Retail Therapy?

Earlier this week I visited a large shopping centre, and although it was a far from pleasant experience in itself, it was instructive from one perspective at least.

Over the past eighteen months or so, I have become further and further removed from what is often termed "consumer culture". For possibly the first time since the process began I truly felt detached from this environment, and was able to observe it as an outsider.

As soon as I entered the shopping centre, I encountered an unfamiliar sensation, which I still find difficult to accurately put into words. It was not panic or claustrophobia, but more a feeling of "I don't belong here". Later, and after some thought, I interpreted it as a sign that I had perhaps completed a journey of sorts. This all dovetailed with an increased capacity to resist impulse purchases!

My mind has been much exercised with those forces which eat away at us, giving us the illusion of happiness and prosperity, but which have the effect of leading us further away from self-knowledge and mindfulness.

It is probably true to say that many people turn to consumerism as a means of insulating themselves from the realities of life. But does this just dodge the issue, and create a different kind of emptiness and alienation?  A touch of "retail therapy" now and then is relatively harmless, but for many it almost becomes the raison de etre.

All people are unique, find themselves in different scenarios and have differing tolerances. In my case, shallow acquistiveness simply occupied time and resources which could have been better employed rediscovering the important and wholesome things in life. I was not feeling fulfilled, but simply hollow.

There is no "on-off" switch which removes us from the materialistic to the cerebral or spiritual. For many people, the changes begin via signals and warnings conveyed by the body and mind. Even then, it can take courage and soul-searching for the transformation to be meaningful and sincere.

After this week's experience, I am confident that I have made the transition....

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