Recognise the Eternal

 The Chinese sage Confucius wrote, "Recognise the eternal and you are wise." 

Which sort of begs the question, "What is eternal?"

To which the pure answer is, "only God." Or perhaps, "only change." But I think what Confucius was getting at, was that we need to have a sense of perspective in our lives. And have some deeply-held beliefs and values on which we can rely, when we encounter any difficult situation.

Having a sense of perspective is something (I find) that has become easier as I've got older. Perhaps because I have more, and more varied, experience of life, I am more able to recognise that this (whatever 'this' is) has happened before, and it passed. Nothing in our lives is constant - everything changes, all the time - and so perhaps the only wise way to deal with it is to recognise this and not take whatever it is too hard. Or try to cling on to it, if it is something wonderful. Because "this too shall pass." It's a quality of being able to step back, be a little detached, activate our inner observer.

But this is easier if we have some deeply held beliefs and values on which to rely. So long as these do not render us unable to cope with change. If they support us, enable us to cope and move on, or appreciate and move on, that is good. But if our beliefs and values are not healthy ones, they can have the opposite effect, so that we become victims of our circumstances.

A sense of perspective also enables us to appreciate the cycle of the seasons, which is both eternal and ever new. Yes, there will be snowdrops and daffodils and crocuses and primroses and new buds and blossom this Spring, as there always are, but *these* snowdrops, daffodils, crocuses, primroses, new buds and blossom are absolutely new, never before seen. That is the closest I can come to an appreciation of the eternal, which changes.