Columnists
The Gift:
Letters From Espanola
EK ONG KAAR KAUR
These days, my body loves to remind me it has limits.
It is like a message from the gods, reminding me that life is a very temporary experience. That this body will break down in time.
Inevitably, it will break.
Guru Nanak says this in Japji Sahib, "Let the memory of death be your patched coat."
Wear that memory every day. The coat will not last forever.
You know, it may sound a little morbid, but actually these physical reminders are having a very positive affect. They help me realize that I should just kind of relax and enjoy myself more.
I am old enough to let go of ambition. To feel grateful and blessed with the fruits of my life.
I am mature enough to see my place in the scheme of things. What I can contribute to others, to my family, friends and community.
I can forgive myself for my weaknesses, and know that those weaknesses are just part of me. Yes, I need to pay attention to them but I do not need to have too much anxiety about them.
Just sitting back and enjoying, each moment, each breath, without judgement, that is what has started to present itself in my awareness more. It would be a shame to die and realize I was so focused on trying to "fix" things, that I forgot to appreciate the gift of life.
The message in the Guru Granth Sahib embodies the pinnacle of spiritual maturity. And that spiritual maturity has a lot to do with acceptance and gratitude, and not getting too hung up on the paradoxical nature of our own humanity.
So, maybe my body, as it gives its little reminders, is helping my mind mature to a new place.
To enjoy more.
Worry less.
Appreciate more.
"Fix" less.
It is, after all, Thy gift.
February 10, 2015
Conversation about this article
1: Aryeh Leib Lerner (Israel), February 10, 2015, 3:22 PM.
Thank you for this. Especially in Western societies we put everything into Doing, while utterly neglecting Being. This raises the question, of what use is this form of existence when we reach the inevitable point of no longer being able to do, achieve, accomplish? The ramifications are exemplified by things like, "quality of life" medical decisions based on the faulty premise of life having no meaning without personal independence. The body's increasing limitations are a signal that we've begun the return to the place from whence we came when we, seemingly from nowhere, appeared in the world. At this point our task is to show those still in the stage of accomplishment what Acceptance and Gratitude are about. How to live and die with dignity.
2: Gurinder Singh (Stockton, California, U.S.A.), February 11, 2015, 7:29 AM.
The Ninth Master, Guru Tegh Bahadar: "The body is false, but they believe it to be true; it is like a dream in the night. Whatever is seen, shall all pass away, like the shadow of a cloud. O servant Nanak, one who knows the world to be unreal, dwells in the Sanctuary of the Lord." [GGS:28]
3: Ajit Singh Batra (Pennsville, New Jersey, USA), February 11, 2015, 12:52 PM.
Waheguru guides us from within and in His own way ... like a potter. While a human potter beats up his/her clay to mould into a 'lifeless' pot, Waheguru millions of pots and each pot has a living consciousness to prove its existence. In case of mankind, He confers a consciousness through which He communicates to each individual human being. Most of the time, human beings misinterpret His advice and ceate a distorted view of 'self'. However Waheguru is free from any error.