Days of More Light

to know,

Rather consists in opening out a way

Whence the imprisoned splendour may escape,

Than in effecting entry for a light

Supposed to be without. - Robert Browning

Here in the midst of winter in northern Washington state, natural light is in scant supply. The sun stays stingily hidden until nearly 8 am at the winter solstice and departs again around 4 pm. And even when it is in the narrow range to illuminate the land it is most often shrouded by cloud cover, and the air is wet and cold. This has been quite an adjustment coming from sun drenched California. There in the Golden State, the ubiquitous sunny and blue skies summoned us outdoors. Here there seems a beckoning toward finding light within. Such a directional shift of seeking, from the perspective of inner life is a good thing. Yet another prompt to nudge me closer to the true source of wellbeing. At this latitude I am invited to shift attitude.

That is not to say that once this pandemic has lifted its hold on mobility, we won’t look for warmer and sunnier destinations to soak in during these dark winter months. We will travel but then we must return of course, because home always calls us to return, and then we can embrace the spiritual advantage inherent in the conditions which challenge us. This matter of unpleasant weather is just one of 10,000 things which can be grist for the mill of our own awakening. Each of us has our list of preferences, our likes and dislikes, our litany of objections and demands which we engage alternately in the wildly swinging phases of our egoic minds. When you and I are caught up in this frenzy of binary thinking, of seeking and avoiding, the very push and pull of preferences can exhaust and leave us bereft of any enduring satisfaction or peace of mind.

Thankfully, there is a brighter way to live this life, despite periodic phases of darkness. Jesus and other great sages have all pointed to the presence of an inner light, a spark of the Divine, a celestial eye in which to see truth and beauty. Simply stated, we can be okay without life having to be a certain way. And we can be especially optimistic about our chances of achieving this state of mind and heart because it is not the sole province of enlightened masters such as Jesus or Buddha. It is our true nature that lies within us here and now. Like universal energy which is neither created or destroyed it resides within us, perhaps dormant and undetected but no less the reality of you and I, fully onboard and discoverable.

The way we discover and uncover this abiding wellbeing first requires that we move away from the window that looks outside expectantly for the sunny day. We must, at least momentarily, turn away from appearances of lack and limitations. As Jesus said “Do not judge by appearances…” Despite the seduction of the notion that the world will someday conform to our preferences and we’ll be happy at last, this is the most insidious of illusions that only perpetuates our suffering here. And once we have withdrawn our expectations for outer change, we must be exceedingly expectant of the good we will find within ourselves. Spiritual vision is enhanced by faith and positive expectation. While the kingdom of heaven resides within us here and now, we will not see it or know it or be blessed by this reality if we are in doubt or disbelief. By faith and trust and the sincere surrender of my demands on life, I will find the light within, and it will be sufficient to brighten my outlook no matter how dark it may seem on the outside. This is the promise and the fulfillment of the spiritual journey that you and I must take.

And so it is.

With you, in faith and love,

Larry