When I was in college, I thought I was going to major in philosophy. I didn’t. Not because I didn’t want to, but mostly because I thought my philosophy teacher was a bit of a idiot since she kept telling me that my philosophies were not valid. Alllll philosophies are valid, lady. We are all entitled to our own thoughts, regardless of whether they make sense to anyone else. Geesh. Anyway, random back story to share that I love thinking. I mean, I really love it. I could spend days and weeks and months alone with my thoughts and be totally entertained.
I know you’re just dying to know what in the world I think about. Big stuff, I tell ya. Big stuff. My brain is abuzz with everything from intergalactic cosmic birth portals to global issues of masculine-feminine gender dynamic shifts and how they will affect the entire planet soon, to why flies must make such a loud buzzing sound for such small creatures.
This past month, however, most of my thoughts have been consumed with the philosophical concept of non-attachment. I’ve been reading one of those books that will certainly make its way into my top ten faves, and I’m so grateful to the dear soul that gifted me a copy. The book is called It’s Not Your Money by Tosha Silver. As the title suggests, it’s a book about money, but I’ve found its teachings go much further than one’s relationship with dollar bills. (Go ahead and Amazon Prime that thing to yourself. Thank me later.)
I could go on and on about things I’ve learned in this book, but today, I want to share one (potentially controversial) teaching from the book that is really resonating with me. It’s that nothing belongs to any of us. We often refer to things as “my money,” “my job,” “my partner…” There’s a whole lot of mine, mine, mine happening in our world. But according to the author, you do not own the money in your bank account. You do not own the house you live in. You do not own your partner, or your job, or even your own body, in a sense. You have attachments to these things. You have invested in them in some way. But they do not belong to you. They belong to God. Just like money, all of these experiences are energetic currents that are simply passing through the space-time continuum. We certainly don’t take any of them with us after we take our last breaths.
Nothing belongs to you.
Let that concept simmer inside you for a few minutes.
As alarming as this idea may sound to most people’s egos, Silver posits that the concept that nothing belongs to any of us can also bring a lot of relief. When unsure of what to do about something, there is the phrase, “Let go, and let God,” which I’m sure many are familiar with. This does not mean be a lazy bum and take no responsibility. In my opinion, it’s more along the lines of: “Hey God, I’m not really sure what to do about _____, and since it’s yours and not mine anyway, please let me know what You would like me to do regarding _____, and I will take action on your behalf.”
Looking at things this way, we remove some of the attachment we have to the thing/object/person and let divine guidance take the lead. And when we listen carefully, the answers will always come. It has some similarities to the Surrender Experiment piece I wrote about a while back. What do you think about this philosophy that nothing belongs to any of us? Does it resonate for you? Does it trigger you? Does this idea bring anxiety and upset or peace and relief? Let’s talk more about it. Feel free to email me your thoughts: olivia@oliviapool.com
