Losing Yourself
Toronto, Ontario
Losing something dear to you can be the most unnerving thing. Losing a friend or family member through death is critical, or even for a monastic person to have his or her japa meditation beads being misplaced and not recovering them can be a great loss. I’ve experienced it.
Today while trekking the Belt Line Ravine, an elderly woman I met was also trekking into the ravine with two dogs. She ended up losing one, and in a kind of panic she asked about her 3 legged Siberian Husky that goes by the name of Tana. I was not quite sure how to appease the dog owner, I tried, at least I wished for Tana’s return.
I guess the worst thing you can lose is yourself. That appears to be the situation for most of us. Somehow or other we’ve got ourselves into entanglements of all kinds. Our souls get buried in the mire of maya. Maya means illusion, or that which is not. Maya manifests in the form of mistaking the body for the self, hence, the soul proper becomes obscured.
As we learn from the Gita, the soul cannot be destroyed by any means, but it can in fact become covered over by layers of deception. Why would anyone want to lose their soul? Why would anyone want to deny their very own self? Yet, it goes on on a mega scale.
“Don’t lose your grip or traction,” I had to remind myself while making my way through the ice lane trail. “Don’t lose your grip on life, your purpose, your being. Trust in the reality of the spiritual self. I am a spark of life, a spark that doesn’t become extinguished… ever. If I engage in devotional service I will keep that spark glowing. Once I stop thinking about other’s needs and zero in only on my bodily needs, I’m doomed. The spark becomes concealed.
I do hope that Tana is found, even though I may learn she could be gone for this life.
Let’s not get lost.
9 KM
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