Santosa- Contentment

The Virtuosity of Contentment

“Whatever happiness there may be in enjoyment in this world, and whatever greater happiness there may be in the celestial world, they do not amount to one sixteenth of the happiness attained from the cessation of desire”

Santosa is the second Niyama, and it is a Sanskrit word that comes from the roots sam (altogether, totally, completely; the same “sam” as in samadhi) and tosa (contentment, satisfaction). It can be translated as complete contentment, total delight, utter gratification, and so on. When we search for contentment or satisfaction in this world, can we find it? Yes. Let me tell you when: when you fulfill a desire. Think of something that you really wanted, something that you pursued and that you finally achieved at some point. At the precise moment when you achieved it, you experienced complete contentment, total satisfaction, utter delight.
But it was short-lived. That contentment may have lasted for a few seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, or months, but then it faded. Then you chose a new goal, a new desire that you began pursuing. This goes on and on until you finally arrive at the ultimate desire: ending all desires so that you can be ever-happy. In order to achieve this, you explore meditation, dive into spirituality, and seek enlightenment. But what I want to show you is that perpetual contentment already lies within you—you are just unaware of it. This is not fancy New-Age self-help rubbish talk; it’s really true.

If you didn’t already have perpetual contentment within you, if it weren’t already present but just apparently obfuscated, then this would mean that you could potentially gain it, which would also mean that you could lose it. And if you could lose it, then it would not be worth it. Perpetual contentment must exist at all times, not something to acquire. Otherwise, enlightenment, the ultimate aim of authentic spirituality, wouldn’t surpass fleeting pursuits.

You are breathing at all times, but you are not aware of it, are you? Now as you read this, you’ll probably become aware of the air flowing in and going out. It was already present but you just weren’t paying attention to it. In the same way, we have so much stuff blocking the flow of contentment from within (i.e., desires) that only when what is causing a blockage stops blocking (i.e., desire is fulfilled) do we allow ourselves to experience that tasty joy of pure contentment. But it was there all along.

Perpetual Contentment

So, what would it be like when there are no more desires? Let us get a little taste of it:
Imagine that for some reason, you haven’t seen the person you absolutely love the most in over a year. Imagine the built-up desire and the subsequent release of tension when you are finally with that person again. Perpetual contentment must exist at all times, not something to acquire. Otherwise, enlightenment, the ultimate aim of authentic spirituality, wouldn’t surpass fleeting pursuits. That’s perpetual contentment!
Now here comes the kicker: with perpetual contentment, the body-mind won’t have any purpose or motivation to do anything at all—there’s just no
will toward any “movement” within this dual world because there is perfect unbroken fulfillment. In such a state, the bliss is perpetuated not only in the mind but also in the senses and the body. Everything is simply this pure bliss.
Body and mind are partially active in such a state, but it is difficult to perform activities or do anything because the bliss has become too strong to allow engagement with normal daily living.

So how can we reconcile this?
There’s one thing above all others with which your relative expression naturally aligns. Typically, it is something that allows your creativity to come
through, but ultimately, it’s something that causes an impact in the world, regardless of the scale of such actions. What this means is that by performing this activity, you are expressing the light of awareness through those actions whatever they may be.
That’s what will create a habit that will anchor your consciousness to the body and allow it to keep functioning in the world, while continuously
bathing in contentment, joy, and pleasure. It’s as if your relative expression was supposed to do exactly that in this world. This is something that your
own path will show you—nobody can choose it for you. It is the love to continuously perform that activity that will help you to
maintain a grounded “transcendental .”
It is curious to realize that even though the spiritual path will show you that nothing has any meaning in and of itself, it will also enable you to discover and actualize your relative purpose in this world. These are not separate things, but rather a different manifestation of the same inherent divinity

Am I in control?

Santosa is also about letting go of the illusion of control. Allowing what is, without rejecting it, is contentment. If you reject something, you are suffering. If you allow it without embracing it, you don’t suffer. This doesn’t mean that the situation in question cannot change, or that you shouldn’t do anything to change it, or that you should be happy with mediocrity. What it does mean is that you don’t resist the situation, and therefore your inner state is not perturbed by it. This allows mindfulness and calmness to permeate through the situation, enabling you to see and deal with it from a higher perspective.
For example, if you find out that you have a terminal disease, allowing something doesn’t mean that you give up all hope, resign yourself to it and
just allow your body to deteriorate and die, evoking “karma” or “God’s will” as reasons. No. You can’t possibly know if overcoming such a disease
is part of your life’s path and karma, or not.
What this means is that you accept that you do have such a condition (i.e., accepting the now, allowing what is already present rather than denying and suppressing it), and then you look for possible solutions and for the best path to treat the illness. The idea of having no control of, or being powerless over your life and what course it will follow may be too much for most people. They may feel desperate that things are out of their hands. And when helplessness arises, misery is its closest companion.
The fact of the matter is that you are not in control of your life and its path. Realizing this insight through direct experience is essential. Let’s see:
Did you consciously choose to be born to your parents? Forget those who affirm, “I, as a soul, have chosen my birth parents because being born into
that family created the best possibilities for me to experience my karma and fulfill my worldly purpose.” I’m not questioning whether such an affirmation is true or false—it’s just that you, the person who is reading this book right now and who is looking for enlightenment, certainly didn’t choose such.

