Monday, April 27, 2009

Looking for Every Opportunity to Learn

People often come up to me and ask, "How do you feel now that you've finished your Masters?" I typically give the answer, "I'm SOOO happy! No more school." Which is often followed by a long pause and then, "Well, at least for now!"

But thinking about it, we never actually finish school. At least not if one is an aspiring spiritual seeker. We may think of school as a physical building with desks, computers, exams and stressed out students. While that maybe true, that misconception can lead us to forget that our sojourn through material existence is actually the true "SCHOOL" so to speak.

We are always in school, every moment of every day. The question is are we looking at every situation and circumstance as an opportunity to learn or, as it so happens so many times when we are physically in school, just try to get by without learning the true lesson.

This rings true for me. In school I would always get by, trying to cram at the last minute just so I could do well in the exam. See, the way schools here in the material world assess us are completely different than Krsna's way. There is no way to cram for the lessons Krsna is hoping we will learn and implement. It comes only by becoming conscious that we are having an exam at every moment. And what is that exam? The result is measured by our reaction. Is it Krsna conscious or is it self-centred?

I pray that I can develop this vision and get rid of my tendency to simply cram and hope for the best.

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