It is not "a thought" that may cause anxiety or rob us of our peace. It is rather our judgement of it as "something wrong" and something that "may never go away" which is the problem. Often the clouds of confusion clear and in the shining light of intelligence we "see" how it is the judgement that "something is wrong" which gives birth to the thought to support it, rather than the other way round. This is a game that occurs in a subtle realm of the mind, that it is often difficult to catch the culprit - the judging mind. It is almost as if a decision has been made to find a reason to feel something is wrong.
And for a while - albeit dear a fleeting while, we do find faith, this dear peace giving faith. But what often becomes a difficulty is that we crave this faith - almost like a man in a desert seeks water. The value of peace is much more for a suffering soul than for one who has not met his dark night...yet.
A lost soul in a desert is tormented not merely by thirst and hunger, but the fear of being eternally lost- uncertainty is often more unbearable than physical pain. And impatience compounds the confusion, attaching our ability to be rational.
Forbearance, oh what a beautiful term. Like Nandi who sits outside the temple waiting for Shiva, not the least impatience. And in emobding such forebearance, Nandi has already found Shiva. This is the beautiful mystery. The answer is already found when the question has become clear.
Our faith, patience and forbearance are required only for us to have further clarity on our doubts.
I heard that the Prophet (PBUH) was approached by a woman who suffered a strange skin disease that not only made her very uncomfortable but also caused the clothes on her body to slip occasionally as she tried to manage her illness. The compassionate and wise prophet advised the lady that he could pray for her cure, but however, that forbearance was better for her. The lady accepted the advice and requested in that case, that the prophet prays for her to be free of the difficulty in managing her slipping clothes. This was accepted indeed.
And for a while - albeit dear a fleeting while, we do find faith, this dear peace giving faith. But what often becomes a difficulty is that we crave this faith - almost like a man in a desert seeks water. The value of peace is much more for a suffering soul than for one who has not met his dark night...yet.
A lost soul in a desert is tormented not merely by thirst and hunger, but the fear of being eternally lost- uncertainty is often more unbearable than physical pain. And impatience compounds the confusion, attaching our ability to be rational.
Forbearance, oh what a beautiful term. Like Nandi who sits outside the temple waiting for Shiva, not the least impatience. And in emobding such forebearance, Nandi has already found Shiva. This is the beautiful mystery. The answer is already found when the question has become clear.
Our faith, patience and forbearance are required only for us to have further clarity on our doubts.
I heard that the Prophet (PBUH) was approached by a woman who suffered a strange skin disease that not only made her very uncomfortable but also caused the clothes on her body to slip occasionally as she tried to manage her illness. The compassionate and wise prophet advised the lady that he could pray for her cure, but however, that forbearance was better for her. The lady accepted the advice and requested in that case, that the prophet prays for her to be free of the difficulty in managing her slipping clothes. This was accepted indeed.
