Being benevolent and loving to all is the natural state of the soul. 

There is a call of our times, to find a way to be less easily disturbed by everything that is happening around us. The world is chaotic and things are happening that we never thought possible. It is a time of great significance, and we must learn how to detach from the negative forces at play and yet hold a loving and benevolent attitude to all peoples. Charles Darwin, in his ‘On the Origin of Species’, noted that in times of chaos, and huge change, it is not the most educated or the most intelligent that survive – it is those who can adapt to change. The world is the way it is, we cannot change it, but we can change our responses to what is happening and learn to adapt.

Most of us are completely at the mercy of the outside world. When we see injustice or hear criticism, or are suddenly flooded with old memories, how does our mood change? We are not in control of our minds and feelings. We can ask ourselves, “Who is running my inner kingdom, my inner world?” How does my mind work? Spirituality is the journey to reclaim my inner kingdom with love and wisdom, not force and control.

The way to do this is to learn to be an observer and not an absorber; fully engaged with life and people but free from any influence they may be exerting on us. In relationships with other people, I can be a benevolent observer. This is only possible if I am detached.

For myself, I must become an honest observer. We all have weaknesses that we may be in denial of, but the biggest blind spot is of being in denial of our inner beauty. So many good and lovely people cannot see their value and worth. When I become an honest observer, I see the beauty and what needs to change.

To become naturally detached and loving, I need to dive deeply into my spiritual practices.

1. To know my true self. We do this by converting what we ‘know’ into an experience. Eighty per cent of people in the world believe they are more than the physical body, but have they experienced the truth of that? The soul is a point, having no dimensions, eternal, immortal, incorporeal. The more I am able to feel the truth of this, everything of the physical has less influence over me. It is a natural consequence.
2. The development of a deep and loving relationship with the Divine, God. The more I remember God, as He is, a point of pure energy of love, I begin to live stream those vibrations and feel sustained and full and thereby less influenced by anything external.

In fact, detachment is the natural state of the soul. Being benevolent and loving to all is also the natural state of the soul. However, the more I attach my heart to things or people, the less freedom I have to remain in this natural state. Tolstoy said that freedom is the innate nature of the human spirit. When we feel empty, we will attach to anything that gives us support, but we will feel trapped at the same time, because when that support is taken away, for whatever reason, we are lost and empty once more. When we have spiritual fullness, we feel free, because we need nothing from anyone or anything. We all want to be loved and to be able to love in freedom.  When I have full self-respect, based on the awareness of who I am, I begin to behave in the way I believe to be right and true. This increases my self-respect and enables me to love others with deep respect. The source of this spiritual love is God.

The more love I am able to receive from the Divine, he more I am detached from the physical. The more I am detached, the more I can be truly loving. The more I am truly loving, the more my self-respect increases and the fuller I feel. I become naturally uninfluenced, unaffected or impacted, and yet full of benevolence and love. It is absolutely possible – it just takes practice.

B.K Charlie Hogg based in Sydney, is the National Coordinator, Brahma Kumaris, Australia.