Test of Time

Do you consider yourself happy? Would your happiness stand the test of time?

Photo by Kal Visuals on Unsplash

In the 6th century BC lived Croesus, king of Lydia, the richest man in the world. He ruled with wisdom and arrogance.

In the splendor of his glory, he once hosted Solon, one of the seven sages of Greece in his palace and in order to honor the sage and demonstrate all his power and wealth, the king had a splendid feast prepared. He then invited Solon to visit his treasures: pearls, emeralds, diamonds of all carats, rubies and all sorts of golden statues.

Strangely, Croesus observed that his guest was walking through that immense wealth, with total indifference. And, in the face of the statement which he claimed to be the happiest man in the world for being the richest, the wise sentenced:

My king, no one can ever be considered happy before passing the test of time.

Time is the only component we need to determine if  we are happy or not. After all, it always surprises us with the unexpected.

Life is a succession of events, which completely change our destinies.

Do not forget that happiness is above all that you have.

Croesus did not give any importance to the advice kept increasing his wealth and power.

After some time, however, Cyrus, king of the Persians, marched with his army against Lydia and the king watched, appalled, as the enemy troops entered the palace, killing his best soldiers.

Trapped with his family, he was driven to irons in the capital, now in rubble. Humiliated, he was taken to the central square, tied to a post, on pieces of wood.

When he was about to be burned alive, he recalled as in a flash, the sentence of Solon: No one in the world is happy unless they pass the test of time.

Yes, time had brought him much sadness. His first son - and heir to his throne - had died in a hunting accident, at eighteen. Time had also brought the younger son's deafness and muteness. And now, there he was defeated and humiliated with his wife, his son and the whole court.

What was left of his wealth, which had been savagely plundered by the conquerors? What had been done of his palace, burned by the destroying fate of the winners?

At that moment, he understood that happiness is not having. Happiness is something else.

Happiness is not having

The things of the world are ephemeral.

Assets, from one moment to the next, can be taken away by robbers or carried away by the fury of nature.

If we are now smiling, soon we can be immersed in the sea of ​​tears because an accident robbed us a loved one. Or because Nature rebelled and destroyed our heritage. Or because a terrible disease embraced us and robbed us of the energies of youth, the smile of joy. 

Final Thoughts

Happy is not who has it. Happy is the one who loves because love sings a spring inside the heart.

Naturally, we need money and assets because without a little of everything, we become unbalanced. However, it takes the wisdom to be able to differentiate when you possess thing from whey you are possessed by them. We own money, never the money should own us.

This is a wise posture that gives us tranquility, harmony in living, over time.

Let us think about it and invest in achieving peace and being happy.

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on May 08, 2018.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem

Pleasures

How far can your pleasures take you? How much can they affect your life?

Photo by Gabrielle Henderson on Unsplash

Every man and woman seeks pleasure and well-being. It is a reflection of the conservation instinct, whose objective is to ensure physical existence for as long as possible.

Material life is essential to the intellectual and moral development of the human being and their immortal Spirit.

Sex is pleasurable and through it the species is perpetuated. If there were no satisfaction involved in procreative acts, Humanity would be extinct for a long time.

Food also involves pleasure. The physical body needs to receive fuels suitable for its structure. But meeting this need is not only due to the hunger but also involves satisfaction.

Meeting natural needs, whether physical or emotional, includes a certain amount of pleasure. As we human beings were not made to live alone, we rejoice in contact with friends and loved ones. The need for contact and recognition by others produces sweet sensations.

In balance

But evidently, wisdom lies in balance. Denying the pleasures of life without any noble purpose, should not be commended.

The mother who deprives herself of bread to feed her children shows signs of selflessness and nobility. But eating less than necessary to maintain physical beauty is not recommended.

The higher goals of existence are incompatible with small earthly joys. Jesus signaled this truth by saying that it is not what comes in, but what comes out of the mouth of the man who contaminates him.

If voluntary deprivation of the goods of life is not good, so is abuse. No one is born to eat, drink, sleep and procreate. Living right does not mean refraining from the joys and satisfactions common to the human condition.

Gluttony causes disease and shortens life. The misused use of genetic forces produces physical and emotional imbalances. Sleeping too much or resting too much is a waste of time. Thus, the important thing is to keep balance in the face of earthly tastes and pleasures. If they are not reprehensible, they are also not the purpose of existence.

Purity does not lie in abstaining from the gifts of life, but in using them with balance and discernment, without harming yourself and others. Wisdom lies in using everything in moderation, without becoming a slave to habits, things or sensations.

Final Thoughts

The purpose of our life on Earth is to promote our own intellectual and moral development. Everyone is reborn to overcome old vices, abandon selfishness, live and love. Do not deviate from that goal by a misunderstanding of life.

In the context of our immortal existence, there is little point in becoming an ascetic. It is unworthy to live like an irrational animal, in the relentless pursuit of pleasures.

Strive to be balanced, kind and supportive. It is very laborious, but it is the goal of your coming to Earth.

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on January 13, 2018.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem

Planting and Harvesting

Could you explain why we suffer? Could you explain why some suffer more than others?

Photo by Warren Wong on Unsplash

According to the dictionaries, freewill is the possibility to decide, to choose according to one's will, free from any conditioning.

And that is how Divinity - the supreme intelligence of the universe - allows us to conduct our existence. To make decisions in our lives we only depend on our own judgment, on our personal analysis, on confronting our own conscience.

The Divine Providence, in an educational way, provides us with the opportunity for choices. And, for the sake of justice, it offers us, as a learning experience, the full consequences of our actions.

That is how the judge will answer for what he does in the courts. The executive will account for the management of the resources under his responsibility. The public manager will face consequences proportional to the quality of his actions. The teacher will be responsible for the good or bad made during the course of the profession. The employee will be considered for the quality of his actions and conduct.

We are free to make our decisions

We are free to make our decisions. However, once they are executed, we link ourselves to them and become either victims or beneficiaries of them. We may act in any way we believe is appropriate or convenient but we will have to account for everything we do.

Nobody deceives the all-seeing Divine Justice, from the insignificant to the most expressive acts. Erroneous attitudes, even those hidden from men, those that we believe we have managed to circumvent human justice, do not go unnoticed by the Divine Justice. Therefore acting positively, ethically, is a matter of wisdom. All the good that we do, even if silently and anonymously will be counted in our personal accounts.

For this reason, every difficulty that we face now are nothing more than debts of the past. And they reach us now because the Divinity understands that we have the conditions to pay them off. Thanks to this mechanism designed by God - which is always just and correct - we are provided with the chance to repair previous mistakes.

Final Thoughts

Out of kindness and in favor of our balance, the Heavenly Father offers us to forget our criminal past, so that we can better face its consequences. The understanding of Divine Justice, a lucid, reason-based faith twill give us encouragement to continue our journey.

We are heirs of our actions. Nothing that happens to us is due to divine punishment, heavenly revenge, or forgetting the loving and good Father. Our misfortunes are the consequences of not observing the law of love and they are an invitation to reflection and learning, so that love, effectively, establishes itself in our intimacy.

In this light, we will understand pain as a blessing, a cheater of our lives. It will lead us to higher levels of evolution.

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on June 13, 2015.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem