This morning I read an article which stated that by the year 2020, the second-most debilitating illness in the world would be depression. In researching further, I saw that an estimated 850,000 people commit suicide every year. In other estimates the number was over 1,000,000. Depending on figures, more people commit suicide each year than the total military deaths for all of World War II.
In a normal year, there are more than twice as many suicides worldwide as there are homicides INCLUDING wars. Twice as many people kill themselves than are killed.
These are astonishing figures. But what does that mean in real terms? Imagine downtown San Francisco. Now imagine that everyone in the city committed suicide. In terms of Portland, this would mean Multonomah Co./downtown, Hillsboro, Beaverton, and Gresham all would be lost due to suicide. Again, astonishing. But no one talks about this. Obviously, depression is a precursor the majority of the time. Which got us to thinking about depression.
So what is depression actually?
If it is so common and studied, it should be easily and definitely definable. The World Health Organization (WHO) offers the following definition:
"Depression is a common mental disorder that presents with depressed mood, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy, and poor concentration. These problems can become chronic or recurrent and lead to substantial impairments in an individual's ability to take care of his or her everyday responsibilities."
This is, in our opinion, severely lacking. In reality, this is simply a list of symptoms associated with what they are calling depression. As frequently happens in the traditional view of medicine, there is a confusion of mistaking symptoms for what is the sickness. When a system of health can not correctly differentiate between symptoms and illness, it serves only to temporarily alleviate symptoms.
So what is our definition of depression?
Depression is the prolonged perceived absence of the experience of Love until the experience of Love is nearly or completely veiled.
The results of this sickness are the definition given by Western medicine.
But what, then, do we mean by "Love" with a capital "L."
We mean that Love which is self-existent. This is not loving something/someone or being loved. (Both as it were, are simply erroneously placing the experience of Love as being dependent on something outside of yourself, when in fact the experience is completely within and un-dependent on outside "objects," or "others." These "others" that apparently cause us to feel love are simply acting as catalysts that help us or ease us in uncovering the Love that is already within us, and never really dependent on an outside catalyst). We mean spiritual love. Spiritual because it is beyond the confines of the mind and/or physicality/mentality.
This "spiritual" Love is the experience of the expansion or complete forgetting of personal Ego/Individual. Love is the experience of experiencing our being-ness or existence in that which is beyond what we normally identify with as ourselves, or "I." This is the Love that is unconditional and infinite. This is the NOT "love" that is given, earned, or mistakenly perceived to be placed in something outside of ourselves. It is the Love that is inside everyone always. Everyone. Always.
This is very easy to observe. When we forget ourselves, even for a moment, we experience Love and awe. It takes our "breath away."
In the yogic world it is commonly known that the cessation of the movement of breath is also the cessation of the movement of mind. When the mind is quiet, (and hence not ignorant because a quiet mind is like a clear lens- we can experience/ "see" what is always there), we experience Love. It is something that is simply always there. This is, if you reflect on it, something you already know.
Of course the mind cannot grasp Love. It is an irrational, non-rationalizable feeling/experience. Furthermore, because it occurs just in the realm between worldly existence (impermanent) and spiritual existence (permanent), it is impossible to remember what Love is actually like when it is not being experienced. An interesting side note is that we feel Love in the heart because the heart is the junction point between spiritual and mental/physical (we will discuss "chakras" and the reality of them at a later date). Love, therefore, can seem non-existent because we become so identified with the world and our minds than anything not within that conception appears to not exist.
So if this Love is inside everyone always, how is it veiled and/or forgotten? In other words: What are the causes of depression?
The simplest and most straightforward answer is that the cause of depression is ignorance of our true nature, which as we discussed above is Love. Ignorance is a synonym for mental turbulence, and both are synonyms for Ego and/or "I."
This "I" is a completely fictitious idea which has no base outside of its of self-assumption to be real. When investigated, it becomes self-obvious that this "I", ego, and ignorance, are only ideas that appeared to be (exist), but not are. Of course, for the majority of people, this Reality and It's explanation are not very useful.
