We all feel sad sometimes. Perhaps you're mourning the loss of a loved one, perhaps it's sadness over some of the tragedies that are happening around the world, perhaps you feel stuck and don't know how to move forward. Or, perhaps you just feel sad for no reason other than it's a sad day.
Firstly let's explore what sadness really is, as when we realise what is truly at the heart of our sadness, then we are able to channel it positively.
What is Sadness?
The first thing I want to stress about sadness is that it is natural. It comes to all of us as part of the natural process of life; the ebb and flow that comes with living in a world governed by dualistic principles. It is impossible to truly know something without also knowing the lack of it. It may be triggered by something or it may simple wash over us.
Sadness is caused by our observation that things are not okay. A feeling that somehow our reality is unaligned, and doesn't always meet up to the beauty and love that we often feel. It is a playing out of our explorations of our reality, showing us where we may be stuck or attached to people of situations.
The Truth Behind Sadness
When we look a little deeper into sadness we see that there is one underlying feeling governing the whole experience... love. What we are experiencing is a temporary perceived loss of connection to that love, because we have lost the object which triggered it within us. However, when we look deeper, we discover that the love is still there and that our sadness is actually a manifestation of that love. We feel sad because we care. We grieve over loss of a loved one because that person was a object in which we could express our love, we feel sadness about world events because we want others to feel love too. We feel sad when there seems to be no channel for us to express our love, which is our natural creative expression of our uniqueness.
So how can we use our sadness to fuel our creative expression of our uniqueness (love)?
Honour the Pain
It's very important that we recognise our sadness for what it is, and know that it is a manifestation of our underlying feelings of love. That way we don't condemn it, push it away or ignore it. We embrace it as part of our beauty.
How does the sadness want to express itself? Depending on who you are, perhaps you will want to cry, curl up into a ball or stare off into space.
Express the Love
Finding the real you through it all can be extremely liberating. You discover that sadness and happiness are really two sides of the same coin - love. Thus you allow whatever arises, knowing that who you are underneath doesn't change. Then you express your feelings into the outside world letting those feelings of love, whichever form they may take, ripple out.
Your expression may also take the form of gestures, particularly when your sadness involves another person. You may wish to honour a loved one by doing something for them our creating something to remember them by. Here's a heart warming example of a young father who was dying of Cancer and wrote his son a series of letters to be opened throughout his life: When I'm Gone
Watch for the Reflection
Life is like a mirror. As we express ourselves into the world around us, thus we get feedback. This can take the form of reactions from other people - perhaps sharing your sadness, thus connecting through love, or being inspired by your creativity. If love expresses itself purely, without neediness or blame, then people will feel that and reflect it back to you. You can also look out for reflections in nature. Animals express there beauty very well and we can find reflections in them, or even just being warmed by the rays of the sun.
The Benefits
When we take this simple approach to heart we will begin to see amazing benefits:
A Final Poem
In the spirit of creativity, I've written a short poem on the subject of sadness. Enjoy!
Today is a sad day, But that's okay. I feel my heart beating with sorrow, And I know that I am beautiful. For how can beauty not feel sorrow, to remind us of how openly we love? I hear a song and I cry, Tears that make my eyes glisten. And looking through this shimmering lens, I know that I am truly alive. I am alive and I love. Update: Click here for an awesome but heart-braking video example of channelling sadness into beauty With love,
Richard
2 Comments
Michelle
25/5/2017 02:21:46 am
Hi Richard. Thank you for touching this subject with such a compassionate heart. I was touched by all of it it but mostly I caught the bit about reflections; those reflecting back to me my unique style of love.
Reply
Dee Chips
25/10/2017 06:41:47 pm
I found you through the link from one of your articles in the Wake Up World Newsletter. I am writing a book called Beyond Tragedy, Surviving And Learning To Thrive Again" I might want to reference your work or services in the book and wanted to connect more so signed up for your newsletter and visited your site. I did catch some typos on the site and these would ideally need to be corrected for the professional appeal and my own potentially referencing of your work. I do have a facebook page under my name if you do that please friend request me. Also Linkdin. My email is above. Have a beautiful day! Always, Dee Chips Owner/ Manager Transpersonal Publishing, LLC
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorMy name is Richard. I love to write, and here you can find my general musings, observations and articles. Enjoy! To stay up to date with articles follow my Facebook page
Archives
December 2018
Categories
All
BACK TO THE SOURCE
Bringing you home
|