It has been said that he who defeats others is strong, while he who conquers himself is mighty. This I believe wholeheartedly. True might is of the spirit, while artificial strength is of the ego. Being what the physical world can take away just as quickly as it is found, it is artificial strength that is fragile and hollow in its impermanence.
The might of the spirit can never be compromised by the movements of the physical world because by its changelessness, it is not made subservient. Centred in the knowing that everything on the physical plane is connected at the level beyond form, peace is maintained in its company because the integrity of all things has not been fractured by the false belief in separateness.
We compare, and in the process compete against each other, because we place the ultimate trust in the eyes of the body. Seeing only the physical, we draw the conclusion that we are indeed separate from all else that appears independent of our physical body, which begins and ends in the realm of space and time. But this conclusion we do not draw safely. The mind likes finality, while the heart is comfortable with not knowing.
Knowing itself to be a part of something that is infinitely larger than the physical body, it is the heart that seeks not to compare or compete against that which shares its divine essence. The goal of the heart is simple. It wants to experience love so that it may find peace. This is all that is important to it. It cares nothing of whether someone in your workplace has a higher or lower IQ than you, and it focuses no attention on whether someone else has a nicer car, a bigger house, or a thicker wallet.
Attention is of the mind, and it is when we live from our mind to the exclusion of the heart that we experience the torment that comes with all forms of competition and comparison. Understand that the duality which defines the physical plane also defines competition and comparison, which are mind made constructs brought to life on that plane. To compete or compare is to win or to lose; to defeat or be defeated. But where is the peace in this.
To lose is to suffer under the weight of shame and damaged pride; To win is to fear the loser’s reality. With every battle comes the prospect of defeat, and this itself is an excruciating burden to carry. Masquerading as a lifestyle, it is deficient in all things that make life worthwhile, for in the company of the ego is abundance reduced to lack. Love and peace flow freely from the spirit that cares nothing for who you think you are.
True love is unconditional love, and the heart accepts you unconditionally. But this, the conditioned mind is incapable of. Its affection, which is less than love, is withheld pending the outcome of the battle. To the loser goes nothing; To the victor goes the fleeting recognition and acceptance that is useless to the eye that does not wander. Focused on the spirit, it sees what the wandering eye does not; loving and peaceful, it experiences what the wandering eye cannot.