So, to further explicate the causes of depression into something useful, we can say the following:
There are three, and only three, root causes of depression.
1) Evolutionary discontent with the emptiness of experiences (and eventually even the experience of individual existence.)
In the course of personal evolution, one comes to the point of being discontent with what they have. This is well studied and represented by the various "hierarchies of needs" classifications. (Our personal hierarchy is different than that of Maslow and others, and beyond the scope of this specific article, however the idea is the same.)
While there is no specific point of distinction between depression and not having desires met (as this depends on the individual constitution), after a prolonged period of time the mind becomes sufficiently turbulent with thoughts about the future to veil Love.
In the course of our personal evolutions, we will all experience periods of slight depression whilst moving from one hierarchical level of desires to the other.
If this discontentment reaches the point where where they realize that no experience in this world will bring lasting happiness, and the world seems an absurd repetition of meaningless experiences. Before finding the possibility of something more, it seems completely hopeless and absurd, and depression will follow in the same sequence as with other desires. This is an advanced state of evolution that is mostly unavoidable, but not necessarily necessary either. To delve into the explanation of personal development and what Reality is and how to realize It would be another discussion altogether.
2) Unprocessed emotions and experiences.
These create mental turbulence in the form of fear. This turbulence, as with all others, veils Love. In other words, an experience is experienced as painful (because there was an expectation of Love that was not met or expressed), the mind does not process the pain and release the experience to leave a neutral mental impression (neither attraction nor aversion to, or in relation to, the memory), and the mind begins guarding emotions and its sense of "I" in order to not repeat the suffering. In psychological terms this is commonly known as building a wall or defense. In doing so the expansion of oneself is simultaneously limited along with the already present mental turbulence. The Ego or "I" is then fortified because the flip side to expansion of oneself is acceptance. In the case of emotional hurt, nothing is accepted into the "I" for fear of more hurt. This over the course of time leads to depression.
3) Mental/Sensory over-stimulation.
This can be either or both a cause and symptom of depression. As a cause, we can summarize it as an addiction to pleasure and stimulation. As a symptom, we can summarize it as the desire to bury or mask pain with pleasure (which relates directly to root cause #2). We can see that whether it is a cause or symptom is dependent on whether or not the initial experience was interpreted (by the experiencer) as pleasurable or painful. If pleasurable, addiction results. If painful, the desire to mask ensues.
As a cause: The mind has an inherent nature to experience. As experiences are experienced, memories (mental impressions) are formed. Depending on the experience as pleasurable or painful, a consequent desire will ensue.
(Pleasure: is the confusion of the bliss/joy from the experience of Love with its dependence/association in an object, mostly in the subtle form of realizing a positive desire; that is to say the mind temporarily rests after having achieved or obtained its desire, thus experiences calm, thus experiences pleasure because it momentarily experiences Love, or at least more Love, than previously when it was turbulent with desire)
(Pain: is the immediate increase of mental turbulence because of an unmet desire or need)
Of course, in the cases of both pleasure and pain, the association of both with the body leads to more mental turbulence in the form of desires. One simply occurs in the moment of experience, and one occurs after the experience.
This cycle is thus:
These memories left by experiences are either in the form of positive (desire to repeat) or negative (desire to not repeat) desires. By "negative" we do not mean bad. Simply the wish to not experience the experience again. The action to repeat or sustain these desires then repeats itself in a cycle of experience, desire, action. Each time the impression left by the previous experience masks (in the form of a mental impression, or memory) the pleasure of the consequent to a slight extent, so we need a slightly stronger experience the next time to experience the same amount of pleasure. This is true with everything from food to sex, drugs and violence. Of course each time that this pleasure is experienced and it leaves an impression, the result is a stronger desire for more. This desire is also mental turbulence, meaning that we can say when the mind is no longer experiencing the experience, it is immediately afterwards more "depressed."
