Written by Michael Goddart

Equilibrium is dynamic balance, a spiritual center that you can live in and learn to return to again and again. Being in a state of equilibrium is wonderful. It enriches your life and helps you feel good and supports your health.

What are the characteristics of equilibrium? Here are five key ones: Quiescent ego, even temperament, grateful contentment, healthy independence, and balanced desires.

Quiescence is a state of repose, being tranquil. When your ego is quiescent, it isn't raging for something it needs desperately. When your ego is quiescent, it isn't inflated, self-justifying, self-pitying, or wallowing in injury. It isn't driving you to take actions or say things that aren't in your best interest. Being unaware of your ego, letting it ride roughshod, is self-defeating, knocking you about in dis-ease. The antidote to ego is humility-welcome, revitalizing oxygen.

When your temperament is even, you are not anxious or angry, negatively critical, upset, leery, or fearful. Your instincts are accessible and you're open to inner promptings. You realize that most people are entirely run by their minds and have no control over what they say and do. People who are run by their lower minds do, say, and write things that are unkind, hurtful, stupid, destructive. Their actions can readily set off your reactions, which can be angry, fearful, or one of their myriad expressions, such as annoyance and worry.

Have you ever felt or thought that you have everything this moment that you need? One aspect of wise, clear thinking is not mistaking where you think or hope you're going for where you are now. With acceptance comes contentment. You may yearn to understand what you could do with the rest of your life, but embrace the perfection of who you are now and the intention to take each next step in your life as consciously as possible. Acceptance is a key element of consciously living in reality. Acceptance is not resignation. It's being here, now, rather than allowing yourself to be run by envy or disappointment.

Grateful contentment is a feeling of ease, of peace, of everything in its own time. Regardless of your circumstances, if you attain periods of grateful contentment, more and more, in your state of equilibrium, you will cherish these simple, luxurious feelings.

When you are able to live in a state of healthy independence, your life is not ruled by attachments. You realize that everything is ultimately temporary. People must leave your life and at times that can be unexpected. You are not the center of the solar system, with everyone revolving around you. You have a great storehouse of resourcefulness that you can access to enable your life to proceed well without unhealthy neediness that inhibits your growth.

When your desires are not inflated or squelched down, you are aware of them, and moving at the right time and speed toward realizing them in a way that serves your growth and unfolding. We are desire machines - the mind is constantly spewing out desires. You can learn to be aware of how your desires want to drive you, and you can mentally detach from them, as well as you can, and make mental adjustments that balance your urges and put them in perspective. Being the driver of your desires creates more space for gratitude. By cultivating mental detachment from your desires, you can more readily be present in an expansive now in which you can experience a healthy independence and grateful contentment.

Wisdom and equilibrium go hand in hand. Being in equilibrium is an optimal state in which you can best access your power and develop your potential. You more readily enjoy a positive, confident attitude because when you are in equilibrium that comes naturally. You can more easily deal with and rise above distractions. Being in equilibrium and learning how to achieve and return to it is a necessary adjunct to mastering wisdom. It facilitates the accessing and growth of wisdom.

The more you realize and embody the five characteristics of equilibrium, the more you reduce stress. Tomes can be written on the benefits of reducing stress. Some doctors believe that stress is the root of all disease. Some spiritual masters say that ego is the root of all disease. Stress and ego are intrinsically linked. This is because when we think then feel that people and things have to be a certain way, and they're not, we stress.

If you think you need to get three things done before you leave your home and you rush to get them done, that likely creates stress. You are letting yourself be run by a belief that is undermining your health and state of mind. Why not pause and ask yourself if you can let go of one or two of the things until the right time after you return? It's not the end of the world if, for instance, dishes remain in the sink filled with water until you can attend to them in a good frame of mind. It's important to notice what feels good, what feels right. Value your equilibrium. That is being wise. That is helping to prepare the field of your spiritual foundation.

Michael Goddart, MFA, is the author of A New Now: Your Guide to Mastering Wisdom Daily, Achieving Equilibrium, and Empowering Your Nobler Self.