Interconnection Through a Book
Once again, I was in the bardo of traveling: between destinations, flights, and islands. Over the last month, I had become accustomed to the absence of noise, traffic, crowds, and loudspeakers announcing flights or calling late passengers. My flight was still a few hours away. I decided to hide in my headphones to isolate myself from the outside world and listen to an audiobook. I launched the app, and my gaze stopped on the first title suggested. I pressed play and after a few minutes I realized with surprise that the story was set in the place I had just returned from.
After a while, I heard the name of a secondary character, and my ears pricked up again. The name sounded familiar, as if I knew that woman. After a few chapters, it turned out I was right. We had met during my last stay, rather briefly. We had coffee with another person. While listening to the audiobook, I discovered her life story and what a unique person she was. It also became clear why our paths had crossed on those days. For a moment, I regretted not knowing all this when I met her. Perhaps we could have established a deeper connection? Maybe unfortunately, maybe fortunately, our meeting had been rather superficial.
Connection Across Distance
I had a strong urge to contact her and tell her about this amazing audio reconnection coincidence. But I did not, leaving matters to their own as-yet-unknown course. I turned off the audiobook, and my mind started wondering about the nature of our mutual connection, and my connections, disconnections, and relationships with others. I was grateful that I had known her, even for a moment, a person who had been through so much and never stopped helping others. Then I realized that we are now connected regardless of whether we are in touch again or not.
Somehow I felt that she was not an ordinary person from my past. The book made me think that our connection was deeper. And then I thought of the many people with whom I have such a relationship. Silent connections that last beyond words, letters, or occasional chats. It might seem that we are physically disconnected, but that is only an illusion. There is connection that stretches over distance.
I listened to the book until the end, and since then I have often thought about people I know but don’t have daily contact with. We are connected, interconnected by circumstances, places, other people . . . After all, being connected is not the same as being in constant touch.
Every such connection is valuable and can enrich us if we look more closely. When I think of such people, I express gratitude that they are in my life, especially those I’m temporarily “disconnected” from, in silent mode. I have also begun to see the benefit of silence in some relationships. Who knows, maybe it’s a chance to maintain good relations, a chance not to mess up. I have realized that thoughts and intentions can connect what seems to be disconnected.
The number of our connections seems to be infinite, and many of them are yet to be discovered.
Contemplative Exercise
- Contemplate what connection and disconnection mean to you in your relationships with others.
- Think of a person from whom you feel disconnected and reflect on the nature of this particular relationship.
- If you can, recall positive memories and express gratitude for their presence in your life, and then send good thoughts and vibes. If it’s difficult, don’t shut yourself off, but try the contemplation again later. Maybe one day you will be able to think about this person from a different perspective.
Alicja Bardin has been a student of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche since 2017. In addition to the dharma, she is interested in Daoism and practices Qigong and breathing techniques.
