Last week, as we floated along the turquoise blue of the Caribbean sea, I was reminded of the amazing quality of water. How, for instance, a large ship can sit atop it and ply along as light as a feather, how many creatures can swim within the water while some things totally sink to the bottom. How the water itself can be calm (thankfully during my trip) or wild and furious like a raging monster.
We are water creatures in many ways – 65% of our body weight is water, the earth is comprised mainly of water, and we get inundated with rain from the sky. If we don’t drink enough water we will be ill. But as we are not creatures who can live in the water, it presents difficulties for us. Water can take us down, and fast.
Water is also big metaphor in spirituality. The material life we live, from birth to death, through old age and disease, is often referred to as an ocean of suffering, or an ocean of ignorance. This means that we are floating along in material bodies completely unaware of our spiritual nature. The universe is designed as a place of forgetfulness, a place where we get to ignore our relationship with Krishna, and set about enjoying life according to our own desires. It is also, therefore, known as an ocean of unlimited desires.
Lord Ramachandra, the kingly avatar of Krishna, faced an ocean that separated him from his wife Sita. He needed to get an army across this ocean, an army of monkeys and other animal warriors. Of course, as God he could easily have dried it up just by looking at it. But he was honoring his role in a human incarnation and he sat for 3 days praying for the ocean to permit passage. In the end a bridge was built to the other side, with stones, boulders and bits of mountains that could float. On each each piece of the bridge the monkeys wrote or spoke the name of Lord Rama. We can say it was their enthusiastic faith in the holy name that kept the stones afloat. Their devotion and Lord Rama’s mystic powers.
We will face our fair share of impassible oceans in our life. Take some time to think and pray until the right course of action becomes clear. And it will become clear – we just have to wait, watch, and listen. Also keep the name of Lord Rama on our lips. There may be times where we feel we are drowning – overwhelmed, overburdened, over drawn, over done. By reciting the names we will come to the surface, to solid ground and be able to breath and see better.
Life is precarious. We can die at any moment, or find ourselves in the stormy seas of sudden and terrifying events. Practice Krishna consciousness now, while the sky is blue and the sun shining. Practice linking our life and our heart to Krishna. Such practice is compared to accessing the ocean of devotion. This ocean gives life, gives pure love for Krishna, and gives us safe passage to the other side. There is no fear here, only shelter. Swim deep.
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