“This is the ultimate aim of my life… Calamity may come and go, mountains may break upon my head, but I will not leave my promise to attain nirvana.” – Buddha
I love when this happens.
A few hours after I wrote yesterday’s email, about how Awakening is the central mission of my life, and all of my “worldly” goals are organized around this singular objective…
…I lay down for a nap, and opened a book to do some light reading as I dozed off.
On the very first page, staring back at me, was the quote above:
“Mountains may break upon my head, but I will not leave my promise to attain nirvana…”
I read and re-read that passage several times, before putting the book down.
I couldn’t read any further, but I knew I wouldn’t fall asleep.
My mind was set alive by the burning intensity of those words, and recognition of their truth:
“Mountains may break upon my head…”
So many mistake the spiritual path for a casual stroll through the land of love and light, full of peace and joy and stillness.
The instructions are simple:
Meditate quietly for 10 or 20 minutes in the morning, read some scriptures if that’s your thing, or listen to some Alan Watts and Ram Dass tapes if you prefer.
Be nice, be kind, be gentle, and say your prayers.
Take your daily dose of spirituality alongside your vitamins, and life will be smooth and peaceful.
Not bad advice, if your goal is general wellbeing and quality of life — and I would never discourage anyone from doing any of those things.
Unless our goal is spirituality.
Then, the earthquake comes, and the mountain comes crashing down upon us.
Quickly, we realize that the “true” spiritual path is not a daily vitamin or a set of rules or a program to follow…
It is an inferno that burns away everything that is not us:
Our emotional attachments, our false belief systems, our fears, and every other holding pattern that binds us from expanding into the full dimensions of who we really are.
Our ego is highly flammable, fire is always painful, and nothing doesn’t burn.
And what the true spiritual path asks of you is nothing short of everything.
Laying there in bed, I allowed those words to wash over me once again, feeling my commitment to this path harden into stone:
“Mountains may break upon my head…”
Then I opened my eyes, got up, and lit the flame.
– T
P.S. The deeper point of today’s message is not just about the intensity of the spiritual path, but the intensity of any large mission in life:
Whether it is awakening, entrepreneurship, true love, or even parenthood (I’m assuming).
All will require all of you.
To build a world-class business, you must first become someone capable of creating a world-class business.
To find and grow a “true love” relationship, you must first become someone capable of loving that deeply.
And to awaken — to become who you truly are — you must first un-become everything you are not.
It’s all or nothing, here:
So if you’re going to give all of yourself to something, make sure it’s the right thing.
