Serene Realizations

Serene Realizations

“Breathe in, breathe out… Breathe deep, and let your body relax”, I said to myself as I sat on the hill top. The view was absolutely breathtaking. It was worth the long journey.

Every day I would gaze at the hill, tapering like a pyramid, reaching for the skies. I tried to picturize the world from the hill’s eyes; “It must be grand” I thought. All the people that came down from the hill had a peaceful look on their face that masked their tiredness. Apparently, no one had ever been on the hilltop at night. Some were scared while others felt that the day was the best time to be up there.

One night, I decided to take a walk after an early evening dinner. I took the old path that went around the hill, a longer route, but mostly unexplored. As soon as the sun set, I started walking. Three-fourths of the hill’s base was surrounded by water; the remaining piece connected to a road to my village. I started walking along the river, watching fading shades of orange from the setting sun reflecting in the water. I must have walked halfway around the hill, when I saw a little boat tied to a pole by the river’s bank. I followed the divine sign, and made my way across the calm river. Now I was at the foothills, full of trees and a cool breeze kissing my face. I took my oil lamp and began walking up whatever pieces of a path I could find. Whether a long time passed or short, I do not remember, but the next thing I knew, I was at the top.

“There is a God, and I’m sure He fell in love with His own creation”, I whispered to myself. I spent all my life living at the foot of this hill, never realizing what I was missing. As I stood on the narrow piece of land, I looked up to see a starlit sky and the shining moon. Down below, I could see the river. With the stars’ reflections and moonlight, it looked like a shining ring decorating the hill. I sat down, folding my legs, gazing at the peaceful view around me; yes, peaceful… It was absolutely quiet. I felt like I was the last living soul on earth. “Breathe in, breathe out… Breathe deep, and let your body relax”, I said to myself, and closed my eyes in meditation. I must have fallen asleep, still sitting, because when I opened my eyes, I felt like I had awoken from a deep slumber of many days.

The silence was slowly broken by a gentle voice. It was a woman, whom I could not see clearly. She sat at a distance, probably not aware of my presence. She had a dim flickering oil lamp next to her, intermittently reflecting on her face in the distance. At first, she began humming, which seemed to swim with the breeze. The air was dancing to her tune. The humming slowly transformed into singing, the most melodious voice I had ever heard. The raga had the perfect frequency, tuning my heartbeats and breathing to a synchronous rhythm. I couldn’t move. As she reached the highest note, I shivered, and a little teardrop ran down my left eye. My emotions subsided as the pitch came back to a calm and fading end. I felt love… Love for life, love for nature, love for all of God’s creations. I sat there, paralyzed with the tune gradually fading in my mind. When I realized the silence around me, she was gone. I don’t know if she was real or a peaceful passing spirit, but her voice changed something inside me.

 

I knew I was alive…

I was in love with the beautiful night…