We are on a spiritual journey every moment of our lives. The questions we could ask ourselves are these: What is the purpose of this life journey? and how aware are we that every moment is a special spiritual experience?
Mindful living invites us to step into the mystery of each moment, where there is a deep understanding. It would appear that on the day we were born, the soul’s essence was instantly squeezed into a very small, dense physical container called a body, and that the body was instantly labeled according to gender, ethnicity, name and so on. And as we aged, even more labels were acquired until now it seems that we have completely forgotten who we really are and why we are here.
Instead, the focus has become living up to, or in some cases, down to, the labels that define us in the world. For many of us some day, something may trigger a kind of remembrance and so we begin to remember what our purpose on this planet could be. In that moment of awakening, we begin peeling away the labels, and this journey into uncertainty takes on a new meaning for us.
As we slowly remember who we really are, we become aware that we each have a spiritual purpose. Even though it may seem like it, it isn’t that some people have a specific purpose in life while the rest of us are simply aimless. We all play an important part in the Devine Creation:
Mindful living is the practice of remembering to remember the role we play, why we are, where we are, and why we are on this journey on earth. And as we slowly venture into the mystery of it all the journey takes us inward where we plumb down into the depths of our authentic self. As we experience the journey in both directions, we will perhaps discover more of who we really are…and who we are not. Mindful living is a lifestyle. It is a way of consciously walking through our earth experiences, incorporating purpose and the awareness of a Devine Presence in all that we say, think, and do on our journey in this lifetime.
Discovering the Authentic Self will never have a point of arrival because the Self we seek is Infinite. However, the deeper we go into the quest, the more peace we shall find as we discover more of who we truly are and have come here to be.
The day we were born, life became a process where we learned doing was very important and time became a full of belongings and stuff. This is when we began to get ‘spiritual amnesia’ and began forgetting who we really are.
We were taught how to project ourselves into the future so we might one day create a life of meaning and purpose by accomplishing one goal after another, moving from one place into the next, getting through school, acquiring a job, finding a partner, creating a home, and so on, and essentially getting even more labels as we went along. So, we learned how to DO life very well on this pathway and in the process most of us forgot how to Be. Here are some suggestions of how to get to the awareness that gives you an opportunity to expand on what this experience of ‘oneness’ looks like:
- Being Present with non-judgement opens the door to oneness.
- Concentrate on ‘being’ in the now moment regardless of what is going on.
- Mindful Living: In every Now moment there lies a silent blessing we might have otherwise overlooked. Practicing mindfulness helps us learn to appreciate the well-being that is already there. With mindfulness, we will remember that every moment is the time.
- Practice Mindful Breathing: It anchors us when life becomes turbulent. Mindful breathing is a key element in being present with ’what is’ each precious moment where anything is possible.
- Listen Mindfully to the Silence Between Breaths. When we stop to consider it, breathing is the most life-essential thing we do, and it is always a present-moment experience. So, when we pause and breathe consciously, we open to Presence and enter a silence that is always calm.
In closing, the deepest mystery that will completely satisfy the itch of the intellect is the Miracle of Life itself. Know that when we choose to be fully present into the mystery of the moment, we can be the observer of our own minds means that there is more to us than meets the eye, or the brain, and who it is that is doing the discovering. This is the moment when the human self and the sacred Self merge as one, and also in any given moment we can consciously witness the merging of the human with the Divine realization that “what we are looking for, we are actually looking with”…we become one with it as it unfolds.
So, Life itself, is the ultimate mystery. It is a miracle that we shall never fully understand, nor should we try. We appear on the planet one day, coming from absolute nothingness, entering Earth School with many questions and no answers.
As we awaken to our true nature, we create experiences that offer purpose and meaning for the journey. Then one day, when it is our time, we depart once again, back into the nothingness from which we came. What is not miraculous about that I wonder? It is what we do WITH the miracle and the mystery between the coming and going that really matters. So, the most precious gift we have ever been given by the Infinite One is the miracle of Life and what we choose to do with this Life is your gift back to the Giver. Oh yeah! When your draw your final breath on this planet, may you know it’s a better place than it was when you arrived because you were here. Most of all, may you always come to know that you were born to soar.