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Do you have memories of a "better time?"
SEARCHING
by Harry Palmer
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE between "searching" and "exploring."
Think back to when you were younger and you had the opportunity to "explore" some new terrain or new experience. Wasn't it exciting? An adventure? For most people there is a thrill in discovering new places and in seeing new things. That is the mental state of an explorer. It's not too difficult to remember how that felt.
But then, sometime later, you discovered that one of your possessions is missing. Was it left behind, or what? You check your memory, then your pockets, and then you start looking around.
Lost! Maybe a purse or a wallet. A jack knife or a piece of jewelry. A personal item that has disappeared.
You go back over the same terrain, retracing your steps, but now you are in the mental state of a searcher. You look here, you try to remember; you look there, your desperation brings you to the edge of tears. Perhaps even a prayer or two are offered. You quiz yourself, "When did I have it last?" or "What did I do next?"
Lost! Lost! Lost!
Life is no longer an adventure. The thrill and excitement are suppressed by the anguish you feel. There is a filter over your eyes that turns everything, other than the lost article, into a disappointment. And until you have found what was lost, or have given it up to history, the mental state of searching will persist. And the world will be a little less exciting.
So single minded do you become in your search that you ignore new experiences and potential opportunities, just because they are not what you are looking for. Many things pass unnoticed.
Anything can be lost. People search for: lost health, lost abilities, lost answers, lost feelings, lost love, lost security, lost attention, lost memories of a "better time", ...the list goes on.
For some of us, without realizing it, searching becomes a habit and we begin to accept the mental state of searching as our identity; we become seekers!
The lost item, the lost person, the lost experience--whatever it is, it fades from memory. But the seeker still searches, . . . for something .. .for... mechanically retracing his steps. Maybe offering a prayer or two. Trying to remember. It is the (dis)-ease of searching.
And without even a memory of what IT is that one is searching for, failure is certain. Frustration is certain. Blind alleys, detours, and despair are certain. One retreats into the memories of the good old days, losing even the present moment.
The seeker grows serious and complex. Thinking becomes a relief valve for the pressures of frustration. Worry replaces concentration and wandering begins. The wanderer is a seeker, who, embroiled in his own thoughts, hopes he will know what IT is when he finds IT.
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It is not callous that it is natural that things, people, and events, come and go in everyone's life. Not callous at all! Knowing when to let go is the beginning of wisdom.
So when the exhausted seeker hears about Avatar, at first it appears to have a dream quality that shimmers just beyond reach. A trained Avatar master is needed to guide the seeker to reach through the dream and touch what IT is that is really sought.
The IT is the mental state that they once possessed when they set out excitedly to explore! IT is living! IT is enjoying being alive! Exploring. And IT hasn't really been lost, just turned off.
The seeker can turn it back on by commending all that has been lost, or yet to be found, to the care of the universe. It's a brave step, but then, LIFE is, indeed, quite an adventure!
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