Making Footprints in the Snow
(10 March 2016 | Originally penned: 1 November 1983 – Green Bay, Wisconsin)
To make the next footprint in the snow,
One has to act.
To become in motion.
To act selflessly, with no concern for self-esteem.
Spontaneous in effect.
Free, flowing, fluid, and gentle—
Without thought and without awareness.
Like a small brook making its quiet way to the ocean—
That is Life.
Effortlessly... effortlessly... effortlessly.
Just like the rising and falling
Of one’s own breath.
“What do you think of the Nuclear War Syndrome, Master?”
I asked him.
“The refrigerator has an efficient thermostat,
in order to function.”
“Are you suggesting, Sir,
that the Nuclear War Syndrome is some kind of thermostat
in human evolution?”
“Just like the Ice Age came and went...
Just like Attila the Hun, and Adolf Hitler...
Every human era is marked by one catastrophe or another.”
“So, how do we stop this vicious repetition of history?”
“Breathe!
Take in a deep, fresh gulp of air.
And tell me—do you really want to end all this?
This... your Universe?
Drink a cold cranberry or apple juice—
and tell me the world should cease.
Touch your wives and daughters, kiss your sons,
and tell me this must all come to an end.
Breathe, for goodness’ sake—Breathe!”
“Wouldn’t we all perish if the holocaust happened?”
“When the one perishes, does not the All go too?
Why the fear? Why the sorrow?
Is this not what was meant to be seen?
Or do you imagine someone else is writing this script?”
“The Creator creates.
The Destroyer destroys.
A rose, fragrant and full, must one day wilt and fade.
So too has humanity grown decadent.
We worship the Ego.
And as long as the Ego is enthroned,
Duality will exist.
And where duality persists,
There will always be the shadow of self-destruction.”
“To make a new footprint in the snow...
One must act.”
“But I am only human. I fear for myself and for my loved ones.”
“Bondage and freedom hold no claim on you.
Unity and separation do not define you.
Reason and argument do not limit you.
None of these truly bind you.
So why bewail your lot?”
“The Supreme Self is untouched by birth or death,
Unconcerned with sin or blessing.
Why then should you grieve?”
“The scriptures say:
Heaven and earth are but forms and names,
Like a mirage.
The Self is present everywhere, in all things.
Why should you sorrow?”
Seek peace within.
Understand suffering, as you understand pleasure—
One is the other, only from opposite ends.
One man’s fame is another’s misfortune.
The answer is not in the galaxies,
But deep within your own chest—
At the center.
The point of origination.
The beginning of things.
The essence of Being.
The breath of Love and Compassion,
For the Universe you have helped shape.
If war must be won,
A few battles must be lost.
Surrender a little of yourself,
And you will begin to see what you have created.
If mankind would stop talking,
And instead act—
Selflessly, thoughtlessly, without hesitation—
Perhaps peace would come,
And the universe could fall silent for a time.
And maybe then,
We’d start all over again, somewhere else.
“But what about Reality?
The Russians? The Americans?
Beirut, Nicaragua, Granada?
What about the possibility that someone might
Push the panic button
And set off a chain reaction that would… obliterate Me?”
“When hungry, eat.
When sleepy, sleep.
Or just sit and watch the grass grow.”
OMMMM…
P/S: The day you can bring back to life a single blade of grass,
then, and only then, we will discuss Reality.
—
#MakingFootprintsInTheSnow #NuclearWarSyndrome #SpiritualDialogues #Selflessness #SilenceAndAction #TaoOfLife #BreathOfBeing #EndOfEgo #StartWithin #GreenBayReflections
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