Waking up spiritually is like waking up from sleep. First there is an inner urge. An alarm bell goes off. Something happens that causes us to think more deeply about life, to question our beliefs about what is real or important. This alarm is a manifestation of God’s grace, that aspect of Divine Consciousness that is consciously striving to bring all souls back to Itself. With the support of God’s grace, our own efforts are quickened and we find it possible to persevere on the path. This is how spirituality evolves from possibility to actuality.
The spiritual path is universal because God is universal. It is not the possession of any one religion, vocation, class, or race. While there are infinite ways of living the awakened life, there are two key elements you will find in any true spiritual life: first, the primacy of one’s relationship with the divine Self or God; and, second, a virtuous way of living in the world. Although there is no causal relationship between moral behavior and enlightenment, there is a correlation. Enlightenment always supports right action, though one cannot “buy” God just by being good.
Because enlightenment is our true nature, you would think it
should be possible to achieve it now, instantly. Nevertheless, in most cases,
it is a matter of gradual awakening. It takes time. During the interval,
spiritual teachings help support the striving devotee, acting as a hedge to
keep out the intruding weeds of doubt and lethargy. Otherwise, following our
initial wake up call or glimpse of truth, we tend to fall back into our old
habits of forgetfulness. Spiritual teachings and spiritual company remind us to
put one foot in front of the other, one thought in front of the other, until
the goal of God consciousness is attained and the radiance of the divine Self
shines unimpeded.
Spiritual wisdom is not something that comes from the
outside, from a book, or even from a teacher. True wisdom emerges from the well
of enlightened knowing within our own consciousness. The presence of a
spiritual teacher, or truth teachings, can help us awaken from our slumber and
remind us to keep on in our journey to the Self. But we each must make the
journey ourselves. Knowing this, Yogananda advised those who desired Self‑realization
to read a little, meditate more, and think about God all the time.
Many seekers reverse this formula, reading spiritual books
as if enough information could bring about an enlightened condition, neglecting
meditation or “trying it” with only sporadic efforts and results, and letting
the mind be filled with worries instead of thinking about God. This is a sure
way to remain a seeker and not a finder! Those who want to find God, undertake
the daily divine discipline of looking within.
The spiritual life is difficult, but it is simple. What
could be simpler than putting God first? It is difficult because we’re not in
the habit of doing so. It becomes easier when, instead of becoming discouraged
about our lack of progress, we simply say to ourselves, “This moment I will
think of God.” We can all think of God this moment. And since life is a series
of such moments, when all our moments are filled with God, then all our life is
filled with God.
But even one thought of God requires faith, the ability to
look through the unreal to perceive the Real. To look past hatred and see love,
to look past separation and see unity, to look past loss and see gain—such are
the ways of the spiritual warrior. Those who choose to live this way have
dedicated themselves not only to bringing the light within themselves, but also
to calling it forth in the world. This is compassion itself and the highest
path of service—living love through acts of compassion and a pure vision of
truth.
Think About It: Astronomer Carl Sagan was deeply moved by the photo he saw of
the earth taken by Voyager 1 as it sailed away from the earth. This is an
excerpt of his now famous speech “The Pale Blue Dot”: We succeeded in taking that picture [from deep space], and, if you look
at it, you see a dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it, everyone you
ever heard of, every human being who ever lived, lived out their lives. The
aggregate of all our joys and sufferings, thousands of confident religions,
ideologies and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward,
every creator and destroyer of civilizations, every king and peasant, every
young couple in love, every hopeful child, every mother and father, every
inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every
superstar, every supreme leader, every saint and sinner in the history of our
species, lived there on a mote of dust, suspended in a sunbeam.
Be Inspired: All that a man has
here externally in multiplicity is intrinsically One. Here all blades of grass,
wood and stone, all things are One. This is the deepest depth. —Meister Eckhart
No comments:
Post a Comment