Page 251 - Mystic Pathways through the Bible

d
chapter nine 245
and endurance cause agitation in the human mind. When you lose your mental balance over little things, you are throwing away your spiritual treasure.
The next treasure among the six-fold virtues is dama, the control of senses. The world cannot be experienced without the senses, which are a wondrous gift of God allowing you to admire the Divine creation. As Lord Jesus says, “Behold the lilies of the eld, how do they grow?” The senses should generate an awareness of Divine majesty, instead of restlessness and mental craving that thrive when the senses dominate the mind. When the senses operate under the guidance of reason, they bring to you a feeling of Divine Presence. The world becomes a vast temple where the birds are singing the glory of God, the breeze whispers of eternity, and the sun pours down its effulgence as if it is declaring the luminosity of God.
From a practical point of view, the art of dama implies living a life of rhythmic balance, not extremes. There is a time to sleep, a time to wake up, a time for activity, according to your circumstances. But life should not be lived abruptly. If your life is not balanced, the senses become your master. If your life is harmonious, the senses become servants of the advancing mind.
Uparati, the third virtue, implies detaching from the fruits of sel sh actions, performing your