Years ago, while on a walk in New York city with an actor friend of mine, he turned to me and asked, “What do you think is the most important word in the English language?” I stopped and pondered, then said, “Love.”
He shook his head from side to side. The most important word is, “yes”.
“Yes” is certainly a beautiful word. The question and his answer have percolated in my subconscious mind for years, but it was only yesterday that I feel I grasped the deeper significance of the word yes. I was listening to a lecture by a swami in which he was emphasizing the importance of always saying YES to life. When we say Yes to life, we simultaneously acknowledge the fullness of the present moment. We celebrate life. When we accept life as it is with an open heart, we pave the way for the future to unfold in the way we desire it to be whereas if we grumble and feel discontented and try to run away from situations and circumstances, it is like saying “no” to life. This attitude of negation creates obstructions in the flowing river of our life and these stumbling blocks created by our fears, doubts and unresolved inner conflicts manifest as problems, suffering and even disease.
Saying “yes” is a state of openness where we invite the universe into our heart just as the open petals of a flower invite the rays of sunlight. Saying “yes” is a state of acceptance based on an inner knowledge that everything that is happening is right and perfect and for the best. Furthermore, this very moment has been designed by the same Supreme Intelligence which has designed every star, every blade of grass, every cell in our body and every grain of creation, and that Intelligence is the same intelligence that exists at the very core of our Being. That Supreme Intelligence has bestowed on us at this very moment the situation that is going to take us forward toward the ultimate goal of our life. Sometimes as a boat is moving forward towards its destination, it has to turn around and go in the opposite direction. From the outside, it may seem to be diverging from its course. But the captain of the ship has turned the boat around to avoid hitting an iceberg in its path. So even the apparent backward movement is actually progressing toward the same destination.
Saying “yes” is about celebrating the present, knowing we are living the life we chose for ourselves, whether we remember that choice or not. The ability to say “yes” to life is the way to gain more happiness, strength, positivity, patience and faith and to accelerate a smoother and more rapid transition into the next, more evolved pattern of our life which we aspire for. This attitude of acceptance, gratitude and openness frees us from doubts, worries and inner conflicts. It helps the mind to rise above the disappointments, denials and rejections that one inevitably faces in the course of one’s life.
In Findhorn garden in Scotland, there was a clairvoyant who was able to hear the messages conveyed by the devas or nature spirits. One message he recorded was: “Always look for and find the unique flavour of a place and a moment, not wishing for anything different. For instance, on a rainy day, appreciate the good and go with it; do something appropriate with the weather. Each moment has its own beauty, but this can be nullified by humans who resist the flow and so put themselves out of harmony. To go with the natural rhythms is far more important than you realise. Inspiration comes on all levels when you are relaxed in the flow of life.”
Saying “yes” to life means never entertaining, even in the slightest degree, the idea of putting an end to one’s life. Such ideas negate the very purpose of our existence, and are totally detrimental to our health and well-being. The purpose of human life is to enjoy unbounded bliss consciousness and to radiate that bliss into the whole universe. Saying “yes” to life is taking the first step toward reaching that goal. Saying “Yes” means allowing the influx of God’s grace to permeate our entire being and to wash away any impurities so that our life can flow in perfect harmony with the eternal music of creation.
There is a beautiful quotation from the Dalai Lama which encapsulates the message of saying “yes” to life. He says: “Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive. I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.”
Saying “yes” to life opens the window to eternity. When we open our hearts to the fullness of life by saying “yes”, we surrender our small ego driven will to the mighty power of the force of evolution which is responsible for the sequential unfoldment of the cosmic design of every pattern of life in the universe. Then we flow towards the very heart of the Divine at the source of all that is.
