A Friend Along The Way

A friend found along the path of a Spiritual Seeker is a true gem indeed. The path of spirituality is indeed a long and difficult path that requires much patience, perseverence and supreme effort. A true spiritual path is not achieved overnight. For those who are on the cultivation practice of a method that attains enlightenment in one lifetime, those beings are imbued with great fortune indeed, for in order to reach a state to be able to TRULY practice such teachings these beings must have undergone lifetimes over lifetimes of refining in order to collect the necessary merits and spiritual qualifications to embark upon such a journey.

Most who encounter such practices only but plant seeds in hopes of awakening in a future life for if they deeply analyse themselves they will realise in this time an age, distractions are high, merits are low and foundations of practice are even lower. Thus, that is one more reason why such practices are RARE indeed, true practitioners of these teachings are even more rare.

Thus, most beings embark upon a longer path with many different roads that lead towards the same peak. And along such a path to find a Helpful Friend along the way is like finding a Bright Lamp in throes of Shadow and Darkness... a rare treasure indeed! Such a friend illuminates the way that we stumble not, uplifts us when we fall, brightens that which is darkened by fear and grief, strengthens when we are weak and encourages when our spirit is in utter despair.

But if we are truly seekers of the spiritual light, we should not be one who searches for such a friend, but instead, we should BE that one who others searches for... WE should be that friend. For by being such a friend, one Advances along the spiritual path by Stopping to be Helpful to one who has Stumbled, one gains Speed by Slowing down to be Kind to one in need and one's progress is Quickened by Giving Time to Care for those who have fallen behind. That is the huge paradox and irony of true spiritual practice because it is in giving that one receives, as it is in being the precious friend that one in turn receives friends of good and noble natures in return.