In meditation, we open to it all.

In spirituality, we are often invited into the light. To see through the eyes of unconditional love and to know the infinite okayness of our being. We love the light. It feels good there. We can dream there and know that everything is possible. And it’s true, everything is possible. 

When we find ourselves in the darkness, we often lose our connection to this infinite love. In suffering, we feel lost. We are mired down in emotions that are unwanted and our egos grasp for understanding or a return to the light. This resistance creates more pain, more discomfort. We don’t like the dark. We don’t do well with the unknown. We have not been taught to trust these places.

Intuitively we know we have much to learn in the dark places. And yet we don’t easily embrace what we find there. Unprocessed anger or grief. Shame or unworthiness. These places are deeply familiar and yet unwanted, having been habitually rejected. We fear traversing this landscape. We have been taught to be afraid. And yet, we find ourselves pulled back to the shadows again and again. 

We must rely on our intuition to navigate the watery depths of suffering. In meditation, we discover that by simply being with our suffering we can make this descent into the unknown. We willingly stay present in the shadows, bringing the light of awareness to the dark. Thich Nhat Hahn points us here directly: 

“Most people are afraid of suffering, but suffering is a kind of mud to help the lotus flower of happiness grow. There can be no lotus flower without the mud. So we shouldn’t discriminate against the mud. We have to learn to embrace and cradle our own suffering and the suffering of the world, with a lot of tenderness.” 

He reminds us that we cannot have light without darkness, freedom without pain. Meditation invites us to be with our experience without judgment. The light and the dark are all part of this human experience. In meditation, we open to it all.

Can you honor the darkness as you honor the light? Can you love your experience regardless of how you have been conditioned to feel about it? Can you have the courage to embrace your own and the world’s suffering with tenderness?