Accept to Live Without Suffering

Context. What is the purpose of the human experience?

Before moving on to the next topic, it is helpful to place ourselves within a context that offers a new way of looking at life, a new paradigm, one that allows us to be happier and to understand human beings. You don't have to agree with everything that follows, or believe any of it, because we are not talking about beliefs. All you need to do is verify in your own life the results of applying this information, to see whether they hold true for you.

If these inner results are happiness, peace, and harmony, then we will know that this information is true. If our external experiences in relationships, health, resources, and adaptation to our environment improve, then we will confirm that this information is wisdom.

The purpose of the human experience is to evolve, to develop our consciousness so that we may be filled with wisdom and love. All human beings, without exception, have come into the world to work on our spiritual development, sharing and participating in experiences with other human beings. Life is a remarkable educational process of the Universe; planet Earth is a “spiritual school,” and every experience we live through can be compared to an academic year.

Spiritual development is inner work, absolutely individual and personal. No one can do it for another person, but neither can it be done “without others.” In other words, we need interaction and experience with other people in order to build our own development, to get to know ourselves. Sometimes, instead of taking charge of our own development, we try to interfere with that of others; in those cases, instead of learning from others, we want to change them. All this accomplishes is to distort the educational process, or to try to distort it, and in doing so we complicate our own lives.

Only by understanding this can we effectively ask ourselves, “What does life want to teach us in each situation?”, since every situation is a lesson. Ultimately, it is about learning to transmute ignorance into wisdom.

When we notice that suffering is disappearing, that inner peace is becoming unshakable, and that our capacity to create, act, love, and serve is expressed without any condition or restriction, it means we have attained wisdom.

In order to lay the foundation for a new civilization that brings a greater level of satisfaction to all people, we must begin by bringing harmony to ourselves. To do so, it is essential to study the universal laws and apply the principles that lead to wisdom. We must bear in mind that we will truly reach wisdom only through constant practice and by discarding the theories and concepts that prove to be wrong. In this way, it will be possible to develop peace and harmony right where we are, through the lessons of daily life, since life is the best school and nature the best teacher.

All it takes to achieve efficiency is to stop resisting the perfect order of the Universe; mental inefficiency is necessary to discover, through saturation, that the Laws of the Universe exist. Once we have suffered enough, we are ready to understand the Laws. For the external struggle to cease, the internal one must cease first, and for that we must have accepted that everything that exists and everything that happens is perfect and necessary, because it has a purpose of love.

Studying and understanding why the things that exist and happen do so can lead us to recognize the Laws, which in turn make it possible to create a better future for humanity.

There are seven Laws of the Universe that govern all of its processes of creation, administration, and evolution. Of these seven, four are fundamental, since they control the development and evolution of the consciousness of the human species anywhere in the Universe. These four Laws form the lower triangle, while the Law of Evolution is the upper one, governing the lower triangle, also called the triangle of hell because it is the lowest part of the universal laws.

We will be within the Law when we love, enjoy, and value what we have. Everything that is within the Law works and flows on its own.

Everything that brings suffering, anguish, pain, or illness does so because we are going against the Laws, and through that we come to recognize them. The results we experience when we step outside the Laws allow us to recognize their existence. It is necessary to make mistakes in order to discover the Law. Mistakes are not the problem; the problem is not learning from them.

The Law is designed so that we ourselves make a change, not so that we try to change others.

As you can see in the following tables, the human experience is governed by four specific Laws.

In the tables above, on the right-hand side we see the effects of violating the Law. In the topic on the Laws of the Universe, we will also find an explanation of the benefits of not violating the Law.

It is important not to confuse the universal laws with human laws or with rules. The former are immutable and cannot be repealed; they originate in the wisdom of the Absolute or Divinity and are therefore absolute. They cannot be modified or negotiated, and disobeying them has a negative result, in the sense of being unpleasant, and also a positive one, in the sense of the learning it involves. That is why it is said that human beings do not actually create laws but rather establish rules; we call them human laws, but they are rules, because they can be repealed, are temporary, and are useful for a given moment.

We have come to planet Earth to develop the three inner virtues: Happiness, Inner Peace, and Love or Service to Others. This development brings excellent results in four areas: Relationships, Resources, Health, and Adaptation to the Environment:

The idea is to use these virtues to relate to the external world. Learning to be happy, to have peace, and to love is the true purpose that brought us human beings into the physical world of matter.

Happiness, peace, and love are principles of the divine essence; they have no polarity; they are immutable.

Learning to be happy:

• To learn to be happy, you only have to face everything you believe takes your happiness away.
• To be happy, you don't need anything external, only understanding and a particular mindset.
• Non-acceptance is the only cause of suffering; we must stop resisting reality.
• It is essential to stop working on others and to work solely and exclusively on yourself, changing within yourself whatever bothers you (the ego) so that it stops doing so.
• If there is suffering, only one question needs to be asked: “What am I not accepting?” The answer lies there.
• Everyone, without exception, has what they need to be happy; however, very few know how to be happy with what they have. Learning to have peace:
• Nothing and no one provides peace.
• Inner peace is the result of one's own spiritual development, not a gift.
• Managing peace requires several elements: clear and accurate information to understand that life is a process of love and that evil does not exist; the ability to manage one's own life energy; and training.
• If you lose your peace, ask yourself: “What am I resisting? What do I want to change? Who am I blaming?” Learning to love your neighbor as yourself:
• To do this, all you have to do is take part in activities or spend time with people whose behavior is very different from your own, so that you learn to love and respect them just as they are.
• Love cannot be offended; it is invulnerable, immutable, universal, and neutral.
• Love implies a total understanding of the Universe; it is a way of being and does not need an “object” onto which to project itself.
• Love is not a force, but a tool.
• Love is not a feeling.
• To love is to always give the best of yourself.
• If you’re feeling unmotivated, it’s best to ask yourself why you’re allowing this specific situation to limit your ability to serve, which in reality shouldn’t depend on external events. By developing the three inner virtues, you’ll achieve excellent external results in all four areas:
• In relationships.
• In resources.
• In health.
• In adapting to our environment. Five elements are present in the life experience of every human being: purpose, destiny, mission, function, and intention.

1. The Purpose

There is a purpose of love that brought us into the material world; it is the perfect goal of learning two things:

1. Being happy on your own, that is, not depending on anything or anyone to enjoy inner peace and happiness.
2. Loving your neighbor as yourself, that is, respecting the rights of all beings in the Universe. And how is this learned? Here we can see the perfection of the Absolute’s pedagogical design. To do the exercise of learning to be happy on your own, you need to live in a place, with certain people and in circumstances where everything that happens around you is more or less aggressive. In this way, we will realize that our problem is not caused by what happens around us, but by the way we relate to it, and by the rejection and resistance we set in motion. As for the second part, loving your neighbor as yourself, it means respecting others just as they are, not trying to change them, and not resisting them. You need to live in a place where the people around you think differently, have varied customs, and believe different things. In this way, we will learn to love them as they are, without judging or condemning them. This is how the purpose of love is fulfilled; it is the true reason why we human beings are on planet Earth. More than 2,000 years ago, the Master Jesus taught us this when he said:

"Love your enemies»"; who are not our enemies, but people who think differently.

Being happy means experiencing zero suffering in the face of whatever happens; and loving means offering zero resistance to others. Wisdom is equal to love, not to sentiment. A person who has love cares deeply about others but does not suffer; by contrast, a person who lacks wisdom but has kindness cares deeply about others but suffers enormously. Those who don’t care, the callous and the indifferent, have neither wisdom nor kindness.

2. Destiny

It is what we come to learn from the material world—learning to use the seven tools of love in order to have invulnerable peace. It is a great opportunity to learn what we lack.

We all bring into the world an unavoidable destiny, one of enormous value. Our culture teaches us to try to evade destiny instead of showing us how to make the most of it. The key to making the most of destiny is: "You have the ability to enjoy anything you do, because that ability is within you.".. However, if someone tells their child: "You always have to do what you like.", it will create an enormous block in them.

Destiny is a pedagogical design whose purpose is to allow human beings to verify and discover information that governs the Universe and its perfect order. It is therefore the best opportunity to transcend all of our human limitations. Instead of complaining about the difficulties life presents, we should take advantage of them as a great opportunity to transcend them; then they will disappear forever. If we don’t learn from difficulties, far from disappearing, they will become more complicated, persist, and become permanent.

3. The Mission

It consists of what we can teach in the material world. We should enjoy our mission intensely, whether or not it is part of our own function.

Mission allows us to recover a great deal of the vital energy invested in the exercise of learning to be happy. Mission is what has already been understood, what is already known; therefore, it can be used to serve others while enjoying ourselves intensely.

Both mission and destiny are represented in the personality: the latter through the belief system, and the former through understanding. As we transmute our ignorance into understanding and wisdom, we will have more and more mission and, therefore, more satisfaction.

4. The Function

It is what each person does to earn their livelihood; it consists of putting as much enthusiasm, joy, and love as possible into what you do, even if it isn't part of your mission.

We know that all living beings have a function within the order of the Universe. It takes wisdom to take it on with joy, with enthusiasm, with a full capacity for action and service. Function is not about “earning a living”; life is not “earned,” because it is a divine gift. What we earn is the sustenance of this biological entity, this body.

Thus, our sustenance is guaranteed as a result of our function. Those who are happy and enjoy what they do will always have an abundance of resources.

5. The Intention

It is what we want for ourselves or for others. Intention should be directed in such a way that it does not interfere with the destinies of others or try to evade our own destiny.

Intention is the most complex element for human beings today, because sentiment, the idea of goodness, and the other ideas that culture mistakenly passed on to us constantly lead us to try to interfere with the destinies of others. If we accepted that destiny is something extraordinary and not “bad,” that it is the best opportunity we have to fulfill what we came to do in the world, we would stop trying to change other people’s destinies.

When a child wants to become independent and the parents oppose it, how can we act so as not to interfere? We always want things to work our way. In this case, the parents feel it isn’t the right time because their child doesn’t have a stable job, for example, and they don’t want them to leave home. Our “I wants” are the cause of suffering. The “I want” is also called unconscious selfishness, because we want others to be happy doing what we want them to do.

What would be the wise and loving thing to do in this case? To tell the child: “For us, the most important thing is that you are happy and that you find your own path, so we respect your decision. Know that if you want to come back, the door will always be open.”

Ultimately, wisdom means having a clear sense of purpose, making the most of destiny, enjoying your mission, taking on your function, and managing the intention not to interfere with other people’s destinies, and it requires that all of this be practiced in thought, word, and deed.

Chapter 1. The Difference Between Resignation, Faith, and Acceptance

1.1 Accepting vs. Resigning Yourself

When we are immersed in resignation, we tell ourselves: «“I can’t, I don’t deserve it, I’m not worth it, I’m unhappy, this is impossible…” As a result, we don’t find peace; on the contrary, we feel a lack of strength or ability, and we feel incapable; it is a situation similar to “conformism.”

Resignation arises from believing that we are unable to change our circumstances.

To resign yourself, or not to accept, means to resist until you tell yourself, “I don’t have enough strength, willpower, or ability to handle this,” and you end up frustrated. To accept means telling yourself, “I understand that there is no need to get into conflict, that a relationship is more valuable than a concept, that happiness doesn’t consist in resisting things, but in letting them flow.” Acceptance requires understanding; resignation requires only weakness.

In renunciation, you repeat to yourself: “This is not what is meant for me; I give up on this, I won’t insist on it anymore.” Then you are free of suffering, guilt, and resentment; you understand that each person, in their life experience, has exactly what they need according to the order of the Universe. Each person is responsible only for their own experience, not for anyone else’s.

But if renunciation is not combined with acceptance, that is, with understanding, then it becomes resignation within the individual.

Acceptance allows us to follow the order of the Universe, because we understand that everything is perfect and necessary. It is the complement of wisdom, because wisdom first makes it possible to recognize that order. In other words, we gradually discover that there is a universal order that must necessarily be followed.

Acceptance arises from understanding that circumstances serve a purpose of love.

