Soul Searching – Writer Or Wrong

You Can Only Be You

That is a good thing

As a child, I dreamed I wanted to be Superman, The Flash, Spiderman, Willie Mays, Sandy Koufax, Zeus, Davy Crockett, Tarzan, Zorro, Paul McCartney, and others. It is my firm belief that I was not unusual. There is nothing like a child’s imagination when it comes to creating fantasies. Or is there?

Then we leap into the world of teen madness. The Twilight Zone, where children’s dreams go to die. Yes, the brave new world where that horrible word responsibility enters our vocabulary. I am a firm believer that the average life span of a human should be twelve years. Yes. I know. There would be fertility issues.

As a teen, I wanted to be…uh-hmm, hell if I know. Though I was a good athlete, I was not going to get drafted by the Yankees. I was average. I managed to get good grades without trying. I was socially adequate without trying. I found girls attractive. But not enough to have to convince me it was worth the effort. The greatest achievement I attained in high school was having a modicum of success without trying.

Realizing this I began to ask myself challenging questions. What’s the point of all this? Why am I here? What am I missing? It certainly was not love. I lived with and was part of a loving family. I was not destitute. My family was typical middle-class. Back when that meant something. So, I decided to go on a mission in my junior year.

A spiritual exploration. I was raised Catholic even though my parents seldom went to mass. Did I believe Jesus was the Son of God? Well…yes. But no more than any of us. I considered him and his message to be from a highly enlightened soul who chose to be a coworker with God and make the supreme effort to share his spiritual knowledge with the world. Not unlike many such souls that have walked this earth since the beginning of time and continue to this day to work behind the scenes to help us all.

I and a good friend of mine explored Buddhism for some time. I began to see a common thread. Highly evolved souls that incarnate on earth do not seek earthly rewards. If they do attain material riches they are not attached to them. In Buddha’s case, he walked away from great wealth and influence as a prince to live the life of a beggar taking charity from others. This raised an interesting question in my mind. Does one have to give up the pursuit of material things to reach spiritual enlightenment?

Then one day I was in a bookstore exploring the spirituality section and came across a book written by Brad Steiger, In My Soul I Am Free. In it, the author spends many hours with Paul Twitchell who was the modern-day founder of Eckankar. It delves into the life of Paul and discusses in length the teachings of soul travel and so much more. It has come to light through the years that Steiger was being Steiger and some of what he relates in the book is rubbish. But in the end, the result was bringing to light a most important message to the world. We are souls and we don’t have to die to experience it.

I was given a gift that day in 1972. The most precious of gifts. The realization that I am soul. Not that I have a soul. I am soul. Temporarily using this body. This changed my life in so many ways. It began to slowly sink into my thick skull that it was not an accident I happened to be in that bookstore on that day. That my life was about to drastically change. Scary stuff for a nineteen-year-old. Finally, I had something worth trying.

This all led me to my exploratory years. Those young adult years when everything is on the table. College, sex, drugs, alcohol, travel, work. It was a busy, exciting, life-altering, period of my life. During all of this I had read In My Soul I Am Free several times. Each time brought more moments of enlightenment. Was it the book? Or was I awakening to the fact I am soul? Or both? I can’t really say. In the end, it doesn’t matter. It all led to a most amazing life.

A life filled with great love, adventure, misadventures, and a greater understanding as to why I have been so blessed in this life. It really is a simple formula. It goes like this. Love God (by any name). Share God’s love.

In good times and bad times. All the time. Realize you are soul using a body to accelerate your learning curve. We learn the most from the lessons that test us. Each lesson is just a step toward graduation. There are always teachers guiding us, placing us in positions that test our resolve which eventually opens us up to greater understanding. Most often we lack the awareness of their most generous guidance.

How does one gain that awareness? Do you remember when you first learned to drive? Your parents or driver-ed teachers guided you and helped you master what would become an amazing world-changing event. Your outlook and understanding of the world around you grew exponentially. You traveled to places you had never been to.

It is no different when traveling the inner worlds. Spiritual guides help us maneuver through amazing, consciousness-raising experiences throughout higher planes that exist for the benefit of our enlightenment. Most often this is done in the dream state. Why do they choose this task? Love. And so one day we may follow in their footsteps.

On earth, as it is in heaven.

So often throughout human history ignorance and misunderstanding of the role these advanced souls play in our journey home have shined a light on the purpose we are all here for. To learn to rise above ignorance, prejudice, and hate. We will continue to return to the physical plane for countless lifetimes until we learn the only lesson worth learning.

