"Once surrender takes place, this is the beginning point for Love to enter our heart and expand it."
After writing about the Law of Brokenness, I reflected a bit on why I perceived this to be a law as well as what other factors influenced it. The more I thought about it (and a friend's comments made me introspect more on this), the more I came to the conclusion that there was a deeper law at work, which I will call the Law of Surrender.
Brokenness is a vehicle that brings us to surrender. But surrender is really where the Power lies. We can be broken and not surrender to a Higher Power, in which case we have cut ourselves off from this Power transforming us. Also, we can be unbroken and surrender to a Higher Power and be transformed from the inside out. The point is that ultimate goal is a shrinking of the ego through a surrendering of it to a Power greater than ourselves.
If someone already is not self-identified with the ego and surrenders the totality of themselves to this Power, then transformation occurs. What exactly are we surrendering? We are surrendering the control of our lives.
You see, as I have explored in a previous post called Illusion of Control, we really are not in control of our lives anyways. If we deeply reflect on this point, we will see that the only practical conclusion is to give this control away. To whom are we surrendering? The easiest way to understand this is that we are surrendering to Reality. We accept life on life's terms, the reality of our situation and how we can operate within the context of reality or the "flow of life."
Once surrender takes place, this is the beginning point for Love to enter our heart and expand it. This expansion of the heart continues with no end as long as we are on this path. We find the truth in the concept that one must lose her life in order to find it.
Showing posts with label reality. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reality. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Learning Discernment
"When I am in doubt whether I should wait or act, I should usually wait. Patience and tranquility are guideposts along my path that I am learning how to see."
No matter how many times I think to myself, it is much better for me to wait rather than act, I find myself acting. There is always a good excuse, of course. In fact, there is always a good spiritual excuse of why I should act. The list usually includes me not acting because of fear or that I am not acting from my Spirit. In other words, I should act because it is going against the ego.
It really does come down to discernment. I discern that such and such action is "spiritual" because it is coming from my Higher Self, and so I act. However, the reality is that my judgment is clouded, because I am not allowing enough time to pass in order for me to think clearly. When I am in doubt whether I should wait or act, I should usually wait. Patience and tranquility are guideposts along my path that I am learning how to see.
The higher truth is that it is better for me to wait. The higher the attachment I have to an object, the longer I should wait. The other realization is that attachment is to the ego like a duck is to water. I really cannot separate the two. I am realizing that attachment should be expected if I reside in the domain of my ego. It still comes down to constant ego sacrifice. Patience is indeed a quality of Spirit and expediency is not.
This is a topic for another article, but I am discovering that intention matters little if an action is taken that has high attachment. In other words, intending to not be attached to an action is trumped by the reality that an action is attached. Here is an example. If my stomach is filled with food and I do not intend my next bite to be attached to food, my actions show that I am attached to food. I am already full, so why am I eating food?
Here, the higher truth is to be grounded in reality and to analyze the results of an action before taking it. I need to discern if action itself broadcasts attachment to anything. If it does, then there may be a better course of action.
This is not to say that there is a wrong or right action but to act consciously, weighing the action against the intention. Accept the action and it's consequences immediately, receive any nourishment through learning any lessons and allow future actions to be informed by this newfound knowledge.
No matter how many times I think to myself, it is much better for me to wait rather than act, I find myself acting. There is always a good excuse, of course. In fact, there is always a good spiritual excuse of why I should act. The list usually includes me not acting because of fear or that I am not acting from my Spirit. In other words, I should act because it is going against the ego.
It really does come down to discernment. I discern that such and such action is "spiritual" because it is coming from my Higher Self, and so I act. However, the reality is that my judgment is clouded, because I am not allowing enough time to pass in order for me to think clearly. When I am in doubt whether I should wait or act, I should usually wait. Patience and tranquility are guideposts along my path that I am learning how to see.
