Page 42 - Microsoft Word - SPIRIT AND THE MIND.doc

Q. When is a man loved?
A. When he is without vanity.
Q. Of all the world’s wonders, which is the most wonderful?
A. That no man, though he sees others dying all around him, believes that he himself will die.
Why is it, even though we know intellectually that we’re here for only a brief period of time, that we proceed as if we’ll live forever— almost completely losing sight of the miraculousness of our creation . . .seeming totally unaware of the obvious pressing question, “What is this all about?” This blindness is an extraordinary psychological and spiritual phenomenon obvious to anyone upon even brief reflection. Yet within seconds it escapes us and we are caught again in the grasp of maya.
Why should something so obvious be hidden from awareness? Why don’t we give it proper attention? Because to do so would be a direct assault on the integrity of our ego. Anything that challenges the feeling of security and certainty of our separate individuality brings us face to face with the great existential abyss, the terror and despair of facing an inconceivable void, a meaninglessness and nothingness beyond imagination.
Notes
1. A Hindu epic consisting of about 100,000 verses, the Mahabharata is considered the longest poem in the world. It is set at the time of the life of Lord Krishna, approximately 5,000 years ago, and is about the battle between good and evil.
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