Sunday, January 27, 2008
Alone On The Road.
Life is like a great bicycle race, whose aim is to fulfil our personal legend, which, according to the ancient alchemists, is our true mission on earth.
We all set off toegether, sharing friendship and enthusiasm; but as the race progresses, that initial happiness gives way to the real challenges: tiredness, boredom, doubts about ur own abilities. We notice that a few friends have, in their hearts, already given up. They are still cycling, but only because they cannot stop in the middle of the road.
We eventually leave them behind us, and then we come face to face with loneliness, with unfamiliar bends in the road, and mechanical problems with our bicycle. At a certain stage, after suffering a few falls with no one at hand to help, we begin to ask ourselves if it's really worth all the effort.
We live in a universe that is at once vast enough to enclose us, and small enough to fit inside our heart. In the soul of a man is the soul of the world, the silence of wisdom. As we pedal towards our goal, we must make a point of asking ourselves: 'What is beautiful about today?' The sun might be shining, but if it happens to be raining, always remember that this only means that the dark cloudswill soon have disappeared. The clouds do disappear; but the sun remains the same, and never goes away. In moments of loneliness, it is important to remember this.
When things get hard, let us not forget that EVERYONE has experienced exactly the same. A lonely prayer written by Egyptian Sufi master Dhu'l-Nun (d.AD 861) neatly sums up the attitude one needs to adopt at such times:
O God, when I listen to the voices of the animals, to the sound of trees, the murmur of the water, the singing of the birds, to the rushing of the wind or to the rumble of thunder, I see in them evidence of Your unity; I feel that You are supreme power, supreme knowledge, supreme wisdom, supreme justice.
O God, I also recognize you in the difficulties I am experiencing now. God, let Your satisfaction be my satisfaction, and let me be Your joy, the joy that a Father takes in his child. And let me remember You with calmness and determination, even when it is hard for me to say: I love You.
-like a flowing river-
harangued at 12:44 PM
