Mirror, Mirror
Mirror, Mirror on the wall. Who’s the fairest of us all?
Remember this phrase from our childhood when the answer was “Snow White”. That answer is highly symbolic when you think of it in terms of our inner beauty and essential nature. In the mirror is the snow covered peak of Mt. Kaylash and the ashen Lord Shiva sitting in meditation. That is a mirror I want to look into. To see the truth of my being... majestic and serene, to feel the deep silence that underlies my human existence. That kind of Snow White brings a leap of joy to my soul.
On the other hand, when I look at the mirror put before me every day in the remarks and actions of others, I often shirk and immediately deny that it is me I am seeing. I throw the rock of blame back in their court and think it will stay with them as I walk away. I walk away, if I am lucky without saying something to add to the mirror’s image, but the shadow of blame follows me home and sleeps in my bed until it bounces back and chinks a piece of my armor away.
Even the mention of mirrorism causes my mind to cringe and an uncomfortable feeling to come over me. My rusty skin pulls in and I yell, “Hey, this is too hard to understand. It’s hard enough to get up every day and meet the challenges of life with half a smile, let alone understand the angles of creation.” Now the poor me “little self “has arrived and shows itself with excuses and belief systems all playing as if I’m trying to get to first base by telling a good lie and hoping no one is watching.
When I arrive at first base, there is a mirror that reflects back all the little ways I lie to myself about how important certain things are: comfort, bliss, kindness, beauty, safety, plenty of fun, and plenty of people who think highly of me. The people I meet mirror back to me all the hidden fears and places that I have refused to take responsibility. The heartbreak, expectation, and disappointment along the way have become the focal point for my personality. They lay at the root of a belief system that I have built to shield me from pain and give me a false sense of meaning. My own mind has tricked me into thinking it’s all for the good.
Each time I feel hurt, frustrated, or overlooked it is the mirror that God is using to reveal my own growth edges. Sure, there are lessons for the others involved. It is often easier to see it for others than for ourselves. I can beat myself up and add salt to the wounds or I can jump for joy in a new way that requires dedication and inspiration to make a course correction for the sake of true happiness. Any time you learn a new dance, you step all over many feet before you get the hang of it.
How long will I turn away from the mirror and try to find comfort and safety in a false world I have built upon my personality needs and wants? When will I step up to the plate and be able to see the shame in the mirror as my own shame that I am unable to stand with, my own anger that I have failed to embrace, my own negligence to get on with the development of core soul power that can lead me and help me stand tall and bright in a world of sadness and suffering?
This is where we get down on our knees and pray in whatever way we know. We say “thank you” for God’s perfectly designed mechanism for our growth. We acknowledge our present situation and ask for the Divine to help us move forward in a new way where we can face our mirror with eyes open. We take the help and add our own dedication in order to stand balanced, open, and ready to receive. We use the natural reflections that come for fuel to inspire us to act with a new step to our feet.
Mirror, mirror on the wall who’s the fairest of them all? The One in all is the fair One. The Silent Compassionate One is the Wise One and the very creation point from whence the mirror came. Mirror, mirror, tell it all; how we rise and how we fall. Guide us to that place in us that lives the truth and learns to trust. Mirror let me stand and see…the me in you…and the you in me.
Remember this phrase from our childhood when the answer was “Snow White”. That answer is highly symbolic when you think of it in terms of our inner beauty and essential nature. In the mirror is the snow covered peak of Mt. Kaylash and the ashen Lord Shiva sitting in meditation. That is a mirror I want to look into. To see the truth of my being... majestic and serene, to feel the deep silence that underlies my human existence. That kind of Snow White brings a leap of joy to my soul.
On the other hand, when I look at the mirror put before me every day in the remarks and actions of others, I often shirk and immediately deny that it is me I am seeing. I throw the rock of blame back in their court and think it will stay with them as I walk away. I walk away, if I am lucky without saying something to add to the mirror’s image, but the shadow of blame follows me home and sleeps in my bed until it bounces back and chinks a piece of my armor away.
Even the mention of mirrorism causes my mind to cringe and an uncomfortable feeling to come over me. My rusty skin pulls in and I yell, “Hey, this is too hard to understand. It’s hard enough to get up every day and meet the challenges of life with half a smile, let alone understand the angles of creation.” Now the poor me “little self “has arrived and shows itself with excuses and belief systems all playing as if I’m trying to get to first base by telling a good lie and hoping no one is watching.
When I arrive at first base, there is a mirror that reflects back all the little ways I lie to myself about how important certain things are: comfort, bliss, kindness, beauty, safety, plenty of fun, and plenty of people who think highly of me. The people I meet mirror back to me all the hidden fears and places that I have refused to take responsibility. The heartbreak, expectation, and disappointment along the way have become the focal point for my personality. They lay at the root of a belief system that I have built to shield me from pain and give me a false sense of meaning. My own mind has tricked me into thinking it’s all for the good.
Each time I feel hurt, frustrated, or overlooked it is the mirror that God is using to reveal my own growth edges. Sure, there are lessons for the others involved. It is often easier to see it for others than for ourselves. I can beat myself up and add salt to the wounds or I can jump for joy in a new way that requires dedication and inspiration to make a course correction for the sake of true happiness. Any time you learn a new dance, you step all over many feet before you get the hang of it.
How long will I turn away from the mirror and try to find comfort and safety in a false world I have built upon my personality needs and wants? When will I step up to the plate and be able to see the shame in the mirror as my own shame that I am unable to stand with, my own anger that I have failed to embrace, my own negligence to get on with the development of core soul power that can lead me and help me stand tall and bright in a world of sadness and suffering?
This is where we get down on our knees and pray in whatever way we know. We say “thank you” for God’s perfectly designed mechanism for our growth. We acknowledge our present situation and ask for the Divine to help us move forward in a new way where we can face our mirror with eyes open. We take the help and add our own dedication in order to stand balanced, open, and ready to receive. We use the natural reflections that come for fuel to inspire us to act with a new step to our feet.
Mirror, mirror on the wall who’s the fairest of them all? The One in all is the fair One. The Silent Compassionate One is the Wise One and the very creation point from whence the mirror came. Mirror, mirror, tell it all; how we rise and how we fall. Guide us to that place in us that lives the truth and learns to trust. Mirror let me stand and see…the me in you…and the you in me.
posted by Maya | 12:48 PM
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