The higher truth is that it is better for me to wait. The higher the attachment I have to an object, the longer I should wait. The other realization is that attachment is to the ego like a duck is to water. I really cannot separate the two. I am realizing that attachment should be expected if I reside in the domain of my ego. It still comes down to constant ego sacrifice. Patience is indeed a quality of Spirit and expediency is not.
This is a topic for another article, but I am discovering that intention matters little if an action is taken that has high attachment. In other words, intending to not be attached to an action is trumped by the reality that an action is attached. Here is an example. If my stomach is filled with food and I do not intend my next bite to be attached to food, my actions show that I am attached to food. I am already full, so why am I eating food?
Here, the higher truth is to be grounded in reality and to analyze the results of an action before taking it. I need to discern if action itself broadcasts attachment to anything. If it does, then there may be a better course of action.
This is not to say that there is a wrong or right action but to act consciously, weighing the action against the intention. Accept the action and it's consequences immediately, receive any nourishment through learning any lessons and allow future actions to be informed by this newfound knowledge.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
One Truth
There is but one truth in life. That we are all one. There is one reality, one consciousness and one breath that gives us all life. This force and power is the power of Love.
Many times I want to make spirituality complex and add theories and explanations of why such and such happens. It really all comes down to one basic truth that I often lose sight of. That is the truth that Love is all there is.
All of the world is made out of this Love-essence. It is like we are fashioned out of clay and then spend our lives questioning "Does clay exist?" There is but one truth in life. That we are all one. There is one reality, one consciousness and one breath that gives us all life. This force and power is the power of Love.
In addition to all being made out of the same building block, we also participate in a shared reality. That is the reality that binds us all together. And we have one consciousness yet think we are separate. The same breath that gives me life, gives you life as well.
My ego thinks that if I admit I am but a wave on a vast sea of consciousness, that my ego will die. The reality is that my ego will die after my physical incarnation anyways. The bigger reality is that I am not my ego. What I am is much bigger than my ego but a spirit, part of the Great Spirit. This is why all religions speak of sacrifice; it is ego sacrifice that they always are referring to. If I sacrifice my ego now, that is association with my physical incarnation, I have nothing to lose.
The beauty of living a life according to my spiritual nature is that true happiness emerges. I am living my life by that one power, the power of Love. I embody that power and allow it to work through me. What enfolds are dreams greater than what I could have imagined with my ego-mind, as love manifests itself in my life in a concrete way.
Many times I want to make spirituality complex and add theories and explanations of why such and such happens. It really all comes down to one basic truth that I often lose sight of. That is the truth that Love is all there is.
All of the world is made out of this Love-essence. It is like we are fashioned out of clay and then spend our lives questioning "Does clay exist?" There is but one truth in life. That we are all one. There is one reality, one consciousness and one breath that gives us all life. This force and power is the power of Love.
In addition to all being made out of the same building block, we also participate in a shared reality. That is the reality that binds us all together. And we have one consciousness yet think we are separate. The same breath that gives me life, gives you life as well.
My ego thinks that if I admit I am but a wave on a vast sea of consciousness, that my ego will die. The reality is that my ego will die after my physical incarnation anyways. The bigger reality is that I am not my ego. What I am is much bigger than my ego but a spirit, part of the Great Spirit. This is why all religions speak of sacrifice; it is ego sacrifice that they always are referring to. If I sacrifice my ego now, that is association with my physical incarnation, I have nothing to lose.
The beauty of living a life according to my spiritual nature is that true happiness emerges. I am living my life by that one power, the power of Love. I embody that power and allow it to work through me. What enfolds are dreams greater than what I could have imagined with my ego-mind, as love manifests itself in my life in a concrete way.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Listen to Yourself
"You can experience true freedom when you learn to listen to that still, small voice inside you and not what anyone else may say, regardless of popularity of circumstance."
On this path, you will encounter both external and internal resistance as I have written about previously. Conquering the internal resistance helps you when you encounter resistance outside yourself. For example, recognizing when the ego crops up internally and learning how to observe it, rather than act on it helps your outer life. When we encounter other's personal egos or even collective egos, we can learn how to observe that too. Both practices have a synergistic effect on one another, such that you learn how to become an observer in all things.
