The topic of pain has been haunting me~do we need pain for deep spiritual development?  And if so, WHY? I thought that Chris Grosso, author of the Indie Spiritualist and the upcoming Everything Mind, was one of the best people to bang that around with. Why? Well, because like me, Chris has been to hell and came out on the other side pretty damn spiritually awake.

photo by Chris James

Thich Nhat Hanh speaks of be present in every moment of life, even the painful ones. When we are present, we Know the gift of life. And with that gift, there is joy and pain. I have come to realize, is that avoiding pain only deepens it. Instead, I must be present in that pain. And in the experiencing and allowing of that pain, I can then m-o-v-e through it. I must understand it, where does it come from? Is it even mine?? Being an empath, I find at times that I am experiencing pain that has no origin in my life. I have to ask the questions and follow where they lead me. That is the process of moving through it.

In that fashion, I learn how to love all aspects of my life and that brings me closer to fellow beings. It gives me a deeper look at my own humanity. And that leads to deeper awakenings. And in that, I can then look around me with less judgment and less restriction. I can come into deeper Oneness with all that is around me. Oneness with All That Is. Ram Dass, Chris’s favorite spiritual leader, puts it like this~

“As we grow in our consciousness, there will be more compassion and more love, and then the barriers between people, between religions, between nations will begin to fall. Yes, we have to beat down the separateness.”

With that, at least for now, I have my answer. The pain brings us closer to the compassion of another’s path. It opens us to humility and moves us deeper into Awareness. It makes it easier for judgment to fall away and see the Truth of our True Self…