Seeking love, joy and peace outside of yourself leads one to experience a roller-coaster of up and down emotions. One day, your lover may bring you flowers and do everything right. You feel happy and “in love”. The next day, you find him chatting online with an attractive woman. Now you feel heartbroken, as though your love has never existed. You tell yourself it was all a lie. You begin to distrust and resent your partner. You demand that he does something to restore your love. This is not love.

That which is real is unchanging. True love is therefore unconditional because it would be impossible for any situation or event to threaten it.

To find this kind of love, you must begin with self-love. Real love can only be found within your being. By allowing your inner-stillness to emerge, you discover your true identity. You recognize that love is not something you seek; rather something you are. You then begin to experience love, joy and peace from the center of the wheel. There are no more good days and bad days. Love emerges as your state of being. It emanates out from you without concern for conditions. You feel good essentially all the time.

Even after you have found this state, your ego may occasionally try to take over. When this happens, you simply return to your meditation and your daily spiritual practice. We continue tomorrow and the day after that.

Real love doesn’t make you suffer. How could it? It doesn’t suddenly turn into hate, nor does real joy turn to pain.

The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle

Paper art by Zuzana Jurekova.