Tuesday, March 13, 2018

The End of Suffering

"Nature is busy creating absolutely unique individuals, whereas culture has invented a single mold to which all must conform. It is grotesque."
Krishnamurti

Every four years during the Winter Olympics I am glued to the screen and watch curling. My wife always asks me, ‘What do you like about it? It is so boring compared to all the other high speed, and high acrobatic performances?’ The answer is simple. Curling is so Zen. Curling is also all about strategy. Why would you place hammers outside of the scoring area? You are already protecting hammers that will score for you in many moves ahead! In the same way, the suffering of the past was not wasted. It has in fact prepared you to get ready for your life purpose now.

There are many tortured Souls in the spiritual communities. It is not because the world is so evil, and we good guys have to take the pain to make it a better place. Not at all! ‘GOD could take care of this world all right’, the 19th century Indian Mystic Sri Ramakrishna used to say. No, we had our dues to pay because we are  different from others, and we have to learn how to use our talents and run with them. We felt awkward that the hammers we placed weren’t quite on target thus far. Yet, our Soul set us up for this pain to set us up for our journey ahead. Accept your differences and start running with your talents. After this insight though, suffering has no longer any use.

You have paid your dues; the well-placed hammers shall nest in your future successes from here on. Take all this tortured energy of the past , and do something constructive with it. From here on, all future moves shall hit the mark.

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