Two years ago, I went through what I can only describe as a spiritual desert period.

Everything that had previously nourished my practice seemed to dry up. Meditation felt empty, prayers echoed in silence, and the texts that once inspired me read like dead words on a page.

Worse still, this inner barrenness coincided with external losses. A relationship ended, financial difficulties arose, and several friendships naturally faded away.

I felt abandoned by life itself.

During this difficult period, a friend mentioned Dhumavati, the widow goddess among the Mahavidyas. “She’s the one who teaches you to find fullness in emptiness,” she said. “When everything else falls away, she shows you what remains.”

I was skeptical. How could a goddess associated with widowhood, poverty, and desolation offer anything meaningful to someone already struggling with loss and emptiness?

But as I began studying Dhumavati’s teachings, something remarkable happened. I started to see this period of apparent barrenness not as punishment or failure, but as a profound teaching about the nature of completeness itself.

Dhumavati showed me that what I had experienced as emptiness was actually spaciousness, what felt like abandonment was actually independence, and what seemed like spiritual dryness was actually freedom from dependency on external conditions for inner peace.

Today I want to share what I’ve learned about this profound and often misunderstood goddess who teaches perhaps the most challenging yet liberating spiritual lesson: that we can find completeness within ourselves, regardless of external circumstances.

If you’ve ever experienced periods of loss, solitude, or spiritual dryness, Dhumavati’s wisdom may offer insights that transform your understanding of these challenging experiences.

Who is Dhumavati? The Smoky Goddess of Sacred Solitude

Dhumavati’s name comes from “Dhuma,” meaning smoke, and she’s often called “the smoky one.”

Smoke represents the state between fire and air, between manifestation and dissolution. It’s what remains when something has been consumed but hasn’t yet completely disappeared.

The Prapanchasara Tantra describes her as “She who exists in the void between destruction and creation, teaching the wisdom of emptiness.”

Dhumavati is unique among the Mahavidyas because she’s depicted as a widow, an old woman without a consort. In traditional Indian society, widowhood was often seen as inauspicious, but Dhumavati transforms this apparent disadvantage into spiritual teaching.

She represents the fierce independence that comes from not needing external relationships or circumstances to define one’s worth or completeness.

Her widowhood isn’t a tragedy but a choice—the choice to find fulfillment through inner completeness rather than external dependency.

The Todala Tantra states: “Dhumavati teaches that true strength comes not from what we possess but from what we can live without.”

What makes Dhumavati particularly challenging for many practitioners is that she represents everything our ego typically fears: old age, loss, solitude, and the stripping away of external supports.

Yet her deeper teaching is that these apparent negatives can become gateways to profound spiritual freedom.

In my understanding, developed through both study and lived experience, Dhumavati represents the aspect of divine consciousness that exists in the void, the pregnant emptiness from which all creation emerges and to which it returns.

She teaches us that what appears as emptiness to the ego can be recognized as fullness by awakened consciousness.

The Iconography of Dhumavati: Reading the Symbols of Sacred Emptiness

Every aspect of Dhumavati’s unconventional appearance carries profound spiritual meaning.

Her Aged Appearance

Dhumavati is depicted as an old woman, often with wrinkled skin, gray hair, and a generally unattractive appearance by conventional standards.

In a culture that often worships youth and beauty, her aged appearance is deliberately challenging.

She teaches us that spiritual wisdom often comes through experiences that conventional society considers undesirable: aging, loss, and the stripping away of superficial attractions.

Her old age also represents the wisdom that comes only through long experience with life’s cycles of gain and loss.

The Mundamala Tantra describes her as “ancient in wisdom, having witnessed countless cycles of creation and dissolution.”

Her Widowhood

Perhaps her most distinctive characteristic is her status as a widow, often emphasized by her plain white clothes and lack of ornaments.

In traditional Indian culture, widows were often marginalized and considered inauspicious. Dhumavati reclaims this status as spiritually powerful.

Her widowhood represents freedom from the need for external relationship to feel complete.

This doesn’t mean avoiding relationships, but rather relating from wholeness rather than neediness.

She shows us that true spiritual maturity involves finding our center within ourselves rather than depending on others for our sense of worth or purpose.

Her Plain Appearance and Simple Clothing

Unlike other goddesses who are adorned with jewelry and fine garments, Dhumavati is dressed simply, often in plain white or gray clothing.

