Grievance as Opportunity

In the last blog (Grievance VS Grace) I explained what grievance was, and alluded to the idea that when we find ourselves in grievance we are actually facing an amazing opportunity for growth and happiness. Let me explain that a bit further. Sadly, most people on planet earth today are not walking around in a state of the awareness of grace, or the happiness that comes with that. Nor are we spending most of our time utterly miserable. The general status quo is one of a low level state of suffering and unconscious complaint. Most of us manage this with a range of stimulants (caffeine, cigarettes, alcohol) and distractions (tv, reading, radio) that keep our true state at an unconscious level. In this way life limps along from one shade of gray to the next with just a few moments of either joy or misery breaking the surface into our conscious awareness.

It is these moments (when we are paying attention to our internal state) that are the doorways to reconnecting with the grace that transforms our life. One well known teacher of grace by the name of Papaji once made the comment that "it is hard to wake up from a pleasant dream", meaning that in those fleeting moments of joy and comfort in our life we lack the motivation to seek a deeper experience. It is our suffering that makes us question the status quo. It is misery that provide us the motivation and the opportunity to discover something more. The trick is to learn to recognise these opportunities for what they are, rather than trying to minimise and avoid them.

These moments of grievance, stress and suffering usually involve some sort of emotional pain, physical discomfort and psychological disturbance. It is however important to understand that these things are not actually the cause of the suffering. Our suffering and stress are the result of how we respond to these events, how we are being 'with' them. When we are living in the belief that we have the power to meet these events and resolve them, there is no suffering, just a natural move to action. When we believe that we are powerless in relation to them, we suffer and resist. From this context there are a number of ways in which we can view these moments as opportunities.

(1) Reclaiming Power & Transcending Limitation.

Whenever we are suffering we are in the grip of a delusion of powerlessness. We have forgotten the truth of who we are, which is Human Beings (def: Hu-man - God Manifest). Instead, we have bought into an identity of limitation that has us at the mercy of the world. These moments of suffering give us the opportunity to question our own minds and rediscover the truth about ourselves and our true power. One of the most effective methods for doing this has been given to us by an extraordinary teacher of Grace called Byron Katie. You can access her work for free at http://www.thework.com/

(2) Resolving Trauma

In future blogs I will be talking in more depth about the nature of human trauma, but for now I'll define it as 'undigested emotional experience'. When we have an experience that we are unable to naturally 'process out', whether because the situation is not safe or because it is simply overwhelmingly intense, the emotional energy gets locked in our body. Our body mind responds to this trauma much the same way it would to a foreign object in a wound. It isolates it from the surrounding energy by contracting around it and diverting our psyche away from it. This usually results in chronic tension, distorted behaviours and self limitation to avoid re triggering the held trauma. If we wish to become once more healthy and fully alive, we need to release this trapped trauma and resolve the event that caused it.

The Grace within us wants us to be whole and happy, and tries to achieve this by recreating situations that are similar to the ones that caused this original trauma and pain. Thus much of our suffering is repetitive, the same emotional triggers over and over again, until we stop resisting the experience and embrace the opportunity to finally free ourselves from this old trauma.

(3) Rediscovering Grace

The king of all opportunities is this one - the chance to reconnect with the grace inside us and discover who we are beyond our limited and sick identities. All suffering arises from the disconnection that occurs between our ego mind and our natural state of grace. If we can learn to recognise suffering for what it is, it becomes the signal that tells us to reconnect. It informs us that we have become lost in a dark delusion of being separate from God. In that moment we can respond by seeking the grace inside us in whatever way works for you (prayer, meditation, centering, breathing, gratitude, etc) and once more discover the joy that exists in every moment.

The great part about this response is that it naturally incorporates all of the others. When we once more become aware of grace all our delusions naturally dissolve. When we reconnect, our traumas naturally begin to heal and release with an ease that is remarkable.

Nobody wants to suffer, that's why we try to avoid it and numb it with addiction and distraction. Unfortunately, these things do not resolve it but only extend it into the future. It is through embracing the opportunity which our suffering presents that we can become truly free. The opportunity to surrender to the grace and the truth inside us.

Blessings