The Palette of Pain

I'm blogging right after midnight, so technically it's already Monday morning--my usual blogging day. I've had a productive week. Here's to another great week ahead.

I spent the weekend working and decluttering my room. I'm getting a bit addicted to throwing away things--even stuff that used to carry sentimental value for me. I reckoned that, if something has 'sentimental value', it means there's some unresolved karma associated with it. It helps to unravel it: you either outgrow your sentimentality or simply let it go. It is very cathartic to throw away unwanted stuff. You are rid of a chunk of karma for good. Your soul feels unburdened instantly.

You see, we are often held back by our past. So much of our actions moving forward is defined by what we've experienced in the past. We avoid things that we have come to learn to be painful and pursue those that we think give us meaning or pleasure. We are that pleasure-seeking missile that never seems to find its target.

We should be brave in facing pain. Pain has to be suffered consciously--only then does it yield its value. Every time we seek pleasure, we'll inevitably encounter pain, before or after its attainment. If you sum up the total pain that you would have to live with to achieve the desired pleasure, you'll find that they are actually equal in magnitude. It is not wrong to chase after pleasure; just be prepared to pay its price. Then your books are balanced. There's no residual karma.

The problem with life is not the many sufferings that are plainly obvious before our eyes. It is the hidden suffering gnawing us from within that poses the greatest harm. Look around you. See all the stuff that you've accumulated for yourself. These are the fruits of your so-called hard-work: the pleasure attained through a lot of pain. But ask yourself, have you fully paid for them in karmic cash?

All your worldly attainments have been achieved by paying it's price in pain. I've often told my friends that in life we just take the pain that we are willing to suffer. There's no right or wrong to every action. There's only the pleasure that you seek and the pain that you willingly take in exchange for it. Some people are willing to sacrifice family time for work. They might excel in their careers but their family life suffers. Some play brutal office politics to stay ahead. That's fine too if you have the aptitude for it. If you want something in life, you'll have to work for it. Desire is that karmic force that propels you forward. And for every karmic action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. For every pleasure you attain in life, there's an equal and opposite pain that you'll have to endure.

We are all born with some natural immunization for certain types of pain. Wisdom is knowing what kind of pain you are immunized for. Taking on those types of pain is less of a suffering. There's a palette of pain that one can choose to take on. The pain you choose, defines the pleasure that you'll get. The right type of pain edifies you. The wrong one could break you. So choose your pain wisely.