Acceptance can never be resignation, because those who have truly understood know the power of acceptance.

Faith and acceptance work with the same file, but the former does so from absolute belief, the latter from recognition of the Law.

A profound acceptance of the reality of life involves understanding:

1. That the fundamental purpose of the life experience is the development of consciousness through the recognition of the Laws that govern the Universe.
2. And that the lessons drawn from the circumstances of human experience ultimately free us from suffering. This deep acceptance of the reality of life will give a person the following qualities of love:

• To live in absolute peace with all beings in the Universe.
• Express love constantly.
• Appreciate all of life’s circumstances. Resignation leaves the mind in constant frustration. Resignation is the refuge of ignorance, the dark cave of the mind, weary of futilely arguing to make life fit its own beliefs. A person who has fallen into resignation feels a great sense of helplessness in the face of life’s circumstances and feels unable to fight any longer. However, when they stop fighting, even if only out of resignation, they have the chance, despite the frustration they carry inside, to partially regain their vital energy. This recovery could eventually lead them to understand that having inner peace is more important than entering into conflict. Consequently, at some point the light of understanding will dawn on their mind, and they will realize that the path to freedom from suffering does not consist in confronting life to try to change reality, but in changing our inner conception of life. At this point, the person will have transcended the limitation of resignation and will be able to enter the path of understanding and acceptance, as the science that frees us from suffering. Acceptance brings total liberation to the mind. Ancestral culture contains information a little over 12,500 years old that is passed down from one generation to the next. The principles learned through culture are verified within us as feelings, and they allow us to know ourselves in two ways:
• Through feelings that produce a sensation of suffering, anguish, fear, resistance, or any other unpleasant aspect; these originate in learned principles that are false.
• Through entirely positive or loving feelings; these are the only ones that originate in true information. Feeling is a tool that helps us toward understanding and self-knowledge. If you feel something unpleasant, you need to modify what was automatically recorded in your mind from birth until approximately age twelve. Ignorance persists—in order to maintain, in turn, the programs learned from culture—through the justifications of good and evil. Good is the end of everything, but we use it together with evil to mislabel the things that happen to us. That is why a person justifies their suffering by saying: “If I don’t suffer, it means I’m not good; if I don’t suffer, it means I don’t care about others. I have to interfere in other people’s processes, because I love them.” These are the kinds of justifications that keep the process of ignorance going within us. Thus, justifications sustain suffering; suffering consumes vital energy and maintains a state of mental darkness; and in mental darkness, ignorance remains. The sequence to follow within ourselves to dismantle ignorance is:

1. The wisdom of understanding.
2. The power of acceptance.
3. The strength of renunciation.
4. Mastery techniques. This is what is called reprogramming the “mental CD” (hard drive).

Until about age twelve, we only record; from twelve to eighteen, we listen to what we've recorded; and from age eighteen on, we can reprogram what we don't like in the earlier recording.

Wisdom is information verified through results. But the information that is to be verified is not accepted by a person’s mind until they are ready to look for new information or to stop suffering; that is, until they come into correspondence with that information. Once the results have been verified, it becomes possible to deeply understand the meaning of the events around us. When the true meaning and purpose of love have been understood, that understanding grants the power of acceptance.

The acceptance that everything that happens in the Universe has a perfect purpose, that nothing is mistaken or the result of chance, but rather responds to a mathematically exact Law, means that the only thing that needs to change is within each of us, not outside.

The strength of renunciation serves to neutralize the ignorance that comes from within.

Once we have the power of acceptance, we need to use the strength of renunciation: we totally and definitively renounce interfering in any process of other people; we renounce suffering over any situation, and evading what is ours to do. For in this regard there are two possible errors: that of excess and that of omission (doing what is not ours to do, or failing to do what is). The error of excess involves carrying out actions that are not ours to take, and the error of omission involves failing to do what is ours to do.

Renunciation serves precisely for this: to place a person at a point of balance.

Mastery techniques serve to neutralize the ignorance that comes from outside.

Mastery techniques serve to adapt our information to that of people who do not yet know it, partially or completely, thus avoiding conflict.

Before we arrive at the truth, we rely on beliefs, a system that precedes verification, and so we will now talk about the power of faith.

1.2 The Power of Faith

Faith is sustained by a belief, by an absolute certainty completely free of reasoning and of any doubt. The mind accepts that belief and makes it reality, that is, it produces the miracle. Thought becomes innocent because it does not allow the ignorance of the personality to act. Faith gives us an inner strength to face life and gives us confidence in it. It can be replaced by acceptance once we have understood what the Universe is about.

If we carefully observe the process by which miracles occur through faith, we will notice something wonderful: when the mind accepts an idea, the potential of the psychic faculties that lie dormant in consciousness is released; then it becomes possible to accomplish what we think. However, nothing can be carried out that the Laws of the Universe do not allow, since they are superior to all human faculties and beliefs.

Because faith originates in a belief and not in understanding, the more innocent a person is and the less knowledge they have, the less they will doubt and the more easily they can be persuaded to accept any idea as reality. This means that faith can be used in a positive or negative way, and for this reason many of our difficulties may originate in faith. Fortunately, even in these cases the Laws of the Universe keep from happening those events with which we are not in correspondence, even if we fear them. But by placing our faith in them, what can easily happen is that we waste our vital energy, clouding the mind.

Unlike faith, acceptance originates in a deep understanding of love and of the Laws that govern the Universe and the lives of human beings. Through acceptance, a person understands that nothing is impossible, only corresponding states of mind or experiences. Therefore, if someone learns to come into correspondence with certain situations, and understands how the Laws that govern the Universe work, they will be able to voluntarily generate different realities around them.

On the other hand, acceptance, like faith, is governed by the Law and wields the same powers. The difference is that acceptance, because it arises directly from understanding, cannot be used negatively, since, like love, it brings only peace and harmony to the mind. In contrast, faith born of blind belief can make us believe in the existence of evil, producing suffering and anguish in our minds.

When the universal reign of love is fully accepted, one is safe from all suffering.

An educated or scientific person will find it hard to return to using the power of faith, because their acquired knowledge no longer accepts beliefs without reasonable logic or empirical proof. For this reason, the power of acceptance, which arises from understanding and from verifying the existence of the Laws of the Universe, comes easily to this type of person.

Faith is such a powerful force that it can move mountains, but sometimes a person finds that things don't work out with their faith. What is going on?

That person is unaware that there are laws governing the Universe and, of course, if they are not aligned with the miracle, no matter how much faith they have, it will not happen.

And how does one come into alignment with the miracle?

It requires a great deal of inner work. Faith is based on a belief capable of overriding the conscious mind to allow the Higher Consciousness to manifest itself and bring about the miracle.

As an example, if 100 sick people go to a place of healing and only two are healed, does that mean the other 98 lacked faith?

Yes, they may have had it, but they simply weren't aligned with the miracle.

1.3 The Power of Acceptance

Another possible way to connect with the higher faculties of the Universe is through a force called understanding, which has nothing to do with belief. There is no room for negativity in understanding, whereas a negative belief can exist.

Understanding is liberating; it is the truth.

The tool of faith can be used by an ignorant or innocent person, because such people have not yet come to understand that the Universe is perfect. Faith gives people security. For example, if you are walking in the dark, where you cannot see anything, you do not know whether there is a precipice ahead of you; if you lack faith, that path becomes terrifyingly difficult, so you need faith to move through the dark without knowing what lies ahead. Such is life when there is no wisdom. But once you have mental clarity and can see life as it truly is—that is, as Divinity designed it—and not as we were taught it was, then faith is no longer needed. Then another force replaces it and allows you to walk with greater confidence than faith ever gave you: the force of understanding.

When faith is replaced with an understanding of the wisdom that guides life, you begin to realize that life is perfect, that it has a purpose rooted in love, that it has been protected from its very origin, and that the purpose each human being brings along has been designed to be fulfilled. Then fear disappears.

We fear only what we need to learn—not because it is dangerous, but because we do not understand it and cannot control or manage it. Fear confronts us directly with the need for spiritual development. When we learn to accept, fear no longer exists; for acceptance means that we have already understood.

Understanding has no polarity; it is neutral, because it is made of the same essence as love. Faith, however, can even lead people to kill.

What is it within us that leads us to doubt something? The answer is ignorance or unverified knowledge. Innocence does not doubt, because it has no information, and wisdom does not doubt either, because it already has understanding.

If someone asks us, “What do you think of these flowers?” we might say, for example, that they’re beautiful. But if they add that those flowers are a delicious and very nutritious food, we will accept it from the innocence of a child, but not from the standpoint of our knowledge. We doubt what someone tells us because we possess knowledge. From wisdom, one would respond something like this: “I have verified that what you’re telling me is wonderful,” or “I have verified that this is not suitable food for human beings.” In some way, one would have verified it. Innocence, therefore, does not doubt, whereas ignorance, since it has not verified, does doubt.

Reasoning nullifies faith, since it consists of comparing concepts. If we all stopped reasoning, we would immediately connect with the absolute information of the Universe. The answer lies within oneself. The only way to keep ignorance from nullifying faith is to stop reasoning.

For example, let’s imagine we’re at home, waiting for someone at seven in the evening; but it’s now midnight and they still haven’t arrived, and we have no way of contacting them or any idea where they are. In a situation like this, it’s just as easy to think negatively as positively, to suffer as to be filled with peace. However, the mind “thinks and thinks” to make us suffer, and there’s only one way to end that suffering: by stopping reasoning.

Let's stop reasoning, or else let's think only the best!

As long as we don't, we'll keep suffering.

Let's stop reasoning so that faith can manifest.

Let's refuse to think thoughts that we find unpleasant.

Everything is useful at a certain stage and moment, but it is important not to get stuck in any particular moment, because all of them are temporary. When we reach deep understanding, we no longer need knowledge, but wisdom, and there is only one way to use it: to let go of knowledge, because otherwise we keep on reasoning.

But when should we let go of knowledge? When the time is right.

That is why the Masters say: once you have suffered enough, you no longer need to suffer. And when is it “enough”? When the Law of Saturation is fulfilled.

Every person is capable of recognizing their “saturation point.” It is like a sponge that is completely soaked with water and can’t absorb any more; in other words, it is no longer useful for that purpose. As long as the sponge is not completely saturated, it is still useful for collecting water; in the same way, as long as a person is not saturated with suffering, they can still receive it and, of course, are aligned with it.

Belief is what allows the mind to tune in to information. When you think of a belief—any belief—you are tuning your own mind. The same thing happens with reasoning: we tune in, but then, if we don’t stop reasoning, we won’t receive the information that allows us to understand.

It’s one thing to tune in, and quite another to receive. In the first case, you keep moving until you find what you’re looking for; but once you do, you have to stop “turning the dial,” or the new information won’t be of any use to you. Whereas when you receive information, it comes to you directly—you aren’t the one moving or searching; rather, it comes to you.

Both faith and acceptance inhibit the ego. Things are not the way we want them to be. Faith leads us to leave everything to God’s will, and acceptance leads us to understand that it is part of the order of the Universe.

Faith is not reasonable; if it were, it would not be faith.

Acceptance and understanding will never lead us to complacency, disillusionment, or resignation, because once we understand that after doing our best—in thought, word, and deed—what corresponds to us is always perfect, we will enjoy it intensely.

If we appreciate everything we have, enjoy it, and enter into positive action, we will increasingly require more and better things. On the other hand, if we complain about what we have—which is what happens to the complacent and the resigned—we’ll have less and less; because those who complain about what they have are on the path to losing both what they need and what they already have. That is why complacency and resignation are utterly limiting, while appreciating what one has is completely liberating.

It is essential, however, to keep in mind that trying to accept something without having reached understanding is a futile effort, because you will fall into resignation rather than acceptance.

Once a person is established in acceptance, they understand the futility of quarreling and that the process is perfect, so they do not try to change anything outside themselves. In acceptance there is spiritual development; in resignation, however, the person feels unable to fight because they believe they have no chance of success and do not understand the lesson life is offering them; therefore, no spiritual development takes place.

