PRESERVATION

There are no coincidences.

Someone comes up and says, "I read your Shivratri post..."

A workshop on art and cultural heritage drilled these words into one's being; preservation, conservation, restoration. (See ‘You Don’t Need Love’, October 2013)

The Creator, The Preserver and The Destroyer work in tandem, and all existence is a continuous process of birth and death and rebirth of mind, body, spirit, intellect, morale, understanding, caring, will, good, evil, and every other idea. The three of them depend upon each other for their being.

Which brings one to thoughts about Preservation.

So many times, one stands face to face with situations where one would rather shut it all out and close one’s eyes, if it were so simple to just stop breathing. At other times, one would willingly shed every drop of blood or smother every thought that penetrates just to overcome that which threatens.

Man has problems because he thinks he has the answer to all his problems. A problem exists because it presupposes the existence of a solution, like life exists because it presupposes death.

No, this is not about the meandering paths of math and logic and science which reach a destination that already exists. This is about webs that entangle soul and spirit, where the solution lies in giving in to the problem; where the experience of and immersion in the problem is itself the solution; where problems come not with solutions but with lessons; where mine is not mine, and you are not you. Behold! The beauty of the web!

Preservation. The Destroyer demonstrates how fragile is the creation of the Creator, and the Preserver shows how strong it is. Now one understands why all the chanters repeat the names given to The Preserver in different incarnations. The creator does his job, and who would pray for destruction? Therefore, the most prayed-to god is The Preserver.

Yet they are all one; One; incomplete without each other, the only purpose of their existence being to give meaning to the being of the others. Together, they give meaning to the world.

Torture, rape, oppression and greed will always co-exist with god and truth and beauty and laughter. Good and evil will always depend upon each other for their identity. People will always pay more heed to what they think is more important.

Zeina Glo will always advocate floating above and away from the ill feelings asking not, “Why me?”, but being prepared to face it with “Why not me!”

Every parent wants utopia for his child; the utopia is here and now, if one can smile and accept the perfection of this world.

For a few seconds one is in awe of the beauty of a flower; expand that moment to encompass life.

Someone went to the Golden Temple, paid obeisance, and dissolved when his forehead touched the marble floor. Think of the whole world as that temple of gold, and dissolve wherever you are.

Each one has closets full of anger, fear, dislike, distrust, grudges and ill-feelings stored oh-so-carefully, complete with naphthalene balls and fresh newspaper laid out. Good things like holding hands or feeling the need for each other are consigned to the dust. Let us invert this; throw out the muck we have collected over the years and tilt the scales in favour of the things that make us glow from inside.

Glow, from deep within.