Here’s what this law is all about, plus how to work with it, according to experts. As spiritual author Shannon Kaiser explains to mbg, the Law of Detachment is a universal spiritual principle that guides many faiths (i.e., Taoism, Jainism, and Buddhism) and comes down to separating yourself and your emotions from your goals. From a psychological perspective, neuroscientist and author of The Source Tara Swart, Ph.D., adds that “it takes time to build and strengthen neural pathways until you are ready for a new behavior, relationship, or job.” And so, we don’t want to get caught up in timelines, overthinking, and doubts. “The spiritual Law of Detachment is about trust and surrender rather than control,” Swart notes. “When you are no longer tied to the outcome of how it must be, you free yourself up to abundant possibilities,” Kaiser adds. “We should apply for every opportunity that comes up and network with people that might assist us in our goals along the way—but not expect to get every job we apply for, and know that the right one will manifest when we are truly ready,” she explains. As Kaiser explains, “When going on a date, instead of projecting or anticipating is ’this the one,’ pivot your attention to the now.” Allowing yourself to be more present, she says, will help you cultivate deeper connections no matter what the outcome of the relationship may be. “This is why so many people meet their life partner after a dating detox,” she adds. According to Swart, “With money, it is about working hard, saving, making financially savvy decisions,” as well as not waiting to win a huge sum or find someone else to take care of your expenses. Kaiser suggests practicing accepting your partner (or friends, or family) and their habits as they are—instead of how you think they should be. “When you detach, you’re not worried about what other people are doing,” she explains, “and when this happens, you have so much more compassion and love to share.” Co-creating with the universe, she adds, requires active allowance—as opposed to resistance. She explains that detachment creates space to receive guidance from the universe, so again, rather than fixating on the how or the timeline, simply trust and allow things to shake out as they will. According to the Law of Detachment, she explains, wisdom can be found during times of uncertainty. “The more we can trust the space between where we are and where we think we should be, the easier life will be.” And that means resisting getting triggered by every little challenge or upset, she adds. “Take the time to develop a higher state of awareness and you can become aware of the origin of negative emotions and begin to detach from them,” she recommends. It’s easier said than done, but these guides to emotional self-regulation and working through shadow emotions can help you get started. When we mindfully practice detachment, experts agree that we enter a space of receiving rather than resisting and allow life to present us with even more possibilities.
