Loneliness is like the cancer of the modern world, to parse Mother Teresa. We are not alone. We are all interconnected, interdependent and interwoven — inter-being, to use venerable Thich Nhat Han’s felicitous phrase.

1. We are not alone
Loneliness is like the cancer of
the modern world, to parse
Mother Teresa. We are not alone.
We are all interconnected,
interdependent and interwoven —
inter-being, to use venerable
Thich Nhat Han’s felicitous
phrase. We are all alone here
together, with all beings, all
things great and small, visible and
invisible.

2. In my latest book, Make Me One With Everything, I share the following story
which was relayed by a Tibetan Buddhist teacher, and illustrates to me the
incredible value of inter-meditation in our fragmented, plugged in, tuned-out &
cacophonous times.
I was at a retreat in Carmel, California with Tibetan Buddhist teacher Anam
Thubten Rinpoche. During one of his talks, a woman in the audience asked him a
searing question: “What should I do with the great fear I experience?” For several
months, she had noticed that the medication for her bipolar disorder was no
longer effective. Several doctors confirmed that this was the case and that
Western medicine likely had nothing more to offer her. She had been in therapy
on and off for many years, and more recently had tried all manner of alternative
approaches, but her mood swings were increasing in frequency, as well as
becoming more intense.
The woman spoke to Rinpoche about her terrible uncertainty for her sanity, and
after a few words he invited her to come close and sit facing him.

3. By the time she had shared all she needed to, her eyes were full of tears. Rinpoche
remained silent for a minute, and then quietly said, “Your suffering is mine. Your
fear is mine.” Many of us gasped at the exquisite and tender beauty of his
response. And there were tears in his eyes as well as he added, “You are not
alone.”
We constantly face challenging situations, in our daily lives, that often lead us to
buy into the illusion that we are alone, small, and insignificant. This teaching tale
and interchange beautifully represents what it means to be in the present moment,
connecting to another and allowing all-encompassing compassion and surrender to
flow back and forth with no boundaries—a mutual reciprocity and resonation,
which I have coined inter-meditation. My Buddhist Dzogchen lineage would call
this the Natural Great Perfection in action. It is a living example of healing and
awakening together, and shows us that love does not come from outside of us, not
really. Genuine love comes from loving.

4. Love is self-perpetuating and a gift that keeps on giving. Love is a verb; I love
it! Infinite love is both enlightenment and our birthright. Love is who and what
we are and can be.
With love and blessings,
Lama Surya Das