LOVE GOD ABOVE ALL ELSE. BE AN EXAMPLE FOR OTHERS TO FOLLOW. THE REWARDS FOR THIS? INDESCRIBABLE SPIRITUAL AWE.

Originally published at https://medium.com/for-awe/you-can-only-be-you-302018f7f5d1

September 24, 2022 Add Comment

Come With Me

Sail the cosmic seas

Photo by Jeremy Thomas on Unsplash

Venus ignored the gusting winds that were trying to turn her long dress into a sail. It did not make her descent down the steep, grassy hill to the shoreline any easier. She was consumed by the Siren’s call, “Come with me. Sail the cosmic seas,” which held her in a hypnotic spell. She was helpless to ignore it. She was no longer in control.

As she neared the shore an oarless rowboat appeared from the mist. “Really? This is the best you can do?” Venus questioned her unseen tormentor. “We are going to sail cosmic seas in this thing?”

No answer. No reply was forthcoming. None was needed as a spectral form appeared in the boat, holding his hand out to encourage her to board.

Okay. I’m either losing my mind or dreaming. In either case, I can either cower and run for cover or accept the possibility I am about to have a grand adventure. Hm-m-m, what to do?

Now Venus was never one to run from a challenge. At the age of twenty-five, she had already traveled most of the globe and had extricated herself from some precarious situations.

This should be interesting, thought Venus as she grabbed the helping hand and entered the boat. She could not help but notice the wind instantly died down as she stepped into the boat. At the same time, the spectral form morphed into a man. He appeared to be fortyish with short-cropped black hair and eyes so dark they seemed to contain all of creation within them. Even though he wore a monk’s clothing from centuries ago she could tell he was chiseled. Despite his odd appearance he looked familiar to her.

The man spoke. “Hello, Venus. It is nice to formally meet you.”

“Do I know you? Have we met before?” she asked.

“Many times. Am I that unforgettable?” he said in jest.

For the first time in her life, Venus was speechless. I would never have forgotten meeting this guy, would I? she thought. “Okay. Which one of my friends put you up to this?”

This was greeted by a guttural laugh from the monk. “It was a group effort. You have many more friends than you are aware of. They all have your best interests at heart.”

“Okay…okay. I’m getting weirded out here. Can you get me back to shore please?”

“Look around Venus. You will find there is no shore. But you may leave if you desire.”

Venus looked down. The boat was gone. The water was gone. They now stood on a path leading towards a white marble building that appeared to be…a temple? I must be dreaming. I just need to wake up she thought as she pinched her arm.

“Take a step back. Look around you. Does anything look familiar?” said the monk.

Venus took a few deep breaths to calm herself. This helped her to realize that she did not feel threatened in any way. As she took in her surroundings a sense of familiarity began to sink in. Not the now I remember this place so much as I feel as if I have been here before. “Kind of,” was her reply.

“I don’t know your name, but you know mine,” she said.

“I apologize. Rebazar Tarz at your service,” he said with the slightest bow.

She could not explain to herself why his name seemed familiar to her. “I have to say sir that this scenery does not look like any cosmic seas I might have imagined.”

“Hm-m-m. So, you have imagined cosmic seas?” he said with a smile.

“I guess so. Like I am floating in space. Bodiless.”

“How did that make you feel?”

“At first it scared me. Then I had a profound sense of freedom. I never told anyone about this before.”

“Excellent! You will make a fine pupil. Let me tell you about myself and those that work alongside me. Many others and I are what many would call Godmen. Simply put, we have reached the state of God-consciousness. Our only objective now is to help others do the same. We have been helping you along the way for many lifetimes.”

Venus could not help herself. She broke out in laughter. “You have the wrong girl. I am not religious. You need to go save someone else.”

Rebazar laughed along with her. “We are not in the business of saving anyone. Nobody needs to be saved. We are simply guides that walked the path and share our knowledge with those that are ready to attain higher states of consciousness. This knowledge is never shared with the masses. Most are not ready to walk on a path that challenges your every step. Nor is it smooth sailing. But the destination is indescribable.”

“You have a choice to make Venus. One is you can return to your globetrotting on the planet earth. I can tell you now all the seeking in the world will not satisfy you. You are a restless soul that needs more. Your second choice is to allow me and other guides to help you obtain the greatest of gifts. To know that you are soul. The choice, as always, is yours to make.”

