Article October 28, 1905 Issue

Aweary of the World

REUBEN POGSON.

If the winds did but store the sighings and sobbings of the sad hearts of all the ages, and did the clouds but hold the bitter tears wrung from the eyes of the countless millions who have fretted through a futile material existence, then, surely, joy could breathe no more in such a burdened air, and sensual pleasures would be drowned in floods of rain, salt anguish.

Tennyson, unconsciously perhaps, has portrayed in his poem, "Mariana," humanity's sorrowful waiting for a fulfilment of that seductive promise of permanent pleasures which is given so glibly by the carnal mind to the sense-deceived. Is this a too pessimistic view of material existence? No! the material sense of life is a synonym for pessimism; its very optimism is often like the hectic flush on the invalid's cheek, an indication of its own hopelessness. The tragedy of it all is, that when mortals think they are most alive; namely, in the early stage of expectancy, they are then really in a worse condition than when they see the hopelessness of it all and long for release from its deceitful promises. Then, if from the depths they cry feebly for help, if instead of longing and looking down the sufferer would but turn his gaze upward and look for a star of heavenly hope, then will he commence to live. He will commence to breathe a new and rarer atmosphere. Mortals often say, "I am aweary of the world," but are they? No! for they love the world and nothing else. They say, "I wish that I were dead," but put them on a bed of sickness and they make frantic efforts to get well. Truly this is a state of "deceiving and being deceived." How often has a fashionable woman said, the morning after a reception, "Ah! if the poor people who envy me only knew how weary I am of it all, they would change their envy into pity." Would they? Not in the least; they would probably say, "Why don't you give it up and let us have a chance?" And why does she not give it up? Simply because she is not weary of it all, she is self-deceived; so are all mortals, until perchance one day, when in repeating the oft-spoken falsehood their conscience is awakened; then there is hope.

What is it really to be aweary of the world? Is it to be in any of the foregoing states of mind? No! The last state mentioned is only a premonitory sign of an awakening to the fact of self-deception; it yet remains for the individual to analyze his motives, aims, and desires, to see if he is really aweary, as he has said. To be indifferent to things in general; to assume a cynical attitude to most of the pursuits and pleasures of others; is this to be aweary of the world? No, indeed! To be truly aweary of the world one must be in a condition to see the absolute vanity of materiality, with its hopes and disappointments, its pleasures and pains, to know that even if the devil would fulfil his promises, which he never does, and give us all the kingdoms of this world, that then we should have but dead-sea fruit and our last state would be worse than our first. The true weariness of the world is not accompanied by a painfully sad visage and a loose, dejected mien; no, those who are really most weary of the world have a sunny smile, an erect form, and an elastic It may be remarked, "But this is not weariness, it is a mere straining of a word to justify the title of the article." Not so, this is the only legitimate use of the word in Christian Science, for when we are most weary of the world we are most refreshed in the consciousness of an ever-present heaven; when we are aweary of evil we are resting in good, and when we are truly awearied of the flesh, "the prince of this world" will come and find nothing in us.

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