Living Well, Leaving Well: The Inner Path to Peace and Liberation

From a young age, society conditions us to acquire life skills that ensure a secure and comfortable existence. We are encouraged to plan meticulously for the future through life insurance, health insurance, children's education, savings, and investments. We are taught to succeed materially, to manage our image, and to sharpen abilities such as communication and body language. These life skills are undoubtedly essential for the survival of the body in this material world.

However, it is equally — if not more — important to engage in practices that benefit not only our current life but also the life beyond.

Inward stillness opens the door to eternal freedom

So, what kind of practice supports both this life and the afterlife?

It is the inward journey: purifying the mind and freeing it from negativity. Sadly, the world around us seldom emphasizes the importance of inner purification or the cultivation of a resilient, positive inner perception. As a result, we grow accustomed to allowing our happiness and sorrow to be dictated by external events. When things happen according to our expectations, we feel joy; when they do not, we suffer. These emotional fluctuations leave deep impressions on the mind, unresolved experiences that gradually accumulate as negativity.

This internal negativity is not only the source of emotional instability — it is the very force that binds us to the cycle of rebirth.

Through the practice of Chivality, I have come to realize a vital truth: negativity clouds perception. When we regularly engage in silentation and remembrance of our Divine Master, the mind gradually becomes lighter, clearer, and more attuned to positivity. With this clarity, we stop reacting to the ups and downs of external circumstances and begin living from a place of inner steadiness and peace. True bliss arises when the mind is no longer disturbed by the ever-changing outer world.

A sincere and dedicated spiritual practice leads us to a state where no incident — pleasant or painful — can shake the calm of the mind. At the time of death, if the mind rests in peace, that peace is carried beyond this earthly life. This is the inner condition we must all strive to cultivate while we are still alive.

The cumulative impressions in the mind at the moment of death determine the quality and nature of our next birth in this material realm. The cycle of rebirth continues as long as negativity remains within. To break this cycle, we must eliminate these negative impressions — and that is precisely what Chivality helps us accomplish.

The absence of negativity is liberation — moksha. According to the sages and spiritual masters of ancient times, this is the true purpose of human life.

Sadly, this sacred wisdom is often overlooked. Parents, teachers, and society at large remain focused on material success, rarely guiding us toward spiritual fulfillment or preparation for the afterlife. We are trained to thrive in a world that we know is impermanent, all while neglecting the part of us that endures beyond death.

Therefore, we must strive not only to live with positivity and purpose but also to prepare ourselves for a peaceful, blissful transition beyond this life. The path to liberation lies in transforming the mind, not merely through worldly knowledge, but through the sincere practice of silentation and remembrance of the Divine Master.

Let us not merely live well. Let us also learn to leave well: in peace, in light, and in freedom.