Soul-to-Soul

 

I found this quote on Facebook and immediately remembered the annoying experience of 2023. That year I met a new member, a woman in her late 20s. Our closeness was very short-lived (one month). She suddenly avoided me for reasons that are still unclear to me (I’ve tested with several different helpers at different times and our receivings were the same, but I won’t share that here).

I contacted her once via WhatsApp after we were reconciled but she didn’t reply, but two days later I received a strong warning from one of the Indonesian International Helpers that I should no longer approach or contact her because her parents threatened to take legal action against me. The IH warned me when I was hanging out with some Subud brothers in a café owned by a South Jakarta helper near Wisma Subud Cilandak, so that they all knew what was happening—so it actually tarnished her reputation.

I was disappointed with the IH’s attitude towards me, because he had treated me unfairly. Solving problems between two members who are at odds should be by bringing the two members together accompanied by a helper(s) and then do Latihan together (in a separate room if they are of different genders). Because of that, I reported the IH to another helper who then took my case to a helpers dewan meeting where the IH received a warning.

One member who was sitting next to me at the café, and therefore knew clearly what the problem was, said to me, “Don’t worry, Mas Arifin. In the kejiwaan, presence or absence is the same. She will still feel your presence even though you are not around her. That’s what we call soul-to-soul connection between Subud brothers and sisters. The important thing is that Mas Arifin doesn’t get offended and remains sabar, tawakal, and ikhlas.”

I went through the following days calmly, relaxed, as if nothing had happened. I have forgotten that woman, but I have not forgotten the main lesson: Never hate other people because in reality there is a soul-to-soul connection between people. Hating other people is essentially hating yourself.©2024

 

Pondok Cabe, South Tangerang, 7 November 2024