We speak of "mind, body and spirit", but it is often the first two we work on the most, followed by the spirit. And, what of the spirit in our practice? Often we speak of the "fighting spirit..." That which prevails against another. Sometimes in a moment of clarity and humility, we glimpse of the "spirit" of a greater order... Often times we don't because we are engaged in the ego and competition.
My antidote is to retreat and recreate... What is that which existed before and will exist after us? Where is my place in the grand scheme? When I take myself too seriously, I look upon the mountains...
the lakes...
the streams...
and realize that these magnificent things stood before me and will stand for eons after I have passed on.
Some folks find such thoughts daunting and are filled with an inner turmoil... The thought of our ultimate minuteness and transience undermine and eat away at our often inflated sense of self-importance. We push the thought away. We think we will live forever. We push away those nagging doubts, the fears and the dispair...
Yet, if we can relax and let it (the ego) go... we can come to an understanding, even an appreciation of our limited but precious time and place in the cosmos. We can contribute to the beauty, be a spark in the stream of eternity...
Take time... Recreate for yourself the spirit.
david
[This message has been edited by david (edited July 05, 2000).]
