THE END OF SUFFERING

      Separation and Suffering go together. I haven't yet seen any evidence of one existing without the other. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that the source of all suffering is the perception of Separation. And that's all it is -- a mistaken perception.....

      Maybe that has something to do with an experience that we all have in common – being born. We got separated and we suffered – that was our induction into the condition of being human. After the relative bliss of gestating, we experienced a sudden upheaval, a loss of room service and our comfy waterbed, eviction from the womb, involving being twisted and turned and squeezed like a grapefruit through a straw..... we “thought” we were dying. Other thoughts popped, too (without language with which to remember them), and we organised those thoughts in our own random way in order to try and make sense of this calamity and somehow survive it. And then we oozed out into an alien, cold, sterile world, got smacked on the bum for our trouble, and then – CUT – separated from our mother. Obviously whoever designed this birth thing had never tried it himself.

      Was birth supposed to prepare us with something so ghastly that nothing afterwards could ever be as bad? Who knows? But somehow each of us put our experience together in our own unique way and formed some conclusions about life, in order to make sense of the assault, the shock and the suffering associated with our induction.

      But everything from the first thought “I'm dying here!” to the way we “explained” the trauma to ourselves, was mistaken. We had insufficient information and a limited view. We missed the point. And we've been missing it ever since, except sometimes.

      And then, we compounded our “lostness” by building onto those initial misconceptions, and have largely gone on doing so ever since Well, any cubby-house based on a false foundation and made up of tacked-on rejects from wreckers' yards, is bound to wobble a bit in high winds, earthquakes, fires and floods, and eventually come falling down, right? Inevitably. The only question is “When?”

 

I    Is that what's happening for you right now? Do you feel like Humpty Dumpty in a state of tumbledown? If so, good! Fear not. This seems to be how it works for all of us mere mortals. Life just might be designed so that we lose our way in order to experience the joy and bliss of finding it again and getting to know it for the first time.

      Take heart. It's OK. You're right where you should be. Maybe you could use a little guidance and reassurance on the way through from someone who's done the trip. That's fine. There's plenty available. Choose whatever flavours suit you. You will get to where you're going – that is a life guarantee! So why not enjoy the adventure while you're on your way?

     While you're looking around, though, you might like to contemplate this ....... which particular Separation do you think is the cause of your suffering? What is it you think you cannot live without? Who is this "You" that cannot be without whatever it is? Is this "You" really who you are? What if it's not? What if who you truly are is that which you become aware of when you say to yourself "I am". Say it now -- "I am". Even though you don't yet know what you are, when you say "I am" you know THAT you are. No question about that  What is it that arises in your awareness when you say "I am". And that "am-ness" will never desert you. That "Am-ness" has been present and available every moment of your life, waiting for you to notice it. Just for a moment, drop all the distractions and notice it now. "I am". Take a moment to savour the sweetness of surrender to that surety, and the beginning of the end to your suffering.

      Now here's a final thought, and a controversial one at that..... I've met many well-meaning people who want to alleviate world suffering. Some of them succeed in pockets of the planet, but most wannado's don't. They make about as much difference as a pimple on a pumpkin. But there is another way to make a difference that is available to just about everyone, no matter how handicapped you may feel you are. And there's no better time to do it than Now. If you want to do something about ignorance, poverty, hunger and distress, go to work on demolishing and dissolving your own suffering. That is enough. Mind your own business. Do whatever it takes to change yourself, and just be with others while they do their own trip.

      Where you are emotionally affects everyone around you. Have you never walked into someone's home or place of business and felt a welcoming, harmonious “vibe”, or a discordant, “bad vibe”? Have you ever worked in a place where there is a bad vibe, then a particular person leaves, and the whole atmosphere changes? You make just as much of a difference, just as you are.

     What is your vibe? Is it in the higher or the lower frequency range? Is it harmonious or discordant? What notes are you adding to the overall symphony?

      I make a difference: you make a difference. Quantum physics proves it cannot be otherwise. It is a scientifically absolute law that you cannot change any part of the whole without changing the Whole. So, when enough of us get off our own suffering, and I see this happening around me now, the world notices and says “I want some of that, too, please.”

[Born to Try – Delta Goodrem (A) – 4:11]