At the outset of my medical career, I had the security of knowing exactly where I was headed. I loved medicine. My future was open. Soon I would marry the woman I loved and go to America. This may sound like an enviable position. Yet what I didn't count on was the uncertainty of life, and what uncertainty can do to a person.
In particular, I thought security was my friend and uncertainty my enemy. If only I knew then, as I know now, that there is wisdom in uncertainty - it opens a door to the unknown, and only from the unknown can life be renewed constantly.
It's not possible to have a map of the future, and in my case, as in countless others, I viewed the unpredictable as a source of anxiety. How could it possibly be good when the following setbacks befell me?
I wasn't prepared for losing my fellowship. Or for being blackballed from my chosen medical specialty. Or for being totally broke with a wife and baby to support. Or being looked at sideways for being Indian. When I became fascinated, many years later, by the mind-body connection, how could I know that I would make myself a lightning rod for ridicule and vitriolic attack?
It's understandable that I would want to fend off these bad things and exchange insecurity for certainty. Now I know that would have been a catastrophe. The first principle in the wisdom of uncertainty is that everything happens for a reason. This has become a cliché, yet in the Vedic tradition of India, there's a deeper explanation.
Imagine that you have an invisible thread in your hand, and you will be holding it all your life. This thread is your lifeline. It leads where you need to go for your greatest fulfillment, not where your mind, your fear, your expectations, and your insecurity tell you to go. In India the thread is called Dharma, which derives from a root that means "to uphold." In other words, the invisible thread, fragile as it looks, is guiding you in the best possible direction. But being invisible, it guides you in unexpected ways - out of seeming uncertainty, there is hidden wisdom.
So the best way to live - which I didn't know when I was 22 - is to embrace the wisdom of uncertainty. How is this done? By attuning yourself to the following:
The feeling in your heart.
Your highest sense of purpose.
A worldview larger than yourself.
A sense of empathy with others.
A desire to be of service.
An understanding that you are unique in the universe.
An understanding that you deserve to be happy and fulfilled.
By being in tune with these things, which exist in everyone, you can escape the stress and pressure, the insecurity and doubt, that causes people to become stuck. Becoming stuck happens in various ways. You might find yourself settling for something you know isn't ideal or what you really want or what is best for you. You may choose dull conformity, giving into opinions and beliefs that aren't your own. In extreme cases, your inner light may fade until you feel like a victim or the pawn of circumstance.
The greatest thing about being 22 is that none of these traps have closed. The instinct to be free is very strong when you're young. The flame of discontent is still fueled by idealism. If you consciously attune yourself to the best in your nature, you will be holding tight to the invisible thread. The world's wisdom traditions declare that Dharma is real and can be trusted. Uncertainty isn't something to fear. It's an absolutely necessary prerequisite if you want to kick-start the age-old process known as the beginning of wisdom.
Written by Deepak Chopra MD
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