Buddhist Blessings: Haiti: The Spiritual Lessons To Be Learned Today

Haiti: The Spiritual Lessons To Be Learned
Today at 3:49pm
With the news of the Haitian disaster comes a profound sense of vulnerability. When faced with catastrophes of this scale, we are left feeling exposed, without answers, the explicit images shown in the media reminding us how transitory everything is in life, how the material security we strive so hard to achieve can disappear in an instant. These harsh shocks remind us that we cannot control even the most significant things in our lives, even that which appears to be the most secure can be gone in a flash.

When we seek external security, we are seeking stability within that which always changes; this is why we need so many guarantees, but no guarantee is absolute in this world. Life is a succession of moments, during most of which we are absent, and when we reach the end of the road or are reminded in some way of our own mortality, we often have the feeling of dissatisfaction, of not having fully lived… as if time has run like water through our fingers.

Whether the outside is shaken by an earthquake or an economic crisis, through illness or some other stressful situation, we can confront it in one place only: the here and now.
By being present - present with ourselves, present with one-another, present in our feelings - vulnerable, without denying the dimension of the impact, and flowing with life, without negating our emotions: those long ignored feelings, forgotten deep within, avoided and distorted into something corrupt, a suppressed resentment poisoning our relationships, damaging our health.

Our emotions should flow like water, washing the banks of our human experience as they pass, flowing like life through time, dancing through this illusion that is calling to us, inviting us to become more human and more real in each moment.

Security can only be found if I focus inwards, in the eye of the storm, the core of the hurricane that takes me ever deeper within its quiet; if I go outwards into the chaos, I lose myself within it; if I go deep within, I find myself in the void.

We can see this in action through the responses to the crisis. Just when we believe that humanity has no hope, we see countries sending planes and ships, and presidents and representatives from all corners of the earth coming together as they offer their help. So shine the heroes, the silent hearts that give freely, so that the pain and suffering of those affected can be lessened, offering consolation and the tools to readapt and continue forward, thankful for what life has given, and lovingly letting go of that which life has taken away.

We cannot do anything to stop it, nor does it make sense to suffer now for what the future may bring, but we can move into action and give, we can focus on loving more in every moment those who surround us instead of criticizing, giving thanks for what we have received and letting go of that which does not serve us in cultivating our passion for life.

In this moment, find yourself in the center of the cyclone. Welcome in this new way of living, completely connected with your heart: there where the essence of life itself pulsates, there where your true voice speaks and resounds within you and in everything, becoming one in the union of love.

posted by Isha Judd on Care2

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Isha Judd will be touring Europe in April 2010, presenting her latest book and movie, Why Walk When You Can Fly? which explain her system for self-love and the expansion of consciousness. Learn more at www.whywalkwhenyoucanfly.com.