“How do I know you are who you say you are?” she asked.

Instantaneously she was alongside Rebazar looking at the Milky Way galaxy from a point of view that somehow made them appear to be above it. He points to a star and says, “That is your sun.” Immediately they were hovering over the sun while he pointed to Earth. “That is your planet. Keep in mind this is the least spectacular plane of existence created by God.”

Upon returning to…wherever she was, Venus could not find her tongue. How does one respond to this?

“The offer is good for all eternity, Venus. As I said before, it is always a choice each of us must make. Only the bold inherit heaven. It is not an easy path,” said the serious Master.

Venus had been in predicaments like this many times. The first time she went ski jumping. Sky diving. Swimming with sharks. She could have turned her back on all of them. Venus never turned her back on anything exciting.

“I’m in.”

“Walk with me. Your next classroom session is about to begin,” said the monk as they walked towards the Golden Wisdom Temple.

Originally published at https://joemerkle.medium.com/come-with-me

September 23, 2022 Add Comment

MAKE A LIFE

Image by StockNation

What determines the value of a life? Is it the size of one’s bank account? Or, is it the quality of life one leads that determine this value? Sadly, it seems the former is becoming more of a reality with each passing generation. Let us take a trip back in time when this was not the case.

Let’s revisit America the last time it suffered from a catastrophic pandemic in 1917–8. America was a country experiencing a great transformation. Like many countries across the globe, America was still adjusting to the great changes the Industrial Revolution created.

Rural Americans, by the millions, left the only way of life they knew. They left a slower-paced life often determined by the ebbs and flows of nature. They never punched a time clock or were late getting to work. The word weekend was not in their vocabulary. Many left this life out of desperation rather than choice. They gained new opportunities for themselves and their children. But, they had to make a significant adaptation, spending less time with the people they love the most.

They chased a dream of a better life and future for themselves and their families. Many women joined the workforce for the first time. The great cities of the country were exploding with newfound energy. Each new day brought an evolution of inventions and new possibilities.

This is not unlike the world Millenials have experienced being the first generation to live their entire lives during the insane explosion of today’s technology. Many Baby Boomers, just like the farmers of a century ago, had to adapt to these changes as well. But it was their children that had to learn to thrive in a completely new and ever-changing world without being swallowed whole. How many households now have both parents employed?

In both these scenarios, the driving factor was adaptation. How to adapt to a world that is forcing one to change or be left behind to suffer economic consequences. But, more importantly, how to find or make the time to not just make a living, but to make a life.

H-mm. Make a life. Just how exactly does one describe “a life” worth living? I have recently had serious revelations regarding this issue brought forth due to the death of my wife. This year would have been our 45 anniversary. Needless to say, between feeling intense loss and grieving I have had revelatory moments of clarity.

Of all these revelations the one that stands out over all others is this. How many people in your life have you had a truly positive effect on? Those that will be forever grateful just for the fact that you were in their life. Be it for a moment. Or a lifetime.

On a personal note, it would take volumes to list those my wife affected this way. Always, her first instinct was to help others. It took decades of her dragging me by the hand for me to realize that chasing money or fame can’t compete against the benefits one gains by helping others achieve a meaningful life. This does not mean one cannot enjoy financial wealth as well. But it should not be the driving force that blinds one to the true treasures life has to offer.

Whether you are 16, 36, or 66 ask yourself one question. Then ponder the answer. Search your soul. Which will you cherish more towards the end of your life? Your bank account or all the lives you touched? Don’t sell yourself short. The simplest of gestures; kindness, advice, a hug, can be forever cherished when given unselfishly in a time of need.

What determines the value of a life? Is it the size of one’s bank account? Or, is it the quality of life one leads that determine this value? Sadly, it seems the former is becoming more of a reality with each passing generation. Let us take a trip back in time when this was not the case.

Let’s revisit America the last time it suffered from a catastrophic pandemic in 1917–8. America was a country experiencing a great transformation. Like many countries across the globe, America was still adjusting to the great changes the Industrial Revolution created.

Rural Americans, by the millions, left the only way of life they knew. They left a slower-paced life often determined by the ebbs and flows of nature. They never punched a time clock or were late getting to work. The word weekend was not in their vocabulary. Many left this life out of desperation rather than choice. They gained new opportunities for themselves and their children. But, they had to make a significant adaptation, spending less time with the people they love the most.

They chased a dream of a better life and future for themselves and their families. Many women joined the workforce for the first time. The great cities of the country were exploding with newfound energy. Each new day brought an evolution of inventions and new possibilities.

