Tacky title I know! But somehow "cleaning the window of my soul" it's exactly what I started doing this morning without it being my main intention.
Sunday morning. I gave myself license to have a big cup of Chai latte in bed (this large blue mug was only for my weekend boyfriend and now we broke up I can use anytime I want!). Then I started reading again for God knows how many times, the first pages of The Githa (the book of all knowledge and wisdom) trying to make some advances in this book that promises complete enlightenment. The Sanskrit word Padmapatramivanbhasa called my attention immediately. It means: "For he who places all the actions in the eternal, abandoning all attachment, he that is as unaffected by sin as a lotus leaf by water." It's curious because in the last few months I decided to stop painting and drawing all the feminist stuff I was interested on and started painting instead lovely little canvases with a lotus flower in the middle of a circle. I want to be a lotus flower. I want to be beautiful and unaffected by muddy waters. I want to raise my petals to the sky and bring happiness to others just with my presence. Of course, this sounds vane: After all it's all about me!!! But no. I do not mean it this way. We should all be like that. Our existence should bring happiness to others.
But, I have deviated from this window business, let's go back to it. Karma Yoga, the Yoga of selfless service, is very important for any spiritual aspirant. Now, as I was having my Chai in bed, I could see how dirty my windows were and how I had kind of resigned myself to see them through a veil of dust for years. After all, I could still see through them quite well and paying the window cleaner didn't appeal to me that much.
Suddenly I put the Gita to the side (I must say that once again I did not read more than 5 pages) and went downstairs to load myself with cleaning weapons in order to attack the dirt! Oh my God! I was surprised, I had not realized that there was mold on the window seal because all looked so uniformed that surely it was always meant to be black! But it wasn't! I went back for a toothbrush, for bleach (by the way, thanks to whoever invented bleach! I felt like composing an Aria to the marvelous cleaner that I had used very few times in my life). And with every stroke on the glass I started philosophizing. I realized that I had been looking at the outside world through a dirty glass. In yogic terms this veil that prevents you from realizing the truth about life, is called Maya, or illusion. And of course, then other thoughts came with it. I noticed that once one area was sparkling clean, the other, that did not appear that dirty at first, now looked pretty stained. And so, I realized why these lovely ladies "The Brahma Kamaris" only wear white clothes. They say that if they want to keep a clean life, then they must be able to see even the tiniest bit of dirt on themselves. I have dressed in pure crystal stainless white very few times, and believe me, it has changed the way I feel and behave...
And so, I couldn't call what I did Karma yoga, as now I feel I am enjoying seeing how clean my windows are, but I guess it was a good spiritual exercise. Let's hope is only the beggining of many! Om Namah Shivaya.