This simplicity represents freedom from the need for external ornamentation or validation.

Her plain appearance teaches that true beauty and value come from inner qualities rather than external decorations.

In our culture of constant image management and social media presentation, her example offers profound counter-teaching about authentic self-worth.

Her Vehicle and Implements

Dhumavati is often shown riding in a chariot pulled by ravens or crows, birds associated with death and dissolution.

Ravens are also known for their intelligence and ability to thrive in difficult conditions, symbolizing the wisdom that emerges from challenging circumstances.

She sometimes holds a winnowing basket, used to separate grain from chaff, representing her power to help us distinguish between what’s essential and what’s merely superficial in our lives.

Other depictions show her with a begging bowl, emphasizing her teaching about finding richness through simplicity and non-attachment.

The Smoky Atmosphere

She’s often surrounded by smoke or depicted against a gray, cloudy background.

This smoky atmosphere represents the twilight state between day and night, between creation and dissolution, between form and formlessness.

Smoke also symbolizes the subtle realm where transformation occurs, the space between the gross physical world and pure consciousness.

The Philosophy of Sacred Emptiness

Dhumavati embodies profound teachings about the spiritual significance of emptiness, loss, and solitude.

Emptiness as Fullness

In many spiritual traditions, the void or emptiness is recognized not as mere absence but as the pregnant space from which all possibilities emerge.

Dhumavati teaches that what the ego experiences as emptiness can be recognized by awakened consciousness as infinite potential.

The Vigyan Bhairav Tantra includes numerous practices that involve recognizing the gap between thoughts, the space between breaths, or the void between perceptions as gateways to transcendence.

Dhumavati’s smoky nature represents this liminal space where transformation becomes possible.

Solitude as Spiritual Practice

While our culture often treats solitude as a problem to be solved, Dhumavati reveals it as a powerful spiritual opportunity.

In solitude, we’re forced to confront ourselves without the distractions of external relationships or activities.

This can initially feel uncomfortable, but it ultimately leads to discovering the companionship of our own deeper nature.

The Ashtavakra Gita states: “The sage delights in solitude, having discovered the Self that needs no external support.”

Loss as Liberation

Dhumavati’s teaching about loss is perhaps her most challenging but ultimately liberating insight.

She shows us that what we experience as loss is often the removal of dependencies that were keeping us from discovering our true strength.

This doesn’t mean seeking out loss or being passive in the face of difficulty, but rather learning to find the gifts that loss can bring.

Every loss strips away something we thought we needed, potentially revealing the unshakeable foundation that was always present beneath our dependencies.

Scriptural Sources and Traditional Texts

Dhumavati appears in various tantric texts that provide context for understanding her unconventional but profound teachings.

The Prapanchasara Tantra

This text provides one of the most detailed descriptions of Dhumavati’s nature and significance.

It emphasizes her role as the goddess who exists in the void and teaches the wisdom of emptiness.

The text includes discussions about how apparent negatives can become spiritual assets when properly understood.

The Todala Tantra

This important tantric work describes Dhumavati’s function in the cosmic cycle and her relationship to other Mahavidyas.

It emphasizes her role as the teacher of independence and self-sufficiency.

The Dhumavati Kalpa

This specialized text focuses specifically on her worship and the philosophical principles she represents.

It provides practical guidance for finding spiritual nourishment during periods of external barrenness.

The Shakta Pramoda

This text describes her role in the overall scheme of divine manifestation and her unique position among the Mahavidyas.

Traditional Commentaries

Various tantric teachers have written about the challenges and opportunities of Dhumavati’s path.

These commentaries emphasize the importance of proper understanding to avoid falling into depression or nihilism.

The Many Aspects of Dhumavati

Like other Mahavidyas, Dhumavati manifests in various forms that emphasize different aspects of her teaching.

Alakshmi Dhumavati

In this aspect, she represents the withdrawal of material prosperity and external supports.

Alakshmi traditionally means “inauspicious” or without Lakshmi (prosperity), but Dhumavati transforms this into spiritual teaching.

She shows that periods of material scarcity can lead to discovering inner richness that doesn’t depend on external conditions.

Jyeshtha Dhumavati

As Jyeshtha, meaning “eldest,” she represents the wisdom that comes with experience and the respect due to those who have weathered life’s storms.

