Are we really free?

article by Michał Pasternak (Poland)

We wake up in the morning and say “Hello” to another day. After getting out of bed, we often think what we will do next. From Monday to Friday we think usually about our work, and at the weekend we think about the free time that we can spend with our relatives or friends.

When we are in the restaurant, we can choose what kind of food we will eat. In the supermarket we choose different goods. In the tourist office we can choose where we will travel during summer vacation. Turning on the computer we can choose what video game we will play. Going to the cinema we choose what movie we want to see. We think we are free because... we can choose. But are we truly free? Unfortunately... we are not. Our present existence is primarily focused on materialism. We forget about the impermanence that is the basis of reality. Even though we are confronted with impermanence:...