Eternity
Saw those two words and – I have no other word for it – I freaked.
We are all waiting to hear those two words. Okay. Not waiting, I guess. But dreading to hear the final buzz, to have the light go off and have it not come back, to look back at our life – if that life-flashing-before-your-eyes at the end is true – and find that our life was wasted on things and people and moments that did not mean anything.
(But how could it be that every moment would mean something? What pursuit will that be? Isn’t life supposed to be filled – some of the time – with drudgery? Doesn’t that make the moments that stand out – stand out?)
At that very moment, every thing – every problem, every pursuit, every goal, every yearning – seemed trivial.
It will all end for every one – every one – at one point.
If we have a common destiny – this is it. The end.
And just like that – perspective shifted.
Things – and people and situations that made the heart heavy – seemed ludicrous. Concerns – no matter how deep or hurtful – did not mean anything. They are temporary – like the cold wind that kisses us this winter.
And if concerns are temporary, what does it mean? Should one give it the attention it does not deserve?
And if life is temporary, what does one do?
The answer is different for different people.
Zen Habits recommends:
Live life just for fun. Do handstands. Dance. Bound up a hill. Sing with your child. Write something with a light and lifted heart. Be love, and compassion, and joy.
A Buddhist quote says:
The greatest achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the world’s ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.
– Atisha
Yet another:
A brahmin once asked The Blessed One:
“Are you a God?”
“No, brahmin” said The Blessed One.
“Are you a saint?”
“No, brahmin” said The Blessed One.
“Are you a magician?”
“No, brahmin” said The Blessed One.
“What are you then?”
“I am awake.”
Time waits for nobody. Every minute is to be grasped. And that means —
To be kind to people. As one saying goes, ‘Despite all appearances, no one is really evil. They are led astray by ignorance. If you ponder this truth always you will offer more light, rather then blame and condemnation.’
To be kind to ourselves. Another saying: ‘You, no less than all beings have Buddha Nature within. Your essential Mind is pure. Therefore, when defilements cause you to stumble and fall, let not remorse nor dark foreboding cast you down. Be of good cheer and with this understanding, summon strength and walk on.’
To be there in the present – hear the chatter of a daughter, feel the tug of a son’s hand, see the little things that a husband does to show that he cares – and not to push these realities aside just because they seemed insignificant in the face of a future that is insistent and threatening and seemingly more important.
Be awake.