The Cosmic Giggle

"Life isn't as serious as my mind makes it out to be."       

-Eckhart Tolle 

Nothing matters and everything matters. That pretty much sums up all of life. Just as King Solomon said, "Everything is meaningless." But he realized the opposite also to be true. Despite the meaninglessness of life, it still matters.

Knowing this truth ushers us into the Cosmic Giggle, giving you that giddy feeling deep behind your belly button. That feeling where you burst out in uncontrollable laughter. That feeling that comes from tripping out on fact that we are here on this spinning planet playing a silly game and everyone is taking it so seriously.

"But life is serious," one man says . "I agree," says the wise sage who sits under the coconut tree. "Then why are you just sitting here naked under this tree, laughing about nothing?", replies the serious man.  "Because to take life seriously, I must not be so serious," says the wise nude sage. The serious man has no response, and walks away feeling offended and perplexed. He knows he is right, and that naked man is just very stupid. "I hope that a big hard coconut falls on his coconuts," he mischievously thinks to himself.

Isn't this true though? It is such beautiful irony. Nothing matters and everything matters. The fact that you have a serious job where you show up every day at the same place and same time and have all these important meetings and important phone calls and make lots of important decisions is just so silly. And yet it's not. After all, this silly job is what helps give a roof over your children's heads and gives them food to put in their bellies. That matters and is important.

Don't you ever think about this? How we are like little ants scurrying around often repeating the same daily motions and routines. We are so predictable, and usually so boring. The aliens must laugh at us. Or maybe they're living the same way.

Realizing this silliness helps me sustain my sanity. Otherwise, I get myself into a downward spiral of depression wondering what the hell I'm doing here in space repeating these same routines over and over. Sometimes I wonder why I'm not out there doing crazy stuff and taking big risks. Maybe that would just leave me feeling the same though. I don't really know. For me, laughing about the lunacy of it all helps a lot. Being in touch with the silliness of the seriousness keeps me grounded.

I suggest you implement this non-dual way of thinking into your life. Seeing both sides to every story. Seeing life as silly and serious actually becomes quite practical. Try this:

Next time that clueless dude in front of you is pushing his grocery cart down the middle of the skinny aisle at a snail pace, take a giant step back from your frustration and be aware of the silliness of being frustrated for something so stupid on a Tuesday afternoon on a spinning planet that's in the middle of space. Perspective like this really does help keep your emotions in check. Take it even a step further and put a giant smile on your face and start giggling to yourself and with yourself. Be a child. Have fun. It'll be a joyous occasion, I promise. Next thing you know, you'll in state of bliss and that person who was pissing you off will be long gone. And your day will have just gotten better. Then you can thank that person for giving you the giggles. Try it...I dare you.

So yes, our egos and our minds and part of who we are want to take everything so serious because of how much everything matters. But at the same time, the Deep You is able to look at yourself from afar and recognize that life is really just one big game and you get to choose the way you play it. Don't take yourself too seriously and always remember that you are smack dab in the creamy center of the Big Cosmic Giggle! Laugh on, friends.