Walking the Path of Love

How often do we feel afraid? For many people fear is a way of life. We  live in constant fear; fear of illness, fear of dying, fear of our loved ones dying, fear of strangers, fear of being hurt, fear of war, fear of not having enough money, fear of not making the right decision, fear of not being loved, fear of being judged, fear of not being good enough, fear of being alone... The list is endless. The 24/7 news media reminds us that we should be afraid. The government reminds us that we should be very afraid. We are surrounded by images and talk of fear.

I think fear has become such a part of living that we are no longer conscious of the ways that  fear affects us physically, mentally and emotionally. If we pay attention we notice that our breathing is shallow and often we even hold our breath, our muscles are tense and tight and we feel a sense of urgency. We must train ourselves to be aware of our thoughts and our body. We must become vigilant and if we find that we are in a place of fear, we need to stop and breathe slowly, deeply and refocus on love. We must cling to love.

"Fear is ultimately a poison that corrupts our own heart. And as the green sage Yoda told us:

"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.”

Yes, there is real fear in this world. Yes, fear is powerful. But we don’t have to walk the path of fear. We can choose love. The path of love is sweeter. The path of love is more luminous.

The path of love is not the absence of fear. Real love is made possible through vulnerability. Vulnerability is the possibility of having one’s heart open enough to let love in, and also let pain in. There is in this love the possibility of being genuinely hurt. The path of love is not the avoiding of suffering, but the welcoming of joy and suffering alike, the way a gracious host would.

So no, the path of love is not being impervious to fear. It is simply the stubborn refusal to let fear have the last word.

May we be awash in a love that begins in God, and encompasses all. May we walk the path of love."

- onbeing.org 

We Must Cling to Love

BY OMID SAFI

Flagstaff, AZ, summer 2014