In our prayers, we often ask our gods for protection – for ourselves as well as for others. Protection from what?
From the calamities that we see striking all others around us – natural upheavals that leave one floundering in the dark, diseases that deliver one’s last breath, unforeseen events that render one homeless, hungry, penniless. We ask for our loved ones to be protected from the wrath of demons disguised in the garb of humans who feed on vulnerability and innocence. We almost plead to protect the children of the world from the suffering that robs them of their smiles.
But how often do we ask to be protected from ourselves? Do we ever ask for protection against our own weaknesses? Are these not greater than any foe we may encounter in the outside world? Do they not wreak havoc in our lives, more destructive than the worst tempest? These are the damnable demons that we house within and to ask for protection from these forces of suffering becomes paramount for us.
Recognize these, and the way to the Light only becomes brighter. We may not all have the immense strength required to eliminate our weaknesses but we certainly can take the first and most important step – pray for protection.
