Every day mundanity
On boredom
In Greek mythology Sisyphus was the king of Ephyra. He was severely punished by the "gods" for his craftiness and deceitfulness by being forced to roll a mammoth boulder up a hill only for it to roll down when he reached the top, repeating this action for eternity.
One can argue that the entire existence of mankind is like that, where every day we wake up and do the same things. There is a cyclical mundanity involved in our day to day lives that can sometimes drive us absolutely nuts. We wake up, we get dressed, we go to work, we come home, eat and sleep. We wake up, we work, we sleep. This is what Camus called the absurdity of life.
Now we can either let this cycle control us and our actions, or we can be the masters of our days, living in the present moment and not weighed heavy with the thousands of days behind or ahead of us. Being present in the moment, in peace and tranquility, is the key tenet of all philosophies and spiritual doctrines.
How do we live in the now? Without allowing our thoughts which, like a monkey, jump from branch to branch, never settling down until the day we die. How do we settle our thoughts? By consciously breathing one short breath, and then one long breath and telling our self that we have returned home to our self, and that the present moment is a wonderful moment.
Peace of mind is only found in the present moment.
I imagine Sisyphus to be happy in his daily toil, regardless of how absurd it might seem, because he is a representation of an idea that life lived in the present moment is a wonderful life, and such a man is a master of his days, and an embodiment of the famous adage "Carpe Diem".
This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.
© 2019 Mo Durrani
