One thing i notice about pain its façade of illusion. Its grim face makes it appear real. But it is not real. There is a duality to pain which distorts the Truth underlying everything. This duality is so entrenched, it has become a fact of life. Wherever pleasure comes, pain is lurking, waiting to cast its ominous shadow. Observe how quickly too much pleasure produces a bitter aftertaste which, if taken to extremes, provokes pain and suffering. Indeed, Sri Aurobindo calls pain and pleasure the “same thing”. They are just “differently reproduced in the sensations and emotions.”
How are they the same thing? Because they both mask the delight of Ananda, the Truth behind all existence. At the root of the malady lies our separation from the soul. We cannot find our essence and so cannot find our soul. The surface keeps pulling us out. We are masked from delight, which gets misinterpreted and rendered into the duality of pleasure and pain. Both states are only twisted from the true state of Oneness and bliss.
Until we find our soul, we will always fall prey to a variety of impacts and forces. The circuitry of our nature needs mastering by something much greater.
Intrusions will always knock on our door, but as long as the surface nature presides, there will be a faulty reception to them and it will lead to pain. The weakness of our consciousness manifesting in our nature is the cause of pain and suffering. The circuitry gets overloaded. Our nature is subject to division which creates “an egoistic and piecemeal instead of a universal reception of contacts by the individual.”
The orientation of our consciousness proves decisive. When turned upward, the Mother says, the pain vanishes. When turned downward, it is felt and even increases. “When one experiments… one sees that the bodily complaint has nothing to do with the pain. “ The difference lies in the “turn of the consciousness”. See for yourself.
This truth applies to all suffering. Psychological suffering is specifically due to “a wrong working of the mind.” Again, the surface circuitry is lacking.
Pain is a “schooling”. How else can we be goaded into climbing the peaks of delight? Each lesson teaches us only to “grow in rapture”. There are three stages to this schooling: “endurance first, next, equality of soul, last, ecstasy.” Pain is a signal that we have to organise ourselves; it is a reminder of our unfinished business. Each of us has to learn from it. It is a harsh lesson and one we normally try to avoid.
If a weed has to be destroyed, it is removed by the roots. The same applies with pain. We acknowledge its existence and try to understand what gives it nourishment. Observation is necessary. The symptoms may vary according to the leanings of the individual nature. But there is always a common factor behind pain: the weakness and falsity of human nature itself. We need to understand our nature and find the courage to stand up to anything that needs to be put right. There is no other way if one wants to become whole. Otherwise, we opt for painkillers. Knowing the cause is the first step to truly eradicating pain.
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