TAKING THINGS LIGHTLY
Life can often seem to be serious business. This can turn it into a solemn drudge, or worse still, a painful ordeal, or perhaps worst of all something from which we escape into numb indifference.
Spirituality teaches us to lighten up and see the humour of our predicament. The first time many people see though the illusion of all they have taken life to be, they experience an ecstatic release of tension that expresses itself in uncontrollable laughter. The delightfully irreverent modern American spiritual teacher Ram Dass calls this the “Cosmic Giggle.”
It is the belly laugh of God delighting in the wonderful absurdity of creation.
CRAZY WISDOM
Many of the great spiritual masters have become renowned for their crazy ways. For example, Ram Dass’ Hindu guru Neem Karoli Baba would sometimes be found contentedly sitting in a pile of manure on the road. Zen master Chao-chou once responded to a question by removing his straw sandals, putting them on his head, and leaving the room. Such bizarre actions shock us out of our habitual “serious” states of mind into the freshness of the spontaneous NOW. They set us free from the confines of normality and open the door to dancing with delight, rejoicing at the preposterously implausible nature of life.
PLAYING AT LIFE
the Hindus call life God’s “lila” or game. How can we play at life as if it were a game? A game has goals that we strive to reach, which give it purpose and make it exciting. However, if we forget it’s only game, then winning and losing can start to become far more important than they actually are. The real purpose of playing a game is to enjoy the playing. Spirituality helps to prevent us from getting bogged down in being too serious, and allows us to enjoy the game of life.
PLAYING OUR PART
Life is sometimes compared to a cosmic drama in which God is the playwright and director and we are the characters walking on the stage of the world. The Power of Life has laid on a tremendous show for us – what a waste this would be if we didn’t enjoy it.
Extract from Spiritual Traditions Essential Teachings to Transform Your Life by Timothy Freke
Encyclopedia of Spirituality Page 230
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