Acopia

The other nurses and I exchanged looks of bafflement. What was this poor patient suffering from? The medical notes stated the diagnosis as acopia, something we’d never even heard of. Was it a mysterious lung or liver condition? We searched through our medical dictionaries and textbooks, but it wasn’t there.

Eventually, a bemused colleague noticed our perplexity. Chuckling with delight, he explained that acopia was a made-up word used by doctors to refer to a person who just cannot cope with their situation for whatever reason – for instance, a frail elderly person living alone at home. This was the loose term ascribed until any necessary medical diagnostic tests could be run.

Looking at the lives of even the most enthusiastic satsangis, many have probably at some time, in some way or another, suffered from acopia. This world of illusion can easily pull us off track and affect our balance, leaving us temporarily in a state of not coping too well with life. Sometimes the world seems to drain our fuel tank, leaving us feeling emotionally and mentally weak.

Luckily for us, there is an effective treatment for acopia – one with no harmful side-effects and on which it is impossible to overdose. But it’s not a medication; it’s that same meditation that draws us godwards and which automatically makes us feel stronger by providing us with stillness and silence. Above and beyond that, it provides a special connection with our Master and the divine energy, which uplifts our entire being.

As a beneficial side-effect, meditation sharpens the mind, facilitating clarity of thought. Decisions can then be made with deeper wisdom, based on the faith that everything is happening as part of a divine plan. We are able to exercise a higher level of discrimination (vivek), the faculty that gives us feedback as to whether events, actions and thoughts are taking us closer to or further away from the divine. This aids us in our spiritual navigation towards the light.

By cultivating clear thinking through meditation in this way, we become able to rise above the duality of the world. We tend to perceive what happens in our lives as either ‘good’ or ‘bad’, but in reality it is just a matter of perception. If we view life though a positive lens we get a brighter picture, while a negative lens gives us a gloomier image.

Meditation clearly lights up the path we need to take – participating in and enjoying the play of life while not allowing ourselves to be too caught up in it. It helps us to remain composed and centred, so that neither turbulent times nor joyful times distract us from our spiritual goal. The detachment that we gain frees the mind so that we are able to focus at the eye centre.

One of the ways in which daily meditation benefits us is that it provides us with the inner balance that enables us to cope effectively with life. When we feel unable to cope, this is in a sense a symptom of our separation from the Lord, and a manifestation of our need to strengthen our connection with him. So let us leave behind acopia and attend with zeal and valour to our daily meditation, for it will not only take us ultimately to our true home – thus curing all ills – but also, in the meantime, as a highly positive side-effect, help us to remain balanced while we travel along our chosen path.

Live a clean, moral life, according to the Sant Mat teachings and give regular time, every day, to your meditation. This will result in peace and contentment.
_{Maharaj Charan Singh, Quest for Light}