Namaste Beautiful ones,
Here's a parable:
There was a man who had heard of this great thing called "air". He
had never seen air before, experienced air before or even knew that
air existed. So, he went to a local teacher of air to teach him all
about it.
"What is air? Where is it? How can I find it?", he asked.
"It is right here. All around you. You are in it right now.", said
the teacher.
"Where? I don't see it? What does it look like? What should I be
looking for? How do I catch it?", he responded.
"There is no 'where', because it is everywhere. You can't see it
because it is nothing. You can't look for it, because you will
never find it. You can't catch it or hold it because it is
nothing.", answered the teacher.
"Well, I want to be a part of this air that many say is what gives
life. I want to understand it. I want to experience it. I want to
swim in it, be in it and breathe in it."
"You Already Always Are.", replied the teacher.
"I don't understand. I don't feel it. I don't see it. I can't
hold it. I don't know what this air is or how to be in it.", said
the frustrated man.
"You would not be alive and breathing if it were not for this air,
which can not be seen, touched, grasped or known as It IS. You
believe it isn't right in front of you because of this. Yet, here,
there, everywhere it Already Always IS. Silent and being...
bringing life to your lungs.", answered the understanding teacher.
So the man went home, exhausted and confused, hoping that he would
be able to understand this air that brings life and wondering why he
could not see, feel or touch what the teacher said was always
there. That night during sleep the man stopped breathing. In panic
and dread he began gasping and coughing. In then the next instant
he breathed and now knew that this air was always there. More
familiar to him than anything else. It had been ignored because it
was so close, so familiar, so ordinary, unseen, untouchable, pure
expanse and was a part of his being. What did he lose? Nothing but
the misunderstanding. What did he gain? Nothing, it was Already
Always there. What was the result? The constant and continual
Gratefulness and Joy for this breath which gave him Life. It was
not separate from him nor he from it. It was the Breath of his
Being.
Maha Shanti O,
Sarojini
