Who could resist that 1966 delightful film, starring Michael Caine as a cockney cad, who simply refuses to take responsibility for his behaviour or acknowledge accountability for the affects his promiscuity has on others (mainly women)? The movie launched Caine’s stellar career and the song was successfully recorded by Cher, Diane Warwick and originally Cilla Black.
The lyrics of the song have woven their way into colloquial language to mean what is life all about. Alfie’s world view and lifestyle ultimately leave him profoundly unhappy with the inevitable consequences of his actions leading to misfortune. The movie ends with Alfie beginning to take his life seriously and change direction, promising to become a better person!
The opening chapter of TaoTuning (my latest book) begins with the statement: Mankind has always looked towards the stars and asked why. What is the purpose and meaning of life? Why am I here?
And we have answered that question in so many ways from the most profound and sacred to the most banal and ridiculous. Yet, it is an inherent part of being human; it is an intrinsic neurological process that we seek the answer to why. The human mind needs to understand, to bring order or sense out of the seeming confusion of daily life. And as life speeds up in this fast-paced world, where we are all time poor with no time for reflection or understanding, this querying and unrest becomes even more acute breeding anxiety and mental distress. The number one pandemic in the world today!
In TaoTuning, I argue that we have overcomplicated life and that all traditional religions and philosophies have failed to adequately answer that single question – what’s it all about! We have created myths of heaven, hell, sin, karma, retribution, penance, suffering, an eye for an eye and all sorts of wonderful nonsense that simply do not help us move from confusion to clarity.
We have basically created a false God in Heaven in the image of man rather than realising we were made in the image of God. We are creator-gods! We are here to create. Your life is your creation. There are no victims, villains, accidents or coincidences. There are merely consequences of your behaviour.
Simply examine your life and realise you have created it all – down to the most minute detail. But to do this demands impeccable thought, brutal honesty and absolute accountability. You have to take ultimate responsibility for your actions, for your words and for your thoughts for these are the building blocks you use to build your life.
Life is what you make it. This is why we are here – to learn that lesson. To be impeccable! To function with excellence. To be accountable! To be Self-Realised knowing you and you alone create it all.
We all know about the concept of Personal Best with regards to elite sport but what about daily life? Can you live today being the best version of yourself? Can you muster the personal discipline to watch every thought, word and deed? Do you have the courage to change those ones that no longer serve you or that sell you short? Or do you hide behind excuse and justification like Alfie?
Can you simply BE the BEST PERSON you can be? Can you be the ultimate expression of yourself?
For when you do this everything else falls away. There is nowhere to go, nothing else to be. There is no future that beckons, nor any other place or distraction calling. You simply are NOW. At ease. At peace. At one with yourself and All That Is.
You are the god that resides within yourself.