The Return to Self as Sacred Practice

Mirabai's life involved cycles: periods of intense engagement, periods of withdrawal, periods of apparent madness, periods of crystalline clarity. She didn't maintain one constant state; she moved through seasons. In Boundaries in Love, the return to self is not something you do once—it's a practice you return to again and again. After a conflict, return to yourself. After merging with someone else's emotions, return to yourself. After giving generously, return to yourself. This isn't selfish; it's essential hygiene. When you lose yourself in another person, you become resentful. You become dependent. You lose the very qualities that made you lovable. The return to self means: meditation, journaling, solitude, art, time with your own thoughts. It means remembering who you are outside the relationship. It means renewing your commitments to yourself. Mirabai teaches that devotion to the divine and devotion to yourself are not in conflict—they're expressions of the same love. When you return to yourself regularly, you prevent the slow dissolution that turns love into enmeshment. You stay capable of genuine encounter.