Within or Without

Often there are two seemingly contradictory perspectives on where we are to find what many of us are looking for- fulfilment, love, connection, joy and peace.

One perspective, often the primary Western world approach, is to go out in search of these feeling states in the outside world. In a job, a relationship, a destination, or some other role or circumstance that can bring us the feelings we are seeking.

The other, is that to find what we are yearning for, the only place to look is within our very own heart.

Yet what I have found is that it is in both these places that we need to be looking.

If we only go looking in the outside world, we can become very attached to constant achievement, always moving, doing, advancing and progressing. If this is out of balance it can come at the expense of our health, quality of our relationships or inner growth.

On the other hand, if we only go looking within, we can become very isolated and lonely, creating a pressure to find all that we yearn for from inside of us. If this is out of balance it can come at the expense of our health, connection to others and pull us into an endless spiral of self examination and overthinking.

So you see we need to be in the world, amongst others, connecting, sharing, engaging and exploring, with enough time to be cultivating from within the feeling states we desire to find without.

It is when we realise the importance of both in equal measures, we come to appreciate that it is not in fact within or without, but within and without.