This is easier said than done unfortunately. This is because we have all been socialized into an idea of external reality. This is, of course, the domain of the ego. The ego thinks that it only exists through the eyes and opinions of other people. The worth system is reversed. Rather than obtaining your worth through the sole fact that you are an eternal, supernatural Being, your worth is measured by what others think of you.
A common practice when others are giving you advice is to employ the idea of a "them" or "they." They may harmlessly refer to a respected group that could either disapprove of you or even affect you in some way. This is a way for them to reinforce their point, so you may be dealing with a bunch of egos, personal and collective, as a way to sway you. When we get criticism from others, even constructive, it is like getting a banana peel thrown at you. What do you do? You duck, but, before you duck, open the peel and see if there is a banana in there. If there is, eat the banana and throw the peel away. In other words, examine their opinion with your internal Voice and take anything away that is of substance.
We all have people in our lives that will offer unsolicited opinions. A lot of this opinion does not come from a centered place. You can quickly see that adopting this opinion as reality, even though it may be popular will bring you into an uncentered place as well. We, of course, have a few people in our lives that are our spiritual mentors. They may offer advice that resonates deep within you and not with your ego.
On an energetic level, any time you take on someone else's opinion as your own, you literally are plugging a cable from your energy center to them and energy is being drained from you. Call back your spirit from that individual or even collective ego that you are plugged into. Mentally imagine pulling the plug on that cable so that you are free. You can experience true freedom when you learn to listen to that still, small voice inside you and not what anyone else may say, regardless of popularity of circumstance.
For me, personally, as I unplug from other's opinions, reality begins to shift as these "distortion fields" are removed. Much of our anxiety comes from attempting to live up to this distorted reality, which, many times, is comprised of future projections. This is a process that needs to be done continually so that we are not giving our power away to others. How good it is to experience true freedom that comes with living an authentic life.
On this path, you will encounter both external and internal resistance as I have written about previously. Conquering the internal resistance helps you when you encounter resistance outside yourself. For example, recognizing when the ego crops up internally and learning how to observe it, rather than act on it helps your outer life. When we encounter other's personal egos or even collective egos, we can learn how to observe that too. Both practices have a synergistic effect on one another, such that you learn how to become an observer in all things.
This is easier said than done unfortunately. This is because we have all been socialized into an idea of external reality. This is, of course, the domain of the ego. The ego thinks that it only exists through the eyes and opinions of other people. The worth system is reversed. Rather than obtaining your worth through the sole fact that you are an eternal, supernatural Being, your worth is measured by what others think of you.
A common practice when others are giving you advice is to employ the idea of a "them" or "they." They may harmlessly refer to a respected group that could either disapprove of you or even affect you in some way. This is a way for them to reinforce their point, so you may be dealing with a bunch of egos, personal and collective, as a way to sway you. When we get criticism from others, even constructive, it is like getting a banana peel thrown at you. What do you do? You duck, but, before you duck, open the peel and see if there is a banana in there. If there is, eat the banana and throw the peel away. In other words, examine their opinion with your internal Voice and take anything away that is of substance.
We all have people in our lives that will offer unsolicited opinions. A lot of this opinion does not come from a centered place. You can quickly see that adopting this opinion as reality, even though it may be popular will bring you into an uncentered place as well. We, of course, have a few people in our lives that are our spiritual mentors. They may offer advice that resonates deep within you and not with your ego.
On an energetic level, any time you take on someone else's opinion as your own, you literally are plugging a cable from your energy center to them and energy is being drained from you. Call back your spirit from that individual or even collective ego that you are plugged into. Mentally imagine pulling the plug on that cable so that you are free. You can experience true freedom when you learn to listen to that still, small voice inside you and not what anyone else may say, regardless of popularity of circumstance.