Not unlike the world Millenials have experienced being the first generation to live their entire lives during the insane explosion of today’s technology. Many Baby Boomers, just like the farmers of a century ago, had to adapt to these changes as well. But it was their children that had to learn to thrive in a completely new and ever-changing world without being swallowed whole. How many households now have both parents employed?

In both these scenarios, the driving factor was adaptation. How to adapt to a world that is forcing one to change or be left behind to suffer economic consequences. But, more importantly, how to find or make the time to not just make a living, but to make a life.

H-mm. Make a life. Just how exactly does one describe “a life” worth living? I have recently had serious revelations regarding this issue brought forth due to the death of my wife. This year would have been our 45 anniversary. Needless to say, between feeling intense loss and grieving I have had revelatory moments of clarity.

Of all these revelations the one that stands out over all others is this. How many people in your life have you had a truly positive effect on? Those that will be forever grateful just for the fact that you were in their life. Be it for a moment. Or a lifetime.

On a personal note, it would take volumes to list those my wife affected this way. Always, her first instinct was to help others. It took decades of her dragging me by the hand for me to realize that chasing money or fame can’t compete against the benefits one gains by helping others achieve a meaningful life. This does not mean one cannot enjoy financial wealth as well. But it should not be the driving force that blinds one to the true treasures life has to offer.

Whether you are 16, 36, or 66 ask yourself one question. Then ponder the answer. Search your soul. Which will you cherish more towards the end of your life? Your bank account or all the lives you touched? Don’t sell yourself short. The simplest of gestures; kindness, advice, a hug, can be forever cherished when given unselfishly in a time of need.

Practice it until you become a master. Then you will have lived a life of immeasurable value.

June 1, 2021 Add Comment

It’s Only An Illusion – And You Created It

Image by Vasilli Pixaby

What makes for a great illusion? One that is so convincing you have no doubt it is real. Any master illusionist who has mastered the art the illusion will tell you that confidence and attitude will help sell the illusion. It is easy to sell the trick to an audience that is a willing participant. But the illusion itself is what stands the test of time.

This is not unlike what we as souls create for ourselves time and time again. We, souls, are a fun-loving, playful, experimental bunch. Not unlike a child. As beings that have eternity to entertain ourselves, we must create our own entertainment.

Children role-play to experience both sides of their imaginations. One day a group of young boys could be playing cops and robbers and they will experience what it is like to be the robber being shot and killed and the next day being the cop doing the killing. And they are highly creative and have fun with both roles. They go home as friends, having had a great time “just playing”.

Then, sadly, they grow to be adults, and most will lose their playful self to the illusion they themselves created…their grownup lives. All of us without exception create the world we live in. It is simply an illusion that seems so real we find ourselves trapped within it. Only with the help of good friends we have known through countless incarnations can we eventually break free.

Now, what I mean by good friends is this. We as souls attract like-minded beings to play with. These souls are often good friends and family members in your physical incarnations because you all like to play the “cops and robbers” game. One of your best friends may be the one that murders you in this lifetime because that was the experience you both wished to have this time around.

I know what I am proposing may seem blasphemous to many. So be it. Every spiritual master that has walked this earth has been considered a blasphemer in his/her lifetime. Not that I am proposing I am one. I, like you, am no different than them. They simply are more evolved souls trying to tell us to break through the greatest of illusions, that being that we are fatal creatures that die. Nothing could be further from the truth.

We are eternal, loving entities on a journey to God-realization.

Having gotten that out of the way the question that remains is how do we go about our daily lives once this realization dawns upon us? This is the tricky part. We are so utterly consumed by this great illusion that all of us will need help from one that has seen behind the curtain.

No, I am not referring to some religious figure. I am talking about a real person or persons in your life that through their example they take you by the hand and expose the illusion for what it is. One that is close to you and demonstrates a love that rises above the pettiness that often shows its ugly face in human encounters. A divine love that touches everyone around them.

If you think hard, I am sure all of you have met someone in your life that fits the bill. A person who rarely has anything bad to say. Easily forgives. Smiles so bright it hurts your eyes. Seems never to be controversial. Makes you grateful just to be in their presence.

I have been fortunate enough to have known several such souls in my life. But none more than the woman I married. For 47 years we spent a wonderful life together until she chose her end to this particular illusion of hers by creatively using dementia as her excuse. Like she did for me every day in our shared world we created she is most likely lighting the way for me towards our next adventure. I cannot wait to see what’s in store for me.

