Evolution of Consciusness (30)- Suffering- Aid to insight

SUFFERING –  Aid to  INSIGHT

It is difficult to see suffering as an aid for anything, because that is what one tries to

avoid throughout the life.

When we say suffering that includes Disappointment, Sadness, Hurt and Sorrow etc.

It is about psychological suffering, not physical pain, though the way one suffers

Physical pain is psychological.

If the loss is heavy, the suffering is heavy and distorts the mind that strongly.

In those situations,

One may not be able to practice ‘Self Remembering’ or reflect upon the situation as one

expect it to be.

Therefore,

one has to begin with little disappointments or hurts before moving to heavier feelings.

Let us start with getting hurt,

when one gets hurt (Ignored or Insulted), it is a kind of suffering,

Normally one wants/attempts to get rid of the Hurt or its external causes.

But, 

Remembering one self while being hurt is staying with it, without trying to escape or do

something about it.

As we have seen already, remembering one self or pure reflection alters the perception.

If applied to Hurt,

When one remembers one self, one’s consciousness is arrested at feeling of 'hurt’, it is

not yet appealing for remedy or trying to do something about the hurt.

If one really remember one self, then one's presence would be completely in the present.

One can feel, one's attention is qualitatively different compared to normal situations.

He can see, hear and feel more of the present, it is unlike concentration which excludes.

Then the perception is

It is the feeling of  'hurt’ that gives significance to the cause (Ignored or Insulted).

Where as the normal perception was ‘I am hurt because…’.

Now,

As one is not looking for external cause or remedy,

One is able to look for the internal source which is responsible for the hurt.

Invariably, one will find the ‘I’ or the personality with a self-image, which is hurt.

So, the cause of hurt is the personality that has a particular Self-Image and not the insult

or remark made.

It is that particular ‘I’ or the personality that causes the hurt and also sustains it.

In the absence of that Personality or the Self-Image, one can not be hurt.

On realization of this aspect, the Hurt simply vanishes.

We are not eliminating the Personality, but become aware that it is an image meant for

certain purpose and not the Self itself.

So, one continue to perform the role without getting hurt.

If one can extrapolate this to bigger issues, it can be deduced that it is always the

Personalities with particular features or Self-Images that causes psychological

hurt or sorrow or suffering.

And on the realization that they are images meant for certain purposes, one will never be

hurt psychologically.

Looking at the bigger picture,

All the roles one plays are images (Father, Son, Businessman, Friend and Enemy etc).

They are ‘biological’, ‘societal’ and their combination.

These images are the source of psychological sufferings.

It may seem odd to say being a Father or Daughter is mere roles or images.

They are roles with respect to the True-Self and real and actual to the Ego-Self.

As long as ego-self prevails, images are real and actual; one should not imagine them to

be Images and become less sensitive to the roles.

Now, to put it in nutshell,

By understanding suffering by remembering one self,

one observes the False-Personalities( very observation weakens them),

enabling one to move towards the True-Personality based on innate Essence.

This movement won’t make anybody uncaring or callous with respect to the roles, but

Holistically responsible and caring.

This could be the reason why,

Some religious traditions considered suffering as an ennobling experience and in some

Traditions, it is also self-inflicted.

All this meant to deny the ego-self and its instrument the body.

Some could have succeeded in transcending the ego-self through this method.

But, in 4^th way, through Self-Remembering,

one moves towards the True-Self  without denying or renouncing the worldly obligations.