The gift of convenience

You who found me here. Do you see?

Do your eyes tell you the truth? Are you one with the masses: the terrifyingly pleasant, smiley faced, consumer eyed crowd that come and go? Its hard to tell for sure in this dim haze.  These eyes long for the light, but closed they will remain, lest they be burned by a lie. Towering above me; standing there, making a shadow, even in my darkness.

You who found me here. What do you see?

Do you see another? What is it that is moving within your heart? Is it pity? Is it guilt? Is it sorrow? For whom? Will you choose again to be blind? You have come from the light have you not? Have the colourful hues blurred your vision like so many times before? I have been waiting here patiently for you in this dark place. Now you are here. By some fate. By some chance or fortune.

You who found me here. Who do you see?

Do you see another? Do not speak to me unless you truly know. This silence is too precious for empty words. Emotions have no say here. Do not wound me by inauthentic expression. If, in me, you see another, turn and go back into the crowd. It is not your time. Go back. Go back to the madding crowd. Go back to the expensive pashminas, the photos of shining pagodas, the Thangka paintings in your backpack that you scored for a penance with a conquering smile. Go back to the lie that satisfies your minds perpetual craving for happiness .

Go tell them about a poor homeless boy that moved you to tears. Tell them how touching this encounter was and what or how much you gave. Be grateful that you are not in his position. And then try to push away the sound of your bleeding heart, wounded by your minds refusal to truly see.

While you walk away from this moment, know this: I will still be waiting here for you patiently. One day you will return. One day you will surrender all the broken pieces of a life divided. One day you will sit here with me in this darkness and truly be at peace. On that day, I will open my eyes and i will see myself....... for the very first time. This is our destiny my beautiful, eternal soul

Mandir Mein

A friend once asked me about a Shiva temple.  If i was asked which would be the best Shiva temple to visit for some kind of enlightenment? I would say: The best one would be the one that exists in the heart.  It may sound Pat and cliche but hear me out at least.  In India and Nepal, I have seen some of the oldest Shiva temples in the world. One of them being Pashupatinath. In Pashupatinath you will see, at any given time, people coming to die in the temple, mothers coming with their new born babies, bodies being burned on pieces of wood, couples coming in for fertility ceremonies, business men coming in for financial blessings. There is death, life and everything in between, all of this can happen at once in the temple. There is chaos and wonder at any given time just like our lives. In the middle of it all is a black stone linga. Darkness. Nothingness. This is the presence of Shiva.

Here is a thought among the many that circulate and are equally true: The temple is our heart. The temple is life. In the middle of the temple is a darkness. From the darkness burns an eternal flame. Shiva means pure Bliss. Pure freedom from the trappings of manifest existence. Shiva is one without a second. One who is complete in the Self. It is better to visit the cave of ones heart where an eternal flame resides then all the temples in the world without meditating the implication.  There is so much to talk about with regards to this.  Shiva.  Mandir.  Self.  What are your thoughts about it?