Needless to say, this scenario crushed me. Tore at my very existence. For two weeks I could barely breathe. No, I did not want to breathe. And then, on that fourteenth day, and no doubt with her assistance, I had an awakening. This is MY illusion. This is the role I created. This is what in my make-believe play world I wanted to experience. Now, we can laugh together again at how much fun this adventure has been for us.

Faster than a hummingbird’s wingbeat speaking cosmically, we will again be together, planning our next adventure. But I will insist on perhaps both of us dying together in a crash while flying a glider over the Grand Canyon at sunset. Doesn’t that sound like fun? I know we would both be laughing our asses off.

May 14, 2021 Add Comment Sticky

A Human Life In Perspective

Photo by StockNation

There are 700,000,000,000,000,000,000 planets in the universe. That’s 700 quintillions. The universe is 13.8 billion years old. The average lifespan of a human is 79 years. To put a lifetime into perspective that is 0.0000005724637681% of the age of the universe.

So, in reality, a human lifetime fails to register as even an insignificant speck of time. A beat of a hummingbird’s wings is universally speaking much longer than a lifetime. It doesn’t matter if you are an illiterate person or a historically famous one. Your life is simply an illusion, a moment in time, which is also a creation of the human mind.

In their conceit humans generally think their lives are significant. No matter what you think, you are still a speck, proofing that yours or anyone’s opinions or achievements simply don’t matter. The only way to escape from these illusions is when you expand your consciousness beyond the limits your physical senses place on you.

And really? Do you really believe that with 700 quintillion planets in the universe we are the only intelligent (jury is still out on that) species? Or that the God you choose to pray to or believe in has a special place for just humans? Talk about arguing for your limitations.

Keeping this mind, the wise thing to do as a human would be to explore beyond your earthly bonds. To look for answers that can’t be explained in a book. To expand your consciousness beyond the physical world. In other words, to put your existence into perspective beyond your senses.

As humans, we become aware of only one thing that doesn’t perish, love. When a loved one dies our love for them lives on. Yet, you can’t see love, or touch, taste, or feel love. But what we most often do is wrongly classify love as an emotion, therefore limiting something that has no limits or boundaries. We attach emotions that throttle all the possibilities that love presents to us.

Divine love is the thread that binds all of creation at every level of existence. To try to put it in words is impossible. As your awareness expands it continues to trickle into your consciousness subtlety at first, providing hints as to what awaits. You begin to slowly let go of attachments and beliefs once held as truth. Things that were once important are exposed as tethers holding you back from self-realization.

Not unlike a six-year-old that has mastered simple addition. He is rewarded with praise from his teachers and parents. He becomes important in his own eyes. If that same six-year-old chooses to become a quantum physicist he will have to unlearn those early lessons that will now become an illusion to him.

The realization begins to envelop your consciousness that what matters most is helping those get ready to start a most spectacular journey of discovery. This can take many forms, most of which are subtle suggestions to sow the seed of greater awareness. Everything else becomes the means to succeed in this endeavor. The only reward is the submersion in divine love. Nothing could be greater.

WARNING, this is often a bumpy ride.

October 10, 2020 Add Comment Sticky

Wonder – The Greatest Human Attribute

The greatest achievements of humanity can be traced back to wonder. How many great historical figures asked themselves…What if I could…why does that happen if I…where does this path lead to…who was the first person to…how can I…you get the point.

Wonder or curiosity to humans is like water to a fish. We cannot survive without it. Now don’t get me wrong, there certainly are those of us that choose utter ignorance as their lifestyle choice. They rarely stray from a beaten path, never wondering what may occur if they stepped into the forest.

Imagine if the ancients Greeks Pythagoras and Aristotle failed to wonder why the night sky rotated the closer one was to the equator, concluding the earth was spherical. Almost 2,000 years before Magellan’s proved it by sailing around the globe. Or what was Magellan thinking by embracing such an adventure?

A question that has stumped archeologists and mathematical scientists for centuries are how did the ancient Egyptians build the Great Pyramid. The Great Pyramid of Giza is built on the exact center of the earth, where the parallel and meridian intersects each other. The chances of that happening. One in three billion! Books have been written about the stunning mathematical genius of the pyramid builders. To this day we cannot achieve much what they did with all our modern technology. But, by continuing to ask themselves how they may find the answers.

