What is Suffering?

"Suffering is not in the fact, but in your perceptionmy experience, I believe the family bloodline
of the fact," Sri Bhagavan, Oneness University.carried the suffering. We can choose to allow the
Bhagavan explains that as long as we see ourvileness of our family bloodline to dissolve as we
suffering as resulting from external events, wepermit greater Light of God into our bodies.
will continue to avoid or want to escape ourI had a choice to forgive my father rather than
suffering. We will blame others. If instead we shiftcontinue to carry the suffering in my body.
the way we see suffering by shifting ourTherefore, I reached out my hand and in so
awareness inward towards ourselves, we comedoing, allowed him release from his suffering.
at some point to realize that our suffering resultsWe may ask, how do we succumb to the
from how we see and experience events andvileness of another person? I succumbed to my
people. In other words, we see through thefather's vileness by first resisting, and in the
limited view of the colored glasses of our ownresistance, I took it on. In addition, when we
misperceptions of outer reality. The answer tosuccumb to strong emotions, this takes us into
our suffering lies within ourselves.suffering, which drains our energy and we feel
Another way of understanding suffering follows infatigued. This opens the door for the vileness of
my own personal experience. As we encounternegative energies of others to enter into us.
vileness in others, which can turn our stomachs,"Pain is a relatively objective, physical
we have the tendency to resist or succumb. Thisphenomenon; suffering is our psychological
resistance creates suffering for us. Another wayresistance to what happens. Events may create
exists for us. We can reach out through another'sphysical pain, but they do not in themselves
vileness to their inner soul essence. In othercreate suffering. Resistance creates suffering.
words, see beyond their suffering to the inwardStress happens when your mind resists what is..."
beauty of the person.Dan Millman author, "The Peaceful Warrior."
Recently I had an opportunity to reach out to my(c) Copyright - Michael David Lawrience. All Rights
father who had died over thirty years ago. I hadReserved Worldwide.
resisted the vileness of his alcoholism all my life. In