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IHow can I stop it when the bottom seems so dark and empty?

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Hi sj,

This thinking is very common, and it is the main subject of Buddhism.

If we think that the black things are bad (dark and empty) and the white things are good, we are letting ourselves in for a life of sensitivity to the world. We will always be trying to get the good(white) bits and avoiding the bad (black) bits.

The Buddhists tell us that the world is neutral, and it is we that make it into a nice/nasty place. We populate our private world with friends and enemies, when really they are just people, pretty much the same the world over.

The famous Greek philosopher, Aristotle, said that life is best lived between the extremes, the 'middle road' which doesn't have too much pain or pleasure in it.

It's a gentle way to live, and even if we have an illness that makes us wobbly, I think we can aim for that gentle middle way; we can make it our goal. One counsellor I knew called it 'peace', he said 'What we are looking for is peace'.

Wise words.

Cheers, Myzen.