Spiritual Growth Through Suffering | Common Misconceptions
“Let me not beg for the stilling of my pain but for the heart to conquer it.” Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) Indian Hindu mystic philosopher.
In this article I’m going to confront the common misconception that suffering will lead to spiritual growth, and I think this idea has taken root because of the idea that suffering builds character. And although a little hardship really does strengthen our character and can even motivate us to try harder, but suffering in itself does not lead to spiritual growth and enlightenment.
Just consider how many people are suffering in this world, these people do not rise up to become spiritual but instead fall down into depravity and despair, and the reason for this is that the nature of ego is suffering, and the more the ego is indulged the more its depravity and suffering increases.
Both the Positivity Movement and Faith Based Religions often push the idea that suffering will be rewarded, they do this because their spiritual understanding is a simplistic positive vs negative view of reality, and although this positive vs negative perspective has a real world two dimensional effect, it is not relative to the higher spiritual states of awareness.
The notion of Yin Yang also adds to this confusion, because this symbol is sometimes considered a spiritual representation of the dualistic nature of reality, but Yin Yang’s true representation is not the outer black vs white aspect of reality. But instead it is the Yin Yang spiral swirl within this outer shell, that Yin Yang is representing, and this spiral is a reflection of the vitality and power generated in Martial Arts and Qigong. At this deeper level Yin Yang symbolizes one’s true nature; or spiritual awareness or one could even say it reflects a state of mindfulness.
So really the idea that suffering is in some way a source of spiritual growth or that it can somehow crack open the ego shell, or that suffering is somehow necessary for your spiritual growth is really one of those half-truths that float around the spiritual forums.
It would be more correct to say that a degree of suffering can build character, and wisdom can also sometimes grow out of this hardship and yes character development can also help in one’s spiritual development.
But to achieve spiritual growth, the ego must willing work towards surrendering its dominance by awakening the spirit which can then overcome the ego, and thus the ego is quieted as spiritual awareness takes its rightful place as the ruling entity.
And as a final thought let’s consider Buddha’s most famous statement. “Attachment is the cause of all suffering", Buddha did not say that suffering was the cause of enlightenment, in fact Buddha’s statement implies that the absence of suffering leads to enlightenment.
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Related posts:
The Human Agreement | The Enlightenment Trap | Understanding the Over-Evolved Ego | Atman Awareness is the Real Essence of Existence | What is enlightenment and how it can be achieved? | What is Rational Thinking: Rational Side of Awareness | How to Become Self-Realized in a World Full of Phonies | Infinite Duality: why Humanity is Bound by Dualistic Awareness | The Truth About Spiritual Enlightenment | Truths, Distortions, Fakes
References
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► Creator: Kat J, Image title: Tears for the loss of a beloved family member, Web Link: https://unsplash.com/photos/NPmR0RblyhQ
