Greetings from the Land of Enchantment

The Age of Innocence Lost

I realized as I opened up this page that it had been nine months since my last post. I could have had a baby by now--but I didn't. Instead, I went on a couple of tours, taught in a few teacher trainings, saw my niece and nephew both begin their families, and lived through the loss of a few animals. It's been a year of great hardship for many people; and a year of blessings for me. It's also been the most traumatic year for children in recent history, which is why I opened up this page to put down a few thoughts. More than 500 children were killed in the siege against Gaza this summer; 200 girls were stolen by Boko Haram in Nigeria; and yesterday, yesterday more than 130 children were killed, execution style, in their school rooms in Pakistan. Meanwhile here in the states, children are killed by the Police, regularly, or by guns in some horrific act of violence, just infrequently enough for us to forget to do anything about gun laws in our society. Last night I witnessed my husband weep as we chanted and sang and tried to come to some kind of grace, some kind of understanding, around what had happened that morning in Pakistan. My husband said innocence--how could they kill so many innocents. And then I understood in part. Innocence is about the future; and it's the antidote to shame. When one is so filled with shame and rage because of innocence lost, then destruction is the only path. I know this from my experience as an alcoholic. My destructive behavior was fueled by my loss of innocence and the depth of the shame I experienced because of that loss. My redemption was found in the words of Guru Gobind Singh, "Wahe Guru ji ka Khalsa, Wahe Guru ji ki Fateh". My innocence belongs to God; my victory belongs to God. (this is just one common translation) And in those words, I understood my innocence was not my own to keep or to lose. And in that realization, I reclaimed my innocence and began the path to a profound healing that continues even today. When an individual, or a society, targets children, it is targeting it's own shame; it's own loss; it's own future. It's acting from a hidden agenda that is so deep and so destructive, our teacher, Yogi Bhajan said, it's best left to lie dormant. But somehow we have awakened this beast--here and abroad--it is raging across the landscape, tearing out people's hearts, destroying people's hope. What kind of vanguard is there against such a monstrous rage? What kind of medicine could possibly be the remedy? Hope, of course, and an innocence renewed, a vigilant and irrespressible dedication to the future. Cherdi Kala! There is a mantra that Yogi Bhajan gave to restore our innocence. Let's practice it together for the next 40 days and invite a renewed sense of innocence within ourselves and hopefully, ignite a light that will spread around the world. Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam Sat Narayan Wahe Guru, Hari Narayan Sat Naam

posted by Sat Purkh Kaur Khalsa @ 10:18 AM