14 Ways to Make Medicine out of Suffering

Buddha transmuting arrows of illusion into flowers

We have a wisdom within our being that is waiting to be born, savored and shared. It's a historic and seemingly forgotten knowingness of the God source within combined with the nectar of our unique experiences. When you incarnate, you often forget this wisdom because the veil of our dense human experience masks the truth. But it's in you. I have called this before "your special sauce" but it's really your antidote to suffering. This wisdom is the divine recipe formulated by the unique road we have traveled- the past lifetimes we have lived, the skills we have honed, the pain we have endured- all equates to awareness that informs our purpose on this planet. That medicine is the remedy or the antibody of our current suffering and also what we are meant to teach and impart to others. Rumi says it like this: "the wound is the place where light enters you." Essentially, once we overcome a hardship with wisdom, we have made the lesson "in house" and can duplicate it within our own lives and become a master teacher of that lesson in the world. Spoiler alert: this is how you know what your purpose is. You can think of it like a builder becoming proficient at a specific design and then replicating that design in the world again and again. When our bodies die, that wisdom gets downloaded in our soul. When we become older souls we enter this world with that wisdom already in our bones and become even more proficient at it, which is why we see children coming to this planet with striking wisdom and talents that seem inherently effortless... that's because they are. Still yet, we return to this planet to perfect and achieve harmony with other lessons that are in varying degrees of attainment. Like an 'ah ha' moment, when we finally learn it, we can then bathe in that wisdom until our cup runneth over and over. It becomes our shield, our message, our legacy.

There is a story about how Buddha defended a great evil army just by emanating light and transmuting every negative thought and arrow into love. We too can transform our pains into gifts and blessings like this famous story suggests: "Mara then commanded his army to loose their arrows at his enemy, but the arrows, also, turned into flowers. The army rushed at the hero, but the light he diffused acted as a shield to protect him; swords were shivered, battle-axes were dented by it, and whenever a weapon fell to the ground, it, too, at once changed into a flower."

Ram Dass says "Suffering is part of our training program for becoming wise." Here's a list of examples of common human experiences of suffering and the spiritual medicine you are meant to make from them. Can you relate to the energies presented below? Have you already made the medicine from them? You can think of them like hardships that have the potential for great awakening...you release the first, to fully embrace the latter. For example, you let go of allowing neglect because you have attained the values of esteem and resilience.

1. Neglect and abuse teaching resilience and esteem
2. Subjugation and disenfranchisement teaching power and equality 
3. Poverty and lack teaching value and worth
4. Weakness in health teaching strength and alignment 
5. Anger and rage teaching forgiveness and love
6. Judgment teaching compassion and perspective
7. Dependence and attachment teaching autonomy and independence 
8. Betrayal and rejection teaching trust and wholeness
9. Loss and grief teaching acceptance and impermanence 
10. Fear teaching faith and hope
11. Addiction and avoidance teaching embodiment and connection
12. Obsession and anxiety teaching non attachment and temperance
13. Depression teaching power and capacity
14. Greed and ego teaching equanimity and humility

These are merely jumping off points of what possibly can be learned from a single life experience but often there's much more to be had. I have found in the Akashic Records that there are many many peaches that can be picked from the ripe tree of suffering. In fact, there's a entire forest of ripe peach trees with opportunities for wisdom in life. Often, we can awaken to our passions, become fearless, download multiple gifts and become changed powerfully and permanently by life's most difficult dealings. Imagine a kaleidoscope reflecting endless beauty and multiple shades of light from a single image. Suffering has all that and more to teach us. In fact, that's why we came to earth in the first place... to actualize the light and return to an embodiment of love (our pure nature).

If you'd like to discover what a particular area of suffering might be teaching you, consider these 3 reflections for further inquiry and make a note of what item(s) from the list above caused you angst, energy or stirring.

• What undesirable pattern has repeated itself in your life?
• What pains/fears/hurts are being activated by this pattern?
• If you could do anything to bring greater peace into your life, what would you have to release or incorporate?

I would offer you guidance in approaching all aching things with gentleness, love, patience and courage. To make good medicine, you definitely need care and attention. Know that I am cheering you on and that I would be the glad recipient of the medicine you make someday soon. We are all here to exchange our wisdom. Learn more about Rasa Healing here

Jai!