Copyright © 2022 Lee Spirit 

I was recently hiking along the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail on Vancouver Island, BC! China Beach, as pictured in my photo, and all the beaches there had this stunning fog in the morning! It made all the scenery that much more enticing and mystical to me, especially with the sun shining through! I usually have a preference for sunshine and blue sky days, but this was a unique experience that I treated as a gift. It wasn’t something that obscured my vision. We all have preferences – likes and dislikes – that we develop over time based on what we’ve experienced in the past. Sometimes it’s hard to let go of past preferences.

Why would we want to let go of what we like or dislike about something, you ask? Well, as Michael A. Singer says in his latest book, “Living Untethered”, when we have preferences, we set ourselves up for disappointment! We can’t ever win! If the day turned out foggy when you wanted clear skies, then you might be upset, or complain about it. Without preferences, we can focus better on the present moment, and enjoy it as it is, no matter how it turns out!

Preferences Come From Our Past Experiences

Preferences are often developed from our past experiences. For example, one day, I got soaked in the rain and caught a cold, so now I don’t like being out in the rain. When we recall these moments from our pasts, there’s often a “fogginess” around our recall. While our memories serve us well, our vision is a bit blurred about what actually happened in those past moments. Our minds start to fabricate what happened until the stories we recall may not even be true to what really happened. Catching a cold may have had nothing to do with getting soaked in the rain, but my mind created the story that the rain caused it.

Michael Singer refers to these past preferences as “samskaras”, a Sanskrit word for impressions, or recollections that block us from our true potential. They are the stories you tell yourself that prevent you from becoming the singer you wanted to be, just because someone told you in grade 6 that you couldn’t sing. We tend to either cling to these ideas, or suppress them. Neither of these enable us to grow into our true potential.

Clinging and Suppressing Make Letting Go of Past Preferences Difficult

Freeing your soul from the shackles of past preferences is hard. That’s because you either cling to thoughts, feelings, or emotions from the past, or you shove them down so far because you don’t want to deal with them. When you cling to the idea that you are a terrible singer because someone told you so, you never reach your true potential because you believe you can’t. When you suppress something from your past, such as that time you were abused by an adult when you were a child, you may never develop healthy relationships.

That’s why letting go of past experiences, conditioning, or traumas is so important. We want to be able to reach our true potential, and live in the moment, savouring each one as it comes. If it rains, we can enjoy the moment. If we feel pain due to past abuse, we acknowledge the pain and allow ourselves to learn and grow from it. Letting go is not easy work, so that’s why I’m offering some solutions here to help you let go, and take each moment as it comes. Whatever arises, love that!

How To Let Go So Your Soul Can Be Free

Know Yourself

Part of letting go is to know yourself well. By spending some quiet time alone, you can better witness the thoughts that float through your mind, the emotions you are experiencing, and the feelings you have about different things. Alone-time also allows you to come to grips with your past experiences. It allows space to let go of preferences that ruin your chances at true happiness and joy. Many people get caught up in their lives and don’t take this important time to know their preferences. They don’t know what needs work within themselves. When you know yourself, you know what to let go of. If you need to see it written on paper so you get a better idea of what you’re feeling, then write it down and review it. Cross things off your list that are taking up too much time, space, or energy in your life.

Feel What You Need to Feel

Once we bring up the mental garbage from our pasts – This may include being hurt, injured, abused, traumatized, or emotionally wounded in some way – it’s right there glaring at us on the surface. What do we do with all that garbage? We allow it to pass through our bodies. Feel where you hurt in your body and recognize that it’s a pain from the past. It may be a heart ache, a stomach ache, a headache, or sore muscles. Allow yourself to feel the pain of the past, and allow it to come into the light, fully exposed. Maybe you shed some tears. Only when it’s brought to the surface can you let it go. Feeling things is integrating them, and once you’ve integrated them, you transform the pain. It becomes productivity, pleasure, present-moment awareness, inspiration, or creative energy.

Let Go and Be Free

It’s easier said than done to just say, “Relax, breathe, and let go”. However, when you breathe deeply, it does create space inside your mind-body-spirit, and space helps you let go of things.

Meditation

I find that creating space and letting go is much easier as soon as I start silent meditation for at least 20 minutes. Use a timer so you can close your eyes and relax into silence. You may find your mind racing with thoughts, but tell yourself you’ll think about those things later, after the meditation. Set your mind free through silent meditation, and do it on a regular basis so that when you feel frantic in your thoughts, you can come back to this state more easily. Becoming the observer of your thoughts will help settle them.

Chanting

If you have a preference for sound over silence, try to remember that preferences cause disappointments and it’s better to release those so that you’re happy with either sound or silence. Then try some mantra chanting if it helps keep your thoughts more positive. I have felt a bit exhausted lately after my vacation and visiting friends and family. One thing that has helped settle my thoughts is just chanting, “Om Namah Shivaya” silently in my mind, or even out loud. This chant clears negativity from the mind. You may want to say a positive affirmation such as, “I open my heart to love, connection, and community”…

Letting Go of Past Preferences By Talking It Out

Sometimes the best way to release old wounds or past conditioning and preferences is just to talk to a trusted friend or family member. Get another perspective on the issues that are holding you back and fogging your mind. If that doesn’t help, you can always seek counselling for a variety of reasons, and a lot of it is free and easily accessible. There are many online counselling sessions being made available as the world goes more online, so look into that if you need some extra help from a professional.

Forgive Others and Yourself

It may just be that you have not forgiven someone for a past hurt, or that you have done someone wrong, and you feel guilty. Without forgiveness, you can’t move on. This can take place even if someone has passed away by visualizing a scene in your heart and mind of meeting this person from your past. Say, “I forgive you”. Maybe you visualize yourself standing in front of yourself and you say, “I forgive you”. Really feel that in your heart and soul. Relax, breathe, forgive, and let go.

My hope is that you won’t just read these blog posts, but you’ll take some action to make the ideas work for you in your life. If you need a few more ideas, click here to Let Go of the Past. Letting go provides a tremendous sense of freedom, and really clears up the fog that exists in our minds, hearts, and lives.

Lee Spirit is an avid outdoors adventurer with a love for nature, photography, health & fitness, wellness, and spirituality. She helps those who suffer from anxiety & negative thinking to become healthier in mind-body-spirit. Her own personal journey has led her to the  study and practice of mindfulness, health, wellness, yoga, spirituality, sound healing, meditation, and personal development for over 20 years. Get mindfulness, meditation, and personal development tips in her Free Natural Mind Healing Report.