23 Comments
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Rachel Zinman Yoga's avatar

I love that Timothy Chalamet metaphor...

Meredith ∞'s avatar

i figured using Timothée makes the concept a lot easier to remember.

Pratiksha Yadav's avatar

Simple, deep and grounded reminder. Thank you for this.

Meredith ∞'s avatar

You're very welcome.

Geri Bose's avatar

I find this is an everyday struggle for me. Not a day goes by that the ego doesn’t interfere with my life. Stillness, being in the present moment, walks in nature, slowly moving through life all help, but somehow the ego manages to show up and stir up the peace. I guess this is what it means to be human.

Meredith ∞'s avatar

Yes indeed. But hope this helps. The more we can remember our true Self while acting in daily life, slowly slowly the ego dissolves.

Amilia's avatar

Cut! - back to Reality - love it! & the quote from Shakespeare-timeless Wisdom! Reflection & awareness, directing our energy, "in your words of grounding Meredith" back to the self-otherwise we can be swept away for some time = understanding this shows us how we are working in our ego state, giving us insight into who we are or who we have become due to "ego-status" Love your words Meredith:_)

Meredith ∞'s avatar

Thank you Amilia. Always love your feedback 🤍

Laura Madsen's avatar

Thank you, Meredith. Appreciating you and listening to your post.

Brandi Lynn's avatar

That Timothée Chalamet metaphor perfectly captures how exhausting it is to mistake our temporary casting for our permanent reality; it’s a liberating reminder that we can play our roles with everything we've got without letting the script consume who we actually are. Love this ✨

Meredith ∞'s avatar

Love how you put that! 'temporary casting' is such a great way to look at it. there’s so much freedom in just playing the part without letting it consume you.

Curtis Rivers's avatar

Loved this Meredith - as a former actor I’ve often thought of the same analogy, of my brief time here being one of many roles I’ve inhabited over the millennia.

⭐️🙏🏼⭐️

Meredith ∞'s avatar

Ahh, you would definitely relate to this — never forgetting your true Self in all the variety of roles.

Paulette Bodeman's avatar

Lovely post, Meredith.

Leisa Martin's avatar

Great post! I too loved the Timothy Chalamet analogy.

Meredith ∞'s avatar

Timothée is both easy on the eye and easy to remember this concept by.

Deepak Aggarwal's avatar

Good to read Advaita Vedanta content here on Substack.

Vrittis & Waves's avatar

Very well written. I think you have explained the essence of the journey through your own example in as simple a way as possible. I particularly liked the examples of the movie and Shakespeare. They make the essay easy to relate to and help it connect with readers from many different backgrounds.

Notes by Anya's avatar

With this perspective, we become “unshakable”. Love this language. I so identify with the arrogance you described in your 20s. Looking back, I had such a closed mind, even though I never would have said that. Everything was black and white. Life has really softened up my perception. Thank you for this essay.