Erykah Badu Pens a Letter in ESSENCE Magazine

Warwick Saint

"The wise woman knows instinctually that in order to truly realize herself she must be still," writes ESSENCE cover girl Erykah Badu. "She realizes that the ultimate human JOY we seek can only be found in the full acceptance of who we really are and not in the avatars we've created to define ourselves."

Erykah Badu Jul, 29, 2015

THE PARADIGM OF JOY

There’s this natural instinct we have as human beings. Regardless of our position, religion, color or kind, we all have a primal desire for immediate, and almost unwavering, JOY. Eventually, through the experience of events and circumstance, we learn that this desire just may be unreasonable and unnatural. We watch our emotions sway as we are affected and influenced by the energy around us. Our own resistance to “unpleasantness” restricts our movement.

In a self-medicated state, we start to become addicted to our pain. In some cases it even starts to define us. We wear masks to protect ourselves and alas lose sight of who we are. Drained physically, spiritually and emotionally, we become ill and left with very little energy to cope. Our service to others becomes exhausting. Our breathing becomes shallow. JOY seems so far. Now we are stuck in our own minds, filled with random thoughts and collected fears.

This place has become our world. We know we are imbalanced. Something must change. How do we portion our busy lives to give the proper attention to our inner beings; the part of us that, at its core, regulates our mental, emotional and vital wellness? Perhaps we change our state of being by taking a look inside and simply changing our perspective and perception.

BE STILL. OBSERVE. IDENTIFY. ACCEPT. ELIMINATE.

The wise woman knows instinctually that in order to truly realize herself she must be still. She must give up things that no longer evolve her by first identifying what they are. She realizes that the ultimate human JOY we seek can only be found in the full acceptance of who we really are and not in the avatars we’ve created to define ourselves. When she is fully present and can see her true self clearly, she realizes that the very need for JOY dissolves along with the need to resist pain. She replaces them with humility, for she now trusts the natural flow of life. She becomes one with the all.

It is in that very moment of complete acceptance where she is transformed. It is in that state of awareness that she expands and contracts and breathes life into her thoughts. She now knows that those thoughts become her reality. She has always known. She is

THE SAGE.

THE MEDICINE WOMAN.

THE DOULA.

THE WITCH DOCTOR.

THE FORTUNE TELLER.

THE WISDOM KEEPER.

THE SANGOMA.

THE MGANGA.

THE MCHAUI.

THE HEALER.

We must remember that we are powerful beyond measure. Each obstacle we are faced with is another opportunity to use our power. It is a step toward our greatness. After all, we have asked to be great.

Pick up the August issue of ESSENCE to read more about Erykah Badu in Africa.