Steve Taylor, Ph.D. – As a psychologist, I have been studying what I call “awakening experiences” for a decade, and have recently published (with a co-author) a new study of 90 such experiences in The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology.
Awakening experiences are moments in which our awareness expands and intensifies. We transcend the worries that normally preoccupy us and feel a sense of elation or serenity. Our perceptions of the world around us become more vivid, and we feel a sense of connection to nature, other human beings or the whole universe in general. We feel a sense of love and compassion, and there is a strong sense that we have transcended a limited state, and that awareness has become more authentic than normal. At higher intensities of awakening experiences, we may even feel that we have lost our normal sense of identity and somehow become one with the whole world.
My research has found that there are three contexts that consistently show up as major triggers of awakening experiences. Around a third occur in situations of stress, depression and loss. For example, a woman described how she was devastated by the end of a seven-year relationship, “facing a suffering that I didn’t imagine could possibly exist.’” However, in the midst of this suffering, she “began to experience a clearness and connection with everything that existed…I was in a state of such pure happiness and acceptance, that I was no longer afraid of anything. Out of that depth arose such a compassion and connection to everything that surrounded me.”
The second major trigger of awakening experiences identified by my research is contact with nature. Around a quarter of the experiences take place in natural surroundings, apparently induced by the beauty and stillness of nature. People reported awakening experiences that occurred while they walking in the countryside, swimming in lakes, or gazing at beautiful flowers or sunsets. And the third most significant trigger of awakening experiences according to my research— with a similar frequency to contact with nature—is spiritual practice. This primarily means meditation, but also includes prayer and psycho-physical practices such as yoga or tai chi. The relaxing, mind-quietening effect of these practices seems to facilitate awakening experiences.
Enduring Transformation
However, perhaps the most significant thing about awakening experiences is their after-effects. Even though they are typically of a very short duration—from a few moments to a few hours—they frequently have a life-changing effect.
Many people described an awakening experience as the most significant moment of their lives, reporting a major change in their perspective on life, and in their values. In our 2017 study of 90 awakening experiences, the most significant after-effect was a greater sense of trust, confidence, and optimism. For example, one person reported that even though “that whole experience was brief, it left a little piece of knowing and hope. While I still was and am on a journey of self-reflection, it left me knowing that your inner truth is always there for you.” Another person reported that, “To know that it’s there (or here, I should say) is a great liberation.”
One person had a powerful awakening experience while suffering from intense depression during which she “felt the most intense love and peace and knew that all was well.” The experience only lasted for a few minutes, but in its aftermath, she found that the feeling of dread had disappeared from her stomach, and she felt able to cope again, which led to a new, positive phase in her life. As she described it, “I looked around and thought about all the good things in my life and the future. I felt more positive and resilient.” Another person described how her awakening experience “allowed me a glance into the other side and opened me to the knowing that I am never separate, alone, nor unheld.”
Such changes in attitude sometimes led to significant lifestyle changes, such as new interests, new relationships and a new career. Some people reported becoming less materialistic and giving up high-powered professional careers for a simpler, more altruistic lifestyle.
This shows that awakening experiences have a powerful therapeutic effect. They make us realize that the world is a much more benign and meaningful place than we normally perceive it to be. And once we have glimpsed this, it becomes a permanent reality to us. As the great psychologist Abraham Maslow noted – in relation to what he called peak experiences — ‘A single glimpse of heaven is enough to confirm its existence.’
With so many ways for us to be afraid in the world today, like Chicken Little. (“The sky is falling, the sky is falling.”), do we really need to be afraid? Or do we want to arm ourselves with natural homeopathy remedies and immune boosting herbs and foods against dangerous rogue viruses like Ebola and the deadly respiratory viruses hitting children?
Do we want to find a way to remain emotionally balanced (just as important as natural remedies) even though our country is besieged with economic collapse, oil wars, global warming (or cooling), chemtrails, ISIS terrorism, illegal immigrants flooding into America, corrupt government and healthcare systems?
America seems to have become the world’s worstnightmare. How do we want to respond or react? Are we going to allow this to drive us into deep fear and panic, worry over all the terror around every corner? If so, we are really setting our immune systems up with emotions of fear and anger that make us even more susceptible to illness and disease. How do we want to show up in our lives today? Recognize that we have a responsibility to ourselves, our children’s children’s children, our planet and its beautiful animals, birds and sea creatures. Therefore, I offer some of what I have learned on the basics of ascension (and awakening or enlightened way of being in the world and not of it) to help point the way a bit further for you.
WHERE DID I PUT MY SORTING HAT?