Love doesn't "put up with" anything; it simply "accepts" everything. It is resignation that puts up with things. To love means: "I accept you as you are, with your strengths and your limitations, and I am willing to give my best, regardless of whether others make mistakes or not."

Chapter 2. Why Is Acceptance a Science?

2.1 The Acceptance of Reality

Acceptance is a science that brings us happiness and frees us from suffering.

Science is knowing—having certain, well-founded, exact, and reasoned knowledge of specific facts. Science is based on the observation and experimentation of material phenomena, with the aim of discovering the immediate and proximate laws that govern them. It also uses hypotheses and theories, always grounded in real and indisputable facts, which may be misleading in terms of how they are appraised, but never in terms of their reality or outcome.

An interpretation may be misleading, but the reality of a result never can be.

Acceptance meets exactly the parameters proposed by science, since observing what happens within a person who cannot accept something shows that the result is always the same: inner conflict and suffering. It is not, therefore, a belief but a form of wisdom: it is knowing exactly what we do, why and for what purpose we do it, and how to obtain a result.

Accepting reality frees us from suffering; lasting peace appears, and vital energy increases and accumulates, which in turn activates our higher faculties.

The purpose of being happy is fulfilled by accepting reality.

Experimentation has shown that when this happens, an inner change occurs that frees the person from suffering, which makes it possible to demonstrate the existence of the laws that govern the mental process of human suffering. On the other hand, inner conflicts and distress are real and indisputable facts that, although they can be viewed from different perspectives, are never misleading as to the reality of their existence or their results.

Accepting reality, therefore, breaks the spell of suffering and releases the energy of action, which generates a new reality. This does not mean that the previous reality disappears; it continues to exist for those who have not yet understood it.

It is necessary to understand that the existence of external reality corresponds to the inner world of the individual who experiences it. Only when individuals change their inner world do they generate a new reality for themselves—at the moment they understand and accept that the external world is the result of their inner experience, and when they decide, of their own accord, to change it. Although many people claim to have changed reality, what has really happened is that, from within, they have generated a new reality for themselves.

Let's look at a few examples of this:

First, a prisoner's reality inside the prison changes when they are released; but the prison continues to exist for the other prisoners who have not yet completed their sentences.

Second, the reality of a child facing a complicated "compound rule of three" problem is permanent for all the children who have not yet understood this exercise; but as a problem, it simply does not exist for an advanced mathematician.

The following case is also illustrative: when we cross a large city, we encounter many different realities—that of the beggar, the sick person, the rich, the poor, the unemployed, the opulent, the destitute, and so on. All of them are present simultaneously, but each person experiences only the one that corresponds to their inner experience.

Finally, let's think of someone who is at home and goes out into the garden; in doing so, they have moved into a different reality, but their home is still a reality. What can be changed, then, is our inner correspondence with another reality.

So when we stop trying to change reality—which is one of the greatest energy drains for human beings—and accept it as it is, we are ready to live a new one, because the previous one has nothing more to teach us. At that moment, what science calls a proven phenomenon occurs—just as when two gases, hydrogen and oxygen, are mixed and water is produced. It is a scientific reality, as is a new life for those who fully accept their present reality as something they no longer need.

When faced with the reality of life, there are three types of people:

1. First class: These are the people who confront life, trying to find personal satisfaction by changing the present reality to fit their ideals. They are the least advanced spiritually, which is why they are still unable to let go of suffering.
2. Second class: These are the people whose mission is to change the natural, social, economic, political, scientific, religious, and other environments because they no longer correspond to the people who live there. They are people at different levels of evolution, but their actions always correspond to the needs of first- and third-class individuals.
3. Third class: These are the people who accept the present reality as a wonderful opportunity to transcend their inner limitations, and who therefore concern themselves only with changing their inner world. They know that in this way they will live in the new realities created by second-class individuals. Third-class people are the most advanced, the most evolved, and therefore it is not their role to do the work of first-class people. You may now ask yourself which of these three groups you belong to: the one that suffers, the one that is in conflict, or the one that is at peace? What, ultimately, is your attitude toward reality: to suffer and fight against life, without success in creating another reality; to suffer and fight against life, successfully creating new realities; or to take advantage of the present reality to transcend your own limitations and have inner peace? Let's try to work as third-class individuals, without trying to change reality. But how can you know that you have fully accepted the reality you no longer want to live? The answer is: by definitively giving up any attempt to change the present external reality, unless you recognize that this is your mission, even if this brings suffering with it. Likewise, how can you know whether you have the mission to change something? Simply because you have the necessary tools and means, and because you can also verify that you are succeeding. On the other hand, idealizing means not accepting reality, because we always idealize something that is not present in our own reality. We only try to change something when we consider it inadequate, imperfect, or useless; but if you recognize that everything that happens is perfect and necessary, you will not try to change anything. Ideals serve to recognize our own ignorance; once you have done this, you can completely discard ideals from your mind, because they become an obstacle to peace. To be free of them, you need to recognize reality as it is and learn to move within it, accepting it as a wonderful tool. Suffering is always directly proportional to what we cannot accept; it changes nothing externally, only our inner state. And there is only one way to free ourselves: through acceptance. Obviously, the mind begins to fight, to resist, to defend itself. That is why the science of acceptance is liberating; but, like any other science, if it is not applied, it yields no results; it stays in the mind and does not become action, and so it becomes just one more part of the ego's learning. For it to have a practical application, you need to train, so that the result can be verified. Reality, therefore, does not depend on the senses but is absolutely independent of the individual. It does not matter what you do, see, think, or understand; none of these elements changes reality. For example, if there is a blind person in a lecture hall, this does not change the fact that the speaker is speaking; it obviously changes the blind person's perception of that fact, but not the fact itself.

For each person, reality is what happens in the place where they are aware.

We are not meant to suffer over reality, but to use it for inner change.

Reality serves, among other things, to:

• Act with firmness, effectiveness, and serenity.
• Transform yourself from within. If you accept it, serenity and inner peace develop.
• Verify your own inner process. Reality is a mirror in which to see yourself.
• Show us who we are, what we need to learn, or what we have already learned.

2.2 Knowledge of the Laws of the Universe

Behind every phenomenon lies a Law. If we come to know the Laws of the Universe in depth, we will understand the processes of our civilization, giving meaning to the past, an explanation to the present, and a direction to the future, with the certainty that we are moving toward a new form of civilization with greater harmony, wisdom, love, and fulfillment for all human beings.

We are left with the task of verifying, through our own experience, the existence of the Laws of the Universe, which directly and powerfully affect and govern people’s daily lives. From the moment we learn that the Laws that maintain the order of the Universe exist and decide to obey them, we join the ranks of the “builders” of a new evolutionary moment in today’s civilization, understanding the reason for our existence on this planet. This helps us free ourselves from the belief in a guilty party and from the idea of injustice, as we come to understand that every event simply serves a perfect teaching purpose, leading us to discover the Law that governs it; in this way, it becomes possible to transcend conflict, illness, pain, and death.

If we accept that everything that happens is within the Law, we understand that nothing can truly happen outside of it—only what is designed and programmed in the Universe. Behind every event of violence, hatred, or intolerance—no matter how unpleasant or difficult to accept it may seem—there is a purpose of love. It is our learned mental difficulties that make all of this hard to understand; from the perspective of the Laws, however, there is always an explanation for any human situation.

When someone doesn't get what they want, they learn to recognize the Law. And if they don't get it, it's because they aren't meant to have it: whatever it is they desire, it is governed by a Law of the Universe that, at first, that person does not know. As they discover that Law, they will, as a result, learn to free themselves from their limitations.

We cannot accept something we do not understand, and we cannot reach understanding unless we have lived an experience or know how the Laws of the Universe work. Ignorance of the law will not spare us from its results, so it is better to be informed. “I want” leads a person to discover the existence of the Law, and “I need” leads to the discovery of the need to obey it.

Obeying the law after recognizing its existence is what is called understanding, and it represents the evolution of the human being, freeing them from suffering and conflict.

When we are unable to change our learned ideas or accept new ones, we lose the chance to reach different conclusions and find new truths, and so we stop evolving.

Chapter 3. Why Do We Suffer?

3.1 The Functions of Suffering

We suffer because we do not accept reality. Fear is not accepting the possibility of something that has not yet happened, whereas suffering is not accepting something that has already happened—that is, reality. Even so, suffering is a tool for the evolution of consciousness and serves three important functions:

1. Preventing the evolution of consciousness from coming to a halt. If pain did not exist, the body could be injured and destroyed without the person ever realizing it. Pain, then, is a tool for protecting the body, and it also allows a person to learn to take care of it in order to avoid suffering pain. In the same way, suffering is a tool that keeps the development of consciousness from stopping, or keeps learning from lasting longer than necessary. In other words, suffering has a limit, called the Law of Saturation, which prevents the mind from taking in any more of it. This makes it easier for a person to decide to stop suffering and begin looking for the information needed to achieve inner change through understanding, moving away from suffering for good and thus achieving inner peace. When our mind becomes saturated with suffering, we can begin the path to liberation.
2. Measuring the level of individual ignorance. In any process of social, economic, or technical development, it is very important to evaluate each phase of growth to be certain the process is being properly guided. In the same way, it is very important for the Masters of the Law to periodically evaluate the process of development of individual consciousness, whether to introduce the necessary corrections at the right moment (Law of Evolution) or to bring the process up to date at the right phase (Law of Correspondence). Once we have suffered enough, we no longer need to suffer. The level of suffering and personal conflict gives an exact measure of the state of individual ignorance: the lower the level of suffering and conflict, the lower the level of ignorance and, consequently, the fewer confrontational processes the person has left to go through. This allows the Masters of the Law to clearly determine the correspondences that will bring the greatest satisfaction to the person in question. In other words, when a person renounces suffering, they come into correspondence with external situations of far greater satisfaction and peace.
3. Making it easier to recognize the truth. To do this, it is necessary to establish a contrast with what is not true; that is, it is essential to compare “what is” with “what is not,” and thus clearly distinguish truth from falsehood. This process is mental, because truth and falsehood reside in a person’s mind, not in the external world of physical matter. So we can easily recognize both in the feelings we experience in the different situations of life, simply by observing whether we are suffering or are in a state of peace, acceptance, and appreciation—in accordance with the Law of Love. Once we have recognized falsehood in our mind, we can discard it; and once we have recognized truth, we can understand it.

3.2 Alternatives to Suffering

Suffering as a mental attitude, or as a tool for facing difficult situations in life, is completely useless. It is easy to verify that no one has ever solved any problem by suffering over what is happening.

Suffering does not change what is happening.

The only way to find solutions to the difficulties that arise in life is, first, to allow the mind to seek options through the proper use of thought, analysis, meditation, and prayer; and second, not to let our thoughts dwell on the cause of the suffering, but rather on whatever brings peace to the mind by offering possible solutions.

If problems can be solved, why worry?

Furthermore, applying the solutions we have found requires action, not suffering. Only well-reasoned actions have the potential to positively influence external situations; suffering, on the other hand, acts only on our mental states, causing confusion and deep depression.

Suffering has no influence on the external world, but it does negatively change the mental state of the one who suffers.

On the other hand, when a problem has no possible solution, it is best to set it aside definitively, accept the situation, and give up thinking about it. Otherwise, the mind becomes obsessed and enters a vicious circle, holding on to thoughts of suffering and non-acceptance that needlessly drain vital energy and lead the person into the zone of mental darkness and into depressive crises.

If problems can't be solved, why worry?

“What am I not accepting?” This is the question we need to ask ourselves whenever we find ourselves suffering. And we will realize that acceptance can only be applied when there is understanding, because it is neither faith nor founded on a belief. Therefore, if we have enough understanding, we are in a position to free ourselves from suffering for good through acceptance.

Acceptance puts an end to suffering.

Understanding is the work of putting our mind to use in the search for answers, so that we have tools for verification. To accept, we must first deeply understand the Laws that govern the Universe and the principles that regulate relationships, and also know that everything that happens in the Universe is perfect and necessary and has a purpose of love, aimed specifically at the experience that each person is living or needs to live.

