Comfort

One of the best ways to figure out who you are is to make a mandala of your values and feelings. A mandala is a circular geometic pattern that contains petals relating to one another in one way or another. The center of the mandala is usually reserved for an object or the name of something or someone to which all the petals refer. The subject of the mandala and how to make one will be the topic for tomorrow. For now we will focus on the comfort petal of the mandala. The object is for you to figure out what you do to find comfort.

Everyone wants to be comfortable in his or her own way. Comfort is the freedom from hardship; mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. It is tranquility, serenity, contentment and well-being of he entire energy system. The type of comfort a person likes depends on many things and it is practically impossible to get a handle on the why in any case.

There are three types of comfort: peace of mind, relaxation and security and not everyone seeks all three with equal vigor. One usually stands above the other two. Which one is it for you? Being able to connect with your desires plays a very important role in recognizing your major comfort type. This is the key to opening the self box.

Peace of mind has to do with being mentally comfortable. People who seek peace of mind are looking for he absence of mental stress and anxiety. They want the presence of serenity, calmness, quietness and inner peace.

Peace of mind comes when the mind is quiet, comfortably focused, undisturbed and free from distractions. Life is not stressful. Thoughts are collected and emptied out. Quiet and calm thoughts are necessary for peace of mind.

People may seek peace of mind through meditation, reading a book, watching TV, being with a loved one, lying on th beach listening to the waves roll in, listening to soothing music, taking a vacation to some peaceful venue away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

Relaxation is another form of comfort. Being relaxed refers to being physically comfortable more than mentally comfortable. You can be physically comfortable and not mentally confortable. The two are not necessarily mutually inclusive.

You could be swinging in a hammock with your body completely relaxed and the mind having all kinds of disturbing and obsessive thoughts. This scenerio is easy to understand because we have all been in this situation - body comfortable and mind disturbed. It's hard to imagine the reverse though where the mind is comfortable and the body disturbed because of the close connection between body and mind. If the body hurts it is usually difficult to have a peaceful mind. However, through meditation you can learn to have a calm mind and an aching body.

The difference between relaxed and peace of mind depends on whether you are seeking mental refuge or physical comfort. This is sometimes a difficult discernment to make given the fact that they seem similar in the etiology. To make a clear distinction between the two simply reflect on what makes you uncomfortable and then decide what you would do to ease that discomfort. If it is something that would make your mind calmer, it would be peace of mind. If it is something that would make your body calmer, it is relaxation. If peace of mind and relaxation don't seem to be what makes you truly comfortable then take a look at the next one - security.

Security means that you can put the future to rest. You may feel financially secure, have job security, a trusting relationship, protection against danger, protection against loss of life and or money and belongings. It is the ability to feel safe even if something "bad" were to happen. Security is essentially having what you need to feel secure in your life.

Much like peace of mind, security has to do with being mentally comfortable. It is a projection into the future feeling ready for any crisis or catastrophe that might happen. If you spend a lot of time planning to keep yourself, others and material things protected from what might happen so that you can have peace of mind then you are more into security than you are peace of mind. In other words, security is primary and peace of mind is secondary. You would not be able to have peace of mind if you didn't think things were safe and secure from danger.

If you have insurance to cover the cost of your house and car, health insurance and enough money in the bank to make you comfortable if the economy collapses and these things give you peace of mind, then security is definitely primary for you when it comes to being comfortable.

The next thing we will do is help you put together your personal mandala. Please come back.