Foreword
by Gerald G. Jampolsky, M.D.,
author of Love Is Letting Go of Fear
Is anything more important than learning to experience ourselves as whole and as the essence of Love? I cannot think of anything, and Hugh Prather has written a simple, clear book that presents practical ways to let go of the blocks that interfere with experiencing our natural state of wholeness, joy, peace, and oneness with our Creator. The stories in this book, which are honest and deeply affecting, leave readers with the kind of “Ah ha” awareness that allows for spiritual transformation.
I have known Hugh and Gayle for more than twenty-two years and cherish the deep, loving friendship that we have. I have witnessed their humanness, trials, errors, and tribulations, and, as for most of us, life has not always been easy for them. But through these years, I have also witnessed their absolute commitment to their spiritual journey and to those who come to them for help.
As he always does, Hugh writes with humor and clarity about the ordinary, mundane problems that most of us struggle with. While deeply spiritual in tone, his writing tends to stay away from the kind of religious terminology that can separate rather than unite. Above all, this is a practical book, with practical solutions for everyday difficulties. It is not an abstract book of impressive-sounding concepts, but one that is filled with the precious spiritual nuggets that can lead us to a life filled with love and hope. It is a book about healing our fear of intimacy and our fear of love and happiness.
Hugh makes it absolutely clear that life does not have to be as complicated as we usually make it. He brings freshness and candor to ancient insights and leaves the reader free to ponder, disagree with, and especially to reexamine old beliefs, habits, and thoughts. When we finally realize that letting go of what has no value is not a sacrifice but the road to our personal freedom and happiness, we will embrace the practices that allow us to accomplish this. The “Releases” in this book are a way to freedom from the judgments, thoughts, and attitudes that poison our minds and lives. They will help readers become more conscious of their feelings and thoughts as a preparation to freeing their minds and becoming whole.
Letting go is an ongoing process that must be mastered, and while the writing in this book is clear, concise, and easy to read, it does require readers to participate in their liberation. The value of these Releases is priceless because they open the door to freedom from the bondage of negative, fearful thinking and set hearts and minds free to soar with the wings of peace, unity, and happiness.
The last chapter of this book is a powerful, poetic description of the benefits of letting go, surrendering to love, and finally taking that leap of faith to trust God as our guide through the pathways of life. The result is a joy and peace that defies both imagination and comparison.
This is a great, must-read book.
The River and the Lion
After the great rains, the lion was faced with crossing the river that had encircled him. Swimming was not in his nature, but it was either cross or die. The lion roared and charged the river, almost drowning before he retreated. Many more times he attacked the water, and each time he failed to cross. Exhausted, the lion lay down, and in his quietness he heard the river say, “Never fight what isn't here.”
Cautiously, the lion looked up and asked, “What isn't here?”
“Your enemy isn't here,” answered the river. “Just as you are a lion, I am merely a river.”
Now the lion sat very still and studied the ways of the river. After a while, he walked to where a certain current brushed against the shore, and stepping in, floated to the other side.
One
Letting Go: The Basics
Within the human heart, we all feel the call to be simple, to be present, to be real. Yet throughout the day, the world urges us to be at war with ourselves and each other: “Be resentful about the past.” “Be anxious about the future.” “Be hungry for what you don't see.” “Be dissatisfied with what you do see.” “Be guilty.” “Be important.” “Be bored.” “Be right.” Little else in nature exhibits this need to be more than it is. The simplicity of rain, the clarity of a star, the effortlessness of a bird, the single-mindedness of an ant—all are just what they are.
Underwear on the floor can break up a marriage. Yet the eyes of puppies light up when they see boxers or briefs. To them, dirty socks are not reasons for fights but reasons for play. Obviously, most little animals are hooked on something quite divine. Something within them releases enormous freedom. I suggest that something is simplicity and purity, and that we can experience the possibilities of this natural state as well. A mind that learns to let go gradually returns to its inherent wholeness, happiness, and simplicity.
For example, the people who are in our lives today, are in our lives today—what could be simpler than this? Yet so often we react to those we encounter with a mind churning in conflict: we don't want them here; we can think of other people we would rather have here; we're not even sure we want to be here; when will this be over; why does this always happen to us; and on and on. When we become preoccupied with what we want or don't want from someone, or what we do or don't approve of, we fail to see that person's goodness, malice, gentleness, sadness, or anything else that is present. This habitual reaction to other people and to everything else in life needlessly complicates our lives and blocks simple enjoyment and peace.
Big Truck
When Gayle's and my son, John, was two years old, we lived in Santa Fe, New Mexico. One day he and I were standing on a street corner, waiting for the light to change, when a semi slowly began rounding the corner just as the walk light came on. Suddenly I was caught up in the delay this truck was causing by passing in front of us. Then I heard John say, “Big truck.” I looked down and his eyes were wide with amazement. I looked at this enormous semi passing so close we could have reached it in one step. And I said, “Big truck.” Because now I really saw it. It seemed like the mother ship in a Star Wars movie.
Maybe I'd been thinking that the truck shouldn't have been there or that what I had to do was more important than what the truck driver had to do. Whatever it was, that thought was all it took to keep me from enjoying just standing beside my son and holding his hand. Just one unnecessary thought. Little children have very few, if any, unnecessary thoughts, and that's why they are usually focused, present, and happy.
A mother bird sees a snake climbing her tree and thinks “snake.” Immediately she starts dive-bombing it. I have seen what a bird can do to a snake that doesn't climb down fast enough. However, it's clear what would happen to her babies if that same mother bird saw the snake and thought, “I do more good in the world than that snake.”
