In these most unstable of times, one may find themselves increasingly anxious, stressed, worried or fearful. The mind presenting an even more immediate and lethal threat than that of the imposing strikes from without. Not only is the world stage unstable, with fear and threat of terrorism, but as well we face the challenges presented on the social stage in the form of racism, sexism, and economic pressures. Accompanying that, we face a barrage of unstable, confusing, and sorrow ridden relationships. And the health of the peoples of the world has hit new lows. Is it any wonder then that the peace of my mind should falter? One may begin to wonder, hopelessly, if there is even the possibility to remain stable in the face of such circumstance.
For so long as my peace and happiness etc are linked to and dependent upon things that fluctuate, accordingly my happiness will correspondingly fluctuate. If my happiness and peace of mind are dependent for example on the state of world affairs, the weather, my bank account, or the health or beauty of the body, then I will continue to ride the roller coaster of emotions intrinsically linked with these. My bank account rises and falls. I may experience illness, beauty fades. Weather can be unpredictable and violent, and relationships often start out full of promise and then as fast as they began, they suddenly turn sour.
Therefore if I want to experience peace in a permanent and unlimited way, I must link myself with the source that never fluctuates; the ocean of peace. The one that remains ever constant and overflowing. The one who has one desire, that we should be full and complete, full of such basics as: peace, love, happiness and power. Not the power to control others, but the power to control my own mind. To be as it were, self-sovereign. If I wish to see peace in the world, I must first be that peace. What after all, is the world made up of? It is comprised of souls. Not countries, not governments, not institutions, but individuals. Each of these is composed of souls. Peace, change, begins one soul at a time. This is not poetry but simple fact.
We have seen this for ourselves in our own lives. I once took a friend to a beautiful meadow atop a lovely spring mountain above Los Angeles. It was a most serene and lovely scene. Birds chirping, flowers in bloom, the sounds of sweet silence were broken only by the tripping of a nearby brook. We had come to watch the sun set. Before too very long, he was begging me to leave this place. The quiet was causing him great stress. The reason for this is a simple one and all too common. We believe that we would have peace if the setting or my surroundings were peaceful, but not so. The noise I wish to quiet is not without, it is within. It's all that noise in my own head which causes me sorrow and peacelessness.
This is why when my friend found himself plunk down in the middle of silence the opposite result occurred. This is the same reason why so many of us keep the radio blaring, or the T.V. running even if we are not watching it (or talk a lot). So many need to have constant noise. Why? Because, when the noise outside stops, I am then able to hear my own thoughts. And since I don't like the thoughts I am thinking I'd rather drown them out. However, until I face the self, I can never hope to enjoy true and permanent peace or happiness. I may experience limited peace/happiness for a temporary period but the off times are forever wrought with the price of my unwillingness, inability or courage to face myself. It is most essential then to re-train the self to think the thoughts you want to think, rather than the thoughts you're used to thinking, because the thoughts we're used to thinking often times cause us sorrow.
Consider for a moment, a common scenario. An event or circumstance may happen once. We didn't like it then, but we choose to relive it over and over again. It may be something terrible that occurred when I was twelve years old, but I still hold on to it, give it power and nurture it even now in my fifties! It's like picking up a hot frying pan. It burns, it hurts, causes you pain and suffering. Would you keep picking it up over and over again? Would you hold on to it? You know, stand there holding the hot pan and complain? "Ow, oh it's hurting me, I'm suffering"! Maybe you'd ask your friends for advice. What do you think they might say? "Let it go!" You'd let it go wouldn't you? I hope so. So then, why don't we let go of other things, thoughts that hurt us? It's just as easy, really. We just don't have much experience with it so it seems hard. We need to practice this just like we do anything else.
Bhavna has studied metaphysics for more than 35 years and has been a Raja Yogi for more than 13 years. On the teaching staff of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BKWSU), she is the director of its Delray Beach branch, The Transformation Station, in Florida. She travels to the BKWSU headquarters in Mount Abu, India on a yearly basis for advanced training. She also travels to London, Oxford and New York for further training as well. She goes into the local community to speak at varying venues including libraries, bookstores, and in the prison system. Her practical and down to earth approach to deep matters coupled with her sense of humor help to make her a most enjoyable and enlightening speaker, teacher and author.
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