Whenever the mind feels sad, anxious, or troubled, read this!

When the struggles of life are engulfed by the darkness of mental sadness, anxiety, and restlessness, the vision of discernment becomes obscured. The scriptures have called this world the 'abode of sorrow' and the 'ocean of worldly existence'—an ocean where waves of sorrow are inevitable. We must understand that these adversities are not mere coincidence, but a spiritual arrangement. Is it possible that what we regard as our failure is actually some secret plan of the Lord? Let us understand the beneficial truths hidden behind these difficult circumstances.

1. Adversity—The Inevitable Path of the Lord's 'Unconditional Grace'

Our 'ego-identification with the body' (attachment to the body and ego) gives us the delusion that the Lord's grace is present only in pleasant circumstances. The reality is the opposite. The Lord sends adversity in the form of 'unconditional grace' to immerse us in love for the Divine. If you are trapped in a salt ocean and want to escape from it, then to reach the shore you must endure the currents of that salty water and its harshness. This is not a punishment, but the price of exiting the ocean. Similarly, to cross this ocean of worldly existence, facing sorrowful circumstances is inevitable. A true bhakt accepts these afflictions as prasad from the Lord.

2. The Labyrinth of Maya

The day bhakti begins to color your nature, on that very day the 'maya' of the world becomes active. When people criticize you without reason, mock you, or hurl arrows of harsh words at you, know that you are on the 'ascent of bhakti'. When a wicked person causes you pain, behind that person stands the 'Mighty One' (the all-powerful Lord) himself. He gives that person power so they may test your patience. If you react, become angry, or fight back, then the 'labyrinth of maya' is proven and you are defeated.

3. The End of False Refuge

Our nature is to seek our 'refuge' (support) in persons, objects, or worldly relationships. The Lord's strategy is to break all those weak crutches on which we lean. Only when life is left with nothing but darkness and solitude does a person's true discernment awaken. Adverse circumstances free us from that 'attachment' (clinging) which we cannot relinquish even through years of naam jap. This is a harsh yet supremely merciful intervention of the Lord. When all the doors of the world close, then the Lord brings us the realization that "in this world, no one belongs to anyone." This solitude is the place where the jiva naturally takes refuge in the Lord.

4. The Death of Ego is the 'Supreme State'

The principle of the bhakti path is—"Once you must die." Here death is not physical, but of the ego. To swallow criticism, abuse, and insult without any retaliation is to 'die'. In the Shrimad Bhagavata, Lord Shiva says: if someone grabs your neck and throws you out, spits upon you or beats you, yet if you remain peaceful and offer no rebuttal, then you become worthy of the 'Supreme State'. This patience is the true 'touchstone' of bhakti. Just as a seed buries itself in the earth and loses itself, only then does it become a great tree. "The seed transforms into flowers when it mingles with the dust."

5. The Path to Lasting Peace

The only way to escape the fire of the world is through the company of saints and contemplation of the principles of the Shrimad Bhagavata. Here 'satsang' does not merely mean listening to recitation, but standing firm in 'detachment' (the complete renunciation of what is improper) and in 'truth'. Until there is complete forgetting of the body and the world, lasting liberation from sorrows is not possible.

Conclusion

The adversities of life do not come to destroy you, but to purify your inner being. If you patiently endure the pain of this path, you will reach that place of 'supreme coolness' where no suffering of the world can touch you. Conversely, if you keep fighting these obstacles, you will have to burn continuously in the fire of worldly desires.

Original article: bhajanmarg.com