Dear Ones, in the practice of Yoga, we are told to be observers. Observers are persons who observe what is happening within themselves and what is happening with others. An observer is an individual, who recognises his/her negative emotions and develops self-awareness. Self-awareness leads to being empathetic and compassionate to others.

A few of us may graduate into becoming Seers. Who is a Seer? A seer is one who sees with spiritual eyes. S/he perceives the meaning of that which seems complicated. S/he understands the eternal truth and in some cases is aware of the past, present and future.

My point, why is it that we give short shift to people, who are unwell or have been through a tragedy. I have heard any number of people who tell me that they wish to share and speak about their illness or tragedy, but our expectation as listeners is that the person should say that s/he is well and on the way to recovery. When we go to see them, we want to tell them that they should snap out of it or come to terms with it. We may not use these words but they amount to this. It is shocking as to how callous we are. Where is our empathy and compassion?

To meet a seer

I will share a story with you. My guru when he was a child was taken to meet a seer. The seer was a very famous guru and when his disciples came to see him, he would ask them questions about their family, health and work. My guru could not understand what was happening. He thought that it was very silly that a revered guru should ask his disciples these questions. He expected the guru to speak about spirituality and God. After the audience was over with the guru, everyone came out joyous and smiling. They said that what a great man he was. He listened to their humble stories and now they felt free of fear and care. My guru then understood what it meant to be a spiritually evolved person and his family guru had attained Samadhi. The devotees felt blessed because he listened to them with love and sensitivity. The Guru was non-judgemental and devoid of negativity.

This is what we must learn to practice. When we meet an individual, who is suffering we should listen with understanding and not think of what we will say. We can ask probing questions or be silent and it will be much appreciated. It will reduce the feeling of bereftness which the person has, if it is a death. If it is an illness, it will reduce the burden of fear which the person has and also make him/her feel cared for. Many of us are thinking when we meet somebody with a life-threatening illness, it could happen to us. We are inattentive, cutting them off mid-sentence. Instead, we should be genuinely concerned about the person.

Listen and feel for the persons with your heart.

Aim Hrim Klim