When did you become self-aware? When did you realize yourself as unique? When did you have that first moment of realization that came crashing into your consciousness like a tidal wave? Or have you not reached that stage of development. The more you ask yourself why, when, how, where, and what the greater your self-awareness will become.

Who wrote the first language, the first song, the first book, the first mathematical equation? Who created the universe, or Cracker Jack? Who invented time? Or the Hoola Hoop?

Imagine yourself standing on a shoreline, looking out to sea, and asking yourself where the other side is. Before boats were invented. Could such a person have been the first to hollow out a tree and venture into the ocean blue? Setting the stage for humanity.

The above mentioned are rather substantial situations. If we allow ourselves to wonder we will have aha moments every day, such as I wonder if I should do laundry now or read a book. Or where did I leave my keys now? Or when was my doctor’s appointment or how did I get into this mess I’m in, or why do I keep going to this job I really hate? Or who will I become in a week, month, or year from now?

Be curious. Surround yourself with wonder. Become childlike again. Challenge what you think you know. Ask yourself where would like to be in a year from now. Why do you feel a need for change? When exactly will you pursue your dreams and how are you going to take those first steps to a new you?

“No matter how qualified or deserving we are, we will never reach a better life until we can imagine it for ourselves and allow ourselves to have it.” ~ Richard Bach

October 3, 2020 Add Comment Sticky

Imagine If You Would

Imagine if you would…that you are an artist. Yes, a brilliant artist capable of creating masterpieces that would inspire all future generations. The next Divinci. Or perhaps a musician that can compose an opera equal to Mozart’s “The Magic Flute”. Or that your oration skills would even surpass Cicero’s. Imagine if you could pen a poem the equal of Emily Dickinson…” Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, and sings the tunes without the words, and never stops at all”.

What makes the artist, musician, speaker, or writer capable of greatness? Do they possess unique skills that the average person is incapable of? Do they have privileged knowledge most of us do not have access to? Or can it be simply that they are in tune to an intuitive nature within themselves that most are not aware of?

To quote Richard Bach ~ “ Argue for your limitations and sure enough they are yours”. How many times do you find yourself telling yourself “I can’t do that”. Or I could never be…fill in the blank. I am sure most of you have seen the Paralympic Games and how inspiring it is to see the disabled refusing to wallow in self pity and instead choose to pursue great achievements despite their handicaps.

Throughout our lifetimes we “receive” hints, suggestions, guidance from our inner self. Only those attuned to those “feelings” will listen. Most pass them off within seconds and chalk it up to silliness. Those fortunate enough to realize their good fortune allow themselves moments of grace and humility in the presence of something greater than flesh and bones. And just what is that exactly? It is you, and me. It is simply our spiritual essence attempting to guide and enlighten us. The vast majority of those reading this will think it is folly. For those who have nurtured this relationship you know of what I speak.

Does anyone who believes in God in any form perpetrated by religions throughout the millennia think that the Almighty would just willy-nilly slap together universes of who knows how many species of beings and just wash his hands and say…”good luck you all.” My religious friends of many faiths will say he gave us a few prophets that came to guide us. Did they? Or were they simply further along the path of enlightenment and chose to share their wisdom.

Or do you seriously think that this is the only plane of existence for a soul to maneuver through? Yes, we are made in the likeness of God. It is not the other way around though humans since the beginning of our time on earth have given God human qualities. How silly. We as souls are in his likeness, not our temporary shells used like lessons in book until we learn what we need to and move on to the next chapter.

Imagine if you would that within you is the ability to experience infinite love. Not some cheap selfish human version of love, but divine love that has no attachments and knows no boundaries. Imagine what you could accomplish when infinite wisdom is at your disposal. Everything positive that has occurred in your life has been a result of love and/or wisdom gained. It is up to each of us to explore the endless possibilities we have been provided. Imagine if you would you are a great explorer.

June 2, 2020 Add Comment

Look Around You

Look around you. Take a hard look at the things you have surrounded yourself with. How much of it do you actually need? How many are simply tools for your own self-gratification? At what expense to others (not just humans) did it cost? Did you really need that leather coat, alligator shoes, ivory jewelry, or a million tech gadgets that humans are producing for slave labor incomes?

Lately, I have been reflecting on this and how my life has changed as I grow older and hopefully wiser. “Things” seem unimportant these days. They are empty vessels humans gather trying to fill a void in a life otherwise unfilled by what truly matters. They are not evil any more than they are necessary. But they often create an illusion of happiness.

