Aparigraha in Action

I mentioned yesterday that we're moving... quickly... and far away. This being the case, dragging our full household of stuff would be inconvenient and expensive. We've decided to sell/donate at least 80% of our stuff. The bed, couch, loveseat, giant chair and matching ottoman, fancy red chair, TV, washer, dryer, end tables, dining room table/chairs, etc.... It's all going away. That's just the big stuff. We're also shedding tons of boxes of smaller items like weights. Almost all the small stuff is just being donated and we're exchanging the big stuff for money. I think it's all honorably priced, and it is moving quickly. I just listed the big stuff today and almost all of it is being picked up tomorrow by happy people matched up with great furniture.

I don't know the last time you were face to face with an honest appraisal of how much "stuff" you own (or maybe it owns you), but it was probably too much. That's usually the case anyway. Humans have some pack rat tendencies. We tend to hold onto things for sentimental reasons, obligation, or for no reason at all. Sometimes we even keep things out of guilt. But when was the last time you actually USED any of that stuff? I've been having to ask myself some tough questions about things. Do I really need/want/use/like this item? Why do I have it? Does it serve my purpose on this path? Usually the answer is no... so it belongs in the sell list or the donate pile. It doesn't always get put there. Sometimes it's packed in a box to travel with me, but we all have our weaknesses. For me it's art supplies - for you maybe it's something else.

I've written about aparigraha (greedlessness, non-attachment) before, and you can read more about its practice here.

Photo Source: Tineye found nothing. Don't know. I'm lazy at midnight, so I'm not going to try harder than that.