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The All Pervading Silence of Being

/ oneheart / 2 Comments

It is always present all around us, in us and in all living beings. In fact it can never not be present and that makes it incredibly easy to overlook. It is the backdrop of our lives, the screen that the movie of life is playing on, the canvas that gives life to a work of art.  It is so profoundly important that without it nothing would exist  and yet we overlook, skip over and ignore it. It is no fault of our own because we are not raised to have the awareness that there is something greater than the body and mind.

Like so many crucial parts of life it is easily taken for granted and not given the attention it actually deserves.  Just the fact that we wake up and experience the gift of life each day is easy to disregard while other tasks and activities steal a majority of our attention.  There is nothing wrong with this it does happen this way for most people and as we progress through life we  have the opportunity to grow, change and deepen. Then one day seemingly out of the blue we are ready to see life differently and more fully. 

Without the quiet space between words, the pauses in a piece of music or the space that naturally exists between thoughts the message would be lost.  Music, words and thoughts would be a run on of notes, words and chatter with no particular emphasis or meaning.  When we recognize this we can begin to notice the power of the silence itself. 

When we meditate a common instruction is to release the thoughts or notice your thoughts and allow them to pass.  What is there to witness a thought passing?  What is always there as the silent observer?  Your answer may be, “nothing, absolutely nothing is there.”  Your answer would be correct however it isn’t just dead space.  It is aware and happens to be conscious of absolutely everything in and around us.  It is also totally aware of our behavior, feelings and actions and is able to report on them in stunning detail.   As an example a simple inner observation may look something like this.  “I was listening to my friend talking and my mind wandered to what I was going to prepare for dinner.  I started thinking about going to the grocery store and a conversation I had earlier with my partner about cooking. Then I refocused my attention so I could concentrate on the conversation.” This is a very simplified version of something that happens constantly and is an example of our ability to watch ourselves and report on it naturally and with ease. 

So I guess my question to you is what is aware?  What would it be like to focus on the space that is allowing life to play?  Is it the same as considering a blank canvas? Does it have any discernible qualities?  When you place your attention on this space how does it feel? 

There must be a reason that spiritual practices direct us to this over and over again pointing us ever inward to our own consciousness rather than outward. 

This is a discovery in itself to become aware of being aware and it points us beyond just our personal physical and psychological self and into the realm of the non-physical self – or the space of being.  It is indescribable in words therefore we can only be pointed in the direction and the discovery has to happen within each of us. 

Once discovered or known it never can be unknown again.  You may not fully understand why this is important but without it it’s like having soup with no broth, something vital is missing.  When discovered it imbues life with a different quality and power that I won’t get into here because it is experiential and unique for each person.  You learn to rest in a deeper awareness and let life play knowing all of life flows and is held by a power greater than yourself. 

My hope is that this is me putting into words what you are already intuitively aware of.

A sunflower taught me about overcoming adversity

/ oneheart / 10 Comments

I know this title may raise some eyebrows but it’s really true.  As an amateur gardener I have had the pleasure of learning many lessons from my vegetable and flower garden most  recently as a result of hurricane Isaias. (I still can’t pronounce this name!!)

In Early May our town was giving out free packets of sunflower seeds.  They encouraged us to plant them as a way of uplifting our town during the Covid pandemic and seeing them would make us smile and brighten our day.  I happily picked up my packet of 12 seeds and followed the planting directions carefully.

After a few weeks of caring for the spouts the day came to plant them outdoors.  It felt like I was sending my children off to the first day of kindergarten.  I placed them all carefully into their spots and then constructed a make-shift mini fence around each one.  Can you tell what kind of parent I would have been?  I watched them like a hawk everyday.  Some faired better than others and 4 in particular shot up and had very strong thick stems and had the promise of turning into big flowers.

It took quite some time for them to grow to the point that they were ready to flower.  Then comes hurricane Isaias.  The wind was blowing so strong I could see them getting pummeled  and I was very worried.  I quickly threw on my shoes and raincoat and ran outside in an attempt to give them support with some tall bamboo rods.  The wind was dangerously strong  making it unsafe for me and I had no choice but to leave them on their own for the duration of the storm.  

The next day I looked out my window and to my amazement all of the sunflowers  in the front made it through the storm!  Then I looked out my back window and two out of three had fallen on the ground; one was completely severed and the other was bent with a large gash in it’s stem.  Naturally I assumed only one would survive. 

Three days later I looked out the window again and the sunflower that was severely hurt and lying on the ground was still alive.  To my joy and amazement its bud was still attempting to follow the sun.  I ran outside to see if I could save it.  The stem had a bad 8 inch split but I was able to support it with bamboo rods and a bandage.   She stood again injured but proud!

