The Law of Detachment

By Deepak Chopra

The Law of Detachment, which is about letting go of our need to control outcomes, our attachment to our desires, and – perhaps most difficult – our need to control other people.

In the Vedic tradition and other spiritual teachings, the path to freedom and happiness lies in letting go of attachment. This doesn’t mean disengaging from life, denying your passions, or living the life of a renunciate. The real nature of detachment is a loving, wise participation in life while maintaining the awareness of an inner core of peace and presence that is our true identity. This is the essence of the Spiritual Law of Detachment.

Why Attachment Hurts

Attachment is based on fear and insecurity. When you forget your true Self – which is pure consciousness, pure potentiality – you begin to believe that you need something outside of yourself to make you happy. It’s easy to think, “I’ll feel good when I have more money in the bank, lose 15 pounds, find my soul mate, pay off my bills, or (insert your current desire here). As you’ve no doubt discovered, getting what you want doesn’t bring security. At a deep level, you know that whatever is bringing you happiness can be lost and therefore has the potential to bring you pain.

The only way out of this dilemma is detaching. You set your intentions and take whatever action is needed, and then relinquish your attachment to the outcome.  Here are a few  powerful affirmations you can use to practice detachment in your daily life.  Choose one or two and practice saying them to yourself throughout the day:

• I consciously commit to flexibility and detachment.
• I allow myself and those around me the freedom to be themselves, without imposing rigid ideas of right and wrong.
• I live my life in a state of engaged detachment.
• I release the need to judge or criticize.
• I express myself honestly while releasing any need to impose my beliefs on other people.
• Whenever I notice that I am becoming emotionally attached to a point of view, I take a deep breath and come back to a more centered place.
• I embrace detachment by choosing to be free from the good and bad opinions of others.

In detachment lies the wisdom of uncertainty . . . in the wisdom of uncertainty lies the freedom from our past, from the known, which is the prison of past conditioning. And in our willingness to step into the unknown, the field of all possibilities, we surrender ourselves to the creative mind that orchestrates the dance of the universe.

• I will put the Law of Detachment into effect by making a commitment to take the following steps:
• Today I will commit myself to detachment. 
• I will allow myself and those around me the freedom to be as they are. 
• I will not rigidly impose my idea of how things should be. 
• I will not force solutions on problems, thereby creating new problems. 
• I will participate in everything with detached involvement.
• Today I will factor in uncertainty as an essential ingredient of my experience. 
• In my willingness to accept uncertainty, solutions will spontaneously emerge out of the problem, out of the confusion, order and chaos. 
• The more uncertain things seem to be, the more secure I will feel, because uncertainty is my path to freedom. 
• Through the wisdom of uncertainty, I will find my security.
• I will step into the field of all possibilities and anticipate the excitement that can occur when I remain open to an infinity of choices. 
• When I step into the field of all possibilities, I will experience all the fun, adventure, magic and mystery of life.

Source: How to Let Go: 7 Affirmations for Practicing the Law of Detachment

Image: The Golden Path-II by H. Koppdelaney at Foter.com