Reflections
Doors to the soul
Where lies the soul? I may not know its exact abode but there are hundreds of ways that I feel its presence within me. There are many doors to the soul. The soul plays in strange ways. You may not be aware but the soul leads you on, you make choices that seem to be strange to you on a second look. The soul seems to sit at the helm of your life and steer you on, destination unknown. You wonder how and where the soul resides to lead you on. The soul, with invisible wings, soars high and low. At one time it is in the nooks and corners of your house and then suddenly you wonder if it is in the seventh heaven, taking a look at the ethics of your life. At one time the soul seems to be so engrossed with the material possessions that surround you and yet then it is flying around looking for the aesthetic senses to fill the heart. You wonder for the umpteenth time: How many doors are there to the soul? Imagination costs you nothing and you are a free bird as you let yourself keep searching for the whereabouts of the soul. But there is one thing you want, regardless of its exact location, and that is peace of the soul. You want solitude in life.
The doors to the soul have a special place for people. It opens and shuts for particular people. The loved ones always find the doors open; they come and go, leaving the soul content. It lies in expectations of having dear ones nearby; it wants to hold on to the moments of pleasure. But at times it leaves space for reasons, tries to accept people even if they do not touch the heart. The soul looks forward to spending long hours of life with people who are loving, who are close. It is in constant reminder that life will not last, that the end will come. And so the soul wants to keep in constant touch with people who are the objects of your love. There is a craving for the happy hours to be endless. But this is far from the truth. All good things come to an end. And the truth is that not all the people one meets in life are welcome; there are people who inflict pain and leave the soul awash with tears. The soul seems to be in fear of them; it holds back smiles when these people come near. When life comes to the sunset years the soul finds that it is the people who matter the most in life, the love shared are what make life go around. The material goods and possessions seem to be trivial when people stand in the front, looking at the eyes with empathy and love. The doors to the soul so often open out to people who have departed from the world. Their love and the ways they have known, come back and one wishes that life would come back again and they would be once more with us. Many of us believe that when those we love die their souls remain to watch over us with love. When we inflict pain on our fellow beings, how often are we reminded after death that their souls may come to haunt us?
There is craving in the soul for peace. The doors are forever open to the solitude of the heart. Violence and anger give way to uneasiness and unhappiness of the soul. The soul becomes restless and life becomes dreary. When life is chaotic one wonders where lies the solace that allows one to smile and sleep in peace. The soul seeks cracks and holes in search of peace. When cruelty strikes suddenly the doors to the world seem to be tight and shut. Without peace life becomes almost unbearable for the moment. One goes in search of friends and well wishers, for it is the people who keep you within the fortress of love and affection. When the soul is restless it reaches out to others for peace that we cannot do without.
The doors to the soul open and shut to happiness and tears and to good and bad. It opens to happiness with ease and remains open. But at times the doors open without heed to misdeeds and tears. We question our thoughts and actions and often wonder where the soul was when we were busy in the worldly deeds. When we fail to justify our deeds we look for the consent of the soul. Was it with us? The soul is very much there with us all the time and yet because it is invisible we feel lost at times.
The ultimate and constant reminder to us of our soul is of its closing its doors forever. We never know when the soul will leave the body and we will crumble like withered flowers, lifeless and lost to the world around us. While we are so alive with our soul playing the life songs with us, we are fearful of its exit from life. We dread the day, the moment it will be taken away from us by God. We are forever petrified: When will the soul close its doors to the world forever? But it is hope, life for yet another day, that leads us on to the last breath we take. We wonder if the soul will finally come and say, "Here I am", when we say goodbye to this wonderful world?
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