The Soothing Darkness

 

Photo Credit: WallpaperAccess

The Soothing Darkness

We are so used to seeing the sun rise every morning bringing cheer to both flora and fauna – the birds start chirping, the cock plays its wake-up music and the humans wake up and go for their morning exercise. Most of us have noticed that the light comes and goes; darkness remains, it never comes, it never goes. Light does not last for ever as it requires some kind of fuel and the fuel gets exhausted sooner or later. Darkness does not need any fuel; hence it is not an effect and can remain there forever.

In the morning, you see the sun arises and there is light; in the evening the sun sets, the light disappears, and suddenly all over there is darkness. It does not mean that when the sun disappears, darkness comes in. It has been there all the time; just because of the light you could not see it. How can one see darkness while light is there? The light prevents one’s vision. So anytime just close your eyes and darkness is there. Anytime just blow out the candle and darkness is there.

Gautama Buddha has called his ultimate state of being, nirvana. Nirvana means ‘darkness’; it literally means blowing out the candle. What remains once the candle is blown? Darkness – eternal, deathless, abysmal. People on the spiritual path talk about the light, blinding light which they see – the scriptures talk about going from ‘darkness to light’.

During meditation I always find myself in a dark tunnel which is benign and filled with love energy – only once have I seen a flash of light akin to 1000 suns – literally blinding light – then back to darkness! In that darkness one feels humility, humbleness, eternal love and most of all a sense of egolessness. In this darkness there is a sense of calm, a soothing feeling and eternal silence.

People are afraid of the dark, but that again is a play of the mind, maybe something from one’s past life which is embedded deeply in the subconscious. Darkness needs to be embraced; only then will you get rid of that feeling of loneliness. Human beings are social animals and love company, love to chatter, desire a feeling of being wanted and loved. But on the path of liberation, one has to transcend all these feelings, all these emotions and to do that one has to embrace the soothing darkness.

Like Osho says, “There is no God — that was the need of the lonely people. Those who have tasted aloneness have discarded God, hell, heaven, and every other nonsense. You are alone, the whole existence is alone: aloneness is the only reality. Yes, it is immensely dark, but darkness has a silence and darkness has a depth. And darkness has peace, and darkness takes away all your knowledge, takes away everything that you thought belonged to you.”