Benefits Of Forgiveness

Forgiveness I: Benefits of Forgiveness

This week, a series of articles and helpful information about forgiveness will be shared in this newsletter. The first is an article from my beloved Spiritual Teacher, Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj, on the benefits of forgiveness.  It is taken from the March '05 issue of Sat Sandesh magazine. His teachings on meditation on the inner light and sound, and my practicing the same, have transformed my life completely and brought in much inner and outer peace and joy. I wish that same inner peace and joy for you.  If you can find an  SOS center in your area (see www.sos.org for details of centers ) , I encourage you to enroll in their free Jyoti meditation classes. Enjoy!

Love, Dayu

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Benefits of Forgiveness

The following is a talk given by Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj.

As I travel, I find that no matter what country of the world I visit, people are plagued by
the same troubles. When we read or listen
to the news, we find that people all over the world are struggling with the pain they suffer themselves, or the pain of their loved ones, neighbors, or even fellow citizens of the world who have been victims of some kind of injury or loss. The amount of pain in the world causes many people to feel anger, hatred, and revenge to the perpetrators of crime or injustice. I am often asked how we can deal with these situations.
In this connection, I would like to relate an anecdote. Once there was a warrior who went to a wise monk and asked him, "What is the difference between heaven and hell?" The monk looked at this warrior who was very large, muscular, and had a savage look about him. The monk then replied, "You ignorant brute. You are nothing but a savage. Why would I waste time with you teaching you about heaven and hell?" When the monk said that, the warrior's blood began to boil and he was filled with anger and hatred. Suddenly, he could not control his temper and he started beating up the monk. After a few moments, the warrior realized what a heinous act he was committing and stopped. The monk smiled and said, "That fit of anger is hell." The warrior was so ashamed for his violent act and begged the monk to forgive him. The monk again smiled and said, "Your asking for forgiveness is heaven."
This story describes in a nutshell the answer to the question about dealing with all the violence, injustice, and evil in the world. We can choose to respond in kind, which creates more of a hell, or we can respond with forgiveness, which creates heaven in our own lives on earth