Fw: [RamanaMaharshi] Creation

[Guest guest]

I love the "cut to the chase" sense of Sri Ramana's words. They

effectively remove the layers of "junk" that our minds have wrapped

us up in.

I am always reminded of something a friend said to me in a Yoga Class

I attended when I was a more flexible person...

"Pain? Pain is neither good nor bad, it just is...and we cannot live

without it...cannot survive...pain is necessary to warn us, to keep us

in a safe path...and to teach us about ourselves and others. Without

pain, people would be either merciless or dead. So, of course, no

one LIKES pain, but they cannot do without it. It's something that

one needs to deal with...not fight...the more you fight pain, the

more pain tries to teach you!"

I then had one of my first physical revelations...of being able to

pass through the moment of pain and reach a point of central

knowing...beyond the pain...and to be in a state of release. Ever

since, when something truly painful strikes me...I use this

technique...and the pain ceases to be something I am fighting or

trying to run from...it just is...and I am...and I use the awareness

of it to move gently and gradually to a state where that pain is no

longer necessary.

If we do things in life that bring us pain (physical and emotional) we

should ask ourselves--what can I do to move to a place where this pain

will no longer be necessary? Fighting the pain can only lead to

injury or numbness...and that is not the enlightened goal. I am not

suggesting that anyone should seek pain, or prolong pain...but find

the harmonious path to transcend pain, or move away from the source

of pain (which is as nature intended) in a safe and healthy way.

This reminds me of a TV show, a Western Spoof of some sort, where one

of the cowboys had been wounded by an arrow through the shoulder. He

was in great agony. "Help me!" he cried to his loyal friend.

His friend took a close look at the situation and replied,

"OK, but you gotta choose. You can leave it in and be in a lot of

pain for a long time...or I can yank it out and you're gonna be in a

lot more pain for a lot less time. What do you want me to do?"

"Pull it out, pull it out!" he cried.

The friend then began yanking on the arrow, which refused to come free.

"Stop, stop! You're killing me!" screamed the wounded cowboy.

""Yeah, but I am trying not to hurt you," his friend replied.

"To hell with that! Just yank the damn thing out and hurt the crap

out of me. Your way is unbearable!" he insisted.

So the friend places his boot on the wounded cowboy's chest and gives

a mighty pull, and the arrow pops free. The cowboy screams loudly.

"Are you all right?" asks the friend holding the arrow.

"Oh, yes, I feel much better now," then he hits the friend.

"What was that for?" demands the surprised friend, still holding the arrow.

"That was so you could feel better, too, once the pain has gone away!"

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Namaste

Zenbob

[Guest guest]

- viorica_weissman

RamanaMaharshi

Thursday, April 25, 2002 9:46 AM

[RamanaMaharshi] Creation

Question: Is the world created for happiness or misery?Sri Ramana

Maharshi:Creation is neither good nor bad; it is as it is. It is the

human mind which puts all sorts of constructions on it, seeing things

from its own angle and interpreting them to suit its own interests. A

woman is just a woman, but one mind calls her '`mother'' another

'`sister'' and still another '`aunt' and so on. Men love women, hate

snakes, and are indifferent to the grass and stones by the roadside.

These value-judgements are the cause of all the misery in the world.

Creation is like a peepul tree; birds come and eat its fruit, or take

shelter under its branches, men cool themselves in its shade, but some

may hang themselves on it. Yet the tree continues to lead its quiet

life, unconcerned with and unaware of all the uses it is put to.It is

the human mind that creates its own difficulties and then cries for

help. Is God so partial as to give peace to one person and sorrow to

another? In creation there is room for everything, but man refuses to

see the good, the healthy and the beautiful. Instead, he goes on

whining, like the hungry man who sits besides the tasty dish and who,

instead of stretching out his hand to satisfy his hunger, goes on

lamenting, `Whose fault is it, God's or man's?'It is true that we are

not bound and that the real Self has no bondage. It is true that you

will eventually go back to your source. But meanwhile, if you commit

sins, as you call them, you will have to face the consequences of

such sins. You cannot escape them. If a man beats you, then, can you

say, '`I am free, I am not bound by these beatings and I don't feel

any pain. Let him beat on'? If you can feel like that, you can go on

doing what you like. What is the use of merely saying with your lips

`I am free'?====================================Community email

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