Courage and Strength

Courage and Strength       

Let me pray not to be sheltered from dangers

But to be fearless in facing them.

Let me not beg for the stilling of my pain

But for the heart to conquer it.

Let me not crave in anxious fear to be saved

But hope for the patience to win my freedom.

Rabindranath Tagore                                                                                                                            Cited in Prayers for Healing

When I first read these lines from Tagore, I had two competing responses to them… 

The first was a recalling of the challenging wisdom of Martin Luther King Jr., who framed these similar sentiments in this prayerful wish: “[I pray not to be delivered from my challenges or fears…I pray for the strength enough to meet them.]”

Asking for the inner strength, virtue, faith and resolve to encounter our challenges and fears in ways that might be difficult ask, but they are both noble and are open-hearted. The willingness to be tested, and proven to have or possess the understanding, awareness, and sufficient self-compassion so that whatever appears to plague or demean us will be understood. To be able to have and to hold the virtues necessary to learn from them rather than the all too common human experience or running from them, denying them, or repeating them…

Second, this statement from Tagore reminds me of how important the virtue of courage is for our spiritual progress… Courage can be seen as the antidote to fear, or to any feeling, belief, or situation that seeks to limit or entrap us. The willingness to be tested, and then to persist and persevere, cannot be discounted as a necessary ally in the quest for greater understanding. 

For some, they would frame it as courage is necessary to overcome the ego; others would say it is needed to meet the demands of the situation honestly and forthrightly; holding one’s ground, and having the willingness to suffer the consequences, even if we are punished for standing strong or keeping to a right action, to adhere to a holy way, to serve righteousness in our lives…