Longing into Love

Sometimes when I look at you, I feel I’m gazing at a distant star.…
  It’s dazzling, but the light is from tens of thousands of years ago.
Maybe the star doesn’t even exist any more. Yet sometimes that light
  seems more real to me than anything.
_{Haruki Murakami, South of the Border, West of the Sun}

That sense of longing for something intangible – something that can seem unreachable – is part of what it is to be human. The pain of this longing can drive us to seek solace in worldly satisfactions. But they will never fill our emptiness, for they are not what we really want.

That thirst we have is, rather, for something higher, something spiritual – and to deny it is to deny our humanity. Instead, as the articles in this issue of Spiritual Link remind us, we must focus on identifying and living in accordance with our true purpose here.

Fortunately, the Masters have shown us what we need to do to live a spiritual life. And it is something anyone can do. We just need to keep life simple, put our trust in the Master, and follow his advice. It’s about doing, not thinking; action, not endless preparation.

But even though we know what we must do, our effort can become weak and our meditation slack. We may let our spiritual life become empty and routine. If this happens, it’s time to take a close look at ourselves, and remember what we are here for.

Most of all, we must not forget how much the Master is giving us. He loves us beyond all understanding, however little we can give him in return. What counts is not what we achieve but how hard we try. So let’s give everything we can. Let’s turn that longing into real love. For those who have love, nothing else matters.