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The well worn phrase," the only thing constant in life is change" needs an update in my opinion. The way I see it, and I'm finding agreement among many observers of life, the rate of change has increased. From the speed of technological advancement, to the immediacy of our communication capabilities we live in a maelstrom of change. It is unlikely to slow down anytime soon. Collectively we have created this pace and set in motion the mechanics and means for its continuance. We may not like it but here we are in its current.
So what can we do to navigate through the rushing waters of change so that we are not engulfed by it, but rather carried to a desirable downstream destination? The answer is of course the reverse of the problem. We need to change. Sorry to be the bearer of the obvious but it's the only wise response. Resistance doesn't work. Trying to slow down the river is dam hard, and ultimately futile. Arguing against change provides only egoic satisfaction (this shouldn't be happening) and equally pointless.
In this quickening age it has become increasingly necessary to recalibrate our responses and adaptations more frequently. Many of us feel that an evolutionary impulse is behind the wholesale disruptions of long standing beliefs, structures and institutions that now are under assault by the forces of change. In other words, we are being forced to confront the disruption and disappearance of norms in our life, out of a universal intention to break us free from our identification with forms. In spiritual terms this would be the Divine impulse having its way with us, morphing our awareness into a truer version of ourselves. Jesus called this building your faith upon a rock, where the winds of change and shifting sands of impermanence could not disturb your essential self.
Each day we hear about weather disasters where powerful forces are tearing at the surface of the earth and everything upon it. Upsetting change has always been with us. Fortunately, our deepest nature remains undisturbed and undiminished through it all. It is always with us as well. This is the pearl that remains hidden within us while the weather is fair and pleasant. However, when the storms strike in our lives, and the structures that have defined us, such as jobs, finances, and health, are forcefully upended by winds of change, our essential, pure selves often get laid bare. On those days, we can see with the eyes of spiritual masters, seeing what passes away and what remains. Stripped of externals, we stand on the bedrock of our true nature, and behold the grace of change for having revealed who we really are. Seen in this way, change becomes transformation, an ally with our deepest impulse to know ourselves as God knows us.
So what can we do to navigate through the rushing waters of change so that we are not engulfed by it, but rather carried to a desirable downstream destination? The answer is of course the reverse of the problem. We need to change. Sorry to be the bearer of the obvious but it's the only wise response. Resistance doesn't work. Trying to slow down the river is dam hard, and ultimately futile. Arguing against change provides only egoic satisfaction (this shouldn't be happening) and equally pointless.
In this quickening age it has become increasingly necessary to recalibrate our responses and adaptations more frequently. Many of us feel that an evolutionary impulse is behind the wholesale disruptions of long standing beliefs, structures and institutions that now are under assault by the forces of change. In other words, we are being forced to confront the disruption and disappearance of norms in our life, out of a universal intention to break us free from our identification with forms. In spiritual terms this would be the Divine impulse having its way with us, morphing our awareness into a truer version of ourselves. Jesus called this building your faith upon a rock, where the winds of change and shifting sands of impermanence could not disturb your essential self.
Each day we hear about weather disasters where powerful forces are tearing at the surface of the earth and everything upon it. Upsetting change has always been with us. Fortunately, our deepest nature remains undisturbed and undiminished through it all. It is always with us as well. This is the pearl that remains hidden within us while the weather is fair and pleasant. However, when the storms strike in our lives, and the structures that have defined us, such as jobs, finances, and health, are forcefully upended by winds of change, our essential, pure selves often get laid bare. On those days, we can see with the eyes of spiritual masters, seeing what passes away and what remains. Stripped of externals, we stand on the bedrock of our true nature, and behold the grace of change for having revealed who we really are. Seen in this way, change becomes transformation, an ally with our deepest impulse to know ourselves as God knows us.
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