Of
all the events that we face in this life… Death is the most traumatic.
We
are used to change. We live in our house. We have our furniture
and plants. We change them every once in a while. But generally,
everything is under our control We paint a wall. If we don’t like
it, we paint it back. This kind of controlled and even reversible
change is what makes life comfortable and keeps us from becoming
bored.
Death
is a different kind of change. It is irrevocable change. It is an
uncontrollable removable of something or someone from our life!
Once they die, you cannot touch their hand or kiss their cheek.
All you have left is a corpse and a flood of memories. A part of
your life has been ripped out and it cannot be replaced. This is
death. It is a change that is our destiny from birth. It is the
most frightening event that the ego faces.
It
is this fear of death that causes people to struggle to keep things
alive. People will cause their pets and loved ones to undergo untold
suffering and misery in order to put off, for just a little while,
death. People are so frightened of death that they even try to interfere
with others right to die in dignity, even when it is no direct business
of their own.
However,
death can also be an advisor. If one approaches life with the realization
that everyday brings us closer to this fate, then our priorities
come into focus quickly. The advanced soul realizes that we have
obviously had many lives and consequently, have experienced many
deaths. While our memories of these lives are lost, we can see that
everyone is existing in a unique expression that reflects some sort
of past expression and development.
The
advanced soul then starts to see what has survived and is present
in this present time, and will move on after everyone and everything
in this life falls away into obscurity. That is why we have been
drawn to the search for enlightenment. Not to escape death, but
to join with it in a dance of celebration! From the soul’s point
of view, everything and everyone in this life is like a flower,
It springs from the earth and produces a beautiful plant that, all
too soon, withers and dies. It returns to the earth where its seeds
now lie. The flower lives to express and exist under the sky that
is sunny and sometimes full of rain. Life exist here! This is the
moment of enlightenment. Enlightenment is not in some far off universe.
It is here! Right now! It is only when we awaken to the glory and
beauty that is all around us, that we become truly alive!
Excuse
me as I wax poetic… It’s just that life cannot exist without death.
It is that irrevocable change that is beyond our control which is
our best teacher. It causes us to value each other and to value
our time together. All too often we pass over the beauty that is
around us because we are dwelling on the past.
I
remember once hearing Rama say, "How much would Carlos Castaneda
give to have just one more night in the desert with Don Juan."
I
must say, I valued my time with my teacher. While there are some
things that I could have done better and more impeccably, I never
took it for granted. Death has been a common occurrence in my family.
I knew better than to assume that our time on this earth would last
very long. My goodness, the incarnation is just flying by! I cherished
every moment I had in his light.
It
was not the man I studied with, it was that part of him that was
Eternity flowing all around and through him while I was in his presence
and when I focused on him during meditation. His physical presence
has gone. It will not return in this life. He said that he wasn’t
coming back to this primitive place… I believe him. One thing for
sure, That part of Eternity that I had when I focused on him while
I was not in his physical presence, is just as powerful… make that
, more powerful than ever!
The
Bible states, "Death where is thy sting." Death is swallowed up
in the knowledge of Eternal Light.
Do
not take anything for granted. Everything is transitory. Examine
your soul and find the peace that comes from beyond this level of
expression.
We
are a wind of Light. We blow throughout eternity. For a while we
pick up the dirt and play with it, but our destiny is to be free!
Tony
