Feeling Good
We all like to feel good about ourselves, and to be told how wonderful we are boosts our egos so that we subsequently feel better. In some circles however, hardship is seen as a necessary part of spiritual development, and many mystics emphasise hardship. Jesus said that the house of mourning is better than the house of laughter. One reason for this is that in times of hardship and stress we turn inwards and towards our Lord. I discussed this in ‘Praying to God’. This is only part of the story however. Hardship in itself does not produce mystical development. Not everyone who lives in poverty is mystically advanced and in fact, hardship can become an impediment to mystical development. It’s possible to take pride in being poor, just as one can take pride in being rich. It’s possible also to take pride in pain and suffering.
On the great shrine of Delphi were the inscriptions "Know thyself" and “Everything in Moderation”. The universe goes through cycles of expansion and contraction. During the expansion phases we feel good, confident and sure of ourselves. During these times we have no need to examine our shortcomings. During the contraction phases we feel disillusioned, depressed and melancholic. We become introspective and in desperation turn towards God. These cycles take place on both an individual and cosmic level. Even the universe goes through phases of expansion and contraction.
So in life we go through times of plenty and periods of hardship. Each is a necessary
counterbalance. Many so-called self help books however, concentrate on the expansion
phase. They attempt to make us feel good about ourselves, but feeling good by
having the ego boosted is not real progress, any more so than feeling good through
shopping. With real mystical development the highs and lows of life get smoothed
out. There are still phases of expansion and contraction but we don't get over
inflated during the expansion phase or depressed during the contraction. We simply
see the face of our Lord in all its manifestations. If we are forced to turn inwards
this is performed with humility and seen as an opportunity for spiritual development.
When there is no identification with the ego there is no feeling of being hurt
when the ego is bruised. In fact, the more the ego is bruised the less it can
control us.
When we get too high – too big for our boots – life operates to bring us down. Similarly, when you have reached the depths new openings arise and you are brought out. This is illustrated in part in the book of Job in the Bible. The suffering of Job brought about his spiritual enlightenment. Mere mortals who saw Job’s suffering as being punishment from God or as capriciousness were informed otherwise. Job’s initial good fortune, his fall and his subsequent rise again were simply the cyclic forces of the universe at work. Job had the ability detach himself from the emotional impact on his ego of these forces and as a result evolved to a new level of consciousness.
