Buddhism is something that has, in the past couple of years, greatly interested me—not necessarily the Buddha himself or the origins of the religion, but the overall techniques that Buddhism employs.
In the past two years, I’ve read three different books that don’t outright claim to be Buddhist, but that teach practices rooted in the religion: The Sedona Method, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, and currently, Tuesdays with Morrie. These books are, at their core, centered on emotional control, overall happiness, and—particularly in two of them—a major theme that can be hard to swallow: getting cozy with the idea of your own death.
I’ve personally tried to employ this way of thinking for the past couple of years, and I’ve noticed that when I try to explain certain decisions I’ve made, people don’t always relate. I start a LOT of sentences with, “I’m gonna die soon, so that’s why I decided on XYZ.” I quit a job in finance—with a solid future—in 2023, with no plan at all, simply based on the fact that I’d felt miserable for the better part of two years. I said to myself: “I have maybe 40 good years left, and I refuse to spend the next 30 feeling miserable at a job that requires nonstop work.” That was the first step in realizing my only real goal in life is to be happy.
Now, “happiness” to me is an obscure idea. I can’t just do whatever I want—that’s hedonism—but I also don’t want to be miserable. Struggle, and making sure I don’t live a selfish life, are things I know are building blocks to deeper happiness.
In particular, I’ve been trying to get a grip on controlling my emotions—which is exactly where Buddhism has been so impactful. A lot of the techniques it teaches, particularly through meditation, really emphasize letting emotions arise fully and recognizing that they are just that—emotions. You can choose to let them go. This is, of course, a simplified version of an exceptionally difficult concept—and essentially the goal of monks: reaching Nirvana.
I’ve mentioned before in these posts that I actually enjoy the highs and lows of emotions. They make me feel human. Buddhism isn’t about eliminating emotion—it’s more about feeling it fully, accepting that you’ve felt it, and realizing you can choose to let it go at any time.
Once again—these books I’ve read really offer a 1,000-foot view of the techniques employed in Buddhism and don’t dive too deeply into the underlying philosophies. Some people write them off as “Bro Buddhism”—because others exaggerate how profound the books are, and then they’re dismissed as surface-level. And honestly, they are kind of surface-level.
But I think all of them do a great job of giving you just enough to chew on—to spark some intrigue. And sometimes, that’s all it takes to inspire someone to dive deeper into something more philosophical.
Until then, you’ll find me thinking about dying all the time—and being pretty okay with it.
-Love Wyatt
Wyatts Hobby Photos 