The way to give it up

Yet again, it is Lent.

For someone who is not a member of any Abrahamic religion (a book person who is not one of any of the People of the Book, go figure), I take this pretty seriously. Actually, I take it pretty seriously even for one of the faithful. There is no dogma between me and my reading of similar experiences in the lives of four of the most profound religious leaders of human history.

1) Moses went to the mountain to speak with God. He stayed there for a really long time. 40 days. He came down with the 10 Commandments and a life path that was not a question, or temporary. He knew what he was about, and God needed no more burning bushes to get him to listen.

2) Jesus went into the desert for 40 days. There, we read that he was faced by the Devil who offered him every enticement he could think of to move this leader of men from his path. The Devil failed. Jesus returned to the world of the everyday and did not, we read, veer from His life path, even though it led Him to death.

3) Gautama found himself seated under a Bo tree for 40 days, contemplating the nature of his purpose and path. Demons came and attacked him and as their arrows flew through the air, they were turned to flowers and fell harmlessly at the feet of the Buddha. When he opened his eyes and turned his gaze outward once again, he lived his life with clarity and purpose and did not veer from his life path.

4) Mohammed went into the desert. He stayed there for 40 days. Allah spoke. He listened. He understood. He returned from the dessert and gathered people together and spoke to them of the teachings of Allah. He became The Prophet and lived that path without question.

Rama was banished to the forest for 14 years.

That seems a bit much, if you ask me. But, I am young and have no sense of the meaning of time, and I do not always understand what the world means to mean.

Two years ago, I began to work to change my life. It worked. It is time to finish that work and learn to see that 14 years in the forest is only a short time.

So. We focus. Although: Got no desert or big beautiful tree or local mountain. Also: Got a job that I feel is pretty vital to life.

So. We focus in a different way: give up the distractions of coffee, booze, eating out (with specific social exceptions), big grocery store shopping, late rising, no yoga and no writing. Also, I’m not in the mood to be as cranky as I usually am when I start getting all healthy and feeling good. So, I’m going to give that up as well.

Just FYI.