The root of goodness

For thousands of years we have looked for the root of things and held it as most important. Maybe because the root is so obviously essential in the plant kingdom which ultimately sustains all animals on Earth, including the upright-walking ones. And it surely looks miraculous how roots fulfill their purpose and are able to move and adapt to many conditions and challenges, to regenerate when injured, to establish collaboration with fungi and bacteria, establish communications with other plants, etc, etc. And there can be no lasting greatness above ground without an even larger anchoring and nourishing root system. No wonder that since the ancient times we talked about the “tree of life” to depict both the biological journey and branching of life on Earth as well as the essence of our spiritual inner framework.

Our first chakra houses the power which is the root of our being, hence it’s name which literally means “support of the root”. And what is that power ? It is Innocence, with the capital “I”. And it is always “bundled” with its correlative powers of wisdom, purity and joy - those are all immediate expressions of Innocence. Innocence has long been hailed as the root of all goodness, and in all cultures and spiritual traditions. This is deeply embedded in the Indian traditions and scriptures since most ancient times, it is found in the great teachings of Lao-Tzu in China, it was taught by Lord Jesus and emphasized in the poems of William Blake in late 19th century. Not to mention that chastity - one of the more obvious manifestations of Innocence in human life - has been universally regarded as an ideal value since always and praised in countless forms. In one of the most touching examples, Michelangelo so beautifully wrote that in his first and most famous Pietá sculpture Mother Mary had to look almost younger than her Son because chastity always seems to slow the flow of time aging-wise and someone who was the very embodiment of chastity would thus naturally look forever young.

Children have their innocence expressing readily and naturally, eliciting a response of love, caring and sweet enjoyment from everyone, a response which is universal and beyond all superficial or man-made boundaries. A child-like nature is appreciated by all humans no matter their country, color, social or spiritual background, etc. And Innocence often manifests itself in wisdom, simply staying away from negative and destructive things without too much complications and thinking. Just like the root tip gently avoids the stone boulders but wraps around them to give the tree stability, while penetrating enough nourishing earth to provide sustenance. Through fully restoring the power of Innocence within ourselves, we also gain access to the best and easiest way to cure any part of our tree. When the root is healthy and strong, the medicine can reach easily everywhere and the whole tree can withstand storms without being toppled over. With the awakening of our Kundalini, the restoration process gets truly and well under way and we will never stop enjoying our rediscovered Innocence as well as everyone else's.