Sometimes we wonder about the decisions
we make. Are they from the mind or the heart? We might ask -
'Is this a decision that is unveiling my highest possible destiny
or perhaps just an easy, comfortable solution that I am settling
for..?'
It
is important that we stretch ourselves to remember what makes
our lives meaningful.
Just as it is in the physical world we make ourselves physically
fit, in the same way, we need to make ourselves emotionally,
mentally and spiritually fit to bravely march out into the world
and live our spiritual life.
Think back to what we said about the meaning of life - learning,
loving and being happy. Each aspect needs careful consideration.
If a man is called to be a street
sweeper, he should sweep streets as Michelangelo painted, or
Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should
sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth
will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did
his job well. - Martin Luther King
Learning Real Learning refers to
our evolution as individuals. We need to be aware that we cannot
progress by staying the same - some part of our state of mind
has to evolve, to be different from where it was a moment ago!
So do not fear it - explore change! Ask yourself what is the
most important thing for me to learn today? What should I be
working on?
Use the success spiral to chunk for yourself an achievable spiritual
goal and then act on it. (Remember the action is what is important)
Use ‘positive internal dialog’ with the result and create more
potential for yourself. Have faith that all the answers to all
of your questions are inside you - that you can find the answers
inside yourself. Your soul is the window to the universe, the
highest in all things and as you find yourself, you will find
that you are tapping the self in all things.
If following a teacher appeals to you, it can really help your
progress. Real spiritual teachers have a free access to these
worlds and are able to easily see where we have come from and
what is required in our life for our fastest progress at this
moment. They actually are able to teach us from within. So along
with your faith in yourself, your spiritual teacher, an open
mind and some patience and perseverance - there is nothing that
can hold you back in evolving towards your highest spiritual
goals. One should always be aware though, that the ultimate
teacher is always you, so have faith in your own heart first.
A story...
There was once a monk who spent all his time following the rituals
of his particular religion.
One day he noticed a lady over the other side of the road employed
as a prostitute. He decided to go and explain to her the error
of her ways. "Don’t you know that what you are doing is sinful”
he explained, you surely will go to hell” “No, I am so sorry
I didn’t,” she’ replied “I will stop," she assured the monk.
However, a week later, the monk noticed there were still men
coming to her house and mortified, he began to place a pebble
for every customer on a pile.
Soon there was quite a heap and so he went over to her house
again. “You see that pile of pebbles over there," he proclaimed,
“they are your sins. They will surely weigh you down to the
fires of hell. You assured me that you would change your ways
”.
Crying the lady managed between sobs - I am so sorry, but this
must be fate. After you spoke, I stopped, but then there was
no food for my children. I love my children and I can’t bear
to see them hungry so if I have to go to hell, so be it.”
Anyway, they both died. At the Pearly Gates the monk watched
as the prostitute went straight to heaven. He couldn’t believe
it, but he reassured himself thinking that all his life had
followed the scriptures so he must be going to an even higher
plane.
So he asked the gatekeeper, but the gatekeeper only pointed
downstairs. He was aghast. How can this be?" he demanded, all
my life, I have lived according to the scriptures.” But the
gatekeeper just shook his head and said, I am sorry but all
her life she was focused on the love of her children, while
all your life you were focused on her sins. Her love is transporting
her to heaven, while you, I am afraid, still have some work
to do.”.. Loving Remember
unconditional, forever love. Practise it. The highest love reaches
every atom with unconditional love and connection.
This is not just an offering of good will, this is a blazing
furnace of deep love for every single soul. Love for no reason
and without any expectation of a result.
Love your loved ones, but also love your cat or the dog or the
sky or the ocean and love them not because they did something
for you, but love them really unconditionally, divinely - see
the Supreme in the things you love. You might like to imagine
the infinite, unconditional love the Supreme has for us as a
good starting point. Reflect on that noble idea that all souls
have infinite love within them.
Suddenly a leaf seen with love becomes an ‘aah’ moment that
leaves us breathless and in awe. While the same leaf analysed
and dissected with the mind is lifeless and dead. Most of our
relationships begin with this wonderful, effortless and unconditional
love - our challenge is to begin our relationship with the universe
with this love and then to renew it every moment, to expand
it and realise that is at the centre of all our experiences
of love. As we discovered last class, real love is the expansion
of our awareness into the love in all things.
This love, this energy that flows through all things has a unique
and powerful sense, much more powerful than our physical senses
that we begin to glimpse in intuition, in meditation.
Being happy
Wanna be happy? Then be happy!!! Naturally, we are all
infinitely happy and blissful souls. Our attachment to our grosser
mind, emotions and body and our ego is what prevents our clear
perception of this bliss.
As you know, normally our conditioning teaches us that we need
external 'things' and 'events' and even time to find our happiness.
This is normal but not natural. Look at being happy as being
as important as your meditation, because when you are feeling
real joy you are right there in your heart. That is the nature
of the Supreme.
Be mindful. Watch yourself. If you find that you are allowing
yourself to ‘fall’ into depression or ‘unhappiness’ be ruthless
in your determination to throw those thoughts from your consciousness.
Don’t let them in for even a moment. Radiate happiness, radiate
enthusiasm, your best defence is a strong offense.
Remember your real nature. You are not the body. You are not
the mind. You are not your emotions. What you are really is
your soul. All happiness. All love. All joy.
And there is one secret to all this. That it is impossible to
be unhappy when you are radiating love.
The real secret is that real joy comes
from the flow of love. So again, you can see the significance
of how important it is to learn the skill of unconditional
loving. Let me repeat this because it is really, really
important - the real secret is that there is only one cause
of happiness, and that is the flow of love.
So.. Be aware that our fulfilment
comes from the flow of love. It is not enough to have good intentions
or to be perhaps a better person than the next person, we do
not get fulfilment from that. We are fulfilled when we are all
we can be and this starts by loving our potentialities, our
dreams, by loving our selves.
When
we stretch every limit that we had set for ourselves, and then
finally see that there really aren’t any, that is the moment
of merging with the Supreme, when we really do live the mantra
’be still and know that I am’.
It is not enough, however, to say or even to believe that we
have no limits, it is impossible to really know we have no limits
until we actually stretch them. We cannot really know ourselves
until we have pushed over every barrier, every limitation, every
old idea that had restrained us and then only is it possible
to know our unlimited self for sure, for it is not a mental
idea, but a spiritual realisation.
If you are unsure that a path is the right path for you, imagine
yourself having followed that path your whole life, sitting
on a rocking chair looking back at from where you have come.
See your evolution and reflect on would there have been another
path you would have changed to be happier, more loving and more
wise? Is there another path you could have chosen that would’ve
allowed you to evolve faster? Rock on that chair and see!!
Then reflect on this - down through the ages, throughout history,
men and women of greatness have been those that have not done
the usual, the normal. They have trusted in themselves and believed
in their own little inner voice and followed it with a heart
full of conviction. This is true of any field of endeavour,
but it is an absolute imperative for the spiritual seeker.
The Path Of The Heart is meant for those wishing to travel spiritually
as fast as possible. You came to the classes because something
inside wanted you there, now it is for you to do the rest. Faith
awakens us to see the truth. Wisdom helps us to live the truth