hope

The speaker reflects on the concept of hope, acknowledging its importance despite some spiritual traditions urging to abandon it. They express their personal choice to maintain hope as a source of energy and motivation in challenging times. Hope is seen as a lifeline, providing the strength to take action and navigate life's ups and downs. The speaker emphasizes the value of hope in facing difficulties, staying connected to spiritual beliefs, and striving for personal growth. They encourage maintaining hope even when faced with darkness, as it can lead to a brighter tomorrow. Hope is viewed as a guiding light in the journey towards self-awareness and spiritual fulfillment. Hope. Despite what I've heard a lot of times from some rigorous spiritual traditions, that hope is something that we should abandon and just accept things exactly as they are, because that is really stepping into the fire, and that is one path towards transcendence, staring things in the face exactly as they are. And that's true, and that is something to be practiced. But I don't want to denigrate hope. Maybe it's because I'm not that far along the path yet. Maybe I'm not ready to stare everything in the face all the time, mercilessly, you know? I choose to have hope. I choose to believe and hope that over the trajectory of my life, things are going to improve because of the work that I do, and the effort that I make, and because I'm a child of God, and because I'm a human being, and I'm worthy, and I am enough, as my good old friend likes to tell me. Hope can be like a lifeline. I mean, when you're in desperation mode, and the world is crumbling around you, it's good to remember, it's good to hope that things are going to get better. Now, of course, there are always several sides to each phenomenon, let's say, the phenomenon of hope. Of course, if we're slothful in our tamasic stage, I can get into tamas later. If we're tamasic, and we just use hope as a way of fooling ourselves into thinking that we don't really need to do anything, and things are just going to get better, well, that's the negative edge of hope, I would say. And if we are truthful with ourselves, and if we are coming from a place where we're being honest with ourselves, we've cultivated a space of reflection and stillness, then with each thing that comes before us, we can discern, and I just love that word, discern. Swami Vivekananda. Viveka means to discern, in Sanskrit. Vivekananda is the primary disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, he is my gurubhai, he is a master, he is many things, and I am currently making a film about him, and the influence that he played in bringing the Hindu dharma to the West. In any case, hope can act as almost like a second wind, and it can remind us that things can get better, and do get better, and things are always moving, and nothing is static. And so, John, no, it wasn't John Lennon, I think it was, I think it was George Harrison once said, I think it was Paul McCartney anyway, obviously it was a Beatle, said something like, you know, at some point something's going to happen, so if things aren't going your way right now, or if they are going your way, or whatever it is, whatever it is that you find yourself dealing with, something's going to happen, because this is life, we're on the battlefield, as it were, or if we don't want to be so hardcore in our terminology, instead of saying battlefield, we can say we're on the field, or we're on stage. Battlefield is one honest way of, you know, one honest metaphor, and the Bhagavad Gita uses it, and I'd like to talk more about that at some point, because the Bhagavad Gita is such a treasure. So hope can give us a little bit of energy, I think there's an energy within hope. When I'm feeling down, if I remember, and if I can hope that things are going to improve, I get a little jolt of energy, and maybe I can take that energy, and harness it, and take action, and from action comes inertia, and momentum, and, I mean, action is such a wonderful antidote to so many things, and I think hope can bring us the energy that we need to take action. Hope for me, at the moment in my life, at 48 years old, I have seen and experienced many things, of course, having lived, you know, 48 years, I have hoped for many things, I have tried many things, I have attempted many things, relationships, creative projects, businesses, you name it, I've done it, and let's say I have a Karmic bank account that is more robust than my financial bank account, which means that I haven't had the success, the outward, worldly, monetary success that I might like, but with that said, I have had the success as far as having the courage to try things, and to get up every day, and assess where I am, and what I can do, and take action, and help myself, and help those around me, and have hope for a better day, and be discerning, and kind, and deal with all the emotions that come, not be perfect, strive, accept, at this moment in my life, right now, where I'm sitting, right now, in front of this microphone, hope for me takes the form of, I have hope in the Dharma, and in Karma, and in the laws of nature, and the universe, and by that I mean, I have made certain efforts, I have put my best foot forward, I've done my best in so many things, and so I choose to have hope that there will be, as Krishna tells us in the Gita, no spiritual effort goes in vain, and here, by spiritual, I don't just mean sitting on a meditation cushion, or praying, or chanting your mantra, or any of the other myriad spiritual practices, but even artistic, and emotional, and in relationship, any true effort doesn't go in vain, and so whether it's in this lifetime, or another, or whether it's in the form that I think it's going to be, or in some other, I know, and I have hope, and I choose to have hope, that the efforts that I'm making, and the right action that I'm taking, are going to add to the momentum that I have in my life, for expansion, in creativity, and in consciousness, and in my ability to give to others, and in my ability to be closer to God. What do I even mean by closer to God? I mean, closer to God, closer to self, more in harmony, have a little bit of distance between myself, and my emotions, have a little bit of distance between my own being, and what's happening in my life situation, have a little bit of playfulness, have gratitude, and thankfulness, and allow myself to experience joy, and sorrow, and know that it's all part of the rich tapestry of this life, and know that I am in the game, I am on the field, I'm taking the curriculum, as is every other human being in this world, whether we know it or not, we are in the game, you are part of a journey of your own being's manifestation, and unfolding, and evolving towards oneness, and that's such wonderful news, the good news, the good news. How do I handle the concept of hope when the world is not cooperating with me? When my own mind feels heavy? I mean, we all go through that, don't we? I certainly do. Sometimes the mind is your best friend, sometimes it can be your worst enemy. The mind, the thoughts, the emotions, they're not always working with us, sometimes they're working against us. How do I allow for hope to act as a little ray of light in a sometimes dark room? That's it. You know, Sri Ramakrishna used to say, a room can be dark for a thousand years, the second you open the door, light comes in. So let's just remember to have hope. Have hope that a brighter day is always around the corner, and hope in remembering. Let's have hope that we can remember, like Ram Dass says, remember, let's remember. Let's place our hope in the fact that we can remind ourselves of the good news, that we are eternal, we are Sat Chit Ananda, existence, consciousness, bliss. That's the good news that Jesus was talking about. We were never born and we will never die. It's an amazing thing, really. So be playful, be creative, allow yourself to feel what you need to feel, experience what you need to experience, make an effort to cultivate spaciousness through a stillness practice of some sort, find what works for you, ask for guidance, and don't forget to enjoy and have fun. Hari Om, Hari Om, Hari Om Tat Sat