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by
Mansukh Patel
 I remember
being deeply touched by an incident that took place in Northern Ireland a
few years ago. A bomb was about to explode in the middle of the city. The
whole area had been cordoned off and evacuated except for a few policemen
and bomb disposal experts. Suddenly a little girl appeared in the middle
of the area. She had obviously been overlooked during the evacuation
process. Everybody froze. There were only moments to go before the bomb
was due to explode. What to do? Just one policeman had the courage to act,
removing his helmet and jacket he walked slowly towards the little girl.
As soon as he reached her he picked her up speaking softly and then ran.
The bomb exploded seconds later.
You
have probably heard the saying, You are in the right place at the right
time and that nothing is out of place. But how many of us
really believe this and are able to respond to the call of the moment?
An American missionary
once asked Gandhi what it was that had spurred him on to give his life so
totally to serve humanity. Gandhi replied that it was one impactful moment
in his life when he spent the night in a station as a result of being
thrown off the train because he was Indian. He used the anger and outrage
he felt to make a commitment to fight for the rights of coloured people. I
asked myself, he said, shall I submit to this injustice or work to
change it for the sake of others? Thirty years later this simple
Indian man had earned the name Mahatma, meaning Great Soul, as
a result of his dedicated work. That one moment had changed his life.
Peace Pilgrim, in her
small booklet, Steps towards Inner Peace described how, in the
second phase of her life she was deeply seeking to know what she was here
to do. After walking all night in the woods searching for her own personal
purpose in life, just as the sun began to rise she suddenly felt
overwhelmed by a feeling of complete willingness to give her life
to the world without reservation. For her it was a tremendous turning
point from which she could never return to what she called
"completely self-centred living." From that moment her life
became filled with meaning for as she said, ‘I
knew my life-work would be work for peace, that it would cover the whole
peace picture – peace among nations, peace among groups, peace among
individuals.’
Peace Pilgrim and Gandhi
had something in common. Both of them decided in a moment to enter into
life with such passion that thousands benefited as a result. I am sure
that each one of us has experienced such moments - when we have responded
instantaneously to an inner calling. This is when the most amazing
miracles happen.
I once saw an interview
with the teacher and Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh who related
that during the Vietnam War there were often times when even during prayer
services they found themselves in a middle of an air raid. This did not
stop them from praying however. They engaged in what he called meditation
in action, quickly evacuating the temple and making their way to help
the injured and the needy. This was active prayer for them.
This process of
responding to the moment is known in my tradition as being fully
available. Those who are able to be available totally to the moment
and the place they find themselves in, enter into another realm where they
feel completely supported in the most profound way. By engaging fully we
offer ourselves as a bridge between harmony and disharmony. Instead of
retreating we are able to accept with grace what is demanded of us.
In Hiroshima I met a
78year old woman who had been 24yrs old when the atomic bomb exploded. Her
arms had been severely burnt and even today she is still working to
stretch the skin in her arms. She told me how she had become an Ambassador
for Peace travelling abroad to give talks about the need for peace. She
felt so strongly that this was a role she had been given by the Divine as
a result of having been a victim of the Hiroshima tragedy and this deep
conviction enabled her to carry on her work without fear. She was
determined to use her experience to help others in the world.
This inspired me deeply
at the time as I realised that the answer for each one of us lies in our
wisdom to use our lifes experiences in such a positive way, even if those
experiences have been painful, to help humanity.
As peacemakers we need
to realise that the expression of how we help others in the world will be
different. For some, it may be taking food to the homeless or collecting
aid for third world countries. Others may take slide shows to groups and
talk about non-exploitation of the earth’s resources and so on. We just
need to have the courage to go out and meet situations that are
disharmonious and share the knowledge that we have gathered over the years
that will make peace a reality.
As a peacemaker myself,
I know that being fully available helps us to enter into life
without preferences just as St. Francis gave his love to lepers and rich
men alike. It means being able to give oneself equally to a painful
situation or a beautiful one. Can we be available to the beauty of a
sunset and the suffering of a person with the same appreciation and
understanding? To listen to their pain and struggles without wishing to
escape?
Many who have been in
situations like these talk about a special grace that surrounds their
lives as they stand up to respond to the seemingly impossible. I myself
have learnt over the years that when we learn to live in this way, with
trust and an availability to all that life offers, it is as if all the
forces in the universe become aligned and the ‘impossible
always becomes possible.’
Mansukh Patel is giving
a talk Sept 17 and a weekend workshop on the Science of Dru Yoga in
Vancouver Sept. 21 & 22. Info 604–263-4432, Lifecanada@canada.com.
He will be leading Peace Walk 2002 with
Thich Nhat Hanh & Arun Gandhi for the installation of the first
Eternal World Peace Flame in North America at the National Civil Rights
Museum, Memphis, Tennessee September 27 & 28, 2002
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