“Give up all bad qualities in you, banish the ego and develop the spirit of surrender. You will then experience Bliss.” ~Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

The use of the word surrender is usually associated with giving up and weakness. It is the opposite of resistance, which stands for strength and persistence. These prevailing associations can have a detrimental effect on our daily lives. We are not at war every day of our lives.

Why not consider the reverse to be true?

Surrender can be very empowering and resistance can turn the simplest of challenges into a living hell.

Below are 5 ways that surrender can be empowering.

Accepting what is

As Byron Katie puts it: we suffer when we believe a thought that argues with what is. She asks: “ Which is more empowering?—“I shouldn’t have lost my job” or “I lost my job; what can I do now?”.

Removing the inner resistance to what is leads to effective and calm action, instead of dwelling on what shouldn’t have happened, or reacting impulsively and regretting it later.

Trusting what is

Usually when you are in a comfortable zone and life is going smoothly, you don’t think about it much. But when you are faced with what can be perceived as a challenge or a problem, all sorts of negative thoughts and emotions take over: fear, resentment, anger, self pity and so on.

If you trust that what happens is for a higher purpose, which may not be known to you,  your life will be more at peace. This leap of faith may lead to incredible transformations. Terminally ill people have stated that their illness awakened them and transformed their lives.

Allowing life to unfold

When the ego is in control, life has rules and expectations. If it doesn’t go our way, then life is a bitch.

Nature can be our teacher in this case. When a seed is planted, it doesn’t freak out and worry about how fast it’s growing or how it’s going to deal with harsh weather conditions. Nature takes its course and growth happen or doesn’t. The same can be true for us humans. Why not just be, and experience life without rules and conditions? How bad can it be? Did our rules make life easier or more enjoyable?

Letting go

If you take action with certain expectations, you may be in for a disappointment. Things might work out well for a time but at one point an unfavorable outcome is inevitable.

What happens if you take action and let go? You do your part and then let the universe take care of the rest. You can then move on to what feels right to you. This can be another action or simply doing nothing at all. How freeing is that!

Peace of mind

When you are in a state of surrender, the mind does not run a million thoughts about the whats, hows, whys and whens of every single experience you have. To be able to quiet the mind, even for a short period of time is a feat by itself.

Surrender can be an empowering action or a state of being that transforms struggle and challenges into profound life experiences. I leave you with a simple mantra from Eckhart Tolle. Resist nothing.