‘There are two rules on the spiritual path: Begin and Continue’ Sufi Saying
I have spent many years fiercely committed to a spiritual way of life. During that time period I have faced some very difficult personal situations. I learned early on that my commitment to spiritual growth did nothing to ensure that my path would be easy. In fact, it often seemed to work the opposite way… commitment to my spiritual path made the difficulties in this world even more difficult.
Holding a spiritual perspective when the path becomes difficult requires one to dig deep and muster up virtues that fly in the face of what we really feel like doing . These high ideals are easy to aspire toward when life is rolling along in the way we desire…. They become much harder to cling to when we are suffering due to some type of wrong this world has delivered to us. But when we most want to lash out and react -is precisely the time when we need to hold on tight and stay the course. This means we must to continue to do the right thing, even when we have been wronged.
The spiritual path is not easy, but at least the two rules are simple: Begin and Continue.