In God Makes the Rivers to Flow; An Anthology of the World’s Sacred Poetry & Prose, Eknath Easwaran includes a selection from Lao Tzu entitled “Finding Unity.”  I’ve written the following poem-like reflections inspired by this selection.

It Is Well

When love and hatred cannot affect you,

Profit and loss cannot touch you,

Praise and blame cannot ruffle you,

You are honored by all the world.

—Lao Tzu

It is normal to long to be loved,

to desire the love of a special someone

who will make you feel worthwhile,

to seek the approval of your mother or father or boss,

to want the adoration of a child,

to crave the compassion of a friend.

Who in this world would want to be motherless,

fatherless, friendless, loverless?

But imagine, what it would be like

if you had no need for the love of others

and gave no regard for their hate.

Imagine being so sure of yourself

that you need nothing from anybody.

Imagine being so grounded in the love of God,

that you feel loved regardless of how other people treat you.

Imagine being so confident in the order of the universe,

that you don’t let profit or loss affect you.

Imagine being at peace no matter what happens to you.

Imagine being totally fearless.

Imagine that people can say terrible things about you,

and it wouldn’t bother you.

It wouldn’t matter whether people praise you or blame you.

You take all criticism and use what can make you better,

and disregard the rest.

Imagine total equanimity.

What would that be like?

What would you give for the peace that passes understanding?

What would you trade for the joy that does not depend on circumstances?

Can you imagine being that strong, that sure, that secure?

It seems impossible.

We are used to being upset when people criticize us,

and elated when they praise us.

We are used to being distraught over people’s hate,

and basking in people’s love.

We are used to needing others to make us feel good about ourselves.

But there is another way.

Peace is possible.

Joy is possible.

Independence is possible.

Equanimity is possible.

We can find them in the center of our hearts,

where God dwells.

When we join God in the center of our hearts,

we can sincerely say, like the great hymn,

“It is well, it is well with my soul.”