I've been trying to understand and live this quote for quite some time now, and every day I see how detached I have been from this.

As a martial artist, I've been using this philosophy to train in whatever system or art I am exposed to and I have had some success with this. But when I look at using this as a philosophy for life, I realize the addiction to control things. And there lies the beauty of this realization. We're all trying to control an outcome that we have no clue about — An ideal outcome that comes from a fixed mindset or vision that we have developed over the years, an objective to which we have tied our entire self-worth.

But what if you were to let go of this 'ideal' goal? What if you were to 'go with the flow', and see where it takes you?

We're on this blue rock hurtling through space trying to look for comfort in the known when the unknown is so much more exciting.

It was this statement (the one above) that helped me break out of some of the rigid patterns I had built up over time. As a martial artist, I have been and am being trained in redirecting the energy of an oncoming aggressor and be sensitive to the pressure so that I can adapt and ultimately achieve a favorable outcome. Now, when I look back, it makes sense why energy sensitivity has never been my strongest attribute - because I have been too focused on the outcome and my idea of what the outcome should be. Truth is, I don't know what it is or what it will be' therefore, I cannot control it. So that leaves but one option - if resistance is not helping, why not surrender and go with the current?

Looking at this, I sound like a walking bag of contradictions promoting the relinquishment of control and asking people to just follow a path of faith, openness, and let go of expectations of any kind. Yup. That’s exactly what I'm saying. And the idea behind this is to expose you to conflict. What kind of conflict? The kind you have when you realize that there is absolutely NOTHING you can control except yourself. This feeling causes conflict because it goes against our strong conditioning of trying to control ourselves, our environment and the outcome of the conflict.

Here's the thing, folks! When you let go of the outcome, you let go of the conflict. You free yourself from rigid practices and resistance to the unknown and see things for what they are rather than what you want them to be. True freedom lies in acceptance and flow. You are free to adapt and change course with ease because you're not resisting change of any kind. You become open to receive whatever it is that you deserve to receive. I’m thinking of another fancy line to put here to get the point across but I hope I managed to get the point across.

On a daily basis, we're exposed to conflict across various areas of our life - conflict at work' emotional conflict, physical conflict, conflict with your partner, your family, and so on. The worst of them all is the conflict with yourself. That's when what you want and what you are receiving are not in agreement (when your heart wants something and your head wants something, else. I finally get to use this statement.

So the first step to resolving conflict is letting go of control. Interesting fact - as I write this, I am in a conflict between expressing myself freely and trying to make this an interesting read for YOU. I am trying to write this with the outcome to impress you and give you something that makes you see me in a supposedly favorable way. But the second I let go of that, I’m free to express what I want and how I feel. The outcome doesn't matter because I don't control it - your opinion of this piece of writing could be really good or really bad. I wouldn't know till you read this, and that intrigues me. And in a way, inspires me to see where this goes. So I'm going to share my insights with you as freely and as authentically as I can, without assuming that you need it, would like or approve of it, or whether I am correct or not. My aim is not to be right, my aim to find the right answer, irrespective of whether it aligns with my thoughts, actions, beliefs, or biases. My aim is to be free from conflict and I hope you'll join me in my quest to do so.