Very much like the famed Sorting Hat in the Harry Potter movie series, we need a proverbial shamanic crystal ball psychic guru in order to sort through the mass of available information. As they say in the Heart of the Dove (deep in USA’s midwest) “Land Sakes Alive! There is a lot of spiritual information out there.” Where do you go and what are you looking for? Well, if you trust your instincts you will end up right where you need to be, is my philosophy. (FYI, I ❤ Gryffindor House)
ARE YOU SEARCHING WITHIN OR WITHOUT?
When my own ascension fully commenced I was inundated with information in every possible direction. I thought my problem was that I did not know what and who to believe in, trust or have faith in. Well that was the actual problem … I was looking for somethingoutside of myself instead of looking within.
I was visiting the local nursing home the other day and I asked an old woman sitting in a wheelchair how she was doing. She replied, “Well, I’m doing okay but I’m trying to figure everything out now. And the problem is that I don’t know what is true and what is not true.” Her comment rang true. How on earth do we know what is true or not? Even within our own mind, without the influence of so much external stimuli, how do we know? She had a good point. I thought for a moment and remembered what I have been taught myself. I leaned over to her and said, “You will know. You will feel the answer within you. It is in your heart.”
THREE CLICKS AND YOU ARE HOME
When I first learned about this concept, I heaved a huge sigh of relief. Wow, the truth has been there all along. Three clicks and I’m home. It is so simple. Just like in the movie, “The Wizard of Oz.” Dorothy always had the ability to “go back home”, she simply had to click her heels three times to do it. And how did she acquire those stunning shoes? Those ruby slippers? That was noooo accident her Kansas house falling on Elphaba’s sister, Nessarose, the Wicked Witch of the East. No it wasn’t. (Sometime, if you have a couple hours, watch that movie again and see what Frank L. Baum intuited in his creation of the Wizard of Oz because our fictional movies (and literature) are very telling.) Remember, to go within and search and feel your heart for the heart holds the key, the heart is the sacred temple, the church within. Our Sacred Space, the Holy of Holies, lies within each and every one of us. Like Dorothy and her purity of spirit and nature of truth and justice, inner wisdom (i.e., to ask others for help if need be, and to ultimately listen to her own heart), are all messages from our subconscious self.
To further illustrate this point, each additional character within her journey represented an archetypal pattern within her that needed personal care, attention, acknowledgement and healing. The Scarecrow’s knowledge (left brain intellect, structure) were what she sought when she wanted to own her own gift of knowledge or left brained grasping of a situation. The Lion’s search for courage reminded her of her own need to be brave and face her fears with the nasty neighbor wanting to take away little Toto. Even the character of Toto’s free spirited romps were Dorothy’s inner need to be free and test her own inner (and outer) boundaries (worlds/realms). Each character in our own life’s drama, play and novel all represent an inner archetypal structure playing itself out for us to wake up one day and attend to (paying attention).
KNOW THE PLAYERS OF THE GAME
There are all kinds of people in this ascension. First, the three basic groups or categories of people are:
The awakened ones: Fully conscious and well into (aka taking action) their ascension
The awakening ones: The veil is thinning, they are nearing their consciousness
The sleeping ones: Veil? What veil? These folks are not aware there even is a veil (in order to ascend, if it is their divine will to do so at this go ’round, they will be receiving their appropriate triggering)
What is really interesting is discovering those you think are awake are actually sleeping and vice versa. In other words, sometimes the very least possible enlightened person is probably the most enlightened of all. So, never judge a book by its cover. How can we work with this? Have you noticed there are people in the world who are totally into one type of religious organization or another? Or perhaps they follow a traditional religion like some of the Christian religions? Or they are totally into Paganism? Religious/spiritual organizations attract all three of those groups listed above.
What about those of us that seemingly follow many paths at once, i.e., Pagan, Christ based, nature based, Native American, and Celtic? All rolled into one? What about those folks who are totally into and resonate with UFOs and ETs and star systems like Orion or Pleiades, Andromedan or Arcturus? I think there is even a “Who’s Who in the Universe” website that lists all types of known extraterrestrials and ultraterrestrials. What about those folks who believe they are “walk-ins” or “starseeds”? Where do all these players fit in?
The lists of players comes from an understanding of what happened long ago and there are many websites that have the answers. Use your intuition and wisdom to seek the best sources of information for in-depth identifying information on the aforementioned. Now, let’s break down these three categories even more …
PROPERTIES OF AN ASCENDING ANATOMY/FORM
Did you know there are three different basic properties that make up an ascending form/body? There are and once you understand this, things will make a whole lot more sense.