Photo by Andrew Seaman on Unsplash

Fortunately for me, I have been surrounded by love my entire life. From the minute of my birth to this very moment I am writing this post. This led to another self-awakening moment. Why me? Why doesn’t everyone know love like this?

Does it matter if you are born into wealth or poverty? I think not. Those born into wealth have definitive benefits, but none of them guarantee a life filled with love. Those born into poverty often have daily struggles that make life more difficult, but this does not preclude a life filled with love. Just what are the existential factors that allow a person to experience love as I have?

Well, I am just guessing here, but you can probably fill Albert Hall with the books written on this very thing. And I suspect most of them expound on their educated knowledge of such matters, but ultimately leave the reader feeling empty.

Here is the thing. Most humans spend a lifetime chasing love. As if it were just another “thing” one can purchase and put in a sock drawer. Too many think they found love as soon they have “purchased” it. They feel they have met certain conditions so now it’s okay to be in love.

Love is boundless, it can’t be constrained by any conditions

. By desiring love you are placing a condition on it. Love is not a thing to be possessed. It is not an emotion to be felt. Emotions place conditions on love as well. If this is what you believe is love you have not experienced love.

Love surrounds us. It is in every thought we have, every emotion we feel, every molecule we breathe. You can’t touch it, see it, hear it with the measly human tools we have at hand.

Love is easy. Yes, when we finally get around to making “the choice”, we become an open vessel that love pours through. When all conditions, prejudices, assumptions, and beliefs are dropped love can do its magic. There is no effort necessary to love or be loved other than simply allowing love to use you as an empty vessel. Like liquid through a sieve love must flow or it simply can’t be experienced.

So, I guess my advice is simple for those desperate to have love in their lives. Stop searching for it, it already surrounds you. Open yourself to it. I simply got out of the way and let love use me.

February 20, 2020 Add Comment

What If Everything You Believe In Is A Lie

What if everything you believe in is a lie? How could this be you ask? How can I have lived a lifetime, no matter how short or long, worked so hard and learned so many of life’s lessons and have someone tell me what I have come to believe is a lie? Well, let’s talk about that.

Did you also in Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, and the Easter Bunny? How did that work out for you? You were convinced by the people (most often family members) that you trusted the most in your life that they were absolutely real. How could you not when presents were under the tree, money was under your pillow, and eggs were hidden around the house?

What happened along the way that swayed your belief in these fantasies? There is a one-word answer for this…awareness. That’s right folks, as your awareness grew your beliefs changed. I am just guessing here but I bet some of you thought that one word would be knowledge. But here is the kicker; gaining knowledge is not the same as attaining awareness. You can have an IQ of 170 with all the knowledge to win Jeopardy every day but not be aware of the simplest of things.

Let us ponder that last sentence and put it into context with one’s beliefs. Let us use a college student whose major is history for example. Let us assume she is studying at one of the best universities in the world and has at her disposal amazing reference sources and world-famous professors. We will call her Sue. Sue has worked extremely hard for her straight A’s and has learned to have complete faith in her instructors to provide the best possible answers to her queries. As her status grows in the community and others begin to seek her expertise her belief in the knowledge that she has gained becomes resolute.

But has she gained “awareness” of the lives she has studied in books? Now she may have the knowledge of the struggles the first settlers in America may have gone through. She may have even spent time working at a historic site churning butter and dressed as a Pilgrim. But through all her efforts, she has not gained a single ounce of awareness of what went through the minds of these brave and often desperate men and women who risked everything to start a new life in an unknown land. No book or lecture can create this awareness and no life experiences she may yet have, even if they are similar in nature, can give her that awareness. Why do you ask?

Because the truth is subjective. Each one of us will experience truth from our own perspective. You may believe lobster is the best food on the planet and I may believe it is a gift from Satan. Neither of these opinions is true, but we both believe them to be so. You can believe Fox News is the best cable news station and I could believe MSNBC is. This does not make either opinion true; it just makes it our opinion. What it does make it is our truth, well maybe. We must first wrap our heads around the fact we have a way too much clutter up there.

You see, we live in a world of duality…night and day, left and right, right, and wrong, up and down, wealth and poverty, good and evil, love and hate…you get the idea. If we stand back to back and someone tells us to point to the left, we will be pointing in different directions. If you are in the Arctic and look up and I am in the Antarctic and look up, we will be both be looking up in different directions. How could we both be right, or left? Simply put because the physical universe is one of illusion. Like any good illusion, it convinces you that what you see is real. The ironic thing about this is that to find the solution to the magic trick most of us delve into more mysteries of illusion with eyes wide open and minds closed.