Did you ever choose to be in a traffic jam?
Did you ever choose to be rejected or to be told no?

I could give innumerable examples, but it’s easy to see that if you were truly in control of your life, you would never experience suffering. No one in their right mind would ever suffer on purpose, and if you were in control, you’d always be totally happy.
So, you are not really in control. You can do your best to go in the direction that you perceive your interests to be, but whether that works out or
not, it’s not really up to you.
We have all heard that the Harry Potter books were rejected over and over again more than ten times before finally being accepted by a publisher,
and then subsequently, becoming the best-selling book series of all time. We have all heard about those who said: “I got so many no’s, but I kept
on trying until I got a yes, and thus fulfilled my dream.”
Were those people in control? Obviously not, otherwise they would haven’t gotten a “no” in the first place. But something in them made them
persist, and eventually, they did it (i.e., gained recognition from society). That was supposed to happen. But it doesn’t happen all the time. How many people try their hardest, but fail to get such recognition? Sometimes, they get it after they die, such as Galileo Galilei or Vincent van Gogh who are just some famous names that only received proper recognition posthumously. But many died without “fulfilling their dreams” despite working hard to achieve them. We never hear about those.
Contentment must not be dependent on whether we get what we want, be this “things,” recognition, appreciation, or even love. Total contentment or perfect satisfaction must come from within, from the very core of consciousness. It comes from desirelessness. That’s the sacred jewel of Santosa From Drifting to Controlling to Dancing

There are three main levels of realization (or lack of it) concerning “control”:

1) Ignorant Ego
I’m at the mercy of life and its events. I can’t control anything; I can’t design my life the way I want it. It’s totally out of my control. I abide in
mediocrity.
2) Smart Ego
I’m in control of my life. I can design it the way I want; though there may be obstacles, ultimately, I am the architect of my path. I am or will be a
success.
3) Spiritual Seeker
I control life’s grand scheme. Some decisions, not all. I’ll harmonize with life, universe.
4) Enlightened Being
I am one with Life. As the stream of life flows, so I flow. I am not at the mercy of life, nor can I control it—because I am it. I go with it, as it. Which level are you at? Can you make a jump to the next level?

The first level doesn’t require anything—it’s the default level of human beings. The second level requires self-development—it’s what the majority of
self-help, “life coaches,” Neuro-linguistic programming and self improvement courses, and most meditation teachers instruct. Success is equated with recognition in society, often financially and in social status.

The third level begins after self-development because it’s self transcendence. If you are reading this , then there’s a high probability that you are already at this level. After realizing through discernment and spiritual practice that the “self” is an ephemeral play in the screen of consciousness, a temporary false subject, and an illusion without inherent existence in itself, the mature spiritual seeker becomes aware of the fact that improving or developing it won’t cease its suffering nor help it to achieve eternal happiness and fulfillment. In other words, since the “self” is nothing more than an agglomerate of thoughts, feelings, perceptions, and sensations, it’s but a passing wind on the eternal sky of consciousness (that which witnesses thoughts, feelings, perceptions, and sensations—but is none of them).
Eternal life can only be found in what is not temporary—which is pure consciousness, the true Self. That’s where mature spiritual seekers focus and abide by, in their own background of awareness, trying their best to dance with life. That’s the bridge toward the fourth and final level. So here’s how things may stand for you right now:
You might say that although there are countless events and happenings outside of your control, you, as an apparent individual entity, definitely seem to have a choice in a variety of personal decisions throughout each day (you still have the sense of being the doer of actions or the decider of choices).
For example, you may think that getting this book and reading it was your own decision.
If this is the case (appearing that you still have some power of choice), you should always decide according to what you feel is best to “advance” in
your spiritual journey. This will prevent the creation of new barriers or obstacles in your spiritual practice (often called “karma”). This post was mostly written with the consideration that you reside in this “zone” of semifree choice, and so it’s meant to help you aim your decisions toward the spiritual summit of Self-Realization.
Even if we were to say that everything is predestined, certainly you cannot know what is in store for you. Thus, it still seems to be up to you to decide whatever you wish to choose. So you make the best possible decision according to your current level of wisdom and intuition. And because you have infinite possibilities of choice in every moment of your life, what you decide to do is of extreme importance.
If you lack the lucidity to act consciously, your acts and outcomes will be unconscious—they will be the result of mere past conditioning. Many people make choices that they don’t even recognize as “choices,” simply because such choices were made in total unawareness, and hence seem to be a byproduct of randomness or of the “environment” (“Ignorant Ego”).
This failure to take responsibility for one’s own choices can cause great harm when one is on a profound and authentic spiritual journey. To fight this off and break the current cycle one might be trapped in, it is imperative to begin acting from a higher state of consciousness. As you shift to a higher level of consciousness, you become more capable of using your apparent free will and making fully conscious choices. Being present can function as portal to this higher state of consciousness:

• Relax.
• Take a deep breath.
• Look around.
• Feel your sense of being present.
• Are you present right now? Yes? Take your time.

Take another deep breath. Relax some more. At this moment, if just for a single minute, allow yourself to be at peace. Allow yourself to be content
with what is currently present within the space of your awareness. What’s missing? Don’t use the mind to answer it. Stay present. In this very moment, whenever you are totally present, if just for a brief second, you are totally content. Being in the present moment is Santosa.