Starting Spiritual Practice
Can having a pet replace learning to be comfortable alone?
English translation draft · Based on the Chinese article. This is not a word-for-word translation approved by Master Shengyuan.
If being alone makes you uncomfortable and you hope a pet will fill that loneliness, I do not recommend treating this as a way to resolve your inner difficulty. Placing your affection in a pet does not mean you have learned to face loneliness.
At the time, we discussed people finding things that settled their minds through music or caring for plants, which raised the question of keeping a pet. My reminder was that transferring all your feelings to an animal and depending on it leaves the original difficulty of being with yourself unresolved.
Ultimately, the question returns to you: can you spend time peacefully when alone? Pay attention to how you face loneliness. Companionship should not become a reason to keep setting aside the part of you that is truly uncomfortable.