Dear Swami:
For such an enlightened being, you seem way too innocent. I mean, trying to change the world? Give me a break. The world is as it is, and it always will be. Even Jesus said the poor would always be among us. Forget utopian visions. Why not just accept things as they are?
Thurston Hunger,
Richmond, Virginia
Dear Thurston:
You say I am too innocent? Guilty as charged!
Jesus said that to enter the Kingdom of Heaven we have to be as children. And having said that, let me be clear about “changing the world”. There is no need for us to change the world. I say let’s toilet train the world, and then we’ll never have to change it again. As you’ve probably noticed, we humans have left a pretty stinky diaper, and now it’s time for children of God to evolve into adults of God. We just seem to be stuck in that awkward in-between stage called “addled-essence.” Our essence has been addled by toxic beliefs and myth-perceptions.
That’s why we are in the midst of the “great upwising” – where we wake up to the illusion of separation, wise up to the power of love, grow up to be all that we can be (without necessarily joining the army) and show up for the greatest reality show of all time – REALITY!
So yes, the world is as it is – everchanging, same as always. And that everchanging state of change is called evolution. Even Jesus believed in evolution. Otherwise he would have said, “Now don’t do a thing till I get back.”
Instead, he told us to love our neighbor as ourselves because we cannot be fruitful and multiply if we stay fruitlessly divided. Imagine if we were as smart as the cells in our body. A 50 trillion-cell society, and everybody gets along. There is universal health care. Full employment. No cell left behind. So maybe what you call utopia is what our body calls health. You know, the word utopia means nowhere. But when we create some space for enlightening to strike, nowhere becomes now here.
* * * *
Dear Swami:
Well, we’re at the beginning of another year, and this is the time when people look to make changes – New Year’s resolutions and the like. You’ve been around the block many times. What is your advice for happiness and success in these times for someone looking to turn a corner in their lives?
Carla De Wilde,
Carefree, Arizona
Dear Carla:
It’s true. Not only have I been around the block, I have also turned many corners. It was only when I turned the corner for the fourth time that I realized … I am back where I started. That’s why I have said to my followers in no uncertain terms: Don’t follow me. I’m not going anywhere. As for taking my advice, my advice is, take all advice under advisement.
But you asked me an answerable question and so I must give you a questionable answer.
When I need advice, I ask the trees. Why? Well, they’ve been around much longer than I have. And besides, I have it on good authority — the trees are rooting for us. Just the other day, I asked a tall palm tree standing alone in a meadow for its secret of success. It told me, “Be outstanding in your field.”
So true! And it doesn’t matter what field you’re in, or whether you’re a star or someone behind the scenes. When I was in LA, I met someone who works as a stand-in. He told me that when the star is getting ready and having makeup put on, the stand-in takes his or her place, and has to actually memorize the actor’s stance and gesticulations. And it was with great pride that he told me that his goal was to be an outstanding stand-in!
So just as surely as an outstanding stand-in must stand out, ask yourself what is it that you do that is so natural that you forget there is anything special about it? And once you have identified that, take the leap of faith and DO IT! Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, they took the leap. All great inventors too. Thomas Edison … Steve Jobs … Smedley Sturdley. Oh … you haven’t heard of Smedley Sturdley? That’s because he DIDN’T take the leap! And in 2020, you have no excuse. It’s a leap year.
Swami Beyondananda, cosmic comic, pundit, and uncommontator, whose favorite yoga pose is tongue-in-cheek can be found online at https://www.wakeuplaughing.com/. He is available for live performances, as well as Skype events so you can have Swami show up in your living room without actually having to feed him. He has a brand new book, Totally Quips of the Swami: Comedy Disguised As Wisdom, Wisdom Disguised As Comedy. He can be reached at <info@wakeuplaughing.com>
Nice share…tongue-in-cheekish; but, a good read…thanks for sharing, I’ve sent it to others that like this kinda stuff.
Very much appreciated!