Spiritual Essence: February 2021

SPIRITUAL ESSENCE:

Focusing on the essence of spirituality from all times, places, cultures…and beyond. Serving and cultivating the innate, inherent spiritual nature contained within all: the religious, the non-religious, the spiritual but not religious, the atheist, the agnostic, the mystic; whatever one does or does not consider oneself. We are beings at many different levels with many different aspects: physical, energy/life force, mind, intellect, emotion; but at our deepest common core, we are all spiritual beings. We all yearn to love and be loved, to nurture and be nurtured, to express and serve and realize each of our unique destinies. We can all help each other along our individual journeys, united by our common needs and yearnings.

Quote of the Week #156 - Listening/Hearing for Non-material Sustenance

Quote of the Week #156 - Listening/Hearing for Non-material Sustenance

Every one who is thirsty, come and drink. He who has no money, come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good. Let your soul delight in abundance. Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, that your soul will live…

--Isaiah 55:1-3, The Living Torah translation by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan

Friday, February 12, 2021

Basic Spiritual Principles, Boiled Down

Basic Spiritual Principles, Boiled Down

1. BE

2. Be Aware

3. Be Aware of Awareness

4. Be Aware of your Origin

5. Be Kind

6. If you find yourself incapable of, or incomplete in Being any of the above, work at Becoming it.

This will result in increasingly inspired and meaningful living.

And now for the elaborations:

1. BE. We all Are, so this is a gimme.

2. Be Aware. The Bill Clinton strategists had the political slogan, "It's the economy, stupid". Well, in the dimension of spiritual growth, paraphrasing Forest Gump's mama, "Awareness is as Awareness does." I is all about Awareness and expanding it, becoming fully aware. We all are partly aware - it comes with Being. It is not, or should not, be complicated, but we make it so, individually and collectively, as attested to by psychotherapists, philosophers, theologians, and others.

3. Be Aware of Awareness. Ditto.

4. Be Aware of your Origin. This is just anothother way of stating what the likes of Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta Maharaj advocate: enquire with great determination and persistence into the source and substance of "I". This also relates to the first fundamental prong upon which most religions are based: What is Divinity and one's relationship with the Divine, one's place in the Cosmic Scheme.

5. Be Kind. This relates fundamental prong upon which most religions are based: How one should relate with everything and all beings that appear to exist separate from oneself. Kindness is a simple, yet comprehensive guiding principle. It encompasses all positive values and virtues, including the Golden Rule, mindfulness, compassion, non-violence, etc.

6. If you find yourself incapable of, or incomplete in Being any of the above, work at Becoming it. This is the nature and essence of spiritual work and practice.

7. In the spirit of the great spiritual masters of all times and places, everything else is commentary and guidance. Study. Especially study yourself to locate, become and BE the Self you already are, but may not be aware of in all of its paradoxical Fullness and Emptiness. Discover/develp/expand a capacity of being able to embrace Paradox and Mystery, and reognize/get comfortable with the reality that you are not really in control.

Conclusion: "Find your inspiration and follow it" is another pet phrase to sum it up.

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