Simplicity

Coromandel, New Zealand

There is nothing wrong with having nice or expensive things.  We can have and enjoy them, as long as we understand that they cannot bring us peace or fulfillment.  The problems arise when we believe that things will fill the hole in our lives or bring us lasting satisfaction or joy.  The elation that we feel when a long desired item or experience is achieved will soon lead to frustration when the feelings of desolation and isolation return.  It is doubly frustrating because we were so sure that it would make us feel whole.

We can experience peace, gratitude and joy by enjoying simple things: a swim in the sea, a walk in the park, holding hands, or watching a squadron of pelicans glide over the ocean.  Even the simple act of being aware of our breathing can bring us profound feelings of grace and fulfillment.

Let's enjoy life's simple pleasures.

Surrender

Coromandel, New Zealand

Our thoughts and beliefs are keeping us from living peaceful and fulfilling lives.  We have built a solid wall of beliefs which was constructed from our birth and continues to the present moment.  This programming of our belief systems has occurred by our parents, teachers, friends, the media, religious leaders and so on.  We believe we are our thoughts and beliefs.  The reason this causes us so much frustration, anger, unhappiness and despair is because we all share the same root belief:  We are unloved and unlovable.  

All of our problems come from our identification with thought.  We have forgotten that all of our thoughts, beliefs, and judgments are an illusion. They are not who we really are.

The good news is that we can become who we really are and live peaceful, harmonious, fulfilling lives, filled with love and joy, in any given moment, including this very one.  Regardless of how hopeless or frustrated we believe our lives are, we could awaken to a brand new life right this second.  Every problem that we think we have would disappear in an instant.  We could create heaven on earth.  Right now.

All that we have to do is to acknowledge the truth of who we really are and surrender our thoughts and beliefs.

Since we believe we are our thoughts and beliefs, how do we do that?  We create a separation between our thoughts and beliefs and who we really are by bringing awareness to our thoughts.  Awareness is our attention without judgment.  We notice our thoughts, acknowledge them without labeling or judging them, and surrender them, allowing them to drift off without attaching ourselves (i.e., our awareness) to them.

Let's acknowledge our thoughts and surrender them to the light.

Gratitude

Kamakura, Japan

The opposite of gratitude is regret.  We wish we had done things differently.  We wish that other people had acted differently.  We wish that things that happened to us, happened differently.

Gratitude is allowing things to be as they are.  It is accepting that life is what it is.  Anything other than that is denial.  Gratitude is acknowledging that everything that has happened to us is divine grace.  True change can only occur when we accept that reality is what it is.

Gratitude is the key to abundance.  In fact, gratitude is abundance.  If we are grateful for what we have, we are satisfied and fulfilled.  This is the definition of abundance.  When we are grateful, the Universe responds in kind.  Like energy attracts like energy.

The more we accept life, the more we appreciate what we have, the more abundance we will attract.  It is the striving, desire and frustration which keeps us from receiving what we want.

Gratitude is ecstasy.

The Instrument

Dylan

It is much easier to live mindfully when our bodies are refreshed, nourished, relaxed and in shape.  When we eat junk food and do not exercise, our bodies feel sluggish, and so does our mind.  A sluggish mind leads to negative thoughts, which contribute to a cycle of malaise, cynicism and lack of fulfillment.  Low energy leads to boredom and frustration.

Our bodies are our instruments for interacting with the material world.  The more we take care of our instrument, the better it will serve us and contribute to our ability to fulfill our life's purpose.

It is no secret as to what is necessary to keep our instruments in fine tune: Restorative sleep; good nutrition; clean water; exercise and tools for reducing stress (e.g., yoga, meditation, walks in nature, satisfying social interactions).

Let's respect and care for our bodies, so that they can serve us.

Miracles

Kamakura, Japan

A miracle is not necessarily receiving something that we desired.  A miracle is receiving the perfect thing for our development and unfolding when we allow Divine Grace to come into our lives.

When we surrender our desires, we create the space which allows blessings and miracles to occur.  It is our judgments about what is happening in our lives which prevent miracles from occurring.  When we treat everything that happens to us as a Divine gift, we are allowing the Universe to guide us to fulfill our life's purpose.  In a previous post, I said that the Universe is as benevolent as we allow it to be.  Similarly, we will have as many miracles in our lives as we allow there to be.

A miracle is not something that happens to us from outside of ourselves.  When we align our awareness with our Higher Self, miracles happen.  We can do this by surrendering our thoughts and beliefs and allowing life to be just as it is.

To bring miracles into our lives all that we have to do is ask for them and allow them to occur.

Let's ask for a miracle and allow it to occur.

Intuition

Dylan

Since we do not have enough information to determine through thought what is our best course of action, we can rely on our intuition.  Intuition is information from Universal Spirit.  It is sometimes difficult to tell what is intuition and what is arising from our programmed ego.  Since intuition is from our divine nature, it will always come from a  place of peace, love and joy.  Thoughts from ego will often make us feel agitated, tight and self righteous.

When we are still, we can tune into Divine Energy.  It could be a voice or it could be an urge to take a certain action.  Our bodies help us indicate what is true inspiration.  One course of action will make our bodies feel relaxed and expansive.  Thoughts and cravings from the ego make our bodies feel tight and restrictive.

The chatter of our unconscious stream of thoughts can make it very difficult to tune into our intuition.  That is why meditating or being in nature is so useful to recharge our batteries and allow us to hear the subtle messages that our constantly being transmitted to us.  All we have to do is listen.

Let's be open to Universal guidance.

Surrender

Stony Batter, Waiheke Island, New Zealand

We act as if the universe is out to get us.  We are anxious and depressed and blame it on circumstances outside of ourselves.  We believe that the world is driven by negative impulses and random events.  Our desires are rarely fulfilled, and, when they are, the satisfaction is hollow and short-lived.

There is only one solution to this dilemma:  spiritual awakening.

It is our desire and expectations which cause our unhappiness and despair.  We suffer because we believe things should be different than they are.  It is only through acceptance and allowing everything to be as it is that we can experience the peace, love and joy which is our very nature.  That does not mean that we do not take steps to change our circumstances if they are not fulfilling.  Indeed, true change can only come with acceptance.  Once we accept that things are just as they are, we can begin to effectuate changes.

We think we know what will make us happy.  We think we know what will make us fulfilled.  We want material things, relationships and status because we believe that when we have those things, we will be happy.  It is the thinking and the wanting that create our suffering.

The Universe is as benevolent as we allow it to be.  We do not have enough information to know what will truly make us fulfilled.  Our dream job could turn into our worst nightmare.  Often, getting fired or becoming ill allows us to experience growth and fulfillment.

If we give up our desires and expectations, and allow the Universe (otherwise known as God) to lead us, we will find our life's purpose and our lives will unfold in ways beyond what we can imagine.  As we turn towards the Universe, the Universe turns in our direction.  The Universal Spirit will never intrude in our lives unless we ask it to by opening ourselves up to it.

Let's surrender to life just as it is..