Worry

2026, April, Issue 199

Love,

Love and worry,

Loss is the great suffering,

Loss of attachment,

Loss of what gave us great joy,

Suffering manifested through love,

when we worry about our loved ones,

when we worry about our life,

when we worry about what has happened,

when we worry about what has not happened,

when we worry about what might be,

when we worry about this or that,

that, that has not yet happened,

that did not happen,

that is not happening now;

Even in our worst dreams,

when the worst seems to happen,

it is not as bad as we imagined,

it can never be that bad,

not even close,

because, because

we and all beings are

completely indestructible!

Our real self,

beyond these constraints of cyclic existence,

beyond this thing we call self,

this idiotic mind-blowing thing,

this fabrication,

we don’t want to lose that thing,

even though it never existed;

Rest assured, assured for this idiotic self,

this self will be lost, lost entirely,

because it is already lost,

never having really been there to begin with,

this ego-clinging self

thinks much too highly of itself!

As it plunges from the joys of love into

this agony of anger,

From the pain of love,

This extreme suffering of love,

manifesting in its downfall

through worry,

it cannot be worse than that,

not even in the torments of hell!

A poem by Robert Aho © 2026

Once upon a time, I was a really stupid stubborn man. I drove myself to the hospital, after experiencing chest pains, getting dizzy, along with a fast irregular heartbeat. The usually thirty-minute drive included two stops by the side of the highway, because I had almost passed out. It might have taken me an hour to get there. Don’t worry, I know I was stupid, as every female friend and family member informed me about that quite adamantly. I hadn’t realized before this how many worried about me.

Somewhat telling about how men are, however, I had a different reaction from them. The men in my life just laughed about it or made jokes when I told them. We know we are stupid in the way we interact with the world, being careless about our own wellbeing, and we cause people to worry about us fairly often.

What I worried about, personally, as I sat there alongside the road, wondering if I would even make it to the hospital, was more than just my family, it was the people I had been helping to awaken through meditation. I told this to people afterwards and many people laughed at me for that. My aspiration to help people awaken was fraught with attachment and worries connected to people who weren’t really depending upon me in the way that I had imagined. I almost gave up because of that; however, I then realized that there were a small number of people who were depending upon me. This brought me back with a new attitude about taking better care of myself, as well as remaining focused on awakening, not letting myself waver because of some minor setbacks.

It is no wonder that a few years after this event that I returned from death. This attachment, this genuine desire to help people awaken, had been etched permanently into my psyche. Without completely knowing if I had ever helped anyone or even if I was necessary, I had connected helping people with my Aspiration to Awaken. Our muddled lives are filled with such notions that may or may not connect with what is really going on here, we only see a certain truth shining through. The important thing is that we make this genuine effort, without being reckless about our own lives. Sometimes people need us, and they want the best for us.

When we care for people, it brings terrible suffering when we see them going through difficulties, or we realize that we can’t really do anything for them if they won’t help themselves. We’ve all had a person in our lives, whether they be an elderly relative or a reckless friend, who simply won’t listen to others. The pain we feel because we want the best for them can be excruciating, especially if we are helpless in any way, closed off from them or unable to reach out to them. It can be too much.

Let us all find it within ourselves to take good care of ourselves, as well to find ways to allow people who care about us into our lives. It’s easy to think that we exist in some sort of bubble; however, that sort of mentality just causes great suffering. We’re not insulated from each other, even if we do our best to make it so. We need to be kind, starting with ourselves. We need to take good care of ourselves, without creating unnecessary worry for others.

A person can live the happiest life imaginable, filled with love and joy, and it can all come crashing down in an instant, without any sort of warning. We worry, though that can’t help us in the least. I think what is crucially important is to remain at ease, to not become attached to life. If we can let go, then we can awaken.

Blessings of Source,

Rigdzin Robert Aho

Robert Aho is the author of Timeless Luminosity and The Frog: A Spiritual Autobiography, Spanning Many Lifetimes. Both books, written after his death experience, give advanced spiritual advice regarding the complete Spiritual Path, inspiration for living each day and words of encouragement, with the intention of helping people to stay committed to their Spiritual Path, as well as preparing for death. This ultimately leads to discovering your own power within, which lead to Awakening. Both books are available on Amazon, Zenith Bookstore, as well as various other sources.