This mental turbulence forms a veil over present moment awareness (which is inherently free from memories (the past) or desires (the future)), so that the experiences experienced now are also veiled by memories and desires. We can see then, how we quickly end up in a situation of desiring experiences that cannot be fulfilled, because even when they are fulfilled, we are not truly, or at least fully, conscious that we are experiencing them! (You may need to read this several times to grasp it, that is completely normal and a good thing.)
Only in the case of enlightenment, in which the mind is so clear, pure, and thin that experiences are experienced as expressions of Itself is it possible for experiences to be neutral- that is leave no impression or subsequent desire.
As a symptom: Often there is an unprocessed emotion, and rather than experience and process the emotion which is difficult and painful, the mind chooses to choose a stimuli that will temporarily allow it to not consciously be aware of the pain. Many times acute depression is masked in the forms of sensory stimulation. If you can feel a pleasure that, at least in the moment of experiencing, is stronger than the pain, you will temporarily forget the pain. These forms of stimulation include everything. Sounds, sights, smells, touch, tastes can all mask underlying experiences of pain and/or unhappiness temporarily.
So then what is the cure to depression?
If depression is, as we have explained, the prolonged perceived absence of the experience of Love until the experience of Love is nearly or completely veiled, with all causes being mental turbulence, the question becomes how do we quiet the mind and also stop the unconscious cycle of experience, memory, desire?
There are three ways, two of which lead to lasting happiness, one of which doesn't, but is useful in conjunction with the other two.
1) Meditation.
Meditation has been proven to benefit everything from heart health and stress to overall happiness. How does it achieve such widespread, but irrefutable results? It quiets the mind, allowing us to return closer to our natural state. This state, even if glimpsed for a moment, harmonizes and helps every part of our being.
Meditation works by first strengthening the focus and attention of the mind. Focus can be thought of as the ability to observe something, while attention is the length of time something is observed. In the case of meditation, we begin by focusing on one thought. By using one thought as a focal point (normally a mantra or one's breath), we create an "anchor" for the mind. This anchor serves two purposes: the first is to provide a fixed point with which to focus on, thereby increasing the ease of focus and attention (think of hitting a moving target vs. a fixed target). The second is to provide a reference point for observing other thoughts.
More on the second purpose of meditation: The mind, and more specifically the intellect, fundamentally works through comparing and contrasting. Something is "X" because it is not "Y," or "Z" for example. When meditating, one of the things we begin to experience while observing our focal point, is that other thoughts veil and pass through/in front of (for a manner of speaking) our focal point. Without a fixed "background" or "anchor," these thoughts are much much more difficult to observe.
Sometimes during meditation the focus, or observation becomes so complete that we momentarily (later with longer durations) forget our sense of "I." This has classically been called "Ego dissolution" in many scholarly papers and studies. This is also one of the reasons why activities that involve intense focus are ultimately pleasurable, even if they involve physical suffering (such as in endurance sports, etc.) Back to the topic- this cycle of focus and attention is mutually beneficial. The greater the focus and clarity, the easier it is to maintain attention, and the easier it is to maintain attention, the greater focus and clarity can be achieved, etc.
This focusing will also bring the mind more to present moment awareness because the thought being observed/repeated is in the present moment. All other thoughts we have are about the past or future. The mind is almost never actually in the present moment. Even our very personality is nothing more than a collection of memories related to our sense of "I." These thoughts cloud and obscure every experience and perception until the mind has enough focusing power to observe the extraneous thoughts, and focus beyond them, disregarding these memories and desires as false and non-existent. Include in these "thoughts" is of course the voice in your head. It does not really exist outside of its assumed assumption to be real and intellectual mistake that it is inside your head. It is easy to see through simple observation that the majority of thoughts we have in any given moment have absolutely no correlation to what is unfolding in the present moment. However, when we are in the present moment, we experience mental clarity and quietness, and in turn Love.
2) Mindfulness.
