IMPERTURBABILITY

What is imperturbability? To me it is a state of 'Quietness of Spirit'.  That state of being on the world but not of the world. By quietness of spirit I mean a perfect peace that passeth all understanding.  You have complete trust in the process and you find you accept What Is, is.  You do not resist change and flow with life like the water in a stream.  Boulders may block your way but you flow around them with ease by not resisting and accepting What is, is.  What you resist persists and how ever you try to change it it will always be there if you resist it. Acceptance does not mean a passivity which is allowing people to walk over you and acting like a victim, this acceptance is reminded to us in the Christian Prayer;

Lord grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change,

The courage to change the things I can,

And the wisdom to know the difference.

IMPERTURBABILITY

I think Charles Allen said it first. "When faced with problems which threaten to steal your peace of mind, learn the meaning of the word 'imperturbability.'"

I heard of two artists who were asked to illustrate peace. Each was assigned the task of depicting a peaceful scene on canvas.

The first artist drew a beautiful picture of a countryside on a warm, spring day. A soft sun illumines green grass. A picturesque farm house and grazing cattle are bathed in its warmth. A farmer walks contentedly behind strong plough horses making his field ready for spring planting. The picture is one of beauty and quiet tranquility.

The other artist took a different approach. He drew a majestic, rugged cliff. Gnarled trees, twisted by years of violent winds, jut from the craggy mountainside. Dark clouds hang low and fierce while jagged streaks of lightening slash across an angry sky. The picture is one of violence, chaos and rage.

But as one looks closely, something else becomes visible. There in one of the crevices of the rocky mountain, tucked back just out of reach of the wind and rain -- a nest with two small birds. Apparently unconcerned about the impending storm, they appear calm, cosy and peaceful as they patiently wait for the turbulence to pass.

And isn't that the way it so often is? We may want to be surrounded by peace, but storms rage. Problems and pressures without threaten to steal peace of mind within.

The answer is imperturbability: inner peace which doesn't leave when circumstances change. It's a peace which is greater than the problems of life, built on assurance that the tempest will finally pass, we will survive the storm, we may grow stronger because of it and, in the meantime, we will not endure it alone.

Imperturbability -- it's the result of a peace which passes understanding. For serenity is not freedom from the storm, but peace amid the storm.

"Balanced persons will be active because that is their duty, and they are
not agitated by anything -- success or failure. They will take up activity
as a means of worshipping God, and they leave the result to God. They know
that they are but instruments in His Hands."

"What you have do is to place all you burdens on God; that makes you
carefree and grief-free. Then, when you take everything as the Divine play
of the Lord you love, you clap your hands in bliss whatever may happen, for
it is all His play and you are as happy as He is when His plans are being
carried out."


"Man should maintain equanimity in pleasure and pain, loss and gain.
Without pain you cannot enjoy pleasure. Sorrow is verily the royal road
to joy. Sufferings are the stepping stones that lead man towards virtuous
conduct. One should neither be elated by pleasure nor dejected by pain."