Jaajef wa G-L,

The posting below was forwarded to me from a Sufi website,
and I felt that others might wish to reflect and enjoy it. I found
it both relevant and humbling.

Yeenduleen ak jaama

Tony

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Consistency: to reduce the gap between what we
                          believe and what we do.


How often do our noble ideals lack corresponding actions.
Sometimes it is as if they remain sealed in mental
cellophane. We need to unwrap them in the heart so that
their taste and fragrance can permeate our torsos and limbs.
We need to somehow become saturated with their meaning
and energy, to cultivate a consistency within ourselves from
our core beliefs through our relationships all the way down to
our most habitual actions.

We human beings can seldom see the whole of ourselves
objectively, just as when we look in the mirror we see our
front but not our back, or if we see the back we do not see
the front. One moment we are reflecting on our values and
ideals, but then in the next moment we are acting in a way
inconsistent with the simplest ideals.

There are certain kinds of mirrors that can help us do this,
however. Let us say that an authentic spiritual work can be
such a mirror. It encourages us to look where we might tend
to ignore. It encourages us to enter situations where our
weaknesses and strengths can be more clearly seen. It
encourages us to remain in relationship with others who are
involved in the same struggle and work, rather than withdraw
into our own self-justifications, defenses, and illusions.

How can we simultaneously hold in our minds the ideals we
aspire to and the reality of our actions? We can, for example,
take a simple but powerful ideal: Do unto others as you
would have them do unto you. Then we can ask ourselves
how consistent we are in applying this ideal. For instance, do
we allow trivial or not so trivial resentments, jealousies, or
wounds to cause us to make exceptions to our ideal? Do we
apply the ideal where and when it is convenient and remain
more or less unconscious of how we judge and criticize, bear
resentment, or withdraw ourselves?

Muhammad said, "Practice as much of the faith as it is easy
for you to consistently apply." He knew the infinite Majesty of
the Divine Being; he also knew the humble day to day work
of being a human being. You fall and you get up again. You
try to remember to act like a friend to your friends. You try to
be a responsible daughter, son, parent, husband, wife,
citizen.

We have a power available to us that can transform our
mistakes and shortcomings, that can repair the damages we
do. The whirlpools of negativity, the craters of anger, the
shabby remains of neglected relationships, the hurts we have
caused or received can be transformed by the generous
loving power of our Friend. But only when we are willing to
look into the mirror.

If we do the work, if we continually try to see objectively,
especially when it is painful to do so, how can that Friend not
help, how can that Power fail us? We can resolve to be the
kind of person that makes every situation slightly better than
it would be without us. We can resolve that through our
actions we will try to be a living reflection and reminder of the
Divine Qualities. We can resolve to do as much as we can
consistently do. Then, little by little, through consistency, the
gap between what we believe and what we do, will be
reduced. Then the Infinite will reflect within the finite frame of
our human personality.



I

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