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Story One
The Muslim Sufi mystic Imam el-Ghazali (b. 1058) tells of a tradition from the life of Isa ibn Maryam. Isa saw some people sitting miserably on a wall by the roadside. He inquired, "What is your affliction?" They replied, "We have become like this through our fear of hell." Isa proceeded on his way, and he saw a group of persons gathered gloomily in various postures by the wayside. He asked, "What is your affliction?" They responded, "Desire for Paradise has made us this way." Isa traveled on until he saw a third group of people. They looked like persons who had endured much, but their faces were aglow with joy. Isa asked them, "What has made you like this?" They replied, "The Spirit of Truth. We have seen Reality, and this has made us oblivious of all lesser goals." Isa spoke, "These are the people who attain. On the Day of Accounting, these are the ones who will enjoy the Presence of God."
This story, adapted from Idries Shah, Tales of the Dervishes, provides some wonderful insight into the human journey. A-Hameed Ali, in his Diamond Heart-Book One, explains the three groups Isa meets—by the way, some Muslims equate Isa as Jesus, or the Muslim Jesus.
1. The first group fears hell. Some persons create much suffering for themselves by trying to avoid suffering. These persons create a personal hell by trying to escape the pain, the conflict, and the anxiety that are a part of life.
2. The second group tries to get to Paradise. These persons live their lives attached to attaining a heavenly, pleasurable life here on earth and in the hereafter. These persons suffer as much as the first group.
Seeking to avoid pain and seeking to gain pleasure both produce suffering and equally. As Ali writes, "You can't get out of a sticky situation by becoming stickier." Unrealistic expectation, or denial of Reality, makes for more anguish in our lives, relationships, and the world. And, as Ali notes, the personality is built on the pleasure principle: avoidance of pain and going towards pleasure. There is no salvation, or wholeness, is such egocentricity.
3. Now, the third group is joyous for they seek the Truth. What is the Truth? The Truth is what is, not our fantasies of a life free of suffering and filled with pleasure. This joyous group has transcended attachment to the pleasure principle. They are not seeking avoidance through getting high on religion, spirituality, alcohol, over-the-counter drugs, work, sex, television, sports… .
Suffering and pleasure are part of Reality. That is, both suffering and pleasure are natural facets of experience. The means to joy is through accepting the truth of things as they are. This does not mean we do not work for a better life or world; it does mean that we begin with that work from a gracious acceptance that both suffering and pleasure are valid human experiences. Otherwise, we simply suffer more and deny ourselves opportunities for deep joy, a joy that encompasses life as it is—Reality—and fills our heart with strength, humbleness, and gratitude.
Such gracious acceptance lessens the suffering in the world and enlarges the love. For to reject life as it is now is an ill beginning in seeking to bring more blessing into our Kosmos.
Story Two
Once, a man appeared at the gates of Paradise. Christ met him. “Christ,” said the man, “I am so happy to get here to enjoy your heaven.” Christ said, “Friend, you are not ready for my heaven.” Befuddled, the man spoke, “Certainly, I am, for I have worked very hard to make sure I get to your heaven.” Replied Christ, “That is exactly why you are not ready to enjoy my heaven.”
Another man, afterward, appeared at the gates of Paradise. Christ met him. “Christ,” said the man, “I am so enthused to get to your heaven, for I worked hard to make sure I did not get sent to hell.” Christ said, “Friend, you are not ready for my heaven.” Confused and offended, the man spoke, “Christ, you must be wrong, for did I not do many good things to make sure I would not go to hell?” Christ replied, “Yes, you did many things to make sure you would not go to hell, and that is exactly why you are not ready for my heaven.”
The story of Isa ibn Maryam speaks to another meaning.
1. The first group refers to persons who seek religion and spirituality out of fear of going to hell. In Christian terms this would be getting a Jesus ticket to escape hell fire. Such does not lead to authentic faith or to love, joy, and peace. To seek to escape a hell is selfish, and selfishness cannot lead to blessing or true spirituality.
2. The second group refers to persons who focus on seeking to get to Heaven. While the first group is seeking to avoid the torments of a hell, this group is attached to getting to enjoy the pleasures of a coming Paradise. Again, this is selfish and taints spiritual aspiration, blocking the love, joy, and peace.
3. The third group has an inner Vision of Truth, of God, living in their hearts. They have “seen,” that is personally experienced the Reality of Sacredness. This has led them to have no need or wish to be motivated by the hope of either avoiding some hell or getting some Heaven. When someone claims the hope of Heaven is essential for motivating persons to faithfulness, this does not refer to the contemplative, or mystic, for this person is immersed in the Love of God and, thus, this denuding of interest in all else but Love dissolves attention to motives pertaining to damnation or reward. This Vision has, indeed, baptized one in a death from the very self that in many seeks for itself avoidance of damnation and enjoyment of Paradise.
A contemplative mystic has no need to be motivated by fear of a hell or aspiration for a Heaven. She is in Love. She is part of the universal Body of Christ, the Word, Who is the Perfect Incarnation of Love. She is in Love with the world of creatures. She is deeply loved in Christ by brothers and sisters in the Word, and she deeply loves them—I refer to those who are among what the New Testament calls pneumatikoi, or spiritual ones. She is in Love with many whom the “official” Christians damn, but, she sees the Christ in them whom other persons damn and that many are more Christian than those who damn them. Nature manifests the Glory of Grace to her.
Her daily walk flows from a holistic Vision of Life. Each day she breathes the Presence of the Beloved and enjoys the Mystery of the Godhead. No human can take this Vibrant Vision from her, for no person gave it to her. Her enemies only strengthen it by their opposition and defamation, and they cannot understand the joy and courage that flows from this daily living in Grace: they can only mock her in their ignorance of this Beatitude that they find no way to receive.
To focus on either a fear of some hell or an aspiration of some Paradise would be a distraction from the Kingdom of God, the Party of Christ, for the contemplative mystic, for the Party is all around and within her. Indeed, in Love, she already is enjoying Heaven, and she shares Heaven with persons ready to receive. In this contemplative mystic, being in Love, she needs neither motive to escape a hell or get a Heaven, for she is one with God, now. This removes the self-centering that desires either avoidance of future judgment or future reward. All fear and aspiration pertaining to the beyond-death state, revolving around a separate sense of self, apart from the Divine, are swallowed in this Love.
The way to Joy is the path of forgetting the selfishness that needs to work for eternal gain or to avoid eternal loss. The way to Peace is to live from the motive of Love Itself.
Certainly, not all persons need to abdicate the motive of avoidance or aspiration. Yet, I contend it is the will of Love to lead us to grow into the selflessness in which Love is the only motive for our devotion and service. All lesser loves, then, are taken captive, and blessedly so, by the Flame of Sacred Brilliance and within the heart and mind of the mystic, who takes such freedom into the world and in the name of the Christ, Who is Grace.
Reflections
What encouraged you in the writing today? Explain.
Did you disagree with something in the writing today? If so, explain.
Spiritual Exercise
Make sure you have a sacred space in your home for time alone in prayer and spiritual reading.
Make sure you are in a covenant group. For more information on covenant groups, write me at the address below.
Consider, if you are not already, sponsoring a child through Compassion International. You can find out more about Compassion International by going to www.compassion.net to read about sponsoring, in the name of Jesus, children living in poverty. Thanks! Brian K. Wilcox
Brian’s book An Ache For Union can be purchased at major book dealers.
To contact Brian, write briankwilcox@comcast.net .
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