Quiet Clarity is a 2x/week newsletter and podcast for people who want to build a life of presence, depth, and deliberate intention.
The Teaching
The Meaning
We chase wealth thinking it will complete us.
Just a little more money, the right house, the perfect job—and then we’ll finally be happy.
We keep believing contentment waits at the finish line.
But Adi Shankara’s wisdom cuts through this illusion.
When he calls us “fool,” he isn’t insulting us—he’s jolting us awake.
He’s reminding us of what we so easily forget: our bodies will weaken, our beauty will fade, our possessions will pass into other hands.
This isn’t meant to depress. It’s meant to free.
Because once you know this, why would you ever measure your worth by such fragile things?
Why boast about your looks, your career, your status—when you know they will all dissolve?
It’s like boarding a ship you know is destined to sink, but consoling yourself that at least the furniture inside is nice.
No. You wouldn’t step onto that ship at all.
You’d choose the vessel that doesn’t sink—the one steady and at peace.
Shankara isn’t telling you to quit your job or walk away from your responsibilities.
He’s pointing to something more subtle: the difference between acting in the world and being chained by the result.
When he says “devote your mind to the Real,” he means turn your attention away from what inevitably changes, toward what never does.
The Real is what endures through every gain and loss—your awareness, your simple being.
It’s what remains when everything else is stripped away.
You still work. You still serve. You still live fully.
But you stop clinging to the idea that one more success will finally make you whole.
Because you already are.
And the moment you see that, you let go.
And when you let go, suffering lets go of you.
The Reflection
I used to think looking good was everything.
If I didn’t, my confidence disappeared.
Money was the same.
Land a big client? I was on top of the world.
Lose revenue? I went silent for weeks.
That’s why I love the hymn above (Bhaja Govindam).
It goes further to say:
“Where’s your pride in youth when the body ages?
Where’s your wealth when death arrives?”
Here’s the truth:
Looks fade.
Numbers crash.
And if you attach your worth to them, you suffer.
Shankara knew this: building your identity on body and wealth is building on sand.
Take care of both, sure.
But never confuse them with who you are.
You were complete before them.
And you’ll be complete after them.
The Practice
This is where it gets practical.
You don't stop taking action. You change your relationship with action.
Think of an archer. They aim carefully, use all their skill, release the arrow perfectly.
But once it leaves the bow, they don't run after it. They've done their part. The result is out of their hands.
At work: Give your best effort, develop your skills, create value. But don't let a promotion make you or a setback break you.
In relationships: Love fully, be present, communicate honestly. But don't make someone else responsible for your happiness.
With health: Exercise, eat well, take care of yourself. But understand that aging isn’t something to resent, it’s just nature.
In creativity: Pour yourself into your work. But don't let criticism destroy you or praise define you.
The secret is to find satisfaction in the action itself, not just its results.
You might still care about results. You might still prefer success to failure.
That’s okay, it’s hard not to fully.
But your basic sense of being okay doesn't depend on which way things go.
You become like a sailor who adjusts the sails for the wind but doesn't blame the ocean for its waves.
From Nanna’s Voice
From Amma’s Hand
