What is the difference between stress and the beneficial tension necessary for growth?

Stress is the antagonist to the spiritual quest for enlightenment. It arises as a direct result of a person’s resistance to life. It captures people in the inexorably linear movement of the passage of time. Living a life of surrendering to the unfolding challenges and events presented by the environment establishes a still point of power in a person. Instead of a shallow life caught in the currents of time, such a person has authentic, deep, and meaningful responses to all areas of life. This benefits all involved with such a one, who is called a master because of his or her masterful responses to life. A master responds to life; a fool reacts.

Among the concepts associated with reducing stress are the following:

• A certain amount of tension is needed to prevent the debilitating effects of stagnation.
• Tension comes from turning the unknown into the known through experience, which produces virility and growth.
• Stress comes from resisting life and repressing un-recapitulated experiences.