COVID-19 - A blessing in disguise
The fragility of human experience, is indicated by this global crisis of COVID-19 in which no one is immune to this pandemic whether rich or poor, educated or illiterate and no one is aware when this crisis will phase out eventually. Those tiny miniscule objects to the tune of 20 nanometers (thousand times lesser than a human hair) – coronavirus virions – are making the lives of humanity miserable. It appears to be a gigantic turnout of the cosmic karmic cycle, a disaster as catastrophic as ever seen on this planet earth and yet brought about by a tiny virus so small that it is invisible even under optical microscopes. But, do we have to really fear it even though we have a right to be fully scared of this virus?
Change is the cardinal law of this material world and is inherent manifestation of time scale; change is bound to happen as one moves along with spatial and time dimension and, ultimately, without change time can never move. We are conscious of the drastic and invisible changes that have occurred in few months yet only on very subtle level, yet the materialistic world appears to be intact. Ecological degradation had reached to an alarming level and our immune system had weakened due to severe pollution and it appears nature has tried to reboot the ecological balance by initiating this pandemic. The skies have become clearer, the birds are chirping louder, the pollution levels have decreased, and the grass and flowers are more beautiful than ever before, as nature continues to side line and ignore our human tribulations.
Such events cause anxiety, stress and fear. What are we really afraid of? We are fearful of the illusions created by our mind – the virtual concepts – which are the hallmarks of our own musings. We are fearful of drastic and random change, of financial setback, of apprehension of living closer to death than usual, all this is the handiwork of our mind. Mind becomes our worst enemy when it is weak and uncontrolled. It analyses and passes negative judgments when it is dominated by uncertainty, anxiety and fear. But if mind focusses within, it becomes tranquil with proper discipline and devotion. Once we make contact with the love that is within us, all anxieties, fears, loneliness and depression are dissolved.
It is spiritual love which takes all our fears, anxiety and irrational phobias into its embrace. This spiritual love directs us through our confusion to the tranquillity and peace of the astral world. It is perspicuously clear that spiritual love is the ultimate solution. We are locked in our bubbles of love with our families. Let us increase our perspective and broaden it to include the love for the soul and the Holy Spirit. This is the best opportunity to look within ourselves and meditate. There is nothing to fear but irrational fear itself and the best way to remove it is through introspection and meditation.
We should be never fearful of the unknown. We are never alone as His guiding hand is always there. We always have the confidence that Holy Spirit is with us, watching us and guiding us and helping us. One should get rid of the negative tendencies of the mind. We should always try to be in touch with the Holy Spirit through meditation.
The law of karma is operational here to each individual. Although it may seem that most of the mankind is being subjected to some group karma as it is suffering the same karmic Corona virus pandemic, but that is not true as each one of us is accounting for his own individual karma. Each individual has to ward off the effect of his bad karmas, in the privacy of his own struggle with the mind. Meditation makes it easier to create a balance in one’s life.
No one likes to believe that he is the primal cause for this misery, as it is the natural conditioning of the mind to lay blame on others’ doors and our judgment is often biased and clouded with prejudiced attitude. Most of us claim that we believe in God and this world is God’s creation. If that is true then we must face the evident truth whether and how we are endangering and harming this creation. Are we not responsible to cause pain, fear, strife and destruction to ourselves, ecology and God’s creatures?
According to some reliable estimates, more than 200 million land animals are butchered for food every day. If we add up with the aquatic organisms, it amounts to 3 billion killed every day to satisfy our appetite, which finally adds up to 1.1 trillion animals killed each year. Who is responsible for this slaughter? The same principle is applicable to man-made damage caused to ecology and environment.
There is no doubt in saying that bad karma and corona are both viruses – one being the cause, the other the effect. Actions cause reactions; the law of karma is inexplicable about that. We have incurred bad karmas by destroying animals to satisfy our palate and damaging environment and corona virus is one of those reaction. Perhaps, nature is asking us to slow down our pace of life, lead a simple life with lesser wants far from the maddening pace of mass production and consumption and to bring back the virtues, love, care and warmth that we have forsaken in our race to sheer materialism and reckless consumerism.
Nature is perhaps pushing us to go back to loving and respecting God’s creation, as it provides us everything for our nurture and sustenance in abundance irrespective of our caste, creed, nationality, status or wealth. We should learn to be humble in appreciating the gifts of nature. After this pandemic, we should learn to appreciate our fellow beings and nature in abundance, to be more generous, more caring and more loving.
In fact, COVID-19 is a blessing in disguise as the sufferings undergone teach us to be more humble and better human beings.