Prepare: learning to let go

I'm tagging this as a preparedness post, but it doesn't have to be.

This is the time to learn to let go.

I was working with a client a few months ago who had been overcome by feelings of anger--anger at the idea that the righteous will have to suffer during the Tribulation also. Anger that because of other people's sins, the Saints will have to give up their homes and their lifestyles and even their lives. It didn't seem fair.

We cleared the anger, and I want to point out that the sentiment there was inherently flawed anyway. The Saints are not innocent here. We are not innocent. As far as I know, we are still under condemnation as a church for not taking the scriptures seriously enough. None of us is perfect.

Earth as a sea of glass. Image here.

But beyond that, the Tribulation and any "suffering" we go through will actually be a really good thing for us. It may not feel that way at the time, but it will be. This is how we have to learn to let go.

I was thinking about it, and it came to me that giving up the things of this earth for a celestial one will be very difficult for a lot of people. Consider how the D&C describes God's home:

Doctrine and Covenants 130:7
7 But they reside in the presence of God, on a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before the Lord.

Joseph Smith taught that when the earth is celestialized, it too will be like a globe of glass and fire:

“I remarked to my family and friends present, that when the earth was sanctified and became like a sea of glass, it would be one great urim and thummim, and the Saints could look in it and see as they are seen” (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 5:279).

When I think of that, of living on a globe like a sea of glass, I have to say the first thing that comes to mind is that I will really miss trees and grass. And water. Before we can be happy on a celestial planet, we have to remove our attachment to the things we love that are of this earth.

Wouldn't you just miss forests? Image here.

Or, consider the idea that if we are ever forced from our homes, we will not be able to take our photo albums with us. Maybe some of us will. But some of us won't. If that ever happens, which who knows, maybe it won't. But the fact is that the things of this world are fleeting, and as they say, you can't take it with you. There are bound to be things that we love that we just can't take with us in every circumstance.
It doesn't even require a crazy thing to happen like an invasion of foreign troops; we can lose our things tomorrow from a run-of-the-mill house fire. This happens. Houses flood and burn down all the time. Our attachment to our stuff is what will hurt us if that kind of stuff ever happens to us.

The Tribulation--that period of years described in Revelation, where the economy collapses and we get lots of wars and a one-world government and all that--is not meant to be a punishment for the righteous. It is a preparation. It is the quickest, most effective way to help the Saints let go of the things of this earth, so we can be given a better one.

It could take us lifetimes to learn that stuff doesn't matter if we never have to lose our stuff. It will take us significantly less time when we are forced to sacrifice everything.

But it reminds me of my kid. My little three-year-old. There was this time a few months ago where I wanted to take him somewhere fun, but to go out to the fun place, he had to put his everyday toys away and put on his shoes to go. He really didn't want to stop playing dragons. But as his momma I knew that he would be glad he did once he got to the play place, or wherever we were going. Sometimes loving parents need to step in and help their children let go of things they love, so that the same children can be open to it when something even better comes along.

The Tribulation is our chance to let go of our attachment to the things of a telestial world, so we can be prepared for the Millennium on a terrestrial one. It is a blessing. It is a blessing to be forced to let go.

But it might still be hard.

That is why it is a blessing to learn to let go sooner than that. It will be a good preparation for our preparation to learn to let go now, rather than later. The better we are at letting go before the Tribulation begins, the easier it will be on us. This includes letting go of material items, and letting go of people who die or choose not to be our friends anymore, and letting go of pre-set ways of doing things that may not be the best way for what's to come.

Sodarshan Chakra Kriya. Intense!
Picture here.

Warning: if you pray for a crash course in this stuff, you will probably find yourself having to let go of a lot of things before you feel ready. But it might be the best thing for you.

A powerful meditation to help in this process is Sodarshan Chakra Kriya. I love what Yogi Bhajan wrote about it:

There is no time, no place, no space and no condition attached to this mantra. Each garbage pit has its own time to clear. If you are going to clean your own garbage, you must estimate and clean it as fast as you can, or as slow as you want. You have to decide how much time you have to clean up your garbage pit.

This is the beautiful opportunity we have as God's children living on this earth in this day and age. We have spirits full of garbage--all of us have spirits full of garbage--and we get to choose if it's going to be cleaned, and how fast it will be cleaned. It is up to us to clean our inner garbage as fast as we can, or as slow as we want. It's all our choice. We get to choose.

I will say, I started a 100-day meditation of Sodarshan Chakra Kriya about three weeks ago, and about five days in, my life completely blew up and got horrible. I guess a lot of subconscious gunk came to the fore to be processed. Committing to working on garbage means garbage comes up to be dealt with. But better to deal with it now in our comfortable homes with plentiful food, than when we're living on beans and rice in a tent city (if it ever comes to that!).

Conclusion

Now is a great time to practice letting go. Give something away that you love. Take your deep breaths when other people disrespect your home or your belongings. Do some Sodarshan Chakra Kriya if you are feeling brave. Clean your garbage. Better now than later.