The views of the rose flower from the front and back gave me a surprise. The flower had hidden three buds, which could be seen only when I went behind the flower. I noticed the flower for three days and had missed the hidden buds. It was the strands of the web on the flower on one morning, which was visible from the front along with one bud, which prompted me to go behind the flower to look for the spider hidden behind the flower!
What I noticed was the three buds which surprised me! I missed this sight for the three days when I watched the flower during my walk.
I remembered a parable that Jesus fo Nazareth spoke which is recorded in the gospel of Luke chapter 15 verses 8-10. It is about a woman who had ten silver coins. The question Jesus paused to His listeners was, ' if she has ten silver coins and looses one coin, does she not light a lamp and seep the house and search carefully until she finds it?'
It occurred to me that something within me can get submerged amidst the daily living experiences! It can be sensitivity to listen or to feel; or thoughtfulness towards others in need; or nearness to Anna or children and their families or sensing the trends and practices of how people live in difficult situations. I can continue living without being conscious that I have lost the awakened state of my heart !
In my case of noticing the buds hidden behind the rose flower, what involved was a detour to find what was hidden and remained lost to my sight!
The Pope, Leo the 14th since chosen to lead the Catholic church decided to walk in the streets of Vatican in the night. That is when he noticed migrants sheltering themselves in the streets for want of safer place. He lighted the lamp of openness, mindfulness and thoughtfulness to discover what was missing in his consciousness.
The parable of Jesus, spoke about the woman searching her house to look for the lost coin.
The house symbolises to me the interior home within me! The soul of my life.
I came across a prayer of David, the writer of Psalm 142, in the Bible in verse 7: 'Bring my soul out of prison so that I give thanks to thee'.
I can be a prisoner within myself. I recollect some instances in the recent years of stress, disappointment, and broken relationships from which I am yet to be fully free. I sometimes felt the heaviness of being imprisoned within due to disappointments or failed aspirations. When this consciousness dawned on me, I sent out messages to a few from whom I felt distanced. I felt surprised by the prompt and warm response, offering the olive branch to feel connected.
The 3rd verse in Psalm, 142, ' When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, Thou didst know my path..' brought a sense of nearness to God, who walks beside me while I am on this searching journey to find what I have lost while living relationally with others in the work place.
It is the lamp that reveals the shadow within. The woman lighting the lamp to search was another symbol of looking for what remains hidden.
David the Psalmist in Psalm 51, makes another revealing confession: 'Behold Thou dost desire truth in the inner most being and in the hidden part Thou wilt make me know wisdom' (v5).
It is in finding the truth within, the journey towards wisdom begins. The words of Jesus of Nazareth in the gospel of John 8:32, ' ..You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free' comes as the pathway to find light that shall lead us to find that which remained lost or hidden within.
To know oneself as one exists within is the knowledge of the true self. It is when we journey towards desiring to be whole, we become more familiar with ourself and feel delighted by more discoveries about ourselves. The journey to look behind the rose revealed three more buds hidden ! Our life is a treasure house of goodness and abundance, as God is in the inhabitant of our soul.
That consciousness dawns on us when we are on an inner journey to know ourselves as we are truly within. It is the fear of encountering darkness within which stops a person from travelling inward to look! When one looks inward, what one can discovers is seeds of goodness sprouting! The shadows get obliterated in the light of the healing touch God brings within.
It was when Jacob was wrestling with 'a man when he was left alone' (Genesis 32: 24-32), Jacob had an enlightenment to confess that he was the deceiver, Jacob, following which he was given a new name Israel. His eligibility for a new name in the words of the man who blessed him with a new name was: ' ..you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed' (v28).
There is a struggle or a journey to become oneself. The woman who lost the coin searched the whole house till she found the lost coin.
It occurs to me that the coin was only hidden! Life is lived journeying towards to discover more of what remains hidden!
Becoming oneself or finding oneself is a journey of enormous delight!
M.C.Mathew(text and photo)
Thank you for that very insightful and thought provoking words of wisdom.
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