Live like a lotus

May we live like the lotus - at home in muddy waters.

Crap happens. Ugly filthy yucky stuff happens in our lives.  Stuff that hurts and makes us uncomfortable. Crap that we don't want others to see and filth that we don't even wanna look at ourselves shows up in our lives and sometimes keeps showing up in our lives.  We try to avoid the filth, suppress it and cover it up but the minute you are not watching -oops there it is again more crap! 

Here's a radical idea- what if we embrace the filth?  What would happen if you began a practice of gratitude for all the ugly in your life? Stick with me here.  Do you know why the lotus is a symbol of enlightenment in yoga?  It's because the more filthy the environment the more beautiful the lotus flower becomes. Why do you put manure-crap- in your garden?  It produces the best crop.  And how is it we get diamonds from coal?  Pressure.  See it's the hard times, the ugly crappy times and the times of pressure, pain, and hurt that produce the most growth, the most beautiful aspects of our being. Or at least it can if we allow it to. 

 As Sadhguru says, "Do not carry the experience of life as a wound. Let it become wisdom. This is a choice you have. Out of every experience of life, you can make a wound – or you can make wisdom out of it. The harder life has been upon you, the sooner you should become wise."

That sounds all good and well, but it's learning how to transform these situations most of us need help with.  First and foremost you have to realize you have a choice.  So something bad has happened to you- Congratulations! You're human! Now are you have to choose whether you want to carry around all the wounds of your humaness, and continue to pick at the scab so that it never fully heals. Or do you choose to grow and gain wisdom and allow the wounds to scar and move on.  First you make the conscious choice to grow from your experience.  Then to begin that process you choose to be grateful.  Every time life throws me a challenge my first response has become "Oh thank you God."  And when the challenge is particularly difficult I am even more grateful because I know that the possibility of my growth is that much greater.  All we are doing is healing our perception and in doing so we begin to heal our lives.

You should try it.  Start small at first. The next time a challenge occurs in your life respond with gratitude.  Trust me after awhile it almost becomes fun as you watch your beautiful lotus begin to bloom!