Equanimity: letting go of identification and interpretation

Equanimity is not indifference towards feelings, and especially not suppression, but the letting go of identification and interpretation. Feelings and emotions are a natural and impermanent part of our makeup. They’re not always pleasant for sure, but we’re not buddhas yet, so this is part of the game. Indifference and suppression generate the infamous Jungian shadow side, in which they fester and influence our behaviour in insidious ways.

The occasional passive aggression in Dharma centers is often caused by this spiritual bypassing. Equanimity in contrast is kind and acknowledging of whatever arises, but without creating more hurt by turning it into ‘I’ or ‘mine’, and the stories that ensue from identification. Of course there’s hurt in our bodies and minds sometimes. It’s not our fault, nor is it unjust. It is simply saṃsāra. The intimacy of equanimity breaths space and gentleness into our troubles without making them into a Shakespearean drama. This calm presence allows for ‘seeing and knowing’ and letting go when we have heard the message. This is the path of understanding when and how to act, or not and finding serenity in either case.