I watched as the other sunflower next to her bloomed into a large bud attracting all the pollinators.  I examined the bud up close and was stunned the the beauty of how mathematically perfect it was.  The injured plant carried on but was developing more slowly and gradually.  The familiar green bud appeared and then to my amazement I noticed not only was there one bud but there were 5 buds in total!!  My injured plant was going to bloom more than any of the others! Wow!! 

Not only is it true for plants that overcoming adversity and suffering helps them to open, strengthen and develop resiliency but it’s true for all living things.  It was so beautiful, simple and powerful to watch the sunflower flourish despite having endured such a test.  

I learned a lot from watching my sunflower.  It wasn’t thinking about its struggle it was just engaged in a natural process called life.  Life threw it a curve ball and it had no resistance and there was no need to process feelings or overcome past conditioning.  It was tremendously reassuring for me  to watch its progress and see that adversity and suffering is just a part of the natural unfolding of life for all living things.    It’s not only natural but an essential part of life that helps us all to thrive and grow even stronger than we thought possible.  Next time you have to weather a storm of your own be on the look out for the gifts you unexpectedly receive.

 

Facing the Void

/ oneheart / 5 Comments

Facing the void is similar to what is referred to as a dark night of the soul. Don’t worry its not as ominous as it sounds. A dark night is generally regarded as a time of great personal challenge when everything seems to be lost.  It’s as if there is a cloud hovering over head making it feel like the sun will never shine again.    It is a time of struggle and challenge where we can feel  tested repeatedly and as soon as one lesson is learned another one arrives on its heels. It is experienced alone and often no one else can relate to what you are going through and you must continue with your usual responsibilities and daily activities.   Some people can spend much of their lives in a dark night and it is believed that these souls have incarnated to learn, grow and evolve very quickly.

“…it is believed that these souls have incarnated to learn, grow and evolve very quickly.”

I have never been alive for a time where collectively we are experiencing what I am calling facing the void.     I’m calling it this because there are certain things about this time that are very different than the afore mentioned dark  night.  Right now there is an emptiness  and uncertainty that is looming and everything has stopped.  This is a collective and personal experience and we don’t know when it will end or what our world will look like when it’s over.  Our everyday routines and jobs have evaporated or changed drastically.  The streets and highways are empty and stores and businesses are shuttered and we all know what PPE is and we are wearing it!!!

“the very nature of life is uncertain.”

I’m wondering about the benefits of facing the void.  To not know for a while.   After all when we get right down to it the very nature of life is uncertain.  We can make plans but they can be wiped away in an instant.  We don’t like to think about the fact that we are not really in control.  When we really think it through life itself is impermanent and fleeting and especially as we get older the days, weeks and months seem to fly by.  

“Sometimes I thought I would be overwhelmed by the feelings.”

Oddly, part of my spiritual path has been about contemplating death.  I know how this sounds to most people.  All I can say is that I didn’t choose it.  For  some reason having to contemplate the certainty of death was something that chose me.  Initially it was a real bummer and very scary especially as a fairly young woman but going through this has been one of my most valuable life lessons.   Some times I thought I would be overwhelmed by the feelings.  Just when I thought I couldn’t take it I would have a powerful realization or learning that would make it all worthwhile.  For me it was my long dark night and a void that I couldn’t avoid but had to go through.

“we learn how to fly.”

During this time I met a spiritual teacher, Andrew Harvey, he wrote the book and coined the phrase “Spiritual Activism”, and I asked him what to do and how to deal with the knowing that our time is limited;  that we will all come to the same demise and this is the inevitable truth.   He said to me, “you can either get lost in the sadness and depression or you can dance.”   I’ll never forget it and he pointed me to something very important.   Am I going to wallow in depression or am I going to laugh, sing and dance with whatever time I am alive?  Trusting that life is an adventure that we can not predict.  It will twist and turn and surprise us over and over again.  

 When faced with the inevitability of the unknown and we don’t have solid  ground under our feet this is when we learn how to fly.  We learn essential skills for living a truly fulfilling and happy life when we face and go through what feels like the unfaceable.  We don’t learn this when we are living out our everyday lives unchallenged and comfortable.   It’s the extraordinary challenges to our very sense of self, our security, our routines that expand our knowing of who and what we really are.   It’s true what they say, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”  It really does and we won’t go there unless we are forced to.

We are so much more than we consciously know and life offers us a profound opportunity for this learning.  

This crisis is our once in a lifetime opportunity and I am hoping we can embrace it as the powerful teacher that it is.