Short story: A Rabbi talks about inner darkness, and how best to overcome it with love's light
By emptychair
@innertalks (23744)
Australia
March 31, 2023 3:33am CST
Rabbi Arvin Brustow, was writing an article for his weekly Rabbinic newsletter, of which anyone passing by the Temple could grab a copy from the foyer table.
He was writing about inner darkness.
Here is what he said:
"Our inner darkness can be turned into light only by bringing God's light of love into our life."
"Only then can our own darkness be lighted away, as otherwise, it will stay around, and we will remain dark, as we have no light in us but God's, when we allow it to come into us, and be in us as it is."
"When we feel that we are in spiritual darkness, we should move closer to the light of God, burning brightly in our hearts."
"We continue with inner darkness within us as long as we do not connect to the light of God's love."
"Inner darkness is more than just ignorance, it is a propensity to do what is wrong, it is us shunning the light, for the clandestine methods of the darkness."
"Darkness will stay in us as darkness, until the light comes into us, and transforms it into light."
"When we refrain from loving, our darkness inside increases."
"A bad character will develop in darkness, and a good character will develop in the light."
"You can live in darkness, or in light. Always choose to live in the light."
"Do not chase more darkness, and be intrigued, or enamoured by it."
"Give it no hold on your life, but hang onto the light within your soul, and your heart instead."
"I will end my article here with this quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929 to 1968).
"Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism, or in the darkness of destructive selfishness."
"Love's way of light in you is never a selfish way, so follow it, and stop wallowing in your own selfishness of darkness."
Photo Credit: The photo used in this article was sourced from the free media site, pixabay.com
Never let the inner light of your soul be cowled over, or blotted out, by the darkness of your mind.
2 people like this
1 response
@Shiva49 (28394)
• Singapore
31 Mar 23
The inner knowing is ready on tap but we tend to willy-nilly suppress it.
We get caught up in short-term, momentary, pursuits that lead us nowhere.
Taken as a whole, humans have suppressed love and rely on the supposed deterrents in the form of powerful weapons.
Martin Luther King's words are ever meaningful. Our leaders bandy about their weapons conveniently forgetting their usage will boomerang on them too as they spare none.
The sad reality is our supposed awareness is not even skin deep. We tend to live in a fool's paradise!
1 person likes this
@innertalks (23744)
• Australia
31 Mar 23
They say that it was a meteorite that plunged the Earth into darkness, which then destroyed the dinosaurs.
Perhaps a nuclear war would again plunge the world into darkness with the dust created, and the dinosaurs would be killed off again.
The trouble is that the good and the bad would be all destroyed together.
Hopefully, some light will emerge from hidden spaces in cold hearts to banish the darkness in mercenary minds before that happens too.
@Shiva49 (28394)
• Singapore
1 Apr 23
@innertalks With the passage of each generation, our consciousness should go up a notch.
However, the reverse is happening with a devil-may-care attitude to life in general.
Yes, the effects of the war are more felt by common folks than by those who pursue them relentlessly.
Every powerful leader is keen on brinkmanship to prove his worth!
The hapless common people are invoking God to intervene or some ET to step out of the flying saucers - enough of their constant surveillance. Sort of an SOS!
1 person likes this
@innertalks (23744)
• Australia
2 Apr 23
@Shiva49 I would think, though, that some aspects of our consciousness, such as in the knowledge field, have increased, and generally, we are more conscious these days than we were in the past.
The main trouble is that some people, ignore their higher consciousness prompts, and go the way of their ego, following pride, and greed, instead.
Quite a few of the seemingly helpless, and hapless, are actually hidden spiritual giants, though, living from a higher consciousness, in the background of humanity, creating a rarefied consciousness field for all, that all are welcome to dip into, if they are so inclined to do so.
The saviours of humanity are in our midst already, if we could only recognise them, but for now they do their work in the background, without revealing themselves.
The Jewish religion acknowledges their ever-present reality, and call them the hidden Tzaddiks.
They are also known as the Nistarim (the concealed ones). They conceal themselves from the eyes of the ordinary man.
