Time is the cause of all change. Everything changes with time. But we can use time to create change, rather than be changed by it. By doing so, we can seize this great opportunity and even free ourselves from the limitations that time imposes.
Time is important. Time is life. With time, some things gain value, while others lose it. Time elevates some people and, conversely, humbles others. Just as fire reduces everything to ashes, time transforms everything in this world. Everything the human mind clings to will eventually be consumed by time.
Fear is a constant companion on the path of life. Fear and the mind are inseparable. Fear is the mind, and one might even say these two words are one and the same. Sadhus and yogis go beyond the mind, beyond fear. The ashes with which they anoint their bodies symbolize renunciation of all that is not the Soul’s true Divine Nature. Humans fear the future and fear change. They avoid confronting the nature of time. Only those who have covered themselves with ashes are free from fear of the future—they live fully in the present. Ordinary people live for the future and in the future, yet the future never arrives. It always remains beyond reach. By not living in the present, both the present and the future are lost.
Time can be used to foster change, rather than letting it change us. Time can either reduce or enhance the value of anything. If there is a determined intention, time becomes an opportunity. Sometimes, to move forward, one must stop. To continue living, one must die and walk without looking back.
Love is the shortest path, a path without loss and defeat. Love can accomplish incredible things, unattainable even by the strongest. Love paves the path to the center of our existence. But Love must be discovered; to find Love is to find Oneself. It lies hidden deep within us. Love is not the mind. The mind fears and doubts, but Love brings profound peace and balance. Love is unafraid of change.
When Love, the Heart, and Great Intention meet, an opportunity arises to step beyond the mind, beyond fear, into the reality of existence. This is not the future nor the past, but the eternal present. Then time is on our side. Then everything is on our side. Then nothing is impossible. This is Samadhi—the victory over death.