What Happens When You Let Go?

What if you could just choose to be content—once and for all?

In the meditation practice I teach, that’s exactly what you do: you sit, and you decide to be unconditionally content.

Years ago, I expanded this practice beyond the cushion. I committed to living in contentment as much as possible—not because I knew what would happen, but because I wanted to find out. I wanted to see what life would be like if I truly let go.

Discontent arises when we separate ourselves from what is—when we judge it, resist it, or wish it were different. The secret to maintaining conscious contentment, in both meditation and life, is simple: don’t separate from the present moment. Stay with what is. Stay here.

You can do this. This is the secret Ram Dass brought back from India and poured into Be Here Now. It’s the same truth that inspired Eckhart Tolle to write The Power of Now. The secret isn’t hidden—it’s just hard to do.

But if you can do it—if you can let go of the thoughts that distract you and rest your awareness in the immediate experience of the present—something miraculous happens. You enter flow. Life reveals itself as one unbroken stream, and you are no longer separate from it.

From then on, meditation becomes effortless. Thoughts come and go. Feelings arise. You might forget what you’re doing—and none of it matters. Everything is part of the flow. There is no “outside.” Life leads seamlessly from one moment to the next, and you begin to marvel at the elegant simplicity of being alive.

Not alive and comfortable. Not alive and successful. Just—alive.
Life is a miracle and we forget that so easily. We take existence for granted. But when you practice contentment, you begin to retrain yourself. A new set point emerges: a baseline of peace and receptivity. And from that place, you live with more openness, trust, and love.

Imagine two people. One is guarded and suspicious. The other is open and trusting. Let them live for thirty years. Who will be happier? Who will create a more expansive, loving, free life? Most of us want to be open and trusting, but we believe we can’t be unless the world cooperates.

The miracle is that you can. You can choose to be that now. And with practice, it becomes your new habit.

Of course, it’s not easy. At first, we pretend to let go while still secretly clinging to control. But if you don’t give up, something will shift. One day, you take the real risk. You let go for real. You take your hands off the wheel. And to your surprise—you don’t crash.

Life doesn’t fall apart. In fact, it flows better than ever. ANd what about the house of cards you were so desperately trying to hold together? A few pieces may tumble out, but they reassemble into something more beautiful. You realize that life is better at guiding you than you are at guiding it.

As you surrender further, something even more astonishing unfolds. You start to look around. You begin to see beyond the house of cards. A vast, multidimensional reality opens up that is richer than you ever imagined. That’s when the spiritual path becomes a celebration.

Yes, I love the life I’ve lived. I love my house of cards. But I know it’s just the tip of the iceberg. My existence didn’t begin with my birth and it won’t end with my death. What we are is infinite and my greatest joy is sharing that truth with anyone who's ready to remember who they truly are.