Knowledge of the Law »» understanding »» acceptance

There is no such thing as an unacceptable event or situation—only minds unable to accept. As long as something is unacceptable to a person, their suffering will have no solution. But because of the Law of Saturation, when the mind becomes saturated with suffering, it is ready to transcend it and no longer needs to suffer.

The only cause of suffering is the inability to accept what happens.

Our vital energy is very valuable, but we generally don't appreciate it because we don't know how to use it. It is such a great treasure that it isn't worth wasting it on worrying about what we cannot change, that is, external things, reality.

When we suffer, we deplete vital energy; the mind enters low zones, and there is no mental clarity. When we have inner peace, we accumulate vital energy; the mind enters a zone of light, and the profound awakening of the human being takes place. If we accept, we achieve inner peace.

The need to learn acceptance as a fundamental part of the Laws of the Universe confronts us with increasingly difficult situations. Their intensity is proportional to our stubbornness, rebelliousness, or disobedience to the Laws of Life. That is why, when we first manage to accept in our minds the situations that seem most difficult to us, they no longer occur. This is because life, through that situation, can no longer teach that person anything, since they have already understood it.

We only face situations that we have not previously understood or accepted.

The only thing we need to face is our own mind, our “I,” our ignorance. This means that life’s difficulties come down exclusively to the work of transmuting ignorance into wisdom that each of us does in our own mind. If we do a good job and manage to accept in advance everything that would cause us suffering, nothing unpleasant can happen to us anymore.

The following table presents some of the forms that non-acceptance takes; in other words, the symptoms you can recognize when facing something you are not accepting.

None of these symptoms, since they are internal matters, changes the external situation; they only complicate it.

The problem of non-acceptance on the part of human beings is entirely internal. Externally, everything has been designed by the Masters with a specific purpose: the development of our understanding.

Although it is true that acceptance frees us from suffering, in order to accept in advance we must first understand; and for many of us, assimilating wisdom-based information is neither easy nor quick.

3.3 The Process of Acceptance

We are all immersed in a process of personal growth that leads us to the purpose of acceptance. Therefore, since it is not an objective, we shouldn’t stress if we don’t understand or accept a particular situation and, as a result, feel sadness, worry, or fear. On the contrary, we should respect our own pace of learning. If we are unable to accept and understand a situation, that’s okay. We’ll have time to do so, and it’s normal to experience sadness or other negative emotions. We’re on the path to achieving acceptance, but we don’t yet know how to do it because we lack training. With patience and trust, we’ll make better progress in this process of development of consciousness.

Our suggestion for those moments when a person feels sadness or worry is to use tools to free themselves from such negative emotions, to clear them away, since they are not yet able to accept the situation because they have not reached a sufficient level of consciousness. They will achieve this in the near future if they continue to work with the information and train with it.

But what are the right tools for eliminating negative emotions? It depends on each person’s preferences, because everyone knows what helps them “shift their mindset”: watching a comedy, playing a sport, spending time in nature, etc., always making an effort to keep in mind thoughts that don’t further feed negative emotions. In other words, you have to let go of the thoughts that feed sadness and focus on those that free you from it, always seeing the positive side of everything that happens.

We know that sadness, and negative feelings in general, reduce people’s precious vital energy. We also know that when vital energy decreases, a person falls into a zone of mental darkness (negative thoughts) and their inner peace diminishes. It is therefore necessary to break out of this vicious circle as soon as possible by recovering vital energy with the tools we propose throughout this unit and in the training exercises.

We must respect each person’s own pace for assimilating this information, so that it can gradually take root in the mind. There will come a time when it is finally understood; there’s no rush, it’s not a competition, but a path of learning in which it’s possible to enjoy every small step forward. Ultimately, it’s a personal decision: you can choose to suffer or to enjoy life. Once the decision has been made, the training begins with the new wisdom information. No one can make this decision or do the training for us.

Finally, how can you tell if you've already understood something? Because you can accept it easily and because you feel at peace.

And how can you tell that you've already accepted something? Because it no longer happens, or it disappears from your life; because it doesn't cause any conflict, and you experience peace, harmony, and inner satisfaction.

Decisions made from wisdom are based on recognizing external reality and on the need to adapt and flow with that reality, rather than fighting against it. Every human being has a function that does not consist of changing reality, but of adapting to it, like water.

We need to fill ourselves with inner peace. To this end, as we have seen, the fundamental tool is acceptance, that is, to stop fighting against the world, situations, people, or circumstances, and to focus on ourselves and no one else, because each of us is the only one who can change our own life; no one else can do it for us. If we change our inner reality, an outer reality corresponding to that inner change will immediately (magically, automatically) appear.

Acceptance, then, frees us from suffering, conflict, aggression… from slavery, which is a mental state that in turn can generate external slavery. We cease to be slaves because we become independent of what others say or do, and so we maintain our own inner balance. We become free to make decisions and take responsibility for the outcome, as well as to show respect.

The moment you accept that life always provides what you need, your relationship problems, suffering, and anguish come to an end. If the mind comes to accept, the ego disappears instantly, since it habitually feeds on these negative elements.

Acceptance also helps us let go of the bad habit of reproach. When we reproach others, we neither convey wisdom nor are we “of service”; rather, we express pride and anger and contribute to others losing their peace after we have lost our own.

We can illustrate this better with an example:

We placed a large order with the supermarket, and instead of food, they delivered cleaning products by mistake. On top of that, it’s Friday afternoon, and it can’t be resolved until the following Monday. Given this situation, there are two basic possibilities:

The first is to take the opportunity to put into practice our acceptance of others’ mistakes: we make the most of the cleaning products they delivered and clean the house thoroughly; on Monday we call, calmly and with a touch of humor, and let them know there was a mistake; and we bring it to their attention so they can make sure not to make the same mistakes with other customers who might take it worse. But we don’t lose our peace, we don’t contribute to others losing theirs, and we offer neutral information that might help them in the future. If the mistakes continue later on, we set boundaries in peace and place our orders with another store that handles orders better, but without reproach. The fact is that, since we have accepted and haven’t lost our peace, as if by magic we won’t experience these mistakes in the future, because we no longer need the lesson.

The second possibility would be different: we get really angry at the supermarket’s incompetence; we lose our peace and immediately pick up the phone and rudely scold the person who answers, who may have had nothing to do with the matter. Consequently, we contribute to that person losing their peace, unloading our negativity onto them in order to feel better. There is no intention of service in this, but rather of venting our own inner limitation so that they “learn a thing or two.” Since we didn’t take the opportunity to practice acceptance, the Universe will make the mistakes persist in our lives until we learn.

3.4 Consequences of Non-Acceptance

Life gives each of us exactly the experience we need—no more, no less. It’s essential to make the most of this and not seek out experiences that life doesn’t give us, because those aren’t necessary.

What do we need to learn from difficult situations? The seven tools of love—but above all, acceptance, that is, not trying to change others or blame them, and the ability to take responsibility for our own lives. We need to learn to develop inner peace, along with the inner virtues of happiness and the capacity for service.

How can we avoid difficult situations? Through acceptance, too. Once you have accepted something, it is no longer a problem, because there is nothing left to learn from it.

Acceptance is a very profound tool, and it rests on an elemental principle of the Law: no one can be made to take an exam they have already passed or face a test they already know; no one will repeat an exercise they already know how to do, because that would be a waste of time, and the Universe is efficient. We only repeat what we have not been able to fully accept—what we have not yet understood. That is why it is said: “Never say, ‘I will never drink this water,’ because the road is long and thirst is pressing.” Precisely when someone says, “The only thing I won’t accept is this,” that is exactly what will happen in their life. This is precisely what the saying refers to: “What you fear most will befall you.”

It seems unfair, but that is exactly how the Law works, because we fear what we have not accepted, understood, or learned to handle. And there is only one way to learn to understand and handle it: to face it. Non-acceptance, on the other hand, draws us into very difficult situations.

In a relationship, for example, if a person says, “I would accept anything from my partner except infidelity,” that is exactly what will happen to them, because what we reject and fear the most is what we need to learn.

3.5 What Has Already Been Learned Will Not Be Repeated

According to the Law of Correspondence, to the extent that you fully accept and understand a certain situation, you will no longer need to live through those kinds of experiences that cause you suffering. For example: a person’s destiny includes the need to break a leg in order to learn patience, and also so that a circumstance like that does not keep them from being happy. But it turns out that before it happens, the person realizes that they can be patient in the face of many things, and that situations—even those that are sometimes very close at hand, however difficult they may be—do not have to keep them from feeling at peace and happy; so they no longer need to break their leg. The need for the experience changes once understanding is reached.

Where we are is where we need to be, and where we need to be there are only two things to do: accept that reality and adapt to it. All our personal decisions can rest on these two tools, and then we will find ourselves in a more satisfying environment.

When you “let go,” you accept, you ask for forgiveness (even when it seems you have no responsibility for what happened), and you manage to break through the blockages. These are purely mental, and to break through them it is necessary to do unblocking exercises. When the Master tells us, “Turn the other cheek,” he is speaking to us about these unblocking exercises.

A difficult situation is, for any human being, in and of itself a learning experience—a test or exam that life sets for our spiritual development. It is necessary to respect people’s destinies, and if someone, by destiny, insists on an aggressive situation that causes suffering, you cannot prevent it, but you can step away.

In recurring situations, it is very important to recognize this: once you pass an exam with honors, that situation will never happen again. But if you don’t manage to pass the exam that way, it is clear that life will repeat it later on. When we understand that every experience is perfect for what we need to learn from it, we can make efficient use of what experiences teach us; then we can accept them completely, and by doing so, they will not happen again.

Some people don’t pass the exam; instead, they run away from the situation because they can’t handle it. What happens then? The next relationship they find themselves in, the next job, the next situation will be very similar to the previous one, because the test returns. But if the person has passed the test, one of two things happens: either life shows them the way to step away from the situation, or life creates that path, and their next experiences will be different.

Acceptance is “magical” because when you stop resisting, the path opens up and everything flows. When you are afraid of something but accept it one hundred percent, that thing will no longer happen.

3.6 Learning to Let Go

Acceptance is learning to let go.

Let’s let go of people, let go of life, let go of things; let’s go with the flow and not worry… because what isn’t meant to happen won’t, and what is meant to happen will, regardless of what we do. Planning and making projections are good, as long as we accept that they can fail or change.

Decisions are indispensable; we need to learn to make them and to take responsibility for them. But please, let’s not make decisions that bring anguish—that, too, depends on us. Let’s leave control to the Divine and take on what we are capable of doing. Our only decision should be to do the very best we can.

Let’s let go of the fear of dying and of losing what we have, and the rest of the symptoms of non-acceptance will fade away.

The fear of loss is the foundation of all our anguish, bad temper, and conflicts. We human beings are less afraid of losing our lives than of losing material things. But once we come to understand that everything we need is already with us, we free ourselves from the fear of loss.

One important point is that we must not confuse letting go with giving up. When we tell someone, “Relax and stop worrying,” we are not telling them to do nothing; we are telling them to focus on being efficient or excellent, but without worrying or feeling anguish, because that reduces efficiency. People who are filled with anxiety completely block their access to opportunities, while those who are calm and focus on taking action “open doors.”

An excellent human being is one who is efficient; and an efficient person is one who does everything that is theirs to do while enjoying it, without worrying or suffering over anything, because they know that there are Laws called Correspondence, Cause and Effect, and Affinity, and that to the extent that they generate inner peace, they will also generate affinity with states of peace, harmony, and tranquility; to the extent that they develop within themselves a capacity for service, they will give rise, through the Law of Correspondence, to the abundance of life; and to the extent that they have happiness within themselves, they will become trustworthy to others.

A salesperson who goes out to do their job feeling stressed, overwhelmed by the constant refrain—“I have to sell”; “I have to try harder”; “I have to…”—is, from the start, too anxious to reach their goal. They won’t get very good results, but they do have a lot to learn. On the other hand, the salesperson who goes out onto the street to be excellent—the one who says, “I’m going to offer the customer my best image, not just a product, but a life choice; I’m going to give them peace, trust…”—that person is going to sell, not worry; to provide a service, not just meet a goal. People like that achieve 100 to 150 percent better results, because they are excellent at making use of their energy.

