The Eternal Now of Grief

Mirabai lived in what might be called the eternal now—her devotion to Krishna was always present, not something she 'got over.' Collective grief, understood through her lens, is not a process with an endpoint but a practice of maintaining presence. We do not 'move on' from the death of a beloved public figure or a shared tragedy; rather, we learn to live differently with their absence. The eternal now means that grief can resurface—at anniversaries, unexpected moments, new information—without this being a regression. Each return is an opportunity for deeper knowing, fuller remembrance, and renewed commitment. This framework liberates us from the pressure to 'be over it' and instead invites us into a mature relationship with loss. We can function in the world, build new things, and celebrate life while still maintaining sacred space for those we grieve. This is not sorrow that paralyzes but presence that honors—a way of continuing together across the irreducible separation that death creates.