Mindfulness is the practice of conscious present moment awareness while in activity. This functions exactly the same as in meditation, except that the focal point or anchor is the thing (s) or experiences being performed at that present moment. This takes more focus than a regular meditation practice because the focal point is constantly changing. At first it can be beneficial to actually say with your inner voice what you are doing. "I am pouring my coffee." "The coffee tastes X." Later, with practice, one can hopefully achieve a state of simply observing without any judgement, mental noise, or "I." This is a truly marvelous state.
3) Achieving deep "heart" desires.
Along the way to inner happiness, we must also fulfill our desires. Desires are not necessarily bad. In the Yogic world there is a saying to "fulfill all of your desires until the only thing left is God." If a desire is deep within our hearts/minds, it must be fulfilled or transcended. To transcend a desire is to mentally truly realize one of two things 1) The thing wanted with the desire will not make me happy and ultimately will be a source of suffering and that the individual has mistakenly placed Love in an expectation with the desired, or 2) "I" do not exist, so obviously there can be no desire associated with nothing.
Both are very advanced. For those not prepared to give up everything and live a life of a hermit, it is probably better to find a middle road of achieving desires consciously. We must then find a balance between our real desires and false desires.
These false desires are simply unconscious reactions based on past experiences. Real desires, we will say, are desires of the heart. These are desires that will exist even when you are completely happy and fulfilled. Complete happiness and fulfillment does not mean the cessation of movement or action. It simple means the cessation of attachment to outcome, because if you are happy, it doesn't matter what the outcome will be, you will still be happy. Real/heart desires are like rain to the ocean.
False desires on the other hand, can be extinguished and transcended simply through deep introspection and meditation. False desires are things that will never be realized because they only introduce more desires. Sex, money, power and their derivatives are "false" desires. The seeds of evolutionary past memories and desires will not germinate if burnt by the realization of inner Love.
This seems like a very ethereal and unreal thing to "burn" desires, but in reality it is very easy to understand. If you have a hamburger that is just OK and costs $25, but you don't have any other better option, you will probably be content with the hamburger. Then one day you find and taste the world's best meal. And not only that, but it is free. It will be very hard to be content with the expensive and mediocre burger from that point onwards. The experience of Love is the same. When we really experience Love many, if not most, small false desires disappear.
Now, to find and differentiate what we "really want," or what our true heart desires are, is at first difficult. The first step is to stop the cycle of reactionary desires that are devolutionary. We must stop engaging this devolution. Right now, as we discussed previously, the world has entered into such mental turbulence that we simply go from one desire to the next reacting, and not thinking if its something we want, worth our time, or that will bring us any lasting happiness at all. We live our lives constantly running after some "thing (s)."
We run and run and run, but if we would just stop one moment, take a breath, get our bearings, we would find that 1) We are running towards some "thing" that we ultimately don't even want, and 2) If we stop and wait a little while, a jet, train or car will pick us up and take us to where we actually want to go much more quickly. We get there quicker because our true "heart" desires are aligned with the greater desires for universal happiness.
We must first stop this running and take a break. This is the meditation and mindfulness discussed above. When we really distill our desires, it becomes clear that what we really are looking for is Love and the subsequent experiences. As our desires evolve in their hierarchy, we begin to desire community, expression, recognition, intimacy, etc. These are good catalysts to experience Love until the point where we only want Love without outside "supports" or catalysts.
So now we have successfully defined the sickness, identified it's causes, and explained the solutions to these causes. While thorough in it's explanations, this article will not identify the specific mental turbulence's that arise in our minds and limit our happiness.
In my book, "Ideas to Quit," we will not only expand on this topic, but point out specific limiting thoughts that veil our experience of Love and happiness. These are thoughts we all carry within deep within us. These are the false notions that are so subtle as to elude and confuse us in our search for Love. In "Ideas to Quit," we will learn how to identify, dis-empower, dissolve, and transcend them.
Best,
--David
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