It is worth reiterating that what we are proposing is not to abandon ourselves, but to let go into the flow of existence with complete trust. If you give life and other people the best you have within you, life will give you back the best that is in each person.

Acceptance is “magical” because when the confrontation ends, the path opens up and everything flows. When you are afraid of something but accept it, that thing will no longer happen.

3.7 The Wisdom of Accepting the Unpleasant

As one of the postulates of the Law of Harmony says: “Everything that is pleasing is accepted.” In other words, it takes no effort to accept what is pleasant; the challenge lies in accepting what we do not like, and that is where wisdom lies. But to achieve this, we need a loving understanding. Love needs to be expressed in order to accept what is difficult, to handle situations that are not easy to understand, and to accept the mistakes that other people—or we ourselves—make.

We must accept our own feelings, emotions, and thoughts born of ignorance, and there is no reason to blame anyone for them. If you feel bad, it is inappropriate to express it to other people. When you cannot say anything kind, it is much better to remain silent, because that will not hurt the other person the way words can. We need to accept that everyone does the best they know how, even when they make mistakes, because that is how we cultivate a beginning of purity in love.

In advertising, presenting things that are unhealthy or not respectful of nature in a pleasant way makes them appealing to us and leads us to accept them. Conversely, important values are often presented in an aggressive or overbearing manner, which triggers a defense mechanism and causes us to reject them. Our suggestion is to reverse this strategy: it would be much more appropriate to present what is harmful in an aggressive manner, and what is positive in a completely pleasant way.

Another example of this can be found in the upbringing we give within the family: we often try to impose, either aggressively or through punishment, principles that we consider valuable for our children. And the media do not help in this regard either, since, as we have already said, they present what is negative in an appealing way.

3.8 Acceptance as a neutral point of love

Our mental structure tends to conflict with the Laws of the Universe; the mind does not readily accept that things happen the way they do. Sometimes we try to change the external world to fit our internal beliefs but, fortunately, that is not possible. What we must learn is to replace our internal beliefs with a truth in order to understand what is happening outside; this is the practice of spiritual development. Every time a concept is discarded as false or accepted as truth, it ceases to be a concept and becomes truth; at that moment, the person's understanding grows, their ignorance diminishes, and, through the evolution of love, consciousness grows.

Ultimately, we suffer because we do not accept reality, and we do not accept it because we are all full of false beliefs. The solution is to replace them with verified truths.

When we manage to move beyond opposites and beliefs, we reach the point of verification of truth and make the shift in polarity; this is what the Law of Evolution consists of. The shift in polarity occurs when a person reverses their process of relating to reality. This means that:

• They completely and definitively give up trying to change anything external, because they have verified that this is not their problem.
• By making this surrender, you fully accept the possibility of undertaking an inner change to adapt to the reality in which you find yourself, regardless of whether or not you agree with it. The state of acceptance recognizes that external circumstances are neutral, neither “good” nor “bad.” Neutrality, not duality, characterizes understanding and love.

We fervently need to have a healthy mental structure. To do so, it is essential to start thinking in terms of love and positive tools, to not become part of the crisis or get involved in what does not concern us; all without denying that such a reality may exist, but it does not have to be our own reality.

If you fully accept yourself as a perfect being, you will in fact begin to manifest perfection.

If we truly accept people as they are, we will be happy for their happiness.

Instead of attacking, we should support others in their happiness. For example, if our seventeen-year-old son says he is happy going to a rock concert, even if we hate rock music, let us enjoy seeing our son happy, because that is what it means to support and accept him.

Chapter 4. Ways of Confronting Life

4.1 Each Person's Role

The main cause of the failures many people experience in their lives is their constant fight against what life has given them.

If someone's role were to do what they would like to do, they would always have the power necessary to achieve it. Each of us has one or more specific roles in life; trying to carry out the role that belongs to someone else goes against the Law, and so does failing to carry out the role that belongs to you.

Let's stop trying to do what is not ours to do and what we cannot do.

What one is doing is one's role; it may be that life later leads one to do something else. In reality, we confront what we do not accept. If we do not like our role, the day we come to enjoy it—that is, when we accept it and emerge from ignorance—it may change.

If something is not accepted, it is because one does not understand how life is organized. In the Universe, there is nothing that is not perfect; therefore, to oppose anything is to oppose perfection in an attempt to disrupt it and turn it into something as imperfect as our own ego and ignorance, and the Laws do not allow that.

4.2 Why Do We Fail in the Four Specific Areas of Life?

It is worth asking why human beings fail in the most important areas of existence, namely:

1. Health. Every illness begins in thought. A lack of self-worth, low self-esteem, and frustration at being unable to satisfy what people believe to be their needs lead many to reject life and have thoughts rooted in resentment, bitterness, and guilt. These can then manifest physically as various illnesses, since any thought of rejection tends to weaken the immune system; it also leads people to fall into various vices, neglect their health, and believe that life is too hard and that it would be better if it ended soon. When these people are asked why they ignore certain health recommendations, they respond with things like, “You've got to die of something.” Thus, their constant struggle against life becomes part of their habitual behavior, so that, naturally, their failure in the area of health is not long in coming: at any moment, these people will suffer from one or many illnesses.
2. Relationships. The constant conflict that some people have with the way others behave, along with their permanent criticism, aggression, bad temper, and attempts to impose or forbid in order to make others conform to what they assume is the correct way of living, lead to the deepest failures in human relationships.
3. Resources. Many people's economic failure is the result of clashing with the opportunities life offers, as well as with the life experiences of other people. It is very common to hear someone say: “This isn't for me”; “I don't like it”; “It's not my place to do that.” It is also common to protest against injustice and corruption, or to try to take on the experience of the poor or of those who are immersed in different kinds of learning, which we call “problems.”
4. Adaptation (inner peace). The inner conflicts that most people maintain regarding the different events of life cause them to consume a great deal of their vital energy. As a result, they easily fall into states of mental confusion and depressive crises, and consequently fail miserably in their futile attempts to achieve inner peace. As long as one does not stop fighting against life, it is impossible to overcome the conflicts of the mind. A failure is someone who spends their life confronting everything life gives them. In the table below, we can see some of the most common ways of coming into conflict with the experiences life offers us.

The different ways of quarreling with life give rise to two extremes that are very easy to recognize: on the one hand, the experience of the “good” (not being able to have what one wants, and fearing that others will lose what they need); on the other, the experience of the “bad” (not being able to be at peace, and fearing the loss of what one needs); and, finally, the experience of the “just” (the one who fears nothing, the one who has peace, because they know that everyone has what they need for their life experience).

The functions of the just person, to which we all aspire, are:

• To set an example of inner peace, of absolute respect for others, and of living without unpleasant things happening to them, because those things are no longer theirs to experience.
• Give information when asked for it. A righteous person will not give information to someone who does not ask for it, because in that case it means they do not need it. But they will help people interpret the information and assimilate it so that they can verify it.
• Teaching. Giving information is a one-time event, whereas teaching involves an ongoing process. The ability to teach corresponds to one’s own ability to understand.
• Fulfilling one’s role. The righteous person puts all their love, strength, enthusiasm, and abilities into carrying out their role. In other words, they always work on what is theirs to do. Unconsciously, human beings confront life instead of making use of it as a learning opportunity, and that confrontation prevents understanding. The ego resists acceptance, and in the face of certain external situations, the mind says one thing and feeling says another. The mind is a repository with a greater capacity than that of feeling, although feeling also has a mental origin. The human capacity to understand is greater than the capacity to feel, and it also exists at a higher level of evolution and understanding. Feeling is not reliable for guiding us toward the Law; sentimentality is a limitation, it is part of the ego, and it leads us to suffering. It is a matter of learning to direct our thoughts, feelings, and emotions voluntarily, rather than automatically. Love is the absence of feeling, for a profound expression of acceptance. Feeling cannot carry out anything that clashes with it;

love, however, can. Because of its duality, feeling is of no use for building relationships, succeeding in life, or being happy; it serves for knowing oneself. Love, by contrast, involves the capacity to accept everything that our feelings do not like.

To love does not mean that we like someone, nor that there is harmony or integration between us; it means accepting the other person just as they are and respecting their experience. If that experience is one of suffering and cannot be avoided, we must respect it, because it is not possible to evade another person’s destiny or to sacrifice our own life to please someone who acts out of ego, since that would not be an act of love. The person who changes nothing will continue to suffer, and the rest of us won’t be able to prevent it; and suffering alongside that person won’t help them either.

In order to give up the fight and look for another option in life, something must happen that only comes with time: the saturation of conflict. When a person verifies that the dispute is useless for achieving a satisfactory result, they make a wonderful change by giving it up and working to change within themselves what they do not accept in external reality. As long as one thinks they can gain something from that dispute, they will not give it up. The alternative is to direct one’s own energy toward changing what is inside; in this way, one moves into a state of acceptance, gives up confrontation, and does inner work to overcome limitations and develop virtues.

4.3 Selfishness

Selfishness is what we do every day while believing it to be virtue; it consists of trying to change others, fundamentally for two reasons:

1. Because we don't accept them as they are.
2. Because we want to stop feeling bad because of them. A selfish person, then, is someone who wants to change others or sacrifice them so that they themselves can feel good, because they don’t want to do inner work. This is what we do every day, and to do it, we put on the mask of love. For example, we say to our child: “Don’t go out, because I feel bad if you go out. Period.” Or: “Take care of your health, because if you get sick I’ll feel bad.” This is the false mask of love: “Since I love you so much, I don’t want anything bad to happen to you”; in reality, it is the falsest thing there is, because what we don’t want is to suffer if something happens to others, and we prefer to sacrifice them. “I can’t live without you” is a perfect expression of selfishness, and we use it in a very romantic and loving way. But in reality, it means “I’m going to tie you down, I’m going to limit you, I’m going to forbid you from doing this or that; and if you’re not here, I’m going to suffer a lot.” All of this is a tremendous display of selfishness and ignorance. “It’s just that because I love you, I don’t want you to suffer…” False! What we don’t want is to suffer ourselves if something happens to the other person; what we don’t want is to lose the other person because we are attached and dependent, because we are not free. And the mask remains there, saying, “How good I am!” But there is nothing good about it; it is all ignorance. It would be different to say to the other person, “I love living with you”; that is truly an expression of love. Selfishness means being unable to accept others or respect their experiences and, on the contrary, trying to force them to change so that one can feel at peace and not do any inner work. This leads to disastrous results in human relationships.

4.4 Acceptance as a Path to Happiness

Anything that leads us to confrontation is false information. On the other hand, what leads us to accept and to train ourselves to achieve peace, happiness, and service is information of wisdom. Our minds are full of false information. Inefficient dispute is the kind that arises against what is external, and the action–recovery cycle is what governs all efficient processes in the Universe. It is essential to manage our own action and recovery cycle well, without wasting it, as well as the cycles of training and opportunity. Running away is of no use; by running away, we waste the training and the opportunity to learn. When it comes to training, we have two options:

1. Taking advantage of the opportunity to learn.
2. Complaining about our own misfortune. If we choose the second option, we will be wasting our vital energy. Thus, our inner attitude toward life can be:

• One of complaint and rejection. In that case, one’s own mental conception is negative, erroneous, mistaken, and false. The person doesn't know it yet, but that attitude will clearly show it to them.
• One of acceptance and appreciation of life, of seeing it as an opportunity. In this way, the conception one holds is true and can be put to use. One’s inner attitude generates outward behavior, which is what each person uses to relate to life. Thus, if behavior originates in a negative attitude, then the person is aggressive, unhelpful, resentful, and proud, someone who expects things to always be done their way and who does not accept orders or bosses; in short, this is the outward behavior of failure. And this damages that person’s relationships, their work, and their life in general; it complicates everything. As we already know, everything that happens is perfect and has been designed for a specific purpose. Each of us is exactly what we are, and that is perfect; therefore, we should not compare ourselves with anyone, neither upward nor downward, but simply enjoy who we are and improve it. We have everything we need to be happy, because we are happy with what we have. We don’t want anything different from what life gives us.

