A marvelous sense steals over the one who waits on the All Good. A feeling of some unseen presence silently creeps over the waiting thought, and the voice of God speaks through the mist and says “Be not afraid.” It is all for a purpose, and when you cannot trace you must trust. This is not an illusion but a reality for time proves all things, and the one who waits is rewarded. Good comes for the infinite light itself is our companion. I wait on divine presence.
Since God is love, and God is All-in-All, Love must be the underlying principle of life, and therefore in all. This Life is my life. This Love is me. It is the very essence of my being. Love heals everything, every imperfection of mind or body or environment. Love alone may overcome hatred, anger, envy, and criticism. Where Love is, there is no room for negative emotion. Love is the Great adjuster.
I know that Love is harmony and peace and joy. In it is all good, all that is true, all that is beautiful. It is perfect balance, perfect poise. I empty my mind and heart of all but Love. I let Love express in me and through me. I let Love flow out into my world of thought and action. I am Love. The Love in me shines forth as harmony, peace, joy, freedom, and wisdom. Love binds me to the whole of creation. I find fulfillment through loving.
Why Renunciation is Prescribed for Seekers of Truth?
by Jayaram V
Summary: This essay explores the importance of being yourself and seeing things clearly as they are
Try to speak truth for a whole day and see what happens. You will be considered a troll and shut down by many from their communication channels. You will be regarded as a trouble maker, or a dangerous person. People are comfortable with their illusions. If you try to rupture them, you will invite trouble. Therefore, for most of us truth is what is socially acceptable and justifiable rather than what is true.
Being yourself is the first step to be true to yourself. It is an important step in your self-transformation and inner purity. Not many people can practice it, for the same reason as stated before. They cannot alienate people by speaking truth or being truthful. Even the most powerful people on earth have to play to the gallery and act according to their hopes and aspirations rather than the reality of the situation.
The world loves myths, not truths. If it is not so, most people who are admired and remembered in history will not be there. Studies in human psychology show that human beings may rewrite their memories to feel comfortable with themselves and avoid unpleasant memories. Our survival instinct tells us how to get on well with the world and avoid conflicts to regulate our relationships. People know instinctively that they cannot be likable or friendly with others without wearing masks and using politically correct language. For their peace of mind and yours they know that it is better to tell you what you like to hear rather than what they need to say. They embrace your idea of truth rather than theirs because they need your love and friendship rather than your anger and vengeance. Therefore, the freedom to be themselves and truthful remains a distant ideal for many and comes to them at a great price.
Being yourself means you have to be your authentic self and speak from your heart how you feel or what you feel about yourself and the world. It is being honest in your thinking and judgment seeing things as they are, without the distortion of your mind. It is to avoid self-deception and know truthfully what you feel and think. You cannot do it unless you remove the delusions that you build in your mind to create the narrative that suits you but does not really represent you. It may address your fears or your needs, but not the truth of your being.
Knowing yourself is an important part of being yourself. Unless you truly know your feelings and emotions, how can you know who you are? To know yourself truly, you must learn to see things as they are. You must become an impartial observer so that you can see the logical fallacies and irrational beliefs that interfere with your perception and understanding. Paying attention to your own behavior and thinking gives you an opportunity to become familiar with your ego and its behavior, or how it creates an alternate reality to ensure your survival and wellbeing in a world of egos.
The world is a major distraction in your quest for truth, while the mind with which you perceive it is like a nebulous prism. Your perceptions are therefore rarely free from distortions. In your dealings with the world, you are mostly guided by your fears and concerns or your need for security, approval, and belongingness rather than truth, which is why many relationships in your life are built on weak foundation and do not stand the test of truth or trust.
The problem is not because you are inherently weak. It is because the world puts so much pressure on you to confirm to its standards and values. When you live amidst people, you cannot be true to yourself and others, without hurting them or creating enmity or misunderstanding. It is also why spiritual life is so difficult to pursue and why not many people can abide by the instructions that are mentioned in our scriptures for self-purification. People love myths and illusions rather than reality. Therefore, they will not like anyone who wants to snap those balloons of illusions with which they decorate their lives.
If you want to practice deeper awareness, objectivity, and mindful observation, you must find opportunities to spend time with yourself and develop the courage to accept truths about yourself. Spend few quite moments each day for introspection and confront your own illusions, self-deception and mental distortions, as if you are taking a mental bath to cleanse the impurities of your mind that accumulate each day through your public persona. It is the best approach when you cannot renounce the world or live in isolation.
Our scriptures prescribe renunciation and the need to live in isolation because they are aware of the corrupting influence of the world upon your thinking and behavior. They know that you cannot practice truthfulness or any of the Yamas (restraints) and Niyamas (observations) that are mentioned in our scriptures without upsetting your life or your peace of mind.
In today’s world, everyone cannot practice renunciation or go to a forest to live in isolation. Therefore, for them the best alternative is to find time to be alone, and practice detachment, mindfulness, introspection, and discernment to know themselves better and be honest with themselves. Those few moments they spend alone, reviewing their actions, will do them immense good to be self-aware, realistic, alert, and smart. If you cannot be truthful to others, at least be so to yourself, the one person who matters most in your life.
Today is a day to focus on healing. If my body needs healing, I attend to what I need to do physically. And I also heal my thoughts. I keep my thoughts and ideas positive, and let go of old hurts and ideas that have made me unhappy. I release those old ways of thinking and become a source of healing – for myself and others.
Evening
I know that I did my best today to focus on healing. Tonight I will rest knowing that I have let go of unhappy thoughts, ideas, and grudges. I have filled my inner being with a sense of wholeness and completeness that I can share.
-From the book ‘A Daily Book Of Pagan Prayer’ by Megan Day
Cosmic light, everlasting good, eternal spirit, maker of all things and keeper of my life, you are all. Infinite presence within, in whom all live; joy supreme, flooding all with gladness, I adore you. Eternal peace, unditurbed and quiet, I feel your calm. Divine presence which inhabits eternity and dwells within all creation, who lives through all things and in all people, hear my prayer. I would enter your gates with joy and live at peace in your house. I would find a resting place in you, and in your presence live. Make me to do your will and from your wisdom teach me the ways of truth. Compel me to follow you and let me not pursue the paths of my own council. Eternal and blessed presence, Illumine my mind and command my will that my soul may be refreshed and that my life may be renewed. As deep cries unto deep, so my thought cries to you and you answer. I am renewed and refreshed; my whole being responds to your love, and I am complete in you. all my ways are guarded and guided, and I shall live with you eternally. Lover of my soul and keeper of my spirit, none can separate us, for we are one. So shall your wisdom guide me, your presence dwell within me, your love keep me and your life envelope me now and forever. I rest in you.
Kelly's Quest 