In case you missed it, this is a seven part series of summaries of The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, by Deepak Chopra. Take a look at the previous entries if you need to get caught up.
#4: The Law of Least Effort
This chapter is a little esoteric as compared to other chapters in the book. Essentially it is all about accepting things as they are and not trying to force your will on them. Basically, the universe is a culmination of all of the events that have stacked up in your life that lead to the present moment and the present moment is as it should be. The idea is to not fight the present moment, but to “merge with it.”
This is really difficult when you have your ego in the way. Here is an example, let’s say you have been antagonistic with a certain person, let’s say your spouse or best friend, and eventually they blow up and start calling you names. The normal response is to defend your honor, but in this case, you have pushed this person to their own edges and have influenced their behavior. Let’s take another example: if someone you have never met walks up and calls you the same names, you would tend to defend yourself in the same way, but this time it was totally unprovoked by you. Either way, their opinions of you should make zero difference when you are operating in the Law of Least Effort. The first scenario would be the hardest one to overcome, of course. You know this person and it sinks in differently. Least Effort in the first case would be to not defend yourself knowing that you have pushed their buttons (and shows you that you should stop being mean to your loved ones). In the second case, you can simply shrug this off and move on with your day.
As far as practicing this law, here are Deepak’s suggestions:
- Today I will practice acceptance
You need to practice accepting things in the present moment and not fight the universe. - Having accepted things as they are, I will take responsibility for my situation
If only people would do this more often…wow. Imagine what the political landscape would look like if our “public service” leaders would own up to mistakes and work to remedy things instead of looking for wealth. Or, imagine that a junkie would really reflect that they have stolen from people (may be their grandparents) to get a fix.
You could say that everything bad that happens to you is a result of your choices. I’m not saying you deserve these things, but somehow your choices have led you to this moment and things happen. - Today my awareness will remain established in defenselessness
When Deepak mentions defenselessness in the book, he references The Art of Dreaming with this quote: “most of our energy goes into upholding our importance.” Sit with yourself and analyze how much of a time waster this is for you. Personally, I don’t think it is weakness that allows you to pull back from a situation and not play into others trying to steal your peace. It is strength and mastery that allows you to overcome your defensive position.
Could you imagine the level of productivity we could have it we mastered defenselessness?
Defenselessness if NOT being a doormat and allowing people to run over you. It is standing up to bullies by removing their power over you.
Enjoy the challenges since they are part of your spiritual journey!
Link to the book -> The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success