We understand and accept that life always provides us with what we need according to the role each of us fulfills, and that the only thing that depends on us is to give our best in the role we are meant to carry out, as well as to be attentive and willing to accept other roles when life requires it, because that is how we learn to be happy. And once we are happy, we can support the happiness of everyone else.

This, then, is the secret of happiness: doing your best every day and lovingly accepting the result that life offers. Because there is nothing external that can be changed; always doing your best will always bring back the best.

Mental freedom is measured by the serenity, peace, and capacity for conscious action that a person can bring to any situation; it is also measured by the ability to voluntarily change one’s own thoughts, behaviors, concepts, and feelings, that is, the ability to modify one’s personality at will and readily accept new ideas that can improve life, understanding, and relationships with all living beings.

Any unverified information that a person takes to be true dangerously becomes a mental limitation or block that prevents them from accepting new information or behaviors, and it also makes it difficult to achieve inner peace, success in life, and satisfaction in relationships.

Beliefs block the mind from accepting new information.

A mind endowed with wisdom accepts and processes only true information. Even so, limitations are necessary for the discovery of truth and the development of wisdom. But afterward it becomes necessary to clear away our own beliefs; otherwise, we will not be able to accept the order of the Universe. For it is our own mental limitations that keep us from accepting different behaviors or ideas.

Chapter 5. The Magical Power of Renunciation

5.1 Renunciation

Renunciation is used in psychology as a technique to help people overcome mental conflicts such as anguish, stress, and panic, or to get through emotional and romantic crises. But to achieve this, it is no longer necessary to retreat to a monastery or escape from the world; this mental training technique, grounded in philosophical knowledge and an understanding of the reality of life, can easily be practiced in everyday life.

From the integration of renunciation and acceptance comes absolute peace of spirit.

Renunciation unblocks the mind, and in this way life flows. If it doesn’t, it’s because we haven’t renounced or accepted what life is and what it offers us. When you experience that blockage, ask yourself: “What am I not accepting? What am I fighting against?”

Ceasing to insist and renouncing allows us to see other options. Sometimes we’re just like a moth that keeps trying to fly through a windowpane to reach the garden on the other side, and doesn’t look for another way out even though another window is open.

Acceptance means renouncing any attempt to change whatever happens outside of us. If we accept that everything that happens in the Universe is perfect and, as a complement, renounce trying to change it, then liberation occurs and peace is attained.

Let's renounce trying to change other people's reality. Let's change our own reality through acceptance.

The sequence of the “miracle” of renunciation consists of two simple steps:

• First step: Renounce insisting on what doesn’t work for you, understanding that it doesn’t serve you, you don’t need it, or it isn’t yours to do—whether it’s a business, a medication, a relationship, or the mere act of criticizing. It’s important to renounce it so that new options for love can appear in your mind.
• Second step: Accept that this cannot be done, either because the Law does not allow it or because you lack the ability to do it—since if you had it, you would have already achieved it. This is the path to ending pride. If the issue is a lack of ability, the right thing to do is to let someone who does have that ability do it. And if you do have the ability but the action isn’t yours to take, you must likewise let someone else, to whom it does belong, do it. Let’s teach others to change their reality after verifying that this information applies to them. Among the tools available for mental cleansing, acceptance is the deepest, and renunciation is its perfect complement. If you want to stop suffering, you must practice renunciation. Some of the renunciations worth putting into practice are the following:
• Renounce watching people with suspicion.
• Renounce judging their decisions.
• Renounce forbidding others from doing what they need to do in order to learn.
• Renounce imposing your own beliefs, reasons, or truths.
• Renounce condemning the attitudes or behaviors of others.
• Renounce protesting or complaining when things don't go the way you want them to.
• Renounce retorting to what you disagree with.
• Renounce protesting against what challenges your own concepts.
• Renounce assuming that unpleasant things might happen.
• Renounce performing duties that are no longer yours to carry out.
• Renounce seeking justice for what happens to yourself or to others.
• Renounce getting in the way of the evolution or activities of others.
• Renounce taking offense at what others say or do.
• Renounce everything that might disturb your inner peace.
• Renounce forcing people to be with you.
• Renounce looking for someone to blame for the things that happen.
• Renounce opposing the reality that life presents.
• Renounce preventing other people's experiences.
• Renounce contradicting anyone's opinion.
• Renounce suffering over what you can't change.
• Renounce being a slave to other people's opinions.
• Renounce interfering with the decisions of others.
• Renounce worrying about what you can't control.
• Renounce fighting to get what you don't need.
• Renounce suffering over what you can't do.
• Renounce clinging to your own ideological positions.
• Renounce attacking anyone, for any reason.
• Renounce defending what you believe to be right.
• Give up worrying about what you don't know.
• Give up suffering over what might happen.
• Give up trying to find out who hurt you.
• Give up letting others decide for you.
• Give up fearing for your loved ones.
• Give up arguing about anything.
• Give up trying to prove that you're right.
• Give up holding on to what you don't need.
• Give up criticizing anyone or anything.
• Give up ego and pride. If a person gives up everything on the preceding list, they will attain an unshakable peace and become a Master of Wisdom, and it will be easier for others to behave appropriately, because how can you offend someone who has given up being offended?

5.1.1 The Distinction Between Indifference and Renunciation

That said, renunciation must not be misunderstood: we should not give up what does belong to us, namely the roles and activities that life offers each person.

When you act like the just person, your mind will tell you, “You’ve become bad,” because it reacts out of ignorance. In the same way, indifference is ignorance without feelings. Renunciation born of wisdom, on the other hand, is found at a level of Mastery in Love where it is possible to recognize that each person lives the experience that is theirs, and not the one that belongs to someone else, and that this is a perfect process for the development of love in each individual.

The indifferent person does not care about the experiences of others; the just person does, but does not interfere with them. Instead, they support them. How? By providing others with the information they need to transcend their difficulties. But they will never give information to anyone who does not ask for it.

5.1.2 Why Do We Experience Suffering?

The answer is simple: because we don't accept, and we don't accept because we don't understand.

If, having understood, we still don't give up what does not belong to us, then we will continue to suffer.

The possible sequences are as follows:

We don't understand »» we don't accept »» we don't give up »» we suffer (feeling) »» our vital energy drops »» mental conflict »» we see the

"black" life

We understand »» we don't give up »» we suffer (feeling) We understand »» we accept »» we give up »» we don't suffer (love)

5.2 Pride and Ego: Two Sides of the Same Coin

Pride can also be called ego, mind, or belief system. People need to accept and to give up. For the ego, accepting “that it can’t be done” is very easy. For example, that human beings can’t fly; but accepting “that I can’t” is more difficult. For example, solving a Rubik’s Cube; and this is so because we were taught that “I have to be able to.”

When we acknowledge that we “can’t,” pride is broken. Consequently, as the mind becomes unblocked, the miracle manifests. We accept that we can’t, we give up insisting, we give up the ego, and we immediately begin to use understanding and love. If we are able to give up our human limitations, we can make room for any miracle. Obviously, miracles are governed by the Laws of the Universe; we do not control them. However, to bring about any act of magic in our lives, no matter how small, we need to use the same tools that create the miracle: fundamentally renunciation and acceptance.

Only the mind has limits, and the results of those mental limits are suffering, anguish, illness, conflicts in relationships, scarcity of resources, and so on. The moment a person breaks through their mental limits, there will be nothing they can’t do. Little by little, and within the scale of what corresponds to them, they will have the ability to perform miracles: to build excellent relationships with everyone, or to be certain that nothing unsatisfactory can happen to them, even in the midst of chaos, because they are living by their own values.

Once you give up the mental expectation that the world, other people, and life have to behave the way you want, expect, and desire, life can become something fun, something to enjoy. But as long as you haven’t used the two tools mentioned, acceptance and renunciation, life will remain full of stress, suffering, anguish, and constant fear.

Acceptance and renunciation are the two tools that transmute ignorance into wisdom.

To dissolve the ego, you need to give up everything you want, even though this sounds harsh to the ego. A person might also ask: “If I give up everything I want, what am I left with?” With the most wonderful thing: what you already have, which is not the same as what you want. And what should you do with what you have? Value it. In this regard, the Masters offer a very simple teaching: “Instead of spending your whole life suffering over what you want, spend it valuing what you have, and everything you need will come to you.” At its core, the tool is very simple; it’s true that applying it requires training, since the ego will “throw a tantrum,” squirm, fight, and defend itself, because it is skillful, subtle, and treacherous.

When you give up ignorance, it dissolves; it doesn't get organized. The same happens with the Rubik's Cube exercise: it's much easier to dissolve it than to put it in order.

Our aspiration should be to use reasoning less and less, and understanding and intuition more and more, so that we can rise spiritually.

We all have the tool of renunciation at our disposal, and how we use it is up to each of us. No one can use it for someone else or evolve for others, nor can anyone develop another person’s consciousness; it is an absolutely individual task. Therefore, to sum up the above, it is important to know that you must give up everything you want, including anything that makes you feel bad; then you will begin to experience absolute peace.

Also, along the same lines, you need to enjoy everything that happens. Not suffering over anything means that you are looking at life from understanding, and the ego begins to say: “You’re becoming bad, insensitive. Where’s your solidarity? What happened to you? You’ve been brainwashed.” If you believe the ego in that situation, you’ll fall back into its trap and continue to suffer.

The ego has a source of nourishment that keeps it alive within us: suffering. The ego is, in fact, the repository of suffering and ignorance. To stay alive, it needs to feed on the energy that comes from suffering. The more a person suffers, the more anguish they feel, the higher the stress levels they carry, and the less they accept life, the stronger their ego will be, and the more robust and developed.

As a formula for giving up suffering, anguish, worry, and expectations, you can repeat the following reassuring phrases:

“I do my best; what is meant for me will always come at the right time; if it isn’t meant for me, I don’t need it, so I will never worry about the future, because what exists is the present, and in it I aim to be excellent, and everything else will come on its own. What is mine will always arrive, and what isn’t mine, I don’t need.”

The best attitude, then, is renunciation. Once the presence of a Law has been verified, if you give up going against it, you will place yourself back within the order of the Universe. On the other hand, let’s remember that if you insist fewer than three times and/or more than seven on something that isn’t meant for you, whether it’s a job, a relationship, or anything else, you place yourself against the Law of Correspondence. Insisting on this is not only useless, it also creates every imaginable kind of blockage. In other words, if you know, things fall into place; if you don’t, they get blocked.

Acceptance, in short, means completely giving up interfering with any process external to oneself, through total and absolute respect for everything that exists. It means admitting that everything that exists and happens has a perfect purpose of love, even if one doesn’t know it. It entails giving up conflict and the attempt to modify the perfect order of the Universe.

Chapter 6. Why Do We Resist Acceptance?

The conceptual, cultural, and traumatic imprints that exist in the human mind have a self-protection system that keeps the person who holds them from accidentally erasing them while they are still needed for that person's experiences of evolution and recognition of the Law. For this reason, the system of ignorance or of beliefs skillfully invents all kinds of justifications to maintain suffering, and so stubbornly rejects any information that could bring light to the mind. Therefore, the possibility of transcending suffering exists only for people with enough intelligence and capacity to understand the information of love and to use properly the tools that make it possible to dismantle the self-protection system of ignorance. As we have already said, those tools are acceptance and renunciation; by using them, you reach peace of mind and complete freedom from suffering.

Don't believe the ignorant who offer heaven through suffering.

Let’s not increase our inner limitations even further with laments, suffering, and justifications. The ignorant mind resists accepting that everything that happens in the Universe is perfect and necessary, because admitting this would immediately put an end to the ego and the darkness. And the ego defends itself with specific weapons that we need to recognize in order to stop using them: mental justifications for continuing to suffer.

