It seems every year about this time in the holiday season, we experience an extra dose of darkness in our lives—literally, as we close in on the longest nights of the year, but also in our personal lives. People often have difficulty around the holidays for many reasons. It tends to bring up more “stuff”—memories, unresolved issues, extra pressures…..it just seems like there is destined to be more darkness before there is light. It is part of the play of maya, of the duality that exists on the physical plane. How do we combat the darkness around us? Yogananda says we can’t beat the darkness out with a stick, we must turn on the light!
If this is the season of peace and of joy, how do we access this, given these recurring circumstances? How do we turn on the light? It is a call for us to reconnect with our true essence within through inner communion. It is through our meditations we experience a higher reality where we tap into the fuel of compassion, of understanding, of forgiveness to light our way, and moreover, the strength for the journey. That then, is the ultimate gift of this season we can give ourselves and each other.
Together in unfolding light and joy,
Ananda in Texas