What Is The Dark Night of The Soul?

The Guru says: “when you are born you enter the world crying while everyone else is rejoicing and when you die, hopefully, you have lived such a life that everyone will be crying while you are rejoicing”.

If you are not living such a life, it’s not too late to turn things around. In fact it takes only an instant. I’ve found that all it takes is ONE decision.

There is a current wisdom which says that “You only live once. This is it. You don’t get a second chance. Life isn’t a dress rehearsal”. Phrases like these are given out liberally at motivation seminars. It’s a fine exhortation to inspire the best in people.

But actually this tragically disempowering “wisdom” is wrong; perniciously wrong.  And I am not talking about past lives.

There is a kind of logical snag in it. In truth you get two lives: the one you have had so far and the one that starts from now on. Think about this. Life so far has been made up of what you have been doing, thinking, what you have become, your attainments, your possessions, whether sparse or glamorous, are all part of this first installment of life.

But beginning in these next few seconds is your new and wonderful second life. At least it will be wonderful if you make it that way. You can effectively start again if you choose to. And if you are not too content with what your life has been so far, you’d be crazy not to want to change it, wouldn’t you?  Continue reading →