What does it mean to "Let Go"?
What does it mean to “let go”?
We hear it from spiritual teachers, read the memes on Instagram posts, and it repeats itself in our yoga practices, but what exactly does “letting go” mean? Well, letting go means to stop holding on to something. It’s easy when we think of it in physical terms – you put something down, or open your hands and let whatever you’re holding go, and watch it fall or floats up into the air. But what about emotionally? How can we let go something that is not physical? How do we let go of something that we can’t see, touch, taste, or smell?
How do we let go of a feeling?
In simplest terms, “letting go” is a way of replacing the feeling of “holding on”. It is practicing a different feeling, one of surrender and acceptance, instead of tension and rejection. It is rewiring the energy that is currently bound up in the sensation of “holding on”.
How to do it?
As with everything else in life, it requires practice, patience, and focus. The best way to start is to visualize what it would feel like to surrender. If you pretended to surrender to something, how would it feel? If that’s difficult to do, pretend that you are having a fight with a loved one, and you just decided to surrender. No passive aggressiveness, no other intentions, or manipulations – just surrender. I am done fighting; I just want peace. I completely accept your point of view, and I do not care. I give up. You can continue to scream, fight, and cry, but whatever you choose to do will not have any effect on me. If you can imagine doing that with a loved one in your life, you can do that with yourself.
Emotionally
To use the previous example, your thoughts are who you are fighting, and you must practice surrendering to them unconditionally. In life we tend to be our worst critics and extremely hard on ourselves. If you hear your thoughts abuse you and call you names, surrender and listen to what they have to say to you. Listen to them until they run out of steam and become almost a whisper. Do not argue with them, do not justify yourself, do not give a different point of view – just listen. If the same thought repeats itself again and again, continue to listen. REMEMBER: they are not real – they are just mind patterns pretending to be real. How do I know? Well, you can look at your thoughts, but you can’t look at you. So, you know who is real. Thoughts are like little memory ghosts that like to scare you.
Your job is to just listen to them and to watch. Listen and watch, listen and watch, listen and watch in a complete state of surrender. Unmoving, balanced, grounded, and strong. Breathe. Remind yourself “I am not my thoughts. Do as you wish – I give up.”
What happens then?
When someone surrenders in a fight, the other side “wins”. When the other side “wins”, the battle stops. And when you stop fighting yourself (your thoughts) and give up, your thoughts have nothing to resist and fight, and they let go of YOU. Instead of painful memories that occupied your being before, there is peace and surrender there. Spaciousness now dwells within you.
Tips for Letting go
FEEL. This is your greatest and scariest ally. Your state of surrender lets you feel things to the fullest. You are taking the energy that the thought generates absorbing it into you. You are feeding yourself off your negativity. This can be scary and painful, but trust the process. Although it might feel like you are dying and you would rather do ANYTHING else than listen to these negative thoughts, just remember: nothing will happen to you while you listen. Just hold on, breathe, focus, and stay patient. Sometimes the pain may last a few minutes, a few hours or even a few days, but remember to truly feel it fully. It’s just a feeling. Every second you remain in a state of surrender is another second you take back your power.
If you enjoyed our What does it mean to "Let Go" blog post then please check out our How to Meditate Properly and Purpose of Meditation to continue on your journey.
Love and Light,
Moonlight of Eternity