How do we as humans, apparently trapped in these physical bodies, see beyond these illusions? Let me ask you a simple question which I ask each of you to ponder. If God (proving this to you in some way without a doubt) came to you and said, “I have one command for you, BE HAPPY”, could you? Would you even know how to?

Let me take this one step further. Can you be happy for a single moment? That does not seem like such a hard thing to do. Does it? Right now, this very moment, can you be happy? And the next moment, and the next? See where I am going with this? It is much easier to attain a transformative state of being by living in the now. We as soul have been blessed with two tools to wend our way through the illusions, ATTITUDE, AND ATTENTION.

What we place our attention on and the attitude we take towards this will determine how successful we are at discovering the truth within ourselves, as ultimately this is the only truth we can know. This is not an easy path and most humans would rather be slaves to the beliefs and conditions that surround them in their daily lives. It is the meek that inherit the earth. It is the bold that inherit heaven. It takes the willingness to step out of your comfort zone and strength to let go of everything you hold as true in order to break the barriers established by the illusions you have been a slave to all your life.

Are you ready to begin a journey of discovery? Are you willing to make hard choices that may shake you to your core? Have you ever had A-HA moments of enlightenment that have seemed to come from nowhere? When you choose the freedom that comes from never knowing what the next moment may bring, each moment in your life is one of wonder. Can you imagine what that would be like?

Good, because that is the first step to gaining awareness. I would ask that you ponder this short article and then revisit it in a couple of months and see if your point of view on this matter has altered. Please leave any responses as they are all welcome to the discussion. There will be more regarding this matter in future posts. This may all be a lie.

March 12, 2019 Add Comment

Priorities For Life

PRIORITIES FOR LIFE

The average adult human being lives his/her life with a certain set of priorities. Now, most of these have been inherited, set in stone, and handed down for generations. Go to school, get a job, work hard, fall in love, have a family, believe in God. You get the point. Look around at your family and friends. I am guessing at least 80% of the people you know fall into this category. This is what I would define as the pursuit of complacency. In seeking what is normal and comfortable one abandons the deeper levels of consciousness that reveal our true selves.

The driving factor that motivates nearly all of us is love. Love that is generally felt at an emotional level. Love that comes with attachments. Love that makes demands. What I will refer to as human love. Let me expound on this human love.

Let us start with self-love. In the most basic of terms, this could be egotism, vanity, arrogance, etc… At the highest levels, it could be caring, selflessness, sacrifice for the greater good above selfish intentions.

As humans, we fall into these cycles that resemble a workout on a treadmill. We work hard to get eventually nowhere in a spiritual sense. Now there is some growth of awareness. The sense that there is more to life beyond our comprehension. Many confuse this with faith. Understand that believing is not the same as knowing. Knowledge is the key to any kingdom. One can believe he/she can drive a car, but without the knowledge necessary to do so one will only fail. Belief can be a spark or a hindrance to greater awareness.

So how do we as humans generally obtain knowledge? We seek knowledge from without. The most common method is through mentors. That could be our parents, teachers, ministers, the school of hard knocks. What do all these mentors have in common? They are flawed. They teach through the lens of limitations and personal perspectives.

We now have at our fingertips the mass of informational wealth the internet provides. But just like mentors, we can choose to find information that suits our beliefs instead of broadening our horizons.

What it really comes down to this. Truth is subjective. We all experience truth in our own unique way. And that is exactly how we should be living a life of priorities, not based on what we were taught, but on priorities from which we caught. We all have aha moments that sneak up on us while we least suspect it. These are opportunities we need to pay attention to and build priorities on.

The only love worth pursuing is divine love. Divine love has no expectations, no beliefs, no attachments to self. It is pure, untainted, all-encompassing. It is simply a state of consciousness achieved only when one is ready to abandon self and surrender to pure love. At every step of the evolution of a life, one abandons what they know when new information is available. This is no different in the realm of spirituality. The difference is when one is on a spiritual path the ultimate teacher is yourself.

The question is this…are you satisfied with your priorities or do you have a hunger for a truth you know lies within yourself? Are you ready to drop beliefs that have been programmed for you and spread your wings as you jump off the cliff? As Jesus said, “the meek will inherit the earth”. What he left out is that it is the bold that inherit heaven.

January 14, 2019 Add Comment

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