|
When, to one who knows, all beings have, verily, become one with his own self, then what delusion and what sorrow can be to him who has seen the oneness?
ISHA UPANISHAD
Another way to approach the "problem" of happiness is perhaps to see what we have that is opposed to happiness. This would be the experience of suffering.
Suffering is not to be confused with pain. Pain occurs. Pain is the body's way of communicating that something is amiss. When I step on a piece of glass, a nerve message is sent to my brain to indicate that I have injured myself and that care must be taken. This is what some call necessary pain, or unavoidable pain.
Suffering, however, is what we experience when we think about the pains we have experienced, try to avoid future, imagined pains, blame ourselves or others for pains we may be experiencing in the moment or may have experienced in the past. Any sort of speculation about pain, or truly, the act of speculation itself, will lead to suffering, to psychological pain. This pain is avoidable.
Suffering is caused by speculation. All suffering involves speculation, as all speculation leads to suffering. Dr. Nitin Trasi, in The Science of Enlightenment, calls speculation "Unnecessary Thoughts," as distinct from Necessary Thoughts which are involved in performing one's job or paying one's bills. And why do we have these unnecessary thoughts? What is their cause? Our belief in the separateness of our self from others, from the world. Our belief in duality. Our sole identity with "ego," if you will. When we believe the world or others in it can harm us, can give to or take from our fulfillment, can cause us grief or happiness by their opinions of us--this is what leads to speculation.
So we may assume, then, that the direction away from suffering would be the direction away from speculation, which would be the direction away from ego.
The direction, therefore, of oneness.
Today I will look at one of my fellows and imagine, at least for a moment, what it might feel like if we shared the same consciousness, the same mind. If we shared the same heart.
 Robin, Spring Billings, Montana
All material copyright Jeff Kober
|
