Suffering

Suffering?

When I think of the word, I think of hardships and pain and sorrow, but mostly I think of justice, or at least a lack thereof. I don't think very many things in all of creation deserve to suffer, regardless of how heinous one's actions, I personally don't feel that suffering is an appropriate punishment.

So, why does it happen? Why does God send suffering on mankind... and does God send this?

I have been thinking of this question, particularly after the horrific events that have happened in Japan this past week. When I think of the lives that have been lost and those that have been irrevocably changed, I wonder where the justice lies in all of this, because at the end God is just... and everything happens only with God's leave. How is it just for thousands of innocents to die, millions to suffer? The worst part about all of this is that the event that directly caused all of this was likely not caused by human activity... This is as close to a so-called "Act of God," as one can get.

I have no answers, only more questions - but I have been thinking on the nature of suffering.

There is a story told in many holy scriptures about Prophet Job, and the suffering he had to endure... and when he finally asks God, "WHY?" God asks him, "Where were you when I created the heavens, the earth and the stars?" I am paraphrasing so please don't quote that.

So, where were we? My belief is this. When God created what exists, I was a part of God... I was not a separate entity... this was my place. So how could I have suffered? Which leads to the crux of the problem. I don't think we truly understand what suffering is... Suffering of the material body is limited in time and in place, for regardless of the harm that has occurred, eventually time will heal it. I feel that what we experience as suffering in our material world is simply a part of our journey. Our spirit, that infinite link between our consciousness and the Divine needs to do certain things, experience certain things in order to truly understand it's own exalted status. This means that there must be suffering, there must be hardship. Without these 2 forges our spirit would never regain it's lost luster.

Additionally, I don't think any one truly understands why we are here, what we are here to do. Loss of life while being tragic and horrific is a natural aspect of life. Eventually all of us are destined to die, and how this occurs is not within our hands. This also means that life may not be what we think it is. What if this state of existence that I consider life is not the positive experience I expect it to be? What if in the final analysis, death is truly "life," and life as we know it is simply a shadow or a reflection of death?

It is possible that these are simply the wild musings of a bruised and hurt heart but I for one am not content with hypothesizing. At the end, what purpose is life if you do not know the purpose of life?