The Pond

“There is a pond. Within this pond exist many kinds of lives and creatures. There are so many kinds of things found in the pond—there are fish, crabs, crocodiles, scorpions, insects, worms, and snakes; and there are so many kinds of fish here. There are all kinds of filth, dirt, and all forms of foul smells. From the outside will come so many kinds of animals to drink from the pond. Not only will they come and drink there, but they will also urinate, defecate, and stir up and foul the water. Bulls will come and do this. Lions will come and do this. Bears, buffaloes, snakes, iguanas, and birds, all kinds of creatures will come and drink and also foul the water. All of these things exist—this is nature. Like this also, four hundred trillion, ten thousand kinds of insects will come.

“All of God’s creatures need water. Without it they cannot exist. Each one of God’s creatures will therefore be attracted to the water, and when they come to it, they will act according to their own nature and qualities. All of the animals that come from outside will act according to their own characteristics, and all of the creatures who live in the pond will behave according to their natural qualities and characteristics. All will come there and contribute their dirt to the pond.

“There is also in the pond the lotus plant. This plant gets its nourishment from the dirt in the pond. It grows to the surface, showing its own identity and displaying its flowers. The leaves and flowers lie on the surface of the water. They remain there and do not retain any of the water upon themselves.

“This is the nature of all these things. As each of God’s creations needs water and so comes to the pond to drink, it is natural that they should do so. It is also natural to find all kinds of animals, fish, filth, and dirt in the pond. Because God has created all these creatures in this natural way, they all must come to the pond and drink and satisfy their thirst. Man must also come, as he also needs water to live. If man wants to quench his thirst, he must also come to the pond. The water is necessary for his body.

“Can man say, “Oh! Animals should not come here, dirt should not be here, filth should not be here, insects should not be here, all these creatures and animals should not be here!” Can he say, “This water is meant for me. It should be pure!” If man says this, he is wrong. If he finds fault with the dirt or filth or creatures in the pond, then he belongs to the realm of the animals himself.

“All of the animals that come to the pond have one quality in common: they all devour and eat others. They have this quality when they are in the jungle and they also bring this quality with them when they come to the pond. That is why the animals, though all will come to the pond to drink, will somehow manage to avoid each other. By nature, each has the quality of catching and eating its prey from among the others.

“Similarly, it is only such a man who has these animal qualities who will try to find fault with the creatures who come to the pond, and who will try to drive them away. The type of man who finds fault with a person on all types of pretenses does so because he wishes to devour that person.

“Aside from this, it is the nature of all to require water for life. One has no right to find fault with the water in the pond. A man with dawning wisdom would analyze and find two things. He would see that the water is essential for all creatures. He would also see that where all these types of creatures assemble, there will be all kinds of dirt and residue from them, and that each and every one of them will display the individual characteristics that are inherent in the nature of each. To quench his own thirst, this man must clear away the dirt as well as he can and then drink the water. Once he has quenched his thirst, he must return to his duties. Understand this, children.

“The lotus flower, though it dwells in the pond, does not keep water on itself. Also, it displays its own identity by showing its flowers and leaves. When the natural honey that it contains develops within its flower, none of the creatures that were in the pond are able to identify it by its fragrance or its flowers or its honey. Yet, the bee that lives on the far distant mountaintop can scent and identify this honey from afar.

“True man must be like this lotus flower. He must develop his true identity and beauty without becoming enmeshed in the dirt and filth of maya, just as the lotus flower sits on the surface of the pond without retaining any of the water and dirt of the pond. It lives in the pond, but it is not affected by the dirt found there. True man should rise above, should develop, without getting enmeshed in any of these things, and should be able to taste the divine honey and in this way eliminate the thirst of his birth, and thereby become God-Man.

“This is the true beauty of man. It is not his position to get entangled in thinking about the animals or the dirt or filth that is in the pond.

“You all must understand this very well. To go on finding fault with the animals or the filth in the pond is the work of the man with a human face and animal qualities. This does not belong to the station of a true man. My children you must understand this.

“There is a thing called the world, which is the stage for some to act upon. For others it is a place for worship of God. The stage of maya is here in this world. The actors are also here. Those who have the potential of becoming God-Man, Man-God are also here in this world. All come and congregate on this stage of the world. This too is nature.

There is the power of God within both these kinds of actors, those who act on the stage of maya and those who come to worship there is one vibration present in both of them. There will be a feeling of this vibration in each creature; therefore, the desire and longing to understand that vibration will also be there. This power will attract each and every created thing. Just as the water in the pond was necessary for each and every one of His creations, so also the souls within each one of creation will be thirsting for the divine resonance and grace of God. Therefore, all will converge at a common place to quench this thirst. However, they will not leave their individual nature behind; they will bring it with them. The place to quench this thirst is common to all. It is the divine vibration that pulls them there. No one has a right to say, ‘Why did he come? Why did this bull come?” or “Why did that lion come? Why did that tiger come?” This pond is common ground for all. All have come to quench their thirst. If they do succeed in quenching their thirst, then their nature will also change. As the divine taste develops, then their natural qualities will drop off. Whatever their different natures might be, the attraction was only One. You all must deeply understand this with your wisdom.

“M.R. Bawa Muhaiyaddeen- a Sufi mystic, can best be remembered for his efforts to bring unity through understanding to the faithful of all religions.”

Copyright: Verbal Discourse September 17, 1972
Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship Family Newsletter July – August 2000

Article Source: http://www.wisdomarticles.com

www.wisdomarticles.com

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated