Thread

1. jmathai · 1790259001 · focus · HN ↗

   This hits me like a brick wall with my young children. Seeing them change so rapidly is a glimpse into how short life is and how often an experience unknowingly becomes the last of its kind.

   There is so much to be gained by slowing down, focusing on what you can be grateful for, and not striving for more.

   1. dominotw · 1790260026 · focus · HN ↗

      don't you just go back to your old habits once this realization has passed.

      we were desiged to want more it impossible to override that design.

      1. smolder · 1790261968 · focus · HN ↗

         No, it isn't. Think about monks and so on. Some people live properly modest lives, not hedonistic ones.

         1. dominotw · 1790265420 · focus · HN ↗

            I guess you can convince to want something totally different like bliss, moksha or whatever but the basic instinct to want is still there . Not sure why that particular form is more desirable. I know some personally and they constantly struggle with wanting that not being able to achieve.

            1. smolder · 1790413638 · focus · HN ↗

               Wanting to not want is still wanting, I suppose. But it misses the point to frame it that way. The argument that we innately have endless desire is just not true. It is a quality particular to certain people.
      2. chrisweekly · 1790262335 · focus · HN ↗

         It's not impossible (and I'd substitute "evolved" for "designed").

         Yes, wanting "More" [time, money, love, status] is pretty firmly ingrained as an advantageous trait. But you can override your instincts (e.g. declining a drink when thirsty, if you learn the glass of water contains poison). And it is possible to learn to want what you already have.

         How? Practice three things: Compassion, Attention, and Gratitude. (Pick any two, and the third will follow almost automatically.)

         That's the central thesis of an excellent book, "How to Want What You Have" by Dr Timothy Miller. It changed my life.

         1. jmathai · 1790265039 · focus · HN ↗

            The title of that book is marvelous and packs a lot into just 6 words.
         2. uxp100 · 1790266465 · focus · HN ↗

            Split the difference and say “designed by evolution?” I think designed captures something important and doesn’t have to imply a non-materialist view.
      3. 1-more · 1790262743 · focus · HN ↗

         > we were desiged

         says who?

         1. dominotw · 1790265444 · focus · HN ↗

            observation

            1. 1-more · 1790272238 · focus · HN ↗

               are you using "designed" figuratively, or are you arguing for creationism?

               1. dominotw · 1790283192 · focus · HN ↗

                  former for sure
      4. jmathai · 1790264899 · focus · HN ↗

         > The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. - Psalm 23:1-2

         The interpretation of this I love most is the visual of a sheep, satisfied enough that they lay down instead of grazing or drinking. This posture is mentioned repeatedly in the Bible.

         I imagine most religions and philosophies have similar.

         1. johsole · 1790270678 · focus · HN ↗

            amen.
      5. pizzafeelsright · 1790265469 · focus · HN ↗

         Not if you have a transformed and renewed mind. Once you taste the fruit of life, drink the water, eat the bread, drink the blood - nothing else will suffice.

         This is a hard teaching and not all can accept it. Those that do will find peace, life, meaning, and rest.

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