This form emphasizes the value of honoring rather than dismissing the wisdom that comes through difficult experiences.

Nirrti Dhumavati

In this aspect, she’s associated with dissolution and the necessary destruction that precedes new creation.

Nirrti Dhumavati teaches about the natural cycles of life and the importance of letting go when the time for endings has come.

Kali Dhumavati

This form connects her to the time principle and the teaching that all external conditions are temporary.

Kali Dhumavati helps us develop equanimity by recognizing the impermanent nature of both pleasant and unpleasant circumstances.

Vaidhavya Dhumavati

This specifically emphasizes her widowhood as a spiritual state rather than merely a social condition.

Vaidhavya Dhumavati represents the freedom that comes from not being defined by relationships or social roles.

Personal Practice with Dhumavati

Working with Dhumavati’s energy requires a different approach from other Mahavidyas, as her teaching often emerges through what appears to be absence rather than presence.

The Practice of Solitude

One of the most direct ways to connect with Dhumavati is through deliberately choosing periods of solitude.

This isn’t about becoming antisocial, but rather developing comfort with being alone and discovering what remains when external stimulation is removed.

Even short periods of solitude—an hour, an afternoon, a day—can begin to reveal the richness that exists in apparent emptiness.

The key is approaching solitude with curiosity rather than trying to fill it with activities or distractions.

Meditation on Emptiness

Dhumavati’s energy can be accessed through meditation practices that explore emptiness or void.

This might involve sitting with the space between thoughts, contemplating the pause between breaths, or exploring the gap between sensory perceptions.

These practices help develop familiarity with the pregnant emptiness that Dhumavati represents.

Simplicity Practices

Deliberately choosing simplicity in lifestyle, possessions, or activities can help connect with Dhumavati’s teaching about finding richness through reduction.

This might involve periodic fasting, decluttering possessions, or spending time in nature without entertainment or goals.

The practice teaches discrimination between what we actually need and what we think we need.

Working with Loss and Transition

Some of my most profound encounters with Dhumavati have occurred during periods of loss or unwanted change.

Her energy teaches us to approach such periods as spiritual opportunities rather than merely difficulties to endure.

This involves looking for what’s being revealed when external supports are removed and what strengths emerge when we can no longer depend on familiar patterns.

The Practice of Non-Seeking

Dhumavati challenges the common spiritual assumption that we should always be seeking something: enlightenment, improvement, new experiences.

Her energy supports periods of simply being present with what is, without trying to get anywhere or achieve anything.

This non-seeking stance can paradoxically lead to profound spiritual insights that arise naturally rather than being forced.

Common Misconceptions About Dhumavati

Dhumavati is perhaps the most misunderstood of all the Mahavidyas, often dismissed as purely negative or inauspicious.

Misconception: She Represents Depression or Nihilism

This is perhaps the most harmful misunderstanding.

Dhumavati’s emptiness is not the hopeless emptiness of depression but the spacious emptiness of infinite potential.

Her teaching leads to greater freedom and joy, not to despair or meaninglessness.

If working with her energy leads to persistent depression, this indicates misunderstanding or the need for additional support.

Misconception: Her Path is Only for People Who Have Lost Everything

While Dhumavati’s teachings become particularly relevant during periods of loss, her wisdom about independence and inner completeness is valuable for anyone.

Even those with abundant external circumstances can benefit from her teaching about not being dependent on those circumstances for happiness.

Misconception: She Encourages Isolation or Antisocial Behavior

Dhumavati’s solitude is about inner independence, not about avoiding all human contact.

Many people who embody her wisdom are actually more capable of healthy relationships because they relate from wholeness rather than neediness.

Misconception: She’s Inauspicious or Unlucky

This misunderstanding comes from confusing external appearance with spiritual significance.

Dhumavati’s apparent inauspiciousness is actually profoundly auspicious from a spiritual perspective, as it leads to liberation from superficial dependencies.

Misconception: Her Practice Requires Renouncing All Worldly Engagement

Dhumavati’s teaching is about inner attitude rather than external circumstances.

You can embody her wisdom while fully engaged with family, career, and worldly responsibilities.

The key is maintaining inner independence regardless of external circumstances.

Dhumavati and Contemporary Psychology

Dhumavati’s teachings align with several important insights from modern psychology and therapeutic approaches.

