One thing we can be certain of is that there will always be uncertainty in life. If one looks at one’s life, at any period in history, there was always some uncertainty — uncertainty about the future, uncertainty about our relationships, our jobs, our careers, our families, uncertainties about the environment, you name it! There is uncertainty in everything.
The human mind is very uncomfortable with uncertainties. Hence there is always an effort to know and be certain about things.
The study of science, economics and statistics are to deal with the uncertainties of the situation. When we see the limitations of these disciplines, we also turn to the mystic arts and those which are not scientific but at the same time are logical disciplines of knowledge like tarot, the I Ching, astrology, runes etc. All of them give a certain insight into the uncertainties of life.
There is no need to limit ourselves to only scientific knowledge. If a time-tested system can give us some insights and knowledge about the uncertainty it can help one cope better. It would be wise to judiciously use them without getting overly dependent on any of them.
Why all this? Because one finds it difficult to cope with uncertainty. One wants to be certain about every aspect in life. At the same time one tends to forget that it is in dealing with uncertainties that a human being grows. Once we learn to be comfortable with uncertainty it leads to effective management of life. In fact if you look at some of the spiritual books, like the Gita, there are a lot of attitudes and mindsets given to cope.
Spiritually speaking, life is not only about managing uncertainty but living with them. It is only when the mind can learn to deal with uncertainties and be comfortable with it that one is ready for the higher spiritual goal of life called Moksha or Nirvana.
The beginning of spirituality lies in learning to be comfortable with the uncertainties of one's life.
The writer is the founder of Aarsha Vidya Foundation. You can write to him at aarshavidyaf@gmail.com
