DESIRE
"Life is an opportunity, not only of accomplishing one's desires, but of fulfilling even the deepest yearning of the soul." Hazrat Inayat Khan
"Life is an opportunity, not only of accomplishing one's desires, but of fulfilling even the deepest yearning of the soul." Hazrat Inayat Khan
I just received an e-mail from my daughter telling me, and some few others, that her husband, my son in law, won the German Natural Bodybuilding Championships on Saturday. To me this is just amazing. When I tell people about him, or show a picture the reactions vary, from awe to repulsion. Awe because he did it and repulsion because how could he do that. What is interesting to me is how few see the dedication and discipline that he has put in and continues to put in to maintain this body. What I finally realized about Daron was that he is so competitive by nature that competing against anything but the very best is just not possible for him so he has to do this. His deep desire is to be the best. What is so very impressive is his absolute determination to fulfill this deep desire.
How many of us have vibrations within us that we acknowledge in some manner without really thinking of the source? There is an analogy that a friend of mine uses to describe this. He says that fulfillment of desire is linked to mastery. For instance; a young man has a desire to own a '57 Chevy Bel-Air, completely restored. He wants it so bad that he can taste it. So, he searches and searches til he finally finds a rusty hulk with no tires, most of its wiring in tatters, no windows and lots of rust. He gets a job to pay for the parts he needs, including tools to work on the vehicle and spends every spare moment restoring. At the end of two years of total dedication, he has a completely restored vehicle that is the envy of all his friends and, for him, an instant chick magnet. That is mastery and desire working together. What he has really done is followed through on a desire for mastery of his personal reality. And he succeeded. It is the same with anyone who wants something so ardently that they master a number of skills in order to succeed. What does all of this say about humans in general? Or, perhap a better question would be, what does it say about Divine intent?
"Man is born in a universe that is going on automatically and he is born helpless. It is true that the condition is such. But with what is the child born? He is born with a desire to do as he wills. This desire is the proof that there is freewill. a freewill which is put to the test under all the opposing conditions and influences which the woul meets through life. To rise above all the opposing influences and to give the fullest expression to the feewill brings about that result of life, which is the fulfilllment of the soul's coming on earth." HIK
Taking the above quote as a benchmark we can then extrapolate quite a bit of information. the first thing would be that Desire is an aspect of Divine intent. If we accept that Divine intent, or the Intelligence of the universe, is the motivation force for creation. And, if we accept that we are a part of the Universe and not separate from it, then our desires are also part of the Universe's or the Divine intent. Secondly, and this is a cornerstone of Sufi thinking, in order for the Universe to truly discover its intent, it must allow for free will. There must be an aspect of the Universe, us, which has volition and which can decide how it will respond to the Desire which seems to be an integral part of its existence. Finally, for our purposes anyway, a large part of our task is rising above the paradoxes of life, or totally embracing free will in a way that integrates all the forces and influences to create the most perfect response to life's conditions.
What do you think?
Love & Blessings, Musawwir
How many of us have vibrations within us that we acknowledge in some manner without really thinking of the source? There is an analogy that a friend of mine uses to describe this. He says that fulfillment of desire is linked to mastery. For instance; a young man has a desire to own a '57 Chevy Bel-Air, completely restored. He wants it so bad that he can taste it. So, he searches and searches til he finally finds a rusty hulk with no tires, most of its wiring in tatters, no windows and lots of rust. He gets a job to pay for the parts he needs, including tools to work on the vehicle and spends every spare moment restoring. At the end of two years of total dedication, he has a completely restored vehicle that is the envy of all his friends and, for him, an instant chick magnet. That is mastery and desire working together. What he has really done is followed through on a desire for mastery of his personal reality. And he succeeded. It is the same with anyone who wants something so ardently that they master a number of skills in order to succeed. What does all of this say about humans in general? Or, perhap a better question would be, what does it say about Divine intent?
"Man is born in a universe that is going on automatically and he is born helpless. It is true that the condition is such. But with what is the child born? He is born with a desire to do as he wills. This desire is the proof that there is freewill. a freewill which is put to the test under all the opposing conditions and influences which the woul meets through life. To rise above all the opposing influences and to give the fullest expression to the feewill brings about that result of life, which is the fulfilllment of the soul's coming on earth." HIK
Taking the above quote as a benchmark we can then extrapolate quite a bit of information. the first thing would be that Desire is an aspect of Divine intent. If we accept that Divine intent, or the Intelligence of the universe, is the motivation force for creation. And, if we accept that we are a part of the Universe and not separate from it, then our desires are also part of the Universe's or the Divine intent. Secondly, and this is a cornerstone of Sufi thinking, in order for the Universe to truly discover its intent, it must allow for free will. There must be an aspect of the Universe, us, which has volition and which can decide how it will respond to the Desire which seems to be an integral part of its existence. Finally, for our purposes anyway, a large part of our task is rising above the paradoxes of life, or totally embracing free will in a way that integrates all the forces and influences to create the most perfect response to life's conditions.
What do you think?
Love & Blessings, Musawwir
6 comments:
I think your concept and proof of freewill is lovely. I think we should admire the people that are brave enough to exercise their freewill, without hurting others. It's difficult in the world we live in today to allow our souls to stretch, yawn or dance...we are simply so confined.
Greetings
through dedication and self belief one can accomplish most anything. With our thoughts we can bring into our world what we desire, like a magnet attracts iron filings. Our thoughts whether spoken or not leech out from within us and affect those we have contact with everyday.
belief in oneself exudes outwardly, this positive force will helps attractive positives to our life. Like attracts like!
Blessings to each and all.....
I am wondering what the person who desires and then builds up and owns a vintage car would have acomplished in his soul.And what if a flood came and took his car away or an earthquake such that happened in Pakistan..would he be shattered or just go out and build another car. My desire is simply to fulfill my mission in life. Maybe some desires are a distortion of the real Desire
The point is not fulfillment of desire but attainment of mastery. Desire shows the way, mastery accomplishes. The two are linked. So, the young man accomplishes much through his concentration and mastery. What happens to the vehicle, or whatever is the object of desire is not so important as the mastery attained through ones concentration. Everything is in layers. For some it is as you say, for others much simpler. For instance I remember a fellow I met in Delhi who had just saved enough to purchase his very own bicycle rikshaw. What is his purpose? How does God speak through him? Layers, that is the key.
OK then I can accept it. It is not the product of what one does, it is what one becomes from the doing
You've left this one on top just long enough for it to haunt me - like the "tell-tale heart!"
I struggle with desire and the connection to Divine intent because I struggle with how to understand my life and the disappointments I've had, which are not small matters.
It is difficult for me to talk about this, actually it's difficult to think about or pray about, but this summer while on retreat in California, I did realize that part of my attraction to Allah O Akbar is a search for greater acceptance - which, it seems to me, opens me up to desire and some idea of entitlement, but I haven't gotten all the way to much understanding.
Post a Comment