The beauty of innocence
April 2015
How often were we asked,what will you become when you grow up? I want to become a dancer,a policeman,a doctor,a teacher and so on.But today, I get my answer…I want to be a child again. Why? Because my heart was at peace and life was about truly being myself with no pretence. How beautiful and soothing is simplicity. How good is being yourself, non-judgmental and harmless. How good, is it to be innocent.
If we go by the dictionary, innocent would mean lack of guilt or corruption, purity. How true it is, the most attractive are the tender smiles and laughter of toddlers who know nothing but being protected. The wagging tails of our pets who start jumping when they see us. There are no hidden meanings just pure love. They fill us up with the will to protect them. No matter how many movies we see, we never get bored of the old comedy classics like Golmaal, Angoor, Padosan, Khatta Meetha and so on…no matter how many songs we listen to but a lullaby is still so soothing, it fills our heart with the warmth of our mother’s love and sunny childhood days.
Why are the childhood friendships considered to be the strongest? Because we were connected when we were innocent.Nature again is purity and innocence. A sunrise,a flower a flying bird,a puppy or a honey bee. Uncorrupted unpolluted they are a pure bliss to watch.
What is innocence
Do not mistake innocence with being meek or dumb.An innocent person will forgive your mistakes inspite of knowing what you have done to them. An angry woman dumped a heap of garbage everyday on Prophet Mohammed. He observed this but did not say a word. One day when she did not appear, he asked politely about her well-being. The simplicity of his heart melted the woman’s heart.She apologized and became his follower. A similar thing is shown to us in the Bollywood blockbuster, Lage Raho Munnabhai, where the hero learns to win people’s heart by following the Gandhian adage of never losing one’s temper but remaining loving and friendly.
Children and animals are considered to be the most innocent..but they are the ones who make the strongest relationships.Reason,they connect with your spirit.Our own Lord Shiva,is considered to be bholey nath,he forgives his devotees instantly.
Why do we lose it?
As we grow, the modern day parental and peer expectations start weighing on our shoulders.We start getting entangled and losing ourselves.With age, the expectations to perform become successful and to have better materialistic pressures weigh so much that the child inside us is lost in the mist. We are born pure and innocent, but fear of survival, being accepted and guilt for any wrong doing we have done or think we have done creates infinite layers of judgments in our minds. We lose our innocence and become strangers to our own self.
How to get it back
Get back to basics,put your baggage down. Sit back and take a deep breath to realize the importance of each passing day.You must realize the importance of feeding and soothing your soul. To simplify and de-stress. No one can help you if you do not permit your mind and soul to relax. Once you unwind, you will realize that your fears were just a thought and your miseries your own creations.
What has been given to you is a gift by god….what you make out of it is your gift to the almighty. Be aware, but not cunning, be simple but not dumb be who you are and not what others expect you to be.
Let the love from your heart flow,its the easiest way to connect with god.
The above article is based on an article published in Life Positive The flower of innocence