A Jump into the Cold Water

Nothing can hurt you unless you give it the power to do so.
A Course in Miracles

One year ago our older boy wanted to show off his swimming abilities so when the pool opened he proudly went to the deep end of our swimming pool, went up to the jumping board and without having been in the water before, he jumped in. Of course we all clapped and cheered and he only smiled politely, but when he came out of the water I overheard how he was mumbling to himself, " Phew, I won't do that again!" apparently he had completely underestimated how cold the water would be at the beginning of the season since we don't heat our pool.

Actually, that sums up the path of a spiritual path traveler pretty well. You get used to a peace of mind and a lack of fear that is simply beyond comprehension. And if now and then you do take a wrong step along your path, you will be in for a rude awakening just as my son found out when he plunged into the cold water. It is not that God withdraws Her love, that will never happen. It is that it is unfortunately in your power to give your demons something to feed on and when they have their party you suddenly remember how the old days used to be. "Phew, I won't do that again!", is the natural conclusion.

The difference between a spiritual path and the ordinary way of doing things is that everything that happens to you - good or bad- is internalized. Every voice that you hear is meaningful to you. You simply understand what it stands for. For the ordinary folks there is no cause and effect. Someone comes and beats you up and you have no idea why, never mind that you did exactly the same thing to someone else a few years ago. So when cause and effect is immediately made plain to you, why would you do anything that ends up hurting yourself? You don't really have a choice as a Tao traveler, but to get to that realization takes a little back and forth.