The Key of Kindness

It is the dead of night. A thief enters the house of a wealthy man who is snoring loudly, oblivious to his surroundings and to the mishap about to unfold. The clever thug, meanwhile, carefully manoeuvres himself towards the family’s treasure safe, which contains many valuables.

Having mastered the art of opening any treasure safe within a few minutes, the thief swiftly gets to work, using a ‘Master Key’. His dexterity is unmatched, for without wasting a precious second, he rotates the wondrous key through the lock and, having cracked the secret combination, flings open the door of the treasure safe!

Such a potent Master Key is with all of us, albeit it does not unlock metal treasure safes and vaults. Instead, it has the power to open the tightly closed doors of the human heart. This is the key of kindness!

Kindness Conveys Love

One way to express love is to be kind to others. How often do we want someone to overlook our faults and forgive us for our mistakes? But life is a two-way street, which means we need to first develop kindness as a deeply rooted attitude within ourselves, as the teachings of Jesus say, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you.”

However, kindness cannot be based on the actions of others. Therefore, irrespective of how others behave, we need to remain kind to them in our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Paramhansa Yogananda said, “If you treat others unkindly, you will receive unkindliness in return, both from others and from life. Your own heart, moreover, will grow shriveled and dry.” Therefore, this quality must be developed for our own spiritual growth.

To develop the attitude of being unconditionally kind to people, it is important to practise gratitude for everything that life offers. A grateful heart forever sings the song of love that binds two hearts in an inseparable bond. At the core of this bond is, of course, kindness, which is expressed as love and compassion. Therefore, Paramhansa Yogananda said, “Kindness is the light that dissolves all walls between souls, families and nations.”

The Foundation of Inner Peace

It is a tough task to be consistently kind to everyone. The solution, however, is to still our own minds through meditation so that no outer circumstance can steal our peace of mind. Yoganandaji emphasized practising kindness with family members and avoiding the use of harsh language that results in open rebellion. The magical power of kind words acts like “nectar to thirsty souls” and spreads peace and joy in human hearts.

Beatitudes on Kindness

A Beatitude of Jesus states: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.” This highlights that by showing compassion and forgiveness to others, we receive God’s kindness in return. In another Beatitude, Jesus said: “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” Meekness is not weakness, but a deliberate choice to respond with patience and kindness.

God’s Kindness

The realization that God is merciful and kind to His children can be humbling. The Divine is always pulling us out of the quagmire of suffering, which is often of our own making. A Guru is God’s instrument of grace, whose teachings of eternal dharma help us work out our karma and attain final freedom. The kindness of a Guru in blessing a sincere disciple is unfathomable, for it is His Divine touch that fulfils all the longings of the disciple’s heart.

A moment of moments that all disciples of Paramhansa Yogananda reverentially cherish is when his Guru, Sri Yukteswar, gently struck him on the chest, and through that touch, the blessed experience of cosmic consciousness came to him as expanding bliss.

Of the many ancient poems, songs, and prayers found in the Old Testament of the Bible, Psalm 145:8 says of God: “You’re kind and tenderhearted to those who don’t deserve it and very patient with people who fail you. Your love is like a flooding river overflowing its banks with kindness.” To offer the love of our hearts to the Divine, the giver of all gifts, we must remember Yogananda ji’s words: “You cannot love God and at the same time be unkind to others.” This wondrous key of kindness is surely a potent tool to unlock Divine blessings by winning human hearts.