all good comes when we are innocent

kirvan baldassari

In the

very center of each

of us there dwells an innocent

and divine spirit. If we allow ourselves to

be guided by it in every situation, we can never

go wrong. Wu Wang comes to remind us that

we must actively disengage our egos

before we can obtain the vast

rewards that come from

living in a state of

innocence.

The nature

of the ego is that when

we exercise it, it takes us out

of the present. When we engage in

ambitions, anxieties, or anticipations,

our ego is skipping ahead, and we miss the

guidance of the Creative in the present moment.

When we engage in anger, judgment, and condemnation —

whether toward ourselves or others — our ego is looking

backward, and we cannot see the Sage’s clear solution

to the present situation. In either case, the result is

misfortune. Only by stilling the ego and accepting

life in its entirety can we become innocent.

In this state we are receptive to the

help of the Higher Power and

can meet with good fortune

wherever we go.

You are

advised now to stop

looking forward and backward,

to abandon your ambitions, to disengage

from judgments and critical thinking. If a thought,

attitude, or action is not in accord with the principles of

acceptance, equanimity, humility, and gentleness,

do not indulge in it. The I Ching encourages you

to actively practice innocence. Because

the ego is strong, you must make a

conscious and conscientious

effort to be innocent.

If you

willfully unstructure

your attitude, open your heart

to the Deity, and allow yourself to be

guided by that which is innocent

and pure, you will meet with

success in the coming

time.

The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 25, Wu Wang / Innocence (The Unexpected)

FIRST LINE

One who remains detached

and innocent no matter what is

assured of good fortune now.

FOURTH LINE

Do not be swayed or

persuaded by others. Stick to what

youknow to be innocent

and correct.

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the mystic develops a wider outlook

like so

While some blame

another for causing him harm,

the wise one first takes

himself to task.

The worldly struggle is outward struggle. The struggle on the spiritual path is inward struggle. No sooner does one take the spiritual direction than the first enemy one meets is one’s own self. What does the self do? It is most mischievous. When one says one wants to fight it, it says, ‘I am yourself. Do you want to fight me?’ And when it brings failure, it is clever enough to put the blame on someone else.

Do all those who have failed in life accuse themselves? No, they always accuse another person. When they have gained something they say, ‘I have done it.’ When they have lost something they say, ‘This person got in my way’. With little and big things, it is all the same. The self does not admit faults; it always puts the blame on others. Its vanity, its pride, its smallness, and its egotistical tendency which is continually active, keep one blind.

By a study of life the Sufi learns and practices the nature of its harmony. He establishes harmony with the self, with others, with the universe and with the infinite. He identifies himself with another, he sees himself, so to speak, in every other being. He cares for neither blame nor praise, considering both as coming from himself.

If a person were to drop a heavy weight and in so doing hurt his own foot, he would not blame his hand for having dropped it, realizing himself in both the hand and the foot. In like manner the Sufi is tolerant when harmed by another, thinking that the harm has come from himself alone.

He overlooks the faults of others, considering that they know no better. He hides the faults of others, and suppresses any facts that would cause disharmony. His constant fight is with the Nafs (the self-centered ego), the root of all disharmony and the only enemy of man.

The mystic develops a wider outlook on life, and this wider outlook changes his actions. He develops a point of view that may be called a divine point of view. Then he rises to the state in which he feels that all that is done to him comes from God, and when he himself does right or wrong, he feels that he does right or wrong to God. To arrive at such a stage is true religion. There can be no better religion than this, the true religion of God on earth. This is the point of view that makes a person God-like and divine. He is resigned when badly treated, but for his own shortcomings, he will take himself to task, for all his actions are directed towards God.

Hazrat Inayat Khan