“Your love affair with life”- 13 November 2016.
Have you ever seen a person obsessed with a certain something? There was this short stubby scientist and social worker who worked and poured over his books whole night whole day for 48 hours without rest and finally fell asleep on his heap of books on the table! He did not feel any hunger but his wife dutifully and out of sympathy delivered some tea and biscuits with small meals which he consumed without much consciousness I am sure! There was this other crazy fellow who wrote profusely his new ideas on physics without blinking an eyelid and actually being charged with energy of a hysterical kind. His body and mind would vibrate with ideas as he would pour it out on sheaves of papers perspiring all the while. He felt he was not responsible for whatever was happening to him but the heavens up there was. The Gods were responsible for his writings!
Many people have a clearly defined passionate obsession which defines their life in a way and is perhaps the only way they can keep their brains ticking and ‘loving’ life. Their way of having an ‘affair’ with life!
How many of us feel that we are living the life that we are ordained for and that there is no other way but THIS! When you can say with confidence and conviction that ‘this is the way for me and no other’ then your affair with life is well defined. This applies not only to the super creative geniuses but to anyone and anybody in any sphere in life. When they live with engagement and enjoyment with their lives it means they have defined a purpose and a meaning to it that keeps them happy.
Even if purpose is well- defined, life is never a smooth sail. It goes through rough weather and turbulence. A mother had two sons, one healthy, talented and the other, mentally challenged. The healthy one joined the Air Force and unfortunately died young while flying. The mother was a shattered lady who would scream and run out of her home in anguish frequently. She lost her senses for quite a while before she picked up the reins again and started a school for poor children free of cost. That awakened her lost soul as she brought smiles to hundreds of children in the neighbourhood. She found her peace one day as she searched for it and did not give up loving her life.
Ajit completed his professional degree, landed himself a lucrative job, left it abruptly, went into the jungles to work and live with the tribes. There he experimented with local drugs and got addicted. He married a tribal woman. After some years he left to join a seminary to become a monk. He left that soon enough and came back home and joined his family business and ultimately took that forward and found his peace. What a journey!
Anjan was blind from birth but was groomed by his parents with utmost love like a normal child. He had a passion for singing and very early on made a choice for becoming a musician. He qualified himself and found himself a job in an institution. He lives independently with his wife with pride and happiness. Whenever I talk to him there is a thrill in his voice. He never hated his blindness as a handicap.
Life is not easy. There could be times when your garden does not grow fruits anymore. There are times when the birds have stopped chirping. The sky is overcast with dark clouds with no silver lining visible. Everything seems like a desert with no mirage of water for consolation. Life seems be like hell. At such times can we have faith in existence itself? Can we trust the universe that there is space for you and your tiny life? The huge unfathomable universe harbours infinite secrets in its bosom which we are unaware of- can I look for my answers up there in the heavens.
It is not just about accepting life as it comes for that is the primary condition. The next best thing to do is to look for the opportunities that comes your way- opportunities for expansion of self and growth. The opportunities most times are never obvious to the eye. They are not visible to us easily- we need to unravel the mysteries of the deep universe and to find the opportunities that are the little treasures that are there for us to discover. At times there could be many of them which confuse the mind as to which path to choose. That is where the sense of discrimination and choice comes into play. The key lies in making the best choices under the circumstances.
Life is not about existing and breathing but enjoying whatever it has to offer to you. It’s about sailing through the good and bad times with a sense of equanimity and faith. This peaceful attitude comes only when we have a deep- rooted feeling of LOVE. Love for ourselves, love for others, love for the mysterious expansive universe. It is love which makes you patient, tolerant, sympathetic, empathetic, compassionate and graceful. Love- is the most positive, energetic, forward moving and creative emotion which gives life and perpetuates it and the brightest shade.
