Opinions Aren't Worth a Dime
Let Them Go to Gain Peace of Mind
Do you prefer to be right or to die?
People go to extremes to prove their point, even risking death. In 1808, two Frenchmen, de Grandpré and de Pique, quarreled over who flirted with a woman at an opera. Unwilling to yield, they dueled in hot air balloons over Paris. De Pique shot down Grandpré’s balloon, killing him instantly—all over a trivial slight.
If you think your opinions are priceless, consider this.
The Sun is ~109 times larger than Earth, and the Solar System is ~25,800 times bigger than the Sun. The Milky Way galaxy dwarfs the Solar System by ~26 million times, and there are ~2 trillion galaxies in the observable universe. That’s just what we can see.
Humans have walked Earth for ~300,000 years, yet Earth is 4.54 billion years old, and the universe spans 13.8 billion years.
Still unmoved? Here’s an ancient Chinese story.
Blind men touch an elephant to understand it. One feels the trunk, calling it a snake; another touches a leg, insisting it’s a pillar; a third grabs the tail, claiming it’s a rope. Each clings to their partial truth, arguing fiercely, unaware they describe the same creature.
How far is a tiny human’s opinion, formed on a speck of a planet in an infinite universe, from the truth? A lightyear might not measure the gap.
Your ego is a collection of such opinions. Most cherish theirs as identity. Yet to God, the infinite source, each is a blind man’s grasp.
Jesus taught us to surrender our will to God. Buddha urged releasing attachment to thoughts—past, present, or future—for liberation.
Lasting happiness isn’t about better thoughts. Let go of their value, and find the inner peace no money, status, or romance can match.