We are basically a mixture within our beings. We are magnetic, electric, and radioactive. The original humans however are like Mother Earth, purely magnetic. With the incorporation of so much electrical and radioactive signatures upon Mother Earth of late, we magnetic humans have incorporated all three aspects within. Radionuclides are found in nature all around us; in the air, water and earth’s rich soil. Radionuclides are even found in human beings which we produce naturally because of our environment.
When you begin your search, you may discover you are drawn to various entities, star systems, crystals, totem animals, or deities; you will begin to realize it all boils down to ancestry. What our ancestors did, who they were, where they came from, all play a part in our DNA. Within a magnetic humans’ structure lies the opportunity to become crystalline in nature once again – to ascend in the physical body. In order to do this we must transmute and release all karmic history (ours or otherwise) within this life as well as within our ancestors’ lives (even if we are adopted!). When this release commences, this gives our ascension a big, big boost.
Now, however, if you primarily resonate with electric-based beings, then you will ascend but will be sent to that particular star system or planet to do so. Likewise if you are a radioactive-based human. All will ascend in their own time. And if only a handful of magnetic humans ascend, the whole of the world’s magnetic humans and ancestors will be in their glorious company and will experience it concurrently. Marvelous.
We are the Many and the One … … we are the first and the last of ourancestral lineage therefore we must heal our lineage… because it is also us.
HOW NOT TO JUDGE OTHERS
Now that you have an idea of the differences within us, can you see how difficult it is to judge someone? The only way I can explain this is by citing a personal example.
For twelve years, I was married to someone who is very electric by nature. I didn’t know this at the time. I was very naive, young and unaware. Although the relationship suffered from numerous other issues revolving around both our self-worth, self-honoring, and self-love, issues we could have worked through in time, the basic elements to the marriage were not copacetic from the relationship’s onset. In other words, we were not compatible. How well do you think mixing an electric being with a magnetic being will work?
When looking back at the drama of my life, its roller-coaster ups and downs, I can safely say that those events and people were there as divine guides and guideposts along my ascension path. And I can honor each and every experience, with an open and loving heart.
Where is the fear now? ‘Gone with the Schwinn!’ It’s history because I cannot judge what other people do to move along their own path, be it electric, magnetic or radioactive. Judgment is replaced with compassion – quite freeing.
GETTING IN TOUCH WITH OUR ANCESTRY
As the new energies increase, allowing Mother Earth her own complete ascension, we all feel the her throes like childbirth and can experience them in grace or in pain. When Jesus walked the earth more than 2000 years ago, his message was to forgive. Forgiveness is an essential ingredient to our ascension. We must openly forgive our ancestors their atrocities as well as forgive our own. In so doing, we mark the path more clearly toward our ascension process. Thus paving a clearer way for our ancestors also.
When in prayer or meditation or whatever form you go within, focus on your ancestry. Look for the clues or synchronicities throughout the day, or your dreamtime, for these clues will assist you greatly. State to God/Goddess/Universe your intent to release your ancestors’ karma, your own karma, as well as karma that has been bestowed upon you that is not yours to own. Forgiveness lights the path with compassion.
WHERE ‘O WHERE IS MY GOD?
“Be Still and Know that I AM God” God is within all things. On January 3, 2000, my veil was lifted. I saw and knew. In the knowing I experienced the truth about God. First and foremost, there is no separation. If you fall into step with people who separate God from man, then you begin to believe not in yourself but in a separate entity altogether. God made man out of his own likeness. God instilled in man a divine spark of himself. How then can we look outside of ourselves for God? Once you accept that all things are within, fully and completely, then you can feel the grandness of God and know that you are truly a divine being.
WHAT IS THE “RETURN OF THE CHRIST” AND HOW DOES IT EFFECT ME?
Notice I didn’t say ‘when’?! Interpretations of the Bible claim that “Jesus is coming” to rid the world of evil. Many religious organizations teach that there will be a return of the Messiah in human form and we are to diligently look for him, wait for him. Once again some people take it literally and look outside themselves for this “return of Christ.”
Another way to look at it, is that the return of Christ has already happened. It is already here. We are the living human form of the Christ consciousness or a compassionate awareness of inner Light. It is an embracing of God within. Jesus said, “All these things you can do, and more”. He wasn’t kidding. Our potential, once we realize our divinity, is his humble way of saying “You guys are awesome! You just don’t re-member. And when you do … watch out world! ” When we stop looking outside of ourselves for a savior or messiah, and look within to find that saving grace, we will see the fullness of God within
“Be Still and Know that I AM God” by repeating this phrase as a mantra, this can effect our sense of peace, our purpose, our well-being. We can then come from a state of unconditional love for all; like “Ohm-ing” whereby we are brought back to our natural frequency of balance.
