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Surrender

While trying to figure out my intentions for the new year in yoga on Saturday, I recalled my favorite quote which, to me, encompasses the whole of a spiritual practice: 
You can suffer, or you can love.
You can complain, or you can surrender.
You can abuse, or you can bless.
It is really just that simple.
— Avatar Adi Da Samraj © ASA 2017

Some, or all, of that quote is inevitably my primary intention in any given year. And yes, I suck at them all so badly, I really do need to make the same intention year after year. Most recently, my focus has been on “You can abuse, or you can bless,” because…well… I’m well aware of the evil thoughts that lurk inside my head, and I really do want to be like Paikea from the movie Whale Rider or like Van Jones—someone who is able to remain vulnerable and open, loving in the face of…hmmm…. I would call it stupidity, ignorance, and cruelty, but Paikea and Van would probably call it something a little more compassionate. Like I said, I need a lot of work in this area.

This year, however, I find myself drawn to “You can complain, or you can surrender.” Probably because there’s so much to complain about this year. And, to  be honest, surrender scares the living shit out of me. I have no desire to relinquish control, even when I know that control is an illusion.

So, what does it really mean to surrender? The imagery that comes to mind is the waving of the white flag--lying down, giving up, admitting defeat. But that’s not what true surrender is really about. Avatar Adi Da Samraj also said that stress is created by our wanting to change something. And it occurred to me that not surrendering is stress. Surrender is actually about the hard truth. It’s about looking at the situation and, rather than wishing it were another way, accepting that it is what’s happening in the moment.

Yes, Trump is our president-elect, and no amount of being upset or wishing it to be otherwise or complaining will change that. That only creates stress and adds more negativity to the world. True change comes from that place of acceptance. Rather than being caught up in the emotionality of the moment, surrender allows the mind and heart become clear. From that place, one can act.

No, surrender is not about lying down. It is not about not taking action. If anything, it is the opposite. It is true prayer. In true prayer, you acknowledge the situation, ask for what you want, take action to obtain it, and relinquish any attachment to the result. It is saying, “Yes, this is the current situation. I am going to take these actions to counter it. It may all be for naught, but I am going to do what is right and accept the outcome.”

So, 2017, I surrender!

 What creates stress? Whenever you want to change something, you get full of stress. Instead, love Me. Surrender to Me. You are always instigating a motive to change something, but the fundamental disposition of religion is to surrender to God and let God do it. Act, but act as Communion with the Divine and don’t worry about the results. Don’t stress yourself up with the inclination to change something, just do what is right.
— Avatar Adi Da Samraj © ASA 2017
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