The cause for much suffering is the realization that things could have been done differently. We see a heavy price being paid for our actions.
On the flip side is the dawn of knowledge that nothing COULD have been done differently until the dawn of knowledge, that there was karmic fallout to experience.
Only out of deep suffering comes the thirst for spiritual knowledge although the exposure to a spiritual environment may have been since very early in life.
Attachment is like a leech that does not get unstuck easily. In fact, sometimes never! Leading to hurts, anger, unfulfilled expectations and sometimes the shock of having a diametrically opposite life than envisaged for oneself.
The equations are warped. Simplicity and straightforwardness is equal to suffering. Suffering is due to not knowing any better, translating into ignorance. Wisdom eludes us until “ prarabdha” karma is around us. And vision starts clearing after a great deal of effort and working on oneself.
By the time the vision clears, there is a lot of damage done. But unless our minds extricate from the world, spiritual knowledge cannot be translated into actual practice. One needs to get into the eye of the storm to experience the aftermath of peace.
People say it is better to skim the surface of life rather than suffer. As if it is in the hands of humans! And is that a wise option anyway?
To cultivate wisdom and virtue can take many lifetimes. Avid students of Vedanta also find the worldly journey difficult. But one has to look ahead and bring in the light into our lives, however much darkness may envelope us. And be confident that the light is just beyond the darkness, even if the darkness seems like it is pitch black at the time.
Surekha Kothari
surekhakothari.wordpress.com
Speakingtree Blog: www.speakingtree.in/public/surekhakothari
Surekha Kothari 