BACK TO BASICS
In order to regroup, we must reground ourselves. Unplugging the computer and TV is a great start. Take long walks and get out with nature and relish the glory of our planet; the wonderful miraculous animals and beauty of Mother Earth. In this time of mass confusion and overwhelming media stimuli, many lightworkers (especially) are finding that experiencing nature and grounding ourselves within her, is all we need do in order to feel the fullness within. We experience her beauty and we know ourselves. We will once again feel ourselves as integral parts of the whole, and with forgiveness and compassion we shine brightly like stars filled with unconditional love.
I believe these ascension basics will be helpful to those who are searching. These are truths that have resonated with me for some time now. A reoccurring theme in this article and website is to get back to yourself, trust yourself, know your heart, listen to the still voice within. Energy/chi is power with which we all are gifted from our True Source/ God/dess. Staying centered, focused and clear will keep you from being effected by others attempting to negatively work out their karma with you or stealing your energy/chi. It is essential that centeredness and heart connection be your main focus. With these wonderful tools you will be well on your ascension path.
Four years ago, I began a professional journey that profoundly changed me. Having burned out after spending seven years as a commercial real estate lawyer, I decided to change careers and study stress, burnout and how people can build their own resilience reserves. I never in a million years thought that part of that journey would include working with drill sergeants, soldiers and their spouses in the U.S. Army.
I wanted to be part of the team working to train soldiers in resilience because of my grandpa. He was in the D-Day Normandy invasion and was forever changed by his experience fighting in WWII. Getting “help” wasn’t what he chose to do after the war, and instead his demons got the better of him on many occasions. I wanted something different for other families.
Part of my training included learning how to speak Army, figuring out the rank structure, and understanding a vast alphabet of acronyms. It was all worth it because I learned so much from the soldiers with whom I worked. Here are just a few of the biggest lessons I learned:
Authenticity is cool. I started this work with my guard up. I vowed not to let people see who I really was or know the full extent of my story (the trips to the ER because of stress, the weekly panic attacks during my burnout and more), because if people knew who I really was, the perfect veneer I had spent years trying to build and maintain might shatter. Instead of connecting with the soldiers heart to heart, I connected with them through facts, figures, and knowledge — I wasn’t about to take the risk to expose the flaws.
But then the soldiers started to tell their stories, and I got to witness their “aha” moments. They talked about the mistakes they had made both personally and professionally, friends and loves lost, and regrets they had. That made me think, “If the toughest men and women on the planet could open up a little, maybe I could too.” And then it all changed for me. Thanks to the soldiers and their spouses, I had the courage to finally step into the fullest version of my story. As a result, my mission became clearer, my writing became richer and my connections with others deeper. I learned that vulnerability is not weakness; rather, it is courage in its purest form.
Take good risks. I realized that seven years of practicing law caused me to play it safe in life. I got comfortable in my little corner of the world and stopped taking good risks. Being part of this training team required me to get outside of my comfort zone on a number of occasions. I traveled to the Middle East and rode a camel in the middle of the desert (I never imagined that this sentence would ever have come out of my mouth), acted out skits to illustrate teaching concepts, and danced in front of rooms full of soldiers (considering I dance like Elaine from Seinfeld, I nearly gave myself a panic attack the first time I had to do this — no joke). When you push your boundaries and succeed, your brain says, “I can do more.” Thanks to the push I got in this program, taking good risks has become a fundamental part of my life.
Have a battle buddy. Connection is a fundamental tenet of resilience. In the military, a battle buddy, or battle, is the person a soldier assists both in and out of combat. In the military, a soldier always has someone to count on for assistance, and I think it’s a concept civilians should adopt. My battle, Lorrie, has helped me in countless ways both personally and professionally, and it’s so comforting to know that this “bestie” exists in my life.
Don’t sweat the small stuff. When you put your life on the line for a cause, as soldiers do on a daily basis, things like waiting in a long line at the grocery store become less of a big deal. When you get deployed multiple times in a few short years and miss family events and births of kids, a little traffic jam isn’t so stressful. Getting the wrong order at Starbucks isn’t the end of the world. I gained a new appreciation of what it means to sacrifice.
Humor is a survival strategy. When I first started this work, I was taken aback at how many soldiers cited “humor” or “laughing” as a resilience strategy. Given the intensity and seriousness of the situations they often encounter, using humor as a coping mechanism seemed misplaced to me, but I was wrong. Humor is often the very thing that gets them through the intensity and