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UNIVERSE WITHIN by Gwen Randall-Young
If, at the beginning and end of our lives we depend upon others’ kindness, why then in the middle should we not act kindly towards others?
- The Dalai Lama
It was heartening for me to see many tourists who had been vacationing in Thailand turn their efforts to helping the Thai people after the tsunami disaster. Throughout the world, the tsunami triggered in so many the desire to help our brothers and sisters who were suffering.
It made me think about how so many of us have the luxury of focusing on our own personal growth and evolution, while others struggle merely to survive. I considered the irony of how we, in the West, can work hard at our meditation and spiritual development so we can learn to be in the moment, and develop compassion, whereas in other parts of the world, in some communities, that is all there is.
In our culture, where we can become distracted by all that is material, it becomes easier to imagine we are separate from others in the world. It seems somehow justifiable to have so much, when others have so little. We can feel thankful our area was not hit by a natural disaster, and go on with our lives.
Yet, there is a nagging doubt. We would surely offer assistance if someone right in front of us were in need. When they are a world away, it is easy to put them out of our mind. We send in our donations, but then what more can we do?
The world is a living organism, so what happens in one part of the world ‘body’, affects the whole. We all felt the pain radiating out from the parts of the world that were hard-hit. It shocked our hearts open. What we can do now is keep them open. Love, compassion and caring shown to those in our immediate environment will add to the health of the whole.
It is when we are helpless that we most rely upon the kindness of others. So, in this world there are the helpless, and the helpers. Throughout our lives we shift in and out of these roles. If we are not helpless, that is, if we are not ill or infirm, then it is for us to be the helpers.
While this may mean volunteering our time to help others, it can also simply mean being kind to all whom we encounter. It can mean putting good energy out into the world. Lest that sound like some metaphorical, esoteric concept, be aware that scientists have discovered that one person’s negative, hostile mood can adversely affect the immune system of another, though some distance apart.
If one is angry, critical or negative to a partner or family member, he or she is contributing to toxicity in the home environment. If one becomes hostile while driving, that adds to the level of toxicity in the driving environment. Conversely, being kind and gentle, patient, and allowing, contributes to a healthy environment.
In a culture such as ours, with such a strong emphasis on the individual, we must find ways to balance that with concern and caring for the whole. Today’s children are given so much – computers, cell phones, and a variety of extra-curricular activities – that, without balance, they will grow to be very self-centered adults. It would be wonderful if we incorporated, as part of every child’s learning, an hour per week of some kind of charitable activity.
The tsunami, as devastating as it was, seems to have initiated a wave of compassion throughout the world, and particularly in school children. This is profoundly heartening. May it have initiated a shift in consciousness, pushing the tectonic plates of selfishness permanently underground.
May the consciousness of compassion, kindness and selflessness remain with us, changing the landscape of human awareness—blessing the injured, sick, and homeless throughout the world, members of our communities here at home, and our families.
Gwen Randall-Young is an author and psychotherapist in private practice and a feature columnist for Common Ground magazine. Her books and tapes are available at www.gwen.ca, or contact her at gwendall@shaw.ca. They may also be ordered through Banyen Books.
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