At times, the inner landscape can feel like a storm at sea. And yet, beneath the waves, there is always a silent current drawing us home.
Turning inward is like beginning to discover the kingdom of heaven inside. We might walk straight through the chamber doors, or we might need to go through swirling storms. Either way, the aim is to reach the fountain of peace.
Waves of thought crash against the mind. Winds of craving and aversion push the nervous system into motion. At times, it feels as if we’re lost far from shore.
And yet, the ocean holds depth. Beneath the surface’s turbulence lies an immense stillness. The storm stays on the surface, while the depths remain quiet and undisturbed. And here lies the kingdom within.
Inner simplicity isn’t about avoiding waves; it’s about learning to rest within that depth.
The mind creates storms
When I taught my very first Yoga class at the local community hall, six people showed up. Three were family members who were there to support me. I was nervous but hopeful.
At the end of the class, one of the women who had attended rushed out the door. A wave of negativity washed over me: She hated it. She couldn’t wait to leave. Within seconds, my mind had spun a whole story. Nobody liked the class. No one would come back next week. I could feel the tightness in my chest and the nervous tension in my body.
For days, I carried that storm. I imagined an empty hall the following week and the painful humiliation of packing up alone.
When the next class arrived, I walked in, bracing myself for rejection. Instead, 14 people showed up. The same woman who had rushed out returned—this time with her husband. She’d left quickly because she loved the class so much that she couldn’t wait to tell him about it.
The storm was never in the room. The mind had created it where none existed. The waves were imagined, but the body responded as if they were real.
Revealing the path of inner simplicity
The wisdom of the ages encourages us to peel back the layers of illusion and the stories we tell ourselves to reveal the path of inner simplicity.
Across spiritual traditions, the focus is inward. Ramana Maharshi described the journey to awakening as a shift from the head to the Heart—from conceptual thinking to direct awareness.
Paramhansa Yogananda described Shakti, which is conscious energy rising along the spine towards the spiritual eye, as a refinement of awareness from instinct to Self-realization.
The Christian mystic Meister Eckhart said something similar when he spoke of “letting go of God for God”—releasing the idea of the Divine in order to encounter it directly.
Different languages, different metaphors, yet the direction remains the same: turning inward, softening the mental grasping and returning to simplicity.
Beneath the chaos of thought lies a stillness that doesn’t shift, crave, need or perform—our true nature, steady in the pure joy of simply being.
The problems with conditioned patterns
The mind seeks pleasure and avoids pain through the senses, while instinct aims to survive and control—fight or flight—to stay safe. These conditioned patterns are like stormy waters, with waves of the internal sea reaching for fulfillment in the external world. But just as one wave reaches its goal, another comes to wipe it out. Sometimes, it even leaves us feeling dry and miserable at the ocean’s shore.
When we recognize these patterns—the ebb and flow of life, the forces of creation—and we release resistance, simplicity naturally emerges.
With that comes a deep breath of relief and freedom, not because we’re shrinking life, but because we’re peeling away the layers we’ve added.
We don’t fight the present moment internally, add a second layer of “this should or shouldn’t be happening,” or intensify an experience through any personal narrative.
We’re like a bird in the rain that doesn’t argue with the sky or demand sunshine. Instead, the bird finds shelter or lets the water fall, and then shakes it off when the storm passes. In doing so, it remains free.
Not laziness but a choice to stay present
The inner path of simplicity isn’t laziness or passivity; it’s a choice to stay present. When there is resistance, complexity and craving rush in to fill the void.
Addictions and reactions often arise from resistance. When a challenging emotion moves through the system, the impulse is to quell it. To distract. To reach for something pleasurable. To create a story around it. All in an attempt to avoid the feeling.
If you can breathe steadily for just 90 seconds without reacting, the “fight or flight” trigger relaxes, allowing the inner storm to settle.
When the storm of reaction rises, the most instinctive response is to try to avoid the sensation, but distraction or suppression will keep these lower energies lingering.
However, if you notice the familiar sensation—the heat, the discomfort, the mind’s stories, agitation—and make a conscious commitment to stay with it and breathe, you’ll allow it to pass through you, be neutrally experienced and then release.
Neuroscience research shows that an emotional chemical surge lasts only 90 seconds. If you can breathe steadily for just 90 seconds without reacting, the “fight or flight” trigger relaxes, allowing the inner storm to settle.
Taking a few deep breaths in and longer breaths out signals safety to the nervous system, which allows the “painful” energy to rise and pass. You—the one aware of the inner world—can learn to be comfortable with what feels uncomfortable. This isn’t about controlling the moment, but about staying present until the wave begins to crest and fall naturally.
An open heart and a relaxed mind
When the heart stays open, and the mind remains relaxed, energy can move freely. The nervous system softens. Cravings lose their hold, and the inner landscape settles.
The rain will come. Winds will shift. Emotions will rise and fall. It’s not about controlling the weather, but about changing our relationship to it.
Inner simplicity shows up in ordinary moments. In the pause before reacting to a harsh word, in the breath taken before sending a defensive message, and in the willingness to feel disappointment without turning it into a story about failure. In those small spaces of non-resistance, we rediscover a freedom that was there all along.
Medical disclaimer: This page is for educational and informational purposes only and may not be construed as medical advice. The information is not intended to replace medical advice offered by physicians. Please refer to the full text of our medical disclaimer.
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