Story: Saint and King (Source: Google Baba)
There is an old story about a famous saint who stayed in the deep forest and was visited one day by a renowned king who had travelled hundreds of kilometres to see him. The king came to the great saint’s dwelling and was directed to the saint’s room, which was in the attic. He entered to find the master living in a room with a bed, a chair, and a few books. The king had expected much more. After greetings, he 
asked, “Saint, where are your things?” The saint asked in return, “Well, where are yours?” The king replied, “But, saint, I’m only passing through,” and the master answered, “So am I, so am I.”
Moral of the story: Detachment from material possessions: The saint, despite his fame and potential access to riches, chooses to live, demonstrating that true value lies not in material possessions but in spiritual wealth and inner peace. This resonates with many philosophies and religions that emphasize detachment and living in the present moment.
What is the meaning of positive emotional detachment? Does it mean detachment from the people (lack of interest) and situation (lack of feelings)? No. It is the detachment from the outcome of the situation. It is an attitude of open-mindedness and of being practical. When we are attached to a result of a situation, we make that situation much bigger than us. But when we are in detached mode, we can create a gap between us and the situation and can see, how should respond.
People, who possess positive emotional detachment, keep their poise when they run into problems or trouble. They accept the good and the bad equally because their minds are in a state of inner balance and peace. They do not get upset, if their plans do not turn out as expected. They try again or look for a new approach. If they succeed, they are happy, and if they don’t, they will either try again or forget the matter and move on to something else.
Example: If my child is emotionally disturbed, there can be two ways that I can deal with the situation. The first choice is that I can also become disturbed and show my concern. Another way could be that I can remain calm and composed and can see how I can help my child. This is another way of showing concern by remaining detached from the situation so that I am strong enough to protect my child.
Does it mean that if I am not crying, not shouting and not in pain, it means I am not playing the role of a parent effectively? If I am in control, calm and composed, I can deal with the situation more wisely and effectively.
Detachment does not mean INDIFFERENT. It means rather than getting entangled in the situation, I can support constructively.
Example: If 4 family members are walking on a street and one member falls in a pit, other members should also fall in the pit or try to bring out the member who has fallen in the pit.
During the day, we play different roles like brother, sister, spouse, friend, parent, colleague or neighbour. While playing those roles, we should be aware that I am an actor who is playing different roles and I should not entangle myself in any role (beyond a point). It means I do not entangle myself in any role and move swiftly to another role. When I am focused on my role, I can manage myself and also manage the situation when others get entangled in their role!
Sometimes, we also start playing the role of another person like a boss wherein we start thinking about how a boss should behave with me, how he should talk to me, what kind of response he should give or how the boss should like me! But we do not realise that everyone (including the boss) will play the role as per their understanding and not the way we want to play.
It is true that when we understand our role (being detached), it may not happen that we will start implementing detachment immediately. We may fail in some cases but the good point is that at least we will start winning in a few cases.
Even when we fail in any situation, we have two options. The first option is to crib and blame the other person. Another option could be to accept that I have failed one more time to manage myself. Once we accept that, it is very easy to see who was right and wrong in this situation. The situation will remain out of control but I will be in the position to control myself.
The good thing is that very soon there will be another situation which may come, which again may not be of our choice. At least we will be ready to face that next situation more effectively.
As a human being, everyone likes peace, love and happiness. If we can be the torchbearer in our family, neighbourhood and workplace, we can create magic for people around us.
The best way to practice to remain emotionally stable is by calming down our mind, which runs very fast. Once we can slow down the pace of our thoughts, we will be able to see things more clearly.
Example: When we are watching a cricket/football match, when an umpire/referee has to decide on any controversial situation, they take the help of action replay, wherein the entire scene is played in slow motion so that the right decision can be taken.
Similarly in life too, to take appropriate decisions in all situations, our mind should be calm. To practice calmness of mind, meditation can be extremely helpful. By regularly doing meditation, we will be able to manage our emotions effectively and can be in a detached state of mind for all possible situations (favourable or unfavourable).