At the still point of the turning world

Greetings,

As the war against Iraq proceeds, the situation epitomized in the ancient Hindu Bhagavad Gita, The Song of God, comes to mind.

Arjuna is on the battlefield, with the battle about to commence. He is consumed with doubts and anguish for he realizes that, however just he believes his cause to be, he will be fighting against family members, kinsmen, cousins and uncles. The thought is too much. His heart fails him. It would be better for him to be killed rather than for him to kill and set in motion a train of disastrous consequences.

Lord Krishna, in the form of his charioteer, offers advice. As I interpret it, Krishna says that the way to peace of mind is through non-attachment. Arjuna should act honourably but without attachment to the results of his actions, realizing that we are all part of the One. He must go ahead and fight, knowing that the eternal essence of each person is indestructible, part of the One.

I have always found this to be a profound but difficult insight to accept.

More recently, I found myself reading ‘Walking Between the Worlds: The Science of Compassion’ by Greg Braden, published in 1997. Braden reflects on some of the more horrific events of that era, particularly the tragedy of Rwanda in 1994 when tens of thousands of innocent people were slaughtered. He suggests three possible responses: denial, anger, and compassion.

Denial is a common defense mechanism to deal with horrific events that are just too painful to contemplate; for at a deeper level we realize that it is a part of us that has died. We feel emotionally numb and may try to rationalize what has happened. The second response is anger and outrage, often coupled with the desire for revenge and retaliation. Anger creates serious adverse effects on our emotions and immune systems. The third response is compassion, ‘the choice of a higher form of emotion’ (p.40). The feelings that accompany compassion are sadness and grief for the suffering and pain that has occurred, a sense of personal loss around the people who have gone and what they each had uniquely to offer, and a knowing that it didn’t have to happen. When we are able to make the choice of compassion, we have achieved a level of emotional mastery.

On a lighter note, a reader responded to the Zen saying in the last newsletter, ‘It’s never too late to do nothing’ by sharing some quotes from Lao Tzu.

‘A journey of a thousand li begins with the first step’ ...

‘in the ground underneath your feet’ ...

and finally, my favourite, ‘knowing nothing needs to be done is the place we begin to move from’.

Till next time ...

Subscribe here - it's FREE

Transformasia Pty Ltd
ACN 097 139 725
Tel: +61 3 9525 3409
E-mail:
www.transformasia.com.au