For me, personally, as I unplug from other's opinions, reality begins to shift as these "distortion fields" are removed. Much of our anxiety comes from attempting to live up to this distorted reality, which, many times, is comprised of future projections. This is a process that needs to be done continually so that we are not giving our power away to others. How good it is to experience true freedom that comes with living an authentic life.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Living a Balanced Life
"Just as I am the connection between the earth and the heavens, I need to strive for balance, which is being grounded as I pursue spiritual realms."
I must always strive to live my life in balance: spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, physically. Without balance, I am like the parable of the person who built their house on sand. It is only a matter of time before the storms of life come. Our house will come crashing down. It appears as if we are shaken by the Universe, yet this is part of the design of our existence. An unbalanced life is not sustainable, and the storms push us towards balance. In a balanced life, God is present so we should embrace the storms as vehicles that bring us to the feet of our Beloved.
Being balanced means living a centered life, where all of our centers are in balance. Balance is an ideal to strive for as, without it, I will spin out of control. Many times the storms of life are of our own creation. The storms are created by this imbalanced state.
For example, if I am stuck in my emotions and go solely by feeling in life but do not consider reality, then I am easily deceived. Others may attempt to manipulate me through my emotions and I would not see it if I was not grounded in reality, that is using my intellect and observing what is happening in physical reality.
I cannot write about a balanced life without discussing the seven centers that comprise one system used to describe consciousness. Balance in these seven centers are outside the scope of this writing, but there is value solely in their awareness. They are survival, sexuality, will power, love, communication, intuition, and transcendence. Each center can be fully opened, fully closed or have different levels of openness.
Without balance, even spiritual pursuits do not amount to much. This is because we will not be able to sustain this life and eventually will be derailed from our spiritual journey. This is why a vital ingredient to cultivating a sustainable spiritual life is striving to maintain our balance or centeredness at all times. We are plants grounded in earth yet need the light of the sun. If a plant is uprooted, it will wither away. If a plant has too little or too much water or sun, its growth or even survival will be affected. Yet, if the basic needs of ourselves are properly provided for, we will grow unbounded towards the heavens. Just as I am the connection between the earth and the heavens, I need to strive for balance, which is being grounded as I pursue spiritual realms.
I must always strive to live my life in balance: spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, physically. Without balance, I am like the parable of the person who built their house on sand. It is only a matter of time before the storms of life come. Our house will come crashing down. It appears as if we are shaken by the Universe, yet this is part of the design of our existence. An unbalanced life is not sustainable, and the storms push us towards balance. In a balanced life, God is present so we should embrace the storms as vehicles that bring us to the feet of our Beloved.
Being balanced means living a centered life, where all of our centers are in balance. Balance is an ideal to strive for as, without it, I will spin out of control. Many times the storms of life are of our own creation. The storms are created by this imbalanced state.
For example, if I am stuck in my emotions and go solely by feeling in life but do not consider reality, then I am easily deceived. Others may attempt to manipulate me through my emotions and I would not see it if I was not grounded in reality, that is using my intellect and observing what is happening in physical reality.
I cannot write about a balanced life without discussing the seven centers that comprise one system used to describe consciousness. Balance in these seven centers are outside the scope of this writing, but there is value solely in their awareness. They are survival, sexuality, will power, love, communication, intuition, and transcendence. Each center can be fully opened, fully closed or have different levels of openness.
Without balance, even spiritual pursuits do not amount to much. This is because we will not be able to sustain this life and eventually will be derailed from our spiritual journey. This is why a vital ingredient to cultivating a sustainable spiritual life is striving to maintain our balance or centeredness at all times. We are plants grounded in earth yet need the light of the sun. If a plant is uprooted, it will wither away. If a plant has too little or too much water or sun, its growth or even survival will be affected. Yet, if the basic needs of ourselves are properly provided for, we will grow unbounded towards the heavens. Just as I am the connection between the earth and the heavens, I need to strive for balance, which is being grounded as I pursue spiritual realms.
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