It has long been one of the well established tasks assigned to the man of the house to remove the sack of waste from the inside bin and relocate it to a secondary bin outside to await further relocation. it was this simple task which I set out to do one night that brought me to a spiritual understanding.
Having accomplished the task of relocating my garbage outdoors and on my way to the warmth inside, I noticed a set of eyes in yet another outside trash can. The life form staring at me was either a small mouse or tiny rat, there is still some debate in my mind as to which.
Thinking of my kids playing just beyond the wall where a rat (it might be) studies the structure, planning to get in and sink its diseased teeth into them put me into the mindset that this threat had to be neutralized. Not a problem for a self respecting provider and protector of a beloved family.
Grabbing a handy, heavy crescent wrench and a flashlight, I set to the carefully constructed, elaborate plan I had devised which if flawlessly executed would see a well lit rodent bludgeoned to death with a common tool.
What could thwart this ingenious plan? I had size, strength, and intellect on my side (although some who know me well would say that the latter wad debatable). Also it didn't hurt my cause that the critter was seemingly imprisoned in the bottom of a trash receptacle.
However, when I illuminated the tiny being what I saw was a soul in a miniscule shell, frightened and uncertain as to my intention (although I surmise the creature to be of sufficient intelligence to at least hypothesize that a large being wielding a piece of metal overhead didn't bode well for it). Peering into his eyes I beheld life, a life which I had arbitrarily made the decision to destroy. I thought about the barbaric nature of what I had intended to do while Mr. Mouse took advantage of my change of heart and made a hasty exit (not so imprisoned after all). It occurred to me that mistreatment and murder of another soul is frighteningly easy when we fail to see it as such. Now, would I kill an animal or person to protect my family or myself? Of course, without hesitation, if the situation warranted. I also support the death penalty for those individuals who have robbed other souls of their sacred right to continue their lives. Such a punishment seems fitting as karmic justice.
But either scenario requires that someone make the same mistake I did, which was fail to see the divine soul of life and respect it. The world would heal as a result of individuals healing themselves spiritually. Heaven on Earth is a reality brought about by a population who experiences heaven within themselves. Such a thing won't happen overnight, but it can't happen without you.
Albert Einstein noted that problems cannot be solved with the same thinking that created them in the first place. With a world seemingly bent on its own destruction I urge all who read this to consider if you could be a more spiritually healthy person. Remember to see the daily world as an extension of spiritual existence and see where the path takes you from there. Together we as individuals can change the world just by changing our understanding of it.
Ashe,
Reverend T.R. Toleri
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