Inner Engineering summary

Have you ever noticed that you sometimes deeply enjoy receiving hugs and other times are annoyed by such gestures of intimacy? Many people share this paradox, which divulges a great deal about the human experience.

Namely, it shows how human perceptions, feelings and emotions are entirely self-generated. In other words, it’s not just objects in the world like books, food and houses that are perceived within yourself. The same is true for the way you feel.

The natural response to a painful experience like a bitter breakup is to obsess over what happened. It’s all too common for us to replay such painful scenarios in our minds for months, even years.

You might continually imagine a partner who cheated on you. This compulsive tendency to reproduce traumatic events in our minds means that certain people eventually come to fully identify with these situations, finding themselves incapable of trusting a new lover.

When you think of responsibility, the first thought that comes to mind is probably not buying a small bus, taking off on a world tour and leaving your family behind. But such a choice could be the most responsible one you’ve ever made.

While it may sound totally illogical to some, responsibility gives you freedom. After all, responsibility is the ability to take a step back, consider your options and decide how to best respond to a situation.

You probably already know that teamwork is essential to success. The same is true within an individual organism. To function properly, the different parts of your being need to work in sync.

So, to reach enlightenment, you need to forge a tight-knit cooperation between your body, mind, emotions and energy. This principle is beautifully described in another traditional Indian story.

People often view the earth as dirty, which compels us to keep everything clean and sterile. But what about our own bodies? Are they filthy too?

Well, in reality, the human body is just another piece of the earth and universe. It is made out of food that was ingested at the moment we were created, swimming around as embryos in the womb. This food comes from the earth, returns to it and is thus the same as the earth itself.

Nowadays, most people believe in science, but even science has very human limitations. Our intellect, in fact, can even prevent us from experiencing life to the fullest.

An ancient Greek myth perfectly illustrates this point.

Lots of people perceive spiritual teachings as esoteric and lofty. Even those of us who get serious about spirituality often wonder where to begin.

Travel is a great place to start. After all, there are locations on earth that store spiritual energy.