fence where the next pusher man or marketing genius makes them look so much more enticing, we are already on the road to recovery. It is all a process of appreciating what we have, and sometimes, just looking at it more closely does the trick, convincing us to let it go and move on.
We we do move on we are just like a poor creature whose landscape was taken over by some invasive species. It is a blessing to step beyond our familiar landmarks and pathways. We notice some more new qualia and begin to consciously ritual with it, to see if it’s good, healthy, worth contemplating – to see if it can make us content.
Of course, conscious ritualing is also how we discover what we move on to next, if we must – something good, and better for us (and those around us).Happy thoughts arise out of conscious ritualing, and happiness arises out of contentment.