Acceptance is a profound science of spiritual development. To accept means that we are willing to renounce completely:

• Suffering, since we begin to express the love that is within us.
• Trying to change others or interfering with any circumstance, situation, person, or event that takes place in the outer world. Let’s accept people as they are. Trying to change people is a pointless waste of time and inner energy, since the mission of love consists only of teaching, offering information of wisdom, and being a point of reference and guidance for others; each person then changes themselves. As long as you want to change someone, you are not accepting them; you can tell because you criticize that person, judge them, condemn them, and attack them. Inner change, then, consists of deciding not to change others, but to accept them as they are. When you achieve this, you stop quarreling with them and, as a consequence, conflicts disappear. However, a person will not make this inner change until they are saturated with conflicts, because until then they will insist on changing others. When you begin to work on yourself, you see the results and can open up to new information, because those results show the way of the development of consciousness. All human beings are perfect, but never the same; we have different personalities, beliefs, and tastes, and this is what enriches us and allows acceptance of others to develop. The greatest challenge of love is total acceptance, loving our “enemies”; although in reality we have no “enemies,” only people we disagree with, who have opinions and behaviors different from our own. Loving relationships are characterized by recognition of life’s essential values, of the value of the other person, and of the relationship. This shows itself in accepting conceptual differences as opportunities for mutual learning, excellent communication, self-assumed agreements, unconditional support, and constant satisfaction. Only a person in a state of ignorance tries to work on the outer world. A person with wisdom, or a disciple of love, by contrast, devotes themselves exclusively to working on their inner world in order to transform it into an experience of peace and love. This means they have totally and definitively renounced changing anything that happens outside, because they accept it as perfect. If a person has not suffered enough, they need to keep suffering; but if they already have, they will have access to the tools that make it possible to dismantle the system of suffering. Ignorance protects itself against accidental erasure, as we said earlier. In other words, as long as we need ignorance, we cannot erase it. But when our level of inner peace and spiritual development has reached at least 50%, it becomes possible to erase ignorance, since we no longer need it.

6.1 How do we go about suffering?

The mental justifications for suffering are endless. The mind, the ego, will always tell us things like these: “Careful, you’re becoming a bad person”; “Where is the love you make such a show of?”; “How do you express solidarity?” “How is the world ever going to change with people like you, who do nothing, who are of no use to anyone!”; “You’re selfish, you only think about yourself, not about others.” All of these will be the weapons, in the form of justifications, that the ego uses to maintain the system of suffering. If you let yourself be fooled by them, you won’t be able to stop suffering.

Mental justifications are subtle; we need to work on them, observe them, identify them, and not let them fool us. Ignorance will always disguise itself as goodness, saying things like: “I’m very good, and that’s why I suffer for others.” But that is a false belief.

Renunciation manages to eliminate the justification.

So let us renounce suffering and interfering.

The day we understand that suffering is not being good, but being ignorant, and that being full of love is the same as being full of peace, we will have a good tool for not suffering.

In reality, nobody “has” to suffer; those who suffer do so because they neither understand nor accept, because they expect their own will to be done. But when you accept the will of the order of the Universe, you stop suffering and true peace begins. If, on the contrary, you merely resign yourself, you will keep suffering quietly and maintain the level of ignorance within you.

How can we recognize the “thieves” of the mind? Very easily: because they generate dissatisfaction. These “thieves,” also called “traitors” or “merchants,” are criticism, fear, anger, worries, pride, control, suffering, and the other characteristics of ignorance. To drive all the “thieves” out of the mind, the mind must not run the person; on the contrary, the person must be the one who directs their mind.

Any thought that disturbs your peace, carries even the slightest suffering, and brings disharmony within you is an inner merchant that needs to be driven out “with a whip” if necessary.

6.2 How Can We Stop Suffering?

The key is to not accept in your own mind anything that produces suffering; you have to “change the station” immediately, and that is how you begin to stop suffering.

The essential thing for erasing the “cultural program” of suffering is to stop feeding the ego with suffering or with the need to defend yourself against what happens outside in order to reach inner peace. As long as you depend on praise or suffer from criticism, the ego cannot disappear. Only those who are spiritually independent can eliminate their ego completely. When what others think or say means nothing to you, when your actions toward the outside work only through the respect that everyone deserves, it is possible to eliminate the ego and stop suffering.

To stop having problems and conflicts, we need to understand that the problem of the human being is not outside, but within; according to how we handle our thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors, so we generate our external circumstances. Therefore, if we change our own way of thinking, acting, and behaving, we will generate entirely different circumstances.

Only those who can respect others as deeply as they respect themselves, in their concepts, ideas, beliefs, customs, attitudes, ignorance, limitations, or wisdom, have the capacity to express love. And only those who can fill themselves with invulnerable inner peace, no matter what happens outside them, will know that they no longer need to suffer.

There is a mental duality that we need to dismantle; we were sold the idea that to be good you have to suffer, and that not suffering (or being at peace) means being bad. We need, then, to clarify these concepts and change these equivalences, saying instead that not suffering is good and that suffering is terrible.

6.3 "Good" and "Bad"

Goodness and evil are characteristics of the mind, which interprets what happens outside, but they are not the reality of life. Things are not good or bad; they are necessary, which is an absolutely neutral term. What is necessary does not have to be pleasant, but it does not have to be unpleasant either. The concepts of good and evil no longer have a place in our way of thinking, because what is necessary will always be important and will always have a purpose of love. Evil, then, exists only in the human mind.

Therefore, let's not mix up painful or pleasant sensations with good and bad; otherwise, it will be impossible to dismantle the mental program of suffering.

In our evolution, we first use tools of instinct (we are “the insensitive one”), then tools of feeling (we are “the sensitive one”), and finally tools of love (we will be “the desensitized one”). Harmony and inner peace are tools of love and belong to the realm of neutrality, not duality. Everything that happens outside is neutral; life’s events are neither good nor bad, and they do not even carry a positive or negative charge—they are simply necessary. The one that carries the positive or negative charge is the mind of the person observing the event, who, of course, will label it as good or bad, and therein lies the error. A Master does not label things in any way; he simply observes them, understands the reason why they happen, knows that they are necessary and, naturally, respects them; then he enters a state of peace. To achieve this, he needs to reach the third level in the development of feelings and become “the desensitized one.” To work as such, we need to stop paying attention to the messages sent by the part of our mind where ignorance reigns.

6.4 Toward an Unshakable Peace

We must do whatever we decide to do, but always in peace. Love and peace are conscious action, not inaction.

Never think about problems, only about solutions, which are what bring peace to the mind, whereas problems generate anguish. If we give strength to a problem, we amplify it, turn it into a drama, and make it unmanageable.

There are no problems, only opportunities to learn.

Gratitude and appreciation are magnificent tools for freeing ourselves from suffering, but we need to give thanks in the right way: to the people who bring a difficulty into our lives, because they gave us the opportunity to strengthen our inner peace and our capacity to understand, accept, and love. If it weren’t for them, we would not have been able to learn that. Instead of complaining about them, let’s appreciate them and be grateful.

If we learn to handle life well, nothing will be a problem; everything will be satisfying. Difficulties are opportunities to learn, and if we see them that way, there will no longer be a problem. As soon as you feel a negative thought coming into your mind, you must instantly replace it with another.

Happiness does not depend on the characteristics of the body, but on the development of understanding. Someone who has been very well endowed by nature has few opportunities to learn to accept themselves. It is precisely those who have not been so well endowed who have a better chance of learning to accept themselves. Sometimes we say, “Poor so-and-so…,” but the truth is that we should not pity them, because they are going through situations that are appropriate and necessary for their evolutionary development. These are opportunities rather than tragedies, and they help them learn to be happy. Let’s not forget that what seems very difficult is sometimes a great opportunity.

Our purpose is to strive to reach a state of mind known as “I am.” I am the master of my thoughts, I am the master of my decisions, I am the master of my peace, I am the master of everything I do, I am the master of loving and respecting everyone else. In that state, we are spiritually independent; our inner peace does not depend on praise, criticism, or the decisions of others, nor on what happens or does not happen. To achieve this purpose, we first need to understand and then to train ourselves.

Outside, anything can happen, because events there are constant and unending; the outside world is an inexhaustible source of events that you cannot defend yourself against in order to attain inner peace. Every external event must be neutral to the person; if it is not, you will label it as good or bad; but if you label it as necessary and recognize it as such, you will not lose your peace.

It does not matter what happens or what others do; this is what the process of spiritual work is about. Obviously, it is a training that must first be grounded in an understanding of the Law of Love of the Universe, since nothing happens that is not of love.

It is highly recommended to repeat the following phrases as a process of self-suggestion until your own mind accepts the message:

"My peace is invulnerable. I will not allow any external situation to affect my happiness, my peace, and my love. Everything that happens in the Universe

is perfect and necessary."

When people lose their peace, when their harmony is gone and they are not happy, when they limit their capacity to serve and to face life, they become mental slaves, because they allow situations outside themselves to determine their inner states. This is called the state of slavery. In such a state, extremely high levels of inner suffering can build up and eventually lead to a saturation point, at which the person says, “I don’t want to suffer anymore; I don’t want any more conflicts or fights.” From that saturation point, the process of liberation begins.

Upon reaching the saturation point, individuals begin to look for new information, and this state is then called the maturation point. Therefore, as long as a person is not looking for new information on their own, it is counterproductive to try to force them, because it is not the right moment for them. The search for new information leads us through a process of opening the mind and replacing our inner information with new information of greater wisdom. At that moment, when we have reached what we call understanding, the conflict with the ego truly begins. In other words, you may have reached the point where you understand that there are more efficient behaviors and information, that there is a better way to see life and to relate to others, that there is a better version of everything… But when you set out to work on this in reality, your ego “kicks in.” You then come to understand that no one hurts you but yourself, that no one is to blame for the experience you are living because it is the result of your own actions… But if you suddenly run into someone around the corner who says, “You’re a brute, an animal!”, your “beast” will certainly jump out. That is what evolution is about: finding a way to control the inner beast, to manage the ego, the reactive mind, the traumatic process, so that they don’t get in the way. If, in response to those words, you answer, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you,” it means you have begun to work with understanding, that you have turned the other cheek, which will put an end to the ego, even if inside you are still seething.

The first process is based on voluntarily controlling the outward expression of your inner turmoil; we all have it, but it should not show. Even if you feel terrible and want to tell the other person a few home truths, you must not say anything offensive; on the contrary, you should respond with a phrase of love to the person who has just verbally attacked you. It would be this: “I’m sorry if I did something that made you feel bad; please forgive me, it wasn’t my intention, you’re absolutely right, and next time I’ll be more careful.” It is a perfect phrase of love for putting an end to the ego. But the aggression continues inside; the seething will not disappear immediately, but gradually, as you reprogram your mind with this repetition exercise:

“My peace is invulnerable; my harmony depends only on me; my happiness is a virtue that I develop myself and does not depend on anything external.” As you work on this, there comes a time when you no longer feel anything, nor do you need to control anything, make an effort, or fight. Faced with any offensive remark from another person, you are no longer able to feel anything, nor do you need to control it. A phrase of love simply appears in your mind: “This person has every right to feel bad even though I haven’t done anything to them. They are doing the best they know how and the best they feel, and I will take the opportunity to serve them without effort, but there will be nothing to control.” That comes after the conflict, and it is the conquest, what happens when there is no longer any reaction and you feel nothing because you have moved into the state of love, which is neutral.

The conflict thus comes to an end when reality is accepted, and this happens when the “inner warrior” has done its work of dismantling the ego.

We accept reality »» we renounce suffering »» we obey the laws »» the ego dies »» we enter the land of invulnerable peace »» we become attuned to a new civilization.

Once we have acknowledged the existence of the Law and have decided to obey it, the ego is no longer necessary.

If we accepted everything that happens, if we respected all the experiences that occur around us, if we did everything that is ours to do with the best of ourselves and let go of everything that is not ours to do, what would our life be like? Extraordinary, with a very high level of satisfaction and quality; it would be the life of a human Master of wisdom. And if achieving this seems wonderful to us: What will we have to do to get there? Let’s imagine what it could be like to live without fear! What a marvelous liberation! We live filled with fears, attachments, dependencies, and guilt: about not getting what we want, about losing what we have, about losing our loved ones… We find it hard to accept what happens and, because of this, we fill ourselves with suffering. Nor do we respect other people’s experiences; instead, we urgently feel the need to change them, to interfere in their lives, to expect them to behave the way we think they should; and this is another cause of energy drain and conflict.

