Spirituality means waking up.
Most people,
Even though they don't know it,
Are asleep.
They live asleep and they die in their sleep without ever waking up.
They never understand the loveliness and the beauty of this thing that we call human existence.
You know,
All mystics,
They're all unanimous,
No matter what their theology,
No matter what their religion,
They're all unanimous on one thing.
And that one thing is,
All is well.
All is well.
Everything's in a mess.
And all is well.
Strange paradox.
But tragically,
Most people never get to see that.
They never get to see that all is well.
Because they're asleep.
They're in a nightmare.
Most people tell you that they want to wake up,
But don't believe them.
All they want for you to do is to mend their broken toys.
Give me back my wife.
Give me back my job.
Give me back my money.
Give me back my reputation,
My success.
This is what they want.
They want their toys repaired.
That's all.
Now,
Even the best psychologists will tell you that.
They'll tell you,
People don't really want to be cured.
What they want is relief.
A cure is painful.
Waking up is unpleasant,
You know.
You're nice and comfortable in bed.
And at least as long as you're asleep,
It's irritating to be woken up.
That's the reason why the wise guru will not attempt to wake people up.
So now the first thing I want you to understand,
If you really want to wake up,
Is that you don't want to wake up.
The first step to understanding or to waking up is to be honest enough to admit to yourself that you don't like it.
You don't want to be happy.
Want a little test?
Let's try.
It'll take you exactly one minute.
But listen to this.
Think of someone you so-called love very much.
Someone you're close to.
Someone who is precious to you.
And say,
I'd rather have happiness than have you.
See what happens.
I'd rather be happy than have you.
If I had a choice,
No question about it,
I'd choose happiness.
How many people felt selfish when they said this?
See how we've been brainwashed?
See how we've been brainwashed into thinking,
How could you be so selfish?
Look who's being selfish.
Just imagine somebody says,
How could you be so selfish that you choose happiness over me?
How could you be so selfish that you would demand that I choose you above my happiness?
This Jesuit says,
The test of love is sacrifice.
And the gauge of love is selflessness,
Unselfishness.
But now tell me,
Would you want me to love you at the cost of my happiness?
Now wouldn't that be wonderful that you would love me at the cost of your happiness and I would love you at the cost of my happiness and you got two unhappy people.
We don't want to be unconditionally happy.
I'm ready to be happy provided I have this and that and the other.
And you know what we're really saying?
We're saying you are my happiness to our friend or to our God or to anything.
You are my happiness.
If I don't get you,
I refuse to be happy because we cannot conceive of the fact we'd be happy without all of those things.
We've been taught to place our happiness in all of those things.
And it's so important to understand that.
