The Man Born Blind

Day 6: Meditation Talk: THE MAN BORN BLIND. Retreat to the FMAs, Bellefonte Outreach, Shillong.

John’s gospel was not written by one person… latest of all gospels. Developed Christology. Long passages and reflections, one such is about Jesus healing the man born blind (John 9).

Spirituality is about seeing. It’s not about achieving; or earning something. It’s about relationship; not about results. Once you see, the rest follows. It’s like you are in the river. The river is already flowing. You don’t have to push the river, because you are in it. The life is lived within us, and we learn how to say yes to that life. Trust the flow, trust the life that is within you. Your life is not about you, but you are about Life. “I live now not I, but Another Life lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). Life is so large and deep and spacious that it even includes its opposite, death.

We have to learn to see what is there. For the past few days, we have been learning here “how” to see. Not what to see. The point is to see what is already there. We need to learn how to see whatever is there. We don’t dictate to reality, but we accept whatever comes to us. We don’t divide the field. Contemplation is training you to see the overlooked wholeness in all things.

So we need to get rid of all illusions so that we can be truly present to reality. To life in itself. In that way, we can see what is, see who we are, and see what is happening. According to Jesus in this miracle story of John 9, nothing is more dangerous than people who presume they already see.

The story begins with a simple brilliant statement. Jesus sees the man born blind. The observation is brilliant because it so simply captures what Jesus does. Then when the disciples ask him, “Now, who has sinned because this man was born blind, his parents or himself?” But Jesus dismisses the entire argument and moves it to another level sacramentally. He uses mud to anoint the man’s eyes and the blindness is healed. The rest of the chapter narrates how “good” people fight Jesus for doing this.

The Pharisees are not able to see what Jesus did. They argue that Jesus cannot be from God so the healing cannot have really happened—even though it is clear it did. It’s right in front of them. They ignore this evidence and make a logical and theological argument: a sinner can’t work miracles and Jesus hasn’t worked a miracle. Jesus broke the Sabbath so he’s a sinner.

In the final paragraph, the Pharisees accuse the man himself of being a sinner. They see sin everywhere except in themselves. “You, a sinner through and through, who are you to tell us?” The man is shrewd enough not to get into theological debate. He sticks to his story. “All I know is that I was blind and now I see.”

The whole story is about seeing, and illumination. In this passage, Jesus ends with a final devastating line: “It is for judgment that I have come into the world. So those without sight may see and those with sight be turned blind” (9:39). Hearing this, the Pharisees say, “We are not blind, surely.” Meaning, we are orthodox, good Jews. We practise all that is prescribed in the Law. We are good Christians, we go to church every Sunday. We are religious, we are priests. We know. We are not blind. Jesus relpies, “Blind? If you were, you would not be guilty. But since you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains” (9:41).

The Pharisees become blind. They demonstrate their blindness, stubborn attitude, and live a denial. We too have our blindnesses, our denials. This is our sinfulness, not just those little acts of anger, lust, and disobediences… those little acts of naughtiness. The chosen blindness of ours, that needs light and healing.

People who do not believe in miracles never see miracles. We need to train our eyes to see. We need the light of the Holy Spirit. We don’t see things as they are; we see things as we are. So we need to cleanse the lens from the inside. We need help from the inside, from the One who dwells inside. That’s why our prayer is, “Lord, let me see.” Prayer is not one of those 10,000 things, but it is by which you see those 10,000 things. Everything becomes enchanting with true sight.

We always become what we behold. We become what we eat; we become what we read; we become what we take in; we become what we see. I am now a part of what I am trying to see. It’s exactly the principle: We know by what we are. Our perceptions are nothing but the projections of my depth – both conscious and “unconscious.” I see what I project on to reality. Therefore, by contemplative seeing, everything in the universe becomes a mirror. We are immersed into this Fuller Reality, we are fused into grace, we are stuck into this consciousness. I allow the divine in me to take control of all the reality around me. Less of me, more of Him. Jesus says, “I am the Light of the world” (9:5).

Let the God in me see the God in the world. Let the divine in me see the divine in the world. Let us have the discipline by which we begin to see God in our heart. If I see God in my heart, I will see God everywhere. If I see demons in my heart, I will see demons in everyone.

Through the discipline of prayer we awaken ourselves to the God in us and let God enter into our heartbeat and our breathing, into our thoughts and emotions, our hearing, seeing, touching, and tasting. It is by being awake to this God in us that we can see God in the world around us. The great mystery of the contemplative life is not that we see God in the world, but that God within us recognizes God in the world. God speaks to God, Spirit speaks to Spirit, heart speaks to heart. Contemplation or true prayer, therefore, is a participation in this divine self-recognition. It is the divine Spirit praying in us who makes our world transparent and opens our eyes to the presence of the divine Spirit in all that surrounds us. It is with our heart of hearts that we see the heart of the world. “In your Light, O God, we see Light.”

Let us resolve to be sight-giving, and life-giving. That’s what Jesus is inviting us to be. Here and now. Let us allow the light of the Holy Spirit shine through us, so that we may see with God’s eyes. Here and now.

Hindus go to the temple to allow God to see them. This is called darshan. Can we allow God to see our total selves as we are, and ask Him throw light on ourselves?