Post-Traumatic Growth

Research shows that many people develop greater wisdom, strength, and appreciation for life following difficult experiences.

Dhumavati’s teaching that loss can lead to spiritual gain aligns with these psychological findings about post-traumatic growth.

Solitude and Mental Health

Contemporary psychology increasingly recognizes the importance of comfortable solitude for psychological health.

People who can enjoy being alone tend to have better relationships and greater emotional stability.

Dhumavati’s teaching about finding completeness within oneself supports these psychological insights.

Non-Attachment and Well-being

Research on happiness consistently shows that people who are less attached to external outcomes tend to be more satisfied and resilient.

Dhumavati’s teaching about independence from external circumstances aligns with these findings about the psychology of well-being.

Meaning-Making in Suffering

Viktor Frankl’s work on finding meaning in suffering demonstrates that how we interpret difficult experiences significantly affects their impact on our psychological health.

Dhumavati provides a framework for finding spiritual meaning in experiences that might otherwise lead to despair.

Dhumavati in Contemporary Spiritual Life

In our current cultural context, Dhumavati’s teachings address several important contemporary challenges.

Social Media and External Validation

Our culture increasingly emphasizes external image and validation through social media and constant connectivity.

Dhumavati’s teaching about finding worth through inner completion rather than external recognition offers crucial counter-programming to these cultural pressures.

Consumer Culture and Material Dependency

Our economic system often promotes the idea that happiness comes through accumulating possessions and experiences.

Dhumavati’s wisdom about finding richness through simplicity provides an alternative approach to fulfillment that’s both psychologically healthier and environmentally sustainable.

Aging in a Youth-Obsessed Culture

Dhumavati’s dignified representation of old age offers a powerful alternative to cultural messages that devalue aging.

Her teaching that wisdom and spiritual beauty can increase with age provides a healthier model for approaching our own aging process.

Spiritual Materialism

Contemporary spirituality sometimes becomes another form of materialism, collecting experiences, teachings, or attainments.

Dhumavati’s non-seeking energy helps practitioners distinguish between authentic spiritual development and spiritual materialism.

The Dark Night of the Soul and Dhumavati’s Grace

Some of my most profound experiences with Dhumavati have occurred during what mystics call “the dark night of the soul.”

When Spiritual Practice Feels Empty

There are periods in every serious practitioner’s journey when meditation feels dry, prayers seem unanswered, and spiritual texts provide no inspiration.

Dhumavati teaches us that these apparent spiritual deserts can actually be periods of profound purification and preparation for deeper realization.

Her smoky presence provides companionship during times when other spiritual resources feel unavailable.

The Wisdom of Spiritual Dryness

What we experience as spiritual dryness might actually be the removal of dependencies on particular experiences or states.

Dhumavati helps us recognize that true spiritual development sometimes requires letting go of even our most cherished spiritual experiences.

This stripping away can initially feel like spiritual failure but ultimately leads to discovering the awareness that doesn’t depend on any particular experience.

Beyond Spiritual Highs and Lows

Dhumavati’s teaching leads to a spiritual maturity that doesn’t depend on feeling spiritually “high” or avoiding spiritual “lows.”

Her energy supports the development of equanimity that can find the sacred in any state of consciousness.

Working with Dhumavati During Life Transitions

Major life transitions often naturally invoke Dhumavati’s energy, providing opportunities to embody her teachings.

Relationship Endings

Whether through death, divorce, or natural drift, relationship endings can be profound teachers when approached with Dhumavati’s wisdom.

Rather than seeing such endings as purely negative, her energy helps us recognize what we discover about ourselves when external relationship support is removed.

This doesn’t mean celebrating loss, but rather finding the gifts that independence can bring.

Career Changes and Financial Challenges

Periods of unemployment or financial difficulty can invoke Dhumavati’s energy, forcing us to discover resources we didn’t know we possessed.

Her teaching helps distinguish between genuine need and socially conditioned desires for security or status.

Health Challenges and Aging

Physical illness or the natural aging process can strip away many things we took for granted: energy, abilities, appearance, or independence.

Dhumavati’s energy helps us find dignity and meaning even when external circumstances become challenging.

Empty Nest and Life Phase Transitions

When children leave home, careers end, or other major life roles conclude, we can experience a sense of emptiness or purposelessness.