6.5 The Learning Process

Many times, by trying to do what is not ours to do, we stop doing what is. We put our minds on what we want instead of working with what we have. What we really need to do is let go of what is not ours to do, let everyone do what is theirs to do, and do our own part, without trying to do everything and without suffering, since that is inefficient.

We must do our part and give others tools so they can do theirs, but without suffering over what they do, because that does not depend on us. These are the tools of liberation, and in order to apply them we need to practice exercises of mental reprogramming—repeating phrases of wisdom mentally or aloud—and of mental fasting—always thinking the best.

Generally, the errors of human beings originate in three elements:

1. Lack of adequate information. The adult mind accepts new information, suggestions, ideas, or any kind of external influence as long as they agree with the belief system it initially acquired; otherwise, it will reject them and put up great resistance to any change. Information can only be accepted by voluntary decision.
2. Lack of training. Once a person has accepted new information, they can begin their training by practicing imperturbability in the face of everyday external circumstances; this is achieved by constantly repeating a simple mental formula, such as: “I will not allow anything to affect my inner peace.”
3. Lack of energy from not developing our own abilities to their full potential. If the problem originates in a piece of information, the solution does too. If the information is not true, there is only one thing to do:

discard it and replace it with something true, because what is false is no use for being happy; nothing can be built with it, neither happiness nor success; with what is false, you will never find satisfaction in life.

On the other hand, any thought that brings satisfaction, peace, and harmony helps build a new world for the person; it doesn’t matter where that information comes from: from one’s own mental archives, from a Master, or from a file of the Universe. The same is true of information that has to do with resentment, hatred, revenge, or a lack of acceptance; it doesn’t matter which file it is taken from, whether one’s own, from the recent or distant past, or from other people, the result will be undesirable.

The first thing we need, therefore, is for the mind to accept new information that is based on love. This will allow us to change the current conception of life each of us has into a conception of love. In turn, this will bring about a change in our inner attitude, which will become a positive attitude of love. Progressively, this attitude will lead the person to put into practice an outward behavior of service, appreciation, acceptance, and understanding, which will generate positive thoughts. This makes it possible, through observation, to detect thoughts that are not positive, and thus to reject them.

From positive thinking, positive feelings arise, which help increase energy, self-worth, self-esteem, and joy, and improve relationships. In life, the result of this attitude is prosperity, satisfaction, and success in every area. And it reaffirms that this is the truth of life, which leads us to grow more and more in inner peace and satisfaction.

On the other hand, in our relationships with others we can learn:

• By inverse contrast. Through suffering, because we want to change the other person so that they behave the way we want.
• By harmonic contrast. Through understanding and accepting the experiences each individual needs in order to reach their own understanding. Harmonic contrast consists of adapting to the other person. Instead of trying to change them, you make an inner change that allows you to accept the other person as they are. As a result, harmony arises, because there is no longer any clash. The ignorant human being lives as a slave to fear, resentment, guilt, and attachments. By changing their attitude toward life, they become a conscious human being and live free because they have managed to eliminate fear through an understanding of life—of what one is, what one has, and what one needs—;

to eliminate resentment and guilt through acceptance of other people’s experiences and one’s own, and also of life, which gives one what one needs; and to eliminate attachments through love, by sharing life harmoniously with other people and by valuing things for the service they provide us.

If we accept others as they are, understanding that they are full of values and virtues, we will build excellent relationships. And we will handle the “negative” parts with the principles of the mirror and the fruit, which we will describe below:

The mirror principle is very simple. You get up in the morning and stand in front of the mirror; you see an image with dark circles under the eyes, disheveled, not in a pleasant condition. Then you say: How am I going to go to work like this? I need to look impeccable; let’s fix this situation. So you take out the razor, shave the mirror, put shampoo on it, bathe it, comb its hair, and dress it. Is that what we do? No, of course not; that sounds completely illogical. What you have to do is get yourself ready, because the mirror is nothing but a reflection.

Well, what seems so absurd is what we do every day in our relationships. We look at a person and feel bad around them; then we assume that person is the one with the problem and we tell them: “You have to change, stop that behavior, act differently.” We try to change the other person so that we can feel good ourselves; this is what the mirror principle consists of. But it is not others who have to change, but ourselves. If you feel bad around someone, it is because you have a limitation in accepting and understanding them.

The fruit principle is also simple. You go to have breakfast and there is a piece of fruit on the table with a small part in bad condition and the rest in excellent condition. You cut off that small part, throw the good part in the trash, and eat the spoiled part. Does that make sense? No, it doesn’t. Well, that is exactly what we do every day in our relationships: you see a person who has values, virtues, and qualities, but like every human being, they also have some flaws; there is no one who doesn’t. So you focus on those flaws, on criticizing their mistakes, and you disregard all their values. What did you keep? The spoiled part.

6.6 Which method should we use in relationships: resistance or acceptance?

The method of resistance is based on non-acceptance.

Since we don’t accept things, we scold, yell, or stay silent, and we contradict everything we’re told because we’re resisting what others want to impose on us or what we want to impose on others; we criticize everything, and to justify ourselves, we call it “constructive criticism.” But there’s no such thing as constructive criticism; what does exist is healthy, harmonious communication that allows us to find solutions, but criticism never leads to solutions, only to rejection. We human beings are experts at making threats (for example, “One day I’m going to leave”) as an attempt at manipulation. We fight against life; we spend our days complaining about everything and trying to change what’s happening around us because we’re unable to adapt to it, and the result will always be suffering and dissatisfaction.

The four basic problems of human beings stem from resistance. A person has problems in their relationships when they resist others; has health difficulties when they resist life; has financial problems when they resist their destiny; and, finally, has trouble adapting to their environment when they resist the role and place where they are meant to live.

The Masters say: “He who sails with the wind is carried by the wind.” This means that you shouldn’t come into conflict with life; you must not resist it. If something works a certain way, even if you disagree, you must let it flow.

If you come into conflict with someone who isn’t behaving the way you want, you should say to them: “You have every right in the Universe to behave however you want. Therefore, from now on, I will never again ask you to change your behavior; act however you want and in whatever way makes you happy.” This is how to stop resisting; whether or not the other person changes is up to them, and it’s no longer your problem.

The method of resistance damages relationships and complicates our destiny.

Therefore, it is the method of acceptance that we propose so that relationships are based on love rather than destiny. If we use this method, our communication will be healthy. To do this, we need to focus on the present, not the past, because the past cannot be changed and is useful only for appreciating what we learned; we also need our language to be loving, using non-aggressive words and a tone that does not cross the automatic thresholds; we need to look for solutions rather than someone to blame; finally, we need to always express people’s values and qualities.

The greater the acceptance, the better the results; what’s more, difficulties and complicated situations get unblocked. This is what’s called flowing. For example, on all those occasions when you want to start a business or take a trip, and one obstacle after another pops up, the day you say, “If it’s not meant for me, I won’t do it, period,” that’s when the trip works out, or the job comes along, or the business takes off.

The method of acceptance puts the seven tools of love into practice: one gives up criticism and aggression, devotes oneself to serving with love and to commitment, and gives up interfering in other people’s processes, with respect and adaptability, and then things get unblocked.

The method of acceptance improves relationships and frees us from destiny.

It is possible to completely disagree with another person’s behavior and yet accept it, without resisting, criticizing, or judging them. Accepting does not mean agreeing, but rather understanding that everyone does the best they know how, the best they are capable of, even if they may be mistaken.

It is also possible to accept that there are people who are disrespectful of others’ rights, and that this is because such a role is necessary for their own experience and for that of those who receive the disrespect, according to the Law of Correspondence. You accept that this situation is necessary within the order of the Universe and that it has significant educational value, but even so you do not agree with the disrespect, because it is not the right thing to do; still, you cannot impose what you think on another person; if you do, it is because you do not accept them.

On the other hand, if you accept that other people behave as best they can, you will never be disappointed, since you had already accepted this fact before it even happened. This is what working with the purpose of wisdom consists of: wisdom enables people to come to accept that human errors are unintentional and are opportunities for enrichment.

Reality is what happens, and inner reality is what one feels in response to it. In other words, when faced with the same event, inner reality can differ from person to person: while some feel happy, others become depressed.

There are, therefore, two ways of relating to reality:

• From ignorance. By rejecting reality, trying to run away from it, and filling ourselves with suffering. But since the Laws of the Universe do not allow us to escape, we enter into a deep process of conflict and frustration. We do not accept; rather, we reject. We feel fear and anguish about what we believe might happen, or we refuse to accept what happens to other people.
• From wisdom. By accepting reality as a perfect and necessary purpose. In this way, we will have inner peace and harmony, and we will make the most of reality as an extraordinary learning process. The exercise for eliminating suffering is based precisely on accepting reality.

Conclusions

• If you complain, you are confronting reality (whether successfully or not). This means that you do not accept it and that, as a result, you will suffer, your vital energy will be drained, and you will fall into states of depression, confusion, and crisis.
• Only those who accept the present reality as an opportunity for inner change, that is, to learn new things, will be able to live a new reality of peace and harmony. It is not possible to seek peace through fighting; it is a contradiction.
• We learn from what we do not accept, and we can teach what we have come to understand.
• Acceptance and understanding free you from ignorance and suffering.
• You must remove from your mind any thought that disturbs your inner peace. Such thoughts may exist, and it is possible to accept them, but not in your own home, which is the mind.
• There is no such thing as evil, only ignorance.
• There is no one to blame; we simply make mistakes and need to learn from them.
• Today's thoughts, words, and actions are the seeds of the fruit we will reap in the future: let us sow acceptance within ourselves, and we will reap excellent results from now on.
• It is possible to act and accept your own results, but never let your inner peace depend on others.
• We will not allow negative thoughts to enter our minds. We must not believe anything; we must not take anything for granted or assume anything to be true; we must practice and verify in our own lives whether this information works and produces satisfactory results. With this information, we have three options for action:

1. Store it in our library.
2. Carry it with us and teach it to everyone.
3. Make the information a part of ourselves, so that it becomes the way we act. Only in this last case will we achieve satisfactory results.

Training Exercises

Observation and Verification Exercises

• Observe the events in your life that you can't accept, and check what you feel inside. You'll find that there is suffering.
• When you're suffering, ask yourself this question: What am I not accepting? It could be someone's behavior, a financial loss, your child refusing to do what you'd like them to do, the death of a loved one, etc.

Exercise to Transform Suffering into Satisfaction

• Make a complete list of the things you’re not accepting every time you lose your inner peace. The merit of inner work and the true expression of love lie precisely in accepting the things we don’t like.
• Make another list of what you’ve already accepted. To put it together, you can look for situations that used to cause you conflict or were difficult for you to accept, but that no longer cause you any problem. There’s no merit in accepting what’s pleasant. The exercise consists of shortening the list of what we don’t accept and lengthening the list of what we do accept. Don’t fool yourself; you don’t have to show your lists to anyone, so make them with as much inner honesty as you can muster.

Exercise to Stop Suffering: Change the Station

When thoughts you don’t like—thoughts of criticism, suffering, anger, fear…—come to your mind, replace them with others that bring you peace. For example, you can repeat this phrase: “Everything that happens is perfect and necessary and has a purpose of love.” We can call these replacement thoughts; we memorize them and keep them always ready to use whenever thoughts of suffering come to mind. Replacement thoughts can also be pleasant memories, a landscape, the moment we met a certain person…

We suggest reading each topic 30 times, because an adult’s mind requires at least 30 repetitions to encode something. A child’s mind, on the other hand, needs only seven to ten, because it has less ignorance and fewer learned concepts than an adult’s.

If you always do the same thing with the same attitude, you'll always get the same results. Change the information, change your attitude, and your results will change.