Why filling our lives with “things” cannot make us happy

Do you ever ask yourself when you go for a purchase why you buy a certain item? Have you noticed that you buy items you do not need? Items on impulse? Items you have similar ones to them that you can still use? Do you purchase new items because others you know have them though none essential to you or you do not really need them or even want them if otherwise?

Filling our homes with junk becomes a pandemic. We only notice such thing when we move from one place to the next. We suddenly find the amazing shoes we thought we lost, or the bag, camera, or that great CD we have not seen for ages. Many amazing "finds" that were tucked in our upper closet compartment in some forgotten old box. We also find items we cannot conceive why we bought them in the first place.

If we turn our shopping time to a conscious experience by checking what we have first, keeping things in prospective and having a list of what we truly need, not only our financials will be healthier but our inner psyche will be too.

Shopping “therapy” is one way to sicken the soul as it is with any material indulgence. Over spending has its drawbacks and not only on our bank accounts.

People buy things to feel the power of having, of being able to acquire things and with that they see it as an equalizing act with the rest of their peers. Yet, think for a moment, do you want to be one of the herds, or do you prefer to be an independent mind and soul that decide what works and fits and not what the herd mentality dictates?

Filling our homes with things is not going to make us happy. We lose the ‘spark” after the purchase moment and for some “dear” items this may last for few days. This ownership rewarding feelings are short lived and one has to ask if it means anything at all.

Material possessions should not be equivalent to happiness and fulfillment; they have to satisfy a function or a true need. Even the need for beauty and its perception stems from our satisfaction with what we have and with the attached inner value it stores with time. 

If we compare a farm house to a palace it may not amount to much in terms of antiques and adornments but the farm house might contain such warmth and pleasant energy that springs from its inhabitants, the memories it contains and its simple austere beauty.

We define everything from within. Everything new grows into a habitual and mundane existence with time. From the animate to none animate, from human beauty to a piece of furniture. If we understand and internalize this fact we can save ourselves the consequences of material addiction and the loss we suffer as a result of it.

Not only we lose what we earn but our time and lives and the moments we could invest with those we love. As we are driven to work harder and harder to make more money so we can buy more and own more, we are losing the energy and time of our limited life span that we could have had for our loved ones and for our spiritual and inner work.  

As there is no end to “more” and as “more” grows larger and larger, it sucks our lives into it and with that we lose the life that is meant to be lived and enjoyed.

We may end up as machines meant to work and produce while consuming without mind. Life is not about constant mindless consumption; life is about many beautiful and meaningful pursuits that may cost us very little and sometimes nothing. The best things in life cannot be bought or sold; they are actually free in terms of material value.  

The scent of a rose, the sight and feel of the ocean, the beautiful landscape, the sky, the gentle touch of the breeze on our skin, the giggle of a child ringing like chimes in our ears, the warmth and healing of a hug of a loved one, the joy of a good book (can be used or borrowed), a walk, a good thought, writing in a diary, prayer, singing in the shower, laughing with family and friends, drinking cool clean water, and many more are all life pleasures that are free.

Even a time of solitude to think and contemplate our dreams and our beautiful memories is a joy that costs nothing.

We do not need to run and keep running thinking this is life. Life is about stillness and internal joy, learning and being as it is about being out there. Finding the right balance for yourself precedes the need to make the extra income to buy the things you do not need.