June 4:

“We do not exaggerate when we say that life is a mere bubble.”

–Gandhi (Young India, October 16, 1930)

It is quite a paradox that human life is as fragile as it is powerful. Weak as we are, small as we are, our capacity for love, forgiveness, compassion, and nonviolence has no limit. From where does such power come?

Gandhi compared our existence to the image of a vast ocean, where the human being is a “mere bubble” on the shore, small, insignificant, yet ever powerful, participating in something much greater than itself. Like a bubble on the shore, our power comes through us; it is greater than any one person. Such wisdom and strength to harness it is not the result of say, an advanced degree or well-toned arm muscles! It’s our destiny.

The ocean does not emerge from even the millions of bubbles on the shore. The human being does not create the world; rather, existence expresses itself through us. Hello, world! 

Gandhi would direct us further, “Lose yourself in the ocean of humanity. Share its dignity.” In other words, serve others, live for others, and never lose sight of respect for yourself. For the more we alienate ourselves from one another, like a drop taken from the ocean, we dry up.

Experiment in Nonviolence:

Your life and the life of all of those around you is precious and fragile. Remind yourself of this today.

Daily Metta 2015, a service of the Metta Center for Nonviolence, is a daily reflection on the strategic and spiritual insights of Mahatma Gandhi in thought, word and deed. As Gandhi called his life an “experiment in truth,” we have included an experiment in nonviolence to accompany each Daily Metta. Check in every day for new inspiration. Each year will be dedicated to another wisdom teacher.