Among westerners who did not grow up in a Buddhist culture, doubt is a major impediment to both undertaking insight meditation, and sometimes, continuing with a consistent practice. There are so many different spiritual teachers and it can be challenging to commit to one at the expense of the others. How do we know that our chosen path is right and does that mean that others are wrong?
The reason that doubt has such a strong impact on us is that we are unwilling to let go of our insistence that we have all the answers all at once. In essence, it is our impatience with the unsettled mind that keeps us from settling it. Over time, we may have built up a response to this unsettled feeling that seeks to untangle it from itself through thinking but that only makes the tangle tighter.
Once we can see that the problem is our obsession with getting answers rather than the lack of those answers, then we can relax and just enjoy the peace that is available in the here and now. If we are mindful, over time the answers will surely come to us of their own volition because wisdom is the natural result of mindful observation.
Therefore, using the Buddha’s advice, we can untangle our doubt simply by letting go of it and observing it. Once we stop trying so hard to get what we want this instant, we relieve the pressure and instead replace it with a more gentle knowing that we don’t need to have all the answers at once. Happiness does not require us to be omnipotent — it only requires us to be present.