"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction ... The chain reaction of evil -- hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars -- must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation." -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Strength To Love, 1963.I have often found the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. inspiring. I think his life reminds us that equality is hard fought and that discrimination, injustice, and hate must be met head on, with strength, deep conviction, profound courage, and great love.
As I googled my obligatory Martin Luther King Jr. quote to post on my Facebook status this morning, I read through dozens of his words and found one of my long time favorites to share with my friends and family- the excerpt you see above. I have often heard and read these words but each time I am somehow still deeply struck by the truth of this statement and the power behind it. Perhaps it is in knowing that Dr. King did not just speak these words, he lived them. And that he is not alone- the power to drive out darkness comes from light and the the power to rid the world of hatred comes from love. Our greatest teachers on the planet seems to share this common thread, this common message.
I think that is what also makes Dr. King's words so profound. This deep truth touches on what could be the most challenging personal journey we are asked to take- that of forgiveness when we have been truly wronged and deeply hurt. How do we let go of the anger and the pain? Where do we find the willingness to meet hatred with love not just because we are trying to show restraint but because we truly forgive? Scholars and spiritual guides more learned than I perhaps are better suited to such questions- but my answer- the only one I have found to work in my own life has been compassion. Compassion creates the smallest crack letting in the slightest ray of light into the darkest places of my own anger and hatred, though always slow and rarely graceful.
Forgiveness never means justification for what has been done. Letting go of anger or hatred doesn't mean that what happened was right or acceptable- it only means choosing to release the pain and the hurt. In the case of Dr. King, he saw a higher purpose, a greater calling, and recognized the power of letting go of anger for his own well-being but even more importantly for the well-being of our country and our world. Dr. King recognized that justifiable hatred in response to hatred would only create destruction, pain, and more hatred- so he understood the need for compassion, forgiveness, non-violence, and love.
The truth is, I am in awe of forgiveness at every level- the most mundane to the deepest wrongs, but especially the kind of forgiveness and love Dr. King demonstrated with his words and actions. That kind of love and compassion is inspiring and humbling because it is it the stuff of truly great courage and truly great strength. It is part of why we admire and look up to Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Gandhi, Jesus, Buddha, Mother Teresa... of the millions of individuals who have stood up to violence, injustice, bigotry, and hatred with the power of love. If the hatred has hurt you- and many of us have been hurt by the hatred of bigotry, insensitivity, cowardice, and fear - the way to meet hatred with love is through compassion.
Hatred does multiple hatred into a descending spiral of destruction, but I believe very strongly that the exact opposite is also true. LOVE MULTIPLES LOVE INTO AN ASCENDING SPIRAL OF CONSTRUCTION!
So here's the heart of this post- (sorry sometimes it take me awhile to get there I know!) it seems we as humans are always afraid we are at the precipice of days, and if you look back in history there were always tough times, always dark ages, always difficult days- it is easy to get caught up in the fear and see only the devastation and destruction around us. Dr. King could have so easily only seen the horror of discrimination, bigotry, and racism suffered by those around him. He could have focused on the overwhelming hatred that was present, focused on the despair, and the seemingly impossible task of the Civil Rights Movement, but he did not. Instead he focused on the HOPE, he focused so famously on his DREAM, he focused on meeting hatred with LOVE!
In a world with such serious problem, pains, and struggles we must face those challenges but not from a place of fear, not focusing panicked about how the world is coming undone around us, or how 2012 is on its way and the Maya calendar is ending, but rather working towards our own DREAM of how it can be- our own vision for how we know it will be when we choose to use our love and passion, our drive and determination for what matters most to each of us, for forces of good. Love always expands and makes our world better. Our challenge is to meet hatred with love, find compassion, fight apathy, and seek a small way to engage in our communities each day to try to make them better.
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." -MLK Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Thank you to Dr. King for inspiring us all to multiply love and compassion in our world, to stand up courageously and powerfully to injustice, and for reminding us that we do have the power to change the world.
