Why Do I Feel Empty at Times, Even Though I Am Fulfilled?

The Consultation

I was able to take up the work I had wanted to do; I am blessed with good health; and my family all live in peace. With nothing at all lacking, I mean to pass my days in gratitude, feeling that everything is something to be thankful for. And yet, from time to time, truly out of nowhere, something I might call an "emptiness"—a hollow void—arises in my heart, and I become caught up in it. When that happens, everything comes to feel negative, and I no longer understand just what I exist for. How should I face this feeling?

The Emptiness That Comes Even Amid Fulfillment

The first thing I wish to say is this: that heart of yours, feeling "empty" even while living blessed days, is by no means a strange thing. Rather, it is a very human, very honest heart. Many people keep running, believing that if they obtain something on the outside they will be fulfilled. Yet you, already holding much, have noticed something that still will not be filled. That very noticing is the sign that your eyes are quietly opening toward the deep places of life.