The conundrum of a spiritual-based rule system and complete sovereignty.
A piece for all of us (a free-write after meditation). -J
*************************************************************************
I am in a conundrum-filled space. Due to the idea that I cannot speak about it to anyone I am currently acquainted with, I will drop it here.
Like I have said in other articles or letters I have written (all five of them), I have a hard time with the notion that there are rules to exist, thrive, and be free of the physical world’s jail cell. I cannot fathom why anything external to ourselves is necessary for anything. So, if you are willing to open your mind to perhaps a new way of thinking (it’s not new, I am not introducing a new Dharma), and go beyond the traditional Guru/Pupil practice or modern-day New Age spirituality, I would suggest you read on.
If we are truly sovereign, divine spirits housed in physical bodies, there is nothing we need that we do not already possess. As far as I can tell, both the New Age way of seeing and the Guru/Pupil practice provide this as the very foundation of their practice. The idea of going inward is the start of the spiral upwards beyond this physical space. Going inward begins the path to enlightenment.
Before you can move beyond this dimension, one typically (from the books I have read, some people never need to go deep to reach the truth) must start the internal work of sifting through the years, decades, and lifetimes of trauma and attachments. Sometimes, this causes a “dark night of the soul.” Sifting through the emotional turmoil, uncovering, and discarding the layers of density, one begins to shed the outer layer and find their inner being: their soul. Spirituality is not a journey of finding something new; it is a journey of unraveling what we thought we were and what we thought we knew. It’s the journey inward to the soul.
Doing the inner work allows us to understand, process, and discard the dense misery the physical world can bring. This work, a journey through the soul, expands our awareness beyond our physical self and eventually beyond time and space. When done with intention, this work becomes a consistent practice that gets us beyond the body. To do this, one must want to do it (intention). To be free of the physical turmoil, one must be brave enough to go silent and work at staying silent (action). Right?
Now, whether you do this in a cave in front of a Guru or in a dedicated space in your home, the practice is the same (albeit maybe with less aggression, anger, and hostility). As a Psychologist, which I happen to be, the more negative a situation is, the more difficult it is to learn, grow, and prosper. Toxic environments do not help you grow. They can be a catalyst for you to grow, but the key takeaway here is that you want it, and you have the intent to do it. You are the only thing in this physical space that can make you grow (the theme of this entire article 😉).
So, how you do it, is totally based on what you need to do it. For instance, I live alone the majority of the time and have lived alone for four years. As my awakening occurred, I began meditating. Four years ago, directly after my extreme “dark night of the soul,” I found meditation 15 minutes before bed helped alleviate the extreme sadness I felt during the darkest time of my life. That practice, today, has grown into roughly 4 hours per day. I am so fortunate to have the ability to dedicate four hours to meditation. I have a beautiful, quiet, and serene space in a deeply wooded setting. Deer, birds, bears, foxes, and turkeys consistently visit me while I meditate. Again, I am so fortunate.
I do not have a guru. I am not sitting in a cave with no way of accessing the physical world. In fact, I meditate with 5g wireless devices, Bluetooth headphones (I occasionally use binaural beats to enhance OBEs), and a cacophony of electronics. And I am just now getting beyond myself, the physical dimension, and time and space to explore beyond what the five senses tell us is real. I do this because I want to do it. I do this solely due to my intent and my consistency. And all I need is the drive to expand and the dedication to work it. Perhaps a healthy dose of fearlessness and a yearning for knowing.
If we are souls temporarily housed in a physical body, and the physical reality is more of a game and a learning experience than anything else, then nothing external of ourselves is necessary to expand and explore. If our souls are part of a great divine entity (God, Source, etc.), and our souls need nothing to simply be, then we have everything we need right here. So, what use are these crystals? What is the difference between these four slices of pizza and an organic salad drizzled with organic honey? What is the difference between a cave and my tech-forward home? What is the difference between me having multiple sexual partners or having no sexual desire at all (I do not have multiple sexual partners, FYI)? What is the difference between me being scolded by a floating Guru, or me feeling lovely and trying to float myself? Or, me feeling angry, tired, and/or exhausted, and still trying to float?
What use is trying to maintain my “high vibes” when the whole purpose of this plane of existence is to experience? If this experience is just that, a school of experience, then why should I not try and feel what I feel when I feel it? My intent can be to both experience life to its fullest and expand my consciousness to know what I truly am. Seems like the perfect yin/yang to me, just without the rules.
I have a hard time understanding the difference between religious-forward rules and spiritual-forward rules. At some point, a gatekeeper takes their experience and relays their experience on everyone else, and the spirituality of it all becomes more of a religious subset. Why? Spirituality is supposedly individual; it supersedes physical form, and it is a direct connection between ourselves and Source. Our journey here, as this physical reality is a school of sorts, is a personal one. That personal journey does not require others to dictate how you experience your journey. In very real terms, they cannot.
In the end, this journey of ours (much like “this thing of ours” 😉), is a very specific and personal one. And anyone who tells you that you cannot do what you are doing and be spiritual is passing judgment that they don’t have the right to pass. Any physical being who denies your ability to “ascend” because you ate a block of cheese instead of broccoli, doesn’t truly believe in personal journeys, direct source connection, or the limitlessness of soul. Any physical being who claims dark entities are attacking you and they will stop if you have this crystal, is ignoring the very notion of the ultimate truth: You are all you need. You are your way out.
This is not to take away the power you give to being vegetarian, wearing the crystal, casting the spell, or floating in a cave. If any of that works for you, please continue to do it. I am passing ZERO judgment on your practices; your journey is your journey, and I am happy you are here working towards your ultimate truth. But, in the end, you are the one giving those things power. In the end, it is you, your intention, and your consistent practice that gets you out. YOU get you home.
If this whole pie of pizza I eat tonight keeps me locked in 3d and forces me to reincarnate another life in this physical plane, then that is my journey. But man, how powerful were those eight slices of pizza? Apparently, they were more powerful than my soul.
************************************************************************
We have experienced more than enough of how horrible we could be to each other. So, at this point of our Soul/Earth evolution, there is one rule that I would like to impart: be kind to everyone and everything. And maybe skip the judgement -J
