Snow Melt

A Happy and Joyful Being

The March 25, 2013 prompt for "Blogging Circle of Friends Prompt Forum"  is
We all have our low points in life. How do you get through times like these? How do you "get up" and continue on?

A happy and joyful being, is from a prayer written by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the son of Baha'u'llah. Because happiness, joy, and optimism are spiritual attributes, I go to my Baha'i Prayer book when I am down. I always find a prayer that will bring me comfort, lift my spirit, and change my attitude. I try to avoid complaining because complaining does not help and it always seems to make the situation worse. I am not always successful when it comes to avoiding complaining, I am still working on overcoming my tendency to complain.

When I am down the first prayer I say begins with "O God! Refresh and gladden my spirit...." This was one of my mother's favorite prayers and it is one of my favorite prayers. I cannot stay down when I read this prayer because it is full of positive affirmations and it lets me place all my troubles, difficulties, and darkness in God's hands. This prayer reminds me that I am a spiritual being having a material or physical experience, it takes me out of myself and raises my spirit to a higher level. It dissipates the darkness that surrounds me in time of depression.

All my life I have experimented with methods of overcoming depression. I have not been diagnosed as clinically depressed, my depression comes and goes. I am usually more depressed in autumn and winter then in spring and summer. In addition, certain events in my life exasperate my depression. After looking closely at these events, I found most of them have more to do with lack of control then anything else. Until I looked at the events that increase or cause me to be depressed, I never thought I was a control freak, but now I am not sure.

At 66, I am not sure it matter anymore what causes or increases my depression. The important thing now is to overcome or dissipate the depression and the prayers revealed by Baha'u'llah and the Bab or written by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá do just that. The other things I have experimented with over the years is keeping a journal (this helps a little), writing my own affirmation (sometimes helps, but not always), smiling when I am depressed (makes other people feel good because they smile back), cafe mocha (this has a physical effect, which does not last), and laughter (the problem here is that I cannot always find a good joke). The one thing that always helps is the Baha'i prayers and scriptures, these always lift my soul and refocus my attention on the positive.

Joy is in the scriptures
and happiness in the words of the Beloved,
even when I cry
and tears flow from my eyes
I know that joy will soon arrive;
I know that God's Glory
will transform my sorrow into joy
and my darkness into light.

Food for Thought: "...I will no longer be sorrowful and grieved; I will be a happy and joyful being..." - ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá’í Prayers, Page 152