Dhumavati teaches that such transitions are opportunities to discover who we are beyond our social roles and relationships.

The Integration of All Mahavidyas Through Dhumavati

As the seventh Mahavidya, Dhumavati provides crucial teachings that prepare consciousness for the final stages of spiritual development.

After Purification Comes Emptiness

Bhairavi’s fire burned away obstacles and impurities.

Dhumavati represents the emptiness that remains after this purification process is complete.

Her position in the sequence suggests that spiritual development eventually requires periods of apparent emptiness or void.

Preparing for Ultimate Transcendence

The remaining Mahavidyas involve even more complete transcendence of ordinary consciousness.

Dhumavati’s teaching about finding completeness in emptiness prepares practitioners for these advanced stages.

Without her lesson about independence from external supports, the more esoteric practices could become destabilizing.

Practical Guidance for Working with Dhumavati

Given the challenging nature of Dhumavati’s teachings, here are guidelines for beneficial engagement with her energy.

Start with Short Periods

Begin with brief experiments in solitude, simplicity, or non-seeking rather than attempting dramatic lifestyle changes.

Even an hour of deliberate solitude or a day of simple living can begin to reveal her teachings.

Maintain Proper Support

While exploring independence, maintain appropriate support systems and don’t isolate yourself in unhealthy ways.

Dhumavati’s solitude is about inner independence, not about cutting off all human connection.

Distinguish Between Depression and Sacred Emptiness

If engagement with her energy leads to persistent sadness, hopelessness, or isolation, seek appropriate support.

Authentic Dhumavati practice should ultimately lead to greater freedom and peace, not to psychological disturbance.

Balance with Other Energies

Balance any work with Dhumavati’s energy with practices that cultivate joy, connection, and vitality.

Her emptiness is most beneficial when integrated with the fullness that other spiritual energies provide.

Seek Guidance

Working with Dhumavati’s challenging energy benefits from guidance by experienced teachers who understand both her gifts and her potential difficulties.

Trust the Process

Dhumavati’s transformations often involve temporary discomfort as we learn to find security within ourselves rather than in external circumstances.

Learning to distinguish between necessary transformation discomfort and harmful isolation requires patience and discernment.

Conclusion: The Fullness Found in Emptiness

As I reflect on my journey with Dhumavati’s teachings, I’m amazed by how profoundly she has transformed my relationship with loss, solitude, and apparent emptiness.

What began as one of the most challenging periods of my life has become one of my most treasured spiritual teachers.

Dhumavati has shown me that what our culture considers negative—aging, loss, solitude, simplicity—can actually be gateways to profound spiritual freedom.

Her teaching that we can find completeness within ourselves, regardless of external circumstances, has provided a foundation of inner security that doesn’t depend on life going according to plan.

Through her energy, I’ve learned to appreciate the gifts that solitude can bring: deeper self-knowledge, freedom from the need for constant external validation, and the discovery of inner resources I didn’t know I possessed.

Her wisdom about finding richness through simplicity has helped me distinguish between what I actually need and what I think I need, leading to greater contentment and environmental awareness.

Most importantly, Dhumavati has taught me that spiritual maturity involves developing equanimity with all of life’s experiences, not just the pleasant ones.

Her smoky presence reminds us that the void between ending and beginning is not empty space to be rushed through but pregnant potential to be appreciated.

In our current culture of constant stimulation, endless acquisition, and fear of aging or loss, Dhumavati’s counter-teachings feel especially relevant.

She offers a different model of fulfillment based on inner completeness rather than external accumulation.

Her dignity in the face of society’s definition of inauspiciousness provides a powerful example for anyone who has ever felt marginalized or undervalued.

Whether you encounter her energy through life’s inevitable losses or through deliberate spiritual practice, Dhumavati’s wisdom is available to transform your understanding of emptiness, solitude, and what it means to be truly fulfilled.

The widow goddess who appears to have nothing continues to offer everything to those willing to look beyond surface appearances.

May her teachings help you discover the fullness that exists within apparent emptiness and find the sacred in what others might dismiss as ordinary or unfortunate.

References and Further Reading

1. Kinsley, David. “Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine: The Ten Mahavidyas.” University of California Press, 1997.
2. The Prapanchasara Tantra – Various academic translations available.
3. Avalon, Arthur (Sir John Woodroffe). “Shakti and Shakta.” Dover Publications, 1978.
4. Storr, Anthony. “Solitude: A Return to the Self.” Free Press, 2005.
5. Frankl, Viktor. “Man’s Search for Meaning.” Beacon Press, 2006.
6. Research on solitude: Long, C.R. & Averill, J.R. “Solitude: An exploration of benefits of being alone.” Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 2003.
7. Tedeschi, R.G. & Calhoun, L.G. “Posttraumatic Growth: Conceptual Foundations and Empirical Evidence.” Psychological Inquiry, 2004.
8. The Ashtavakra Gita – Various translations available.
9. May, Gerald. “The Dark Night of the Soul.” HarperOne, 2005.
10. Traditional tantric texts and commentaries available through academic sources.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is Dhumavati’s energy inherently depressing or negative?

A: Not at all. While Dhumavati’s symbolism includes challenging themes like old age and loss, her essential teaching is profoundly liberating. She shows us how to find completeness and joy that don’t depend on external circumstances. If working with her energy leads to persistent depression, this usually indicates misunderstanding or the need for additional support. Authentic Dhumavati practice should ultimately lead to greater freedom and peace.

Q: Do I need to become a widow or lose everything to connect with Dhumavati?

A: No, Dhumavati’s widowhood and apparent poverty are symbolic rather than literal requirements. Her teaching is about inner independence and finding completeness within yourself, which is relevant regardless of your external circumstances. You can embody her wisdom while being married, prosperous, and socially connected. The key is developing inner security that doesn’t depend entirely on external conditions.

Q: How is Dhumavati’s emptiness different from Buddhist emptiness (sunyata)?

A: There are significant parallels between Dhumavati’s teaching and Buddhist emptiness. Both point to the void or space from which all phenomena arise and to which they return. However, Dhumavati specifically emphasizes the wisdom that can be found in what society considers undesirable: old age, loss, solitude. Her teaching is more focused on the practical wisdom of independence from external circumstances.

Q: Can practicing with Dhumavati help during grief and loss?

A: Yes, her energy can be very supportive during grief, as she teaches that loss can reveal inner strengths and resources we didn’t know we possessed. However, grief work also requires appropriate emotional support and shouldn’t rush toward spiritual transcendence before properly processing the loss. Dhumavati’s wisdom can complement but not replace the natural grieving process.

Q: Is Dhumavati practice suitable for people dealing with loneliness?

A: Dhumavati’s teaching can help transform loneliness into chosen solitude by developing comfort with being alone and finding inner completeness. However, chronic loneliness often indicates need for social connection and support, which shouldn’t be ignored. Her practice works best when you have basic social support but want to develop independence from needing constant external validation or companionship.

Q: How can I tell if I’m connecting with authentic Dhumavati energy versus just becoming isolated or depressed?

A: Authentic Dhumavati practice leads to greater inner peace, independence, and spiritual insight, even during challenging circumstances. You should feel more capable of handling difficulties and less dependent on external conditions for your well-being. If practice leads to increased hopelessness, inability to function, or complete social withdrawal, this indicates need for adjustment or professional support.

Q: Can Dhumavati’s teachings help with aging gracefully?

A: Absolutely. Dhumavati provides a powerful model for finding dignity, wisdom, and beauty in aging rather than seeing it as merely decline. Her teaching that spiritual value can increase with age offers a healthier alternative to youth-obsessed cultural messages. She shows that what society often dismisses as “past prime” can actually be the beginning of the most spiritually fruitful period of life.

Q: Is it safe to practice with Dhumavati during difficult life transitions?

A: Yes, her energy can be particularly supportive during transitions, as she helps us find stability within change rather than clinging to what’s passing away. However, major transitions also require practical support and shouldn’t be navigated entirely through spiritual practice alone. Her wisdom can provide perspective and strength while you also take appropriate practical steps to handle transition challenges.

Q: How does Dhumavati’s path differ from ascetic or renunciate traditions?

A: While there are similarities, Dhumavati’s teaching is more about inner attitude than external renunciation. You can embody her wisdom while fully engaged with worldly life, family, and career. Her “renunciation” is of dependency on external circumstances for happiness, not necessarily of external circumstances themselves. The goal is inner freedom that allows appropriate engagement rather than withdrawal from life.