05/08/2026
The Sacred Anchor
There are stories about refugees escaping from political turmoil by crossing the ocean, and that whenever these people ran into challenges on the sea, if everybody freaked out, most probably they would not survive. But if one person was somehow calm and grounded, then that person's equilibrium helped them find a sense of peace, and most probably they would all survive.
So you might like to think that the world is a boat and that you are the person who's going to play that role and hold equilibrium. You can call yourself the sacred anchor.
You are a sacred anchor not for yourself, but for the entire ship and that ship can represent your family, your neighborhood, or even the whole human world. So from now on, when you feel challenged, when you feel ready to fall prey to powerful internal afflictions as well as the afflictions of others, remember to return to that state of calm. Use whatever method works — maybe watching the breath, or chanting mantras, or prayer, or maybe just remembrance.
Sometimes all that's required is remembrance. There's a place that you can go: the pure awareness within you. Whenever you are dealing with powerful human experiences, just remember to witness and not to give in to them. And you may realize that the one who's witnessing is actually not the "I am," but the state of your mind that can be called pure awareness.
Imagine that even if the whole world is lost in anxiety, fear, confusion, you can actually remain as the sacred anchor embodying compassion and courage, not just for yourself, but for the whole world.
