Man swears by this thing called effort.

"You must work hard for the things that truly matter."

But tell me this...

Is it not that because man "works hard" his entire life,

that he fails to recognize the things that truly matter?

Perhaps the statement is not supposed to be taken literally,

and the hidden implication is something to be realized.

But given the Mind and its intellectual inclination and relentless search for "meaning",

how could man not take a statement so "motivating" and "full of promise", literally?

And thus, spending his entire life on chasing dimes and nickels,

he finishes full circle back to where he started,

and wonders - "What gives?"

~~~

This vicious circle that I currently see in its entirety,

is so robotic and senseless that I, personally,

cannot imagine getting caught in it, ever again.

But for you, who I will assume is a gentle human being,

partaking in society here and there,

and still far away from fully understanding the perilous sidekicks

of having a powerful Mind,

I do understand why he will see no viciousness in this cycle.

In fact, your innocence may even have blocked you from seeing

that there is a cycle in the first place!

Because for you, this thing "effort" is all there is...

to "get shit done",

to "climb up the ranks",

to "make enough for your family",

to "build and maintain relationships",

or any other such need that is part and parcel of your life.

And so, going forward with your image as one of an innocent human,

living life still far under the grips of his Mind,

but just starting to question it,

I will take apart the at time childish and at times vicious and life-sucking

game which you are playing in the name of "Effort".

Effort is an illusion of the Mind.

I will take an example and assist you with what I hope will be,

at the bare minimum, a glimpse of what I fully see from where I stand.

It begins like so...

You imagine a future that "looks good" to you.

This future has the goods that you may or may not have today.

And if it does have, it has them in more quantity or far superior quality.

Let us call this imagination - "the picture".

You make "the picture" your goal, visit it countless times a day,

for it makes you feel good and allows you to justify

"all the effort" you are putting in for it.

You toil day and night for it, take "shit from others",

go miles to "help others", make their lives easy -

(Hey sacrifice today for a better tomorrow, they said)

- which at times makes you want to vomit - BUT...

... T.H.E. P.I.C.T.U.R.E keeps you on track.

And though most of such "the picture" chases fail completely,

leaving one either disappointed, fuming or wondering "What did I not do enough of?",

for the sake of this conversation let us say you "succeed".

You now have the real-life version of "The picture" in front of you.

But as you look at it and touch it,

you feel that some things are amiss -

actually, a lot of them are.

For one thing, in real life, it "looks" far different,

and in fact, you have to admit, INFERIOR.

And even though it is standing right there,

you seem to be just getting fumes and smokes of "the picture".

You cannot seem to experience "the picture",

even though it is actually, really and physically with you!

And so, not at all satisfied, let alone the satiation it promised,

you look at it once more and wonder - "What gives"?

~~~

Understand that what I exemplified above is just one example,

and no matter how many "Aha!" moments you had,

or how many "gotcha's," your Mind said for YOU,

I will call you out on your pre-mature "I think I get it now"

and add that there are many such vicious cycles you are stuck in.

These EFFORTful cycles do not just chip away at your contentedness,

but also make you miss completely that there IS another word.

A word for a phenomenon or "THE WAY",

which will get you way more than that you rely on "Effort" for,

without even a hint of the need for it.

A word that your "boss", "colleagues", "team", "friends", "clients"

and any other societal entity will do their best to shield you from,

for it is through your effort that they derive and reap their benefits!

And unlike effort, you will not have to rely on this entity,

for it will surface on its own.

That word is ...

EFFORTLESS.

Thank you.