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Available for over a year

NHS patients in England who have been waiting more than two years for surgery are being offered hospital treatment in alternative parts of the country. Surgery is often painful, but it’s a pain many will welcome knowing this pain will bring in a better quality of life and a healthier version of ourselves. For me this highlights that when we are distressed we are prepared go to great lengths to gain relief and willingly tolerate pain. When life squeezes us, some may take their first steps into spirituality and others may be motivated to deepen their faith. Krishna speaks to his friend and disciple, Arjun about this in the 7th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita: “Oh Arjun 4 kinds of pious people render devotional service unto Me, the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive and he who is searching for knowledge of the absolute. All these devotees are undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of me I consider verily to dwell in me. Being engaged in my transcendental service he attains me.” When we feel unsafe we will naturally seek comfort. This approach to spirituality may seem transactional but most relationships have a transactional element at least in the beginning. As the relationship deepens, the joy of connecting with the person outweighs the things we get. We may be praying for relief from suffering, or reading sacred texts to find a solution but in doing so we also strengthen our relationship with God. Feeling threatened doesn’t have to be the predominant emotion during a crisis. For me and many others, connecting with divinity helps to translate the hard experiences in life in a way where we can become more aware that difficulties are not permanent and are solely part of our human experience as we connect more regularly with deeper aspects of ourselves. And as Krishna says, there is a loving motive behind everything that happens and furthering our spiritual knowledge helps to connect with this spiritual love and care. People will allow surgeons to perform the most painful procedures on them because they trust the person causing the pain. In my experience, deepening our relationship with Divinity can help us accept potentially distressing situations with gratitude because we will trust the hand behind the pain and can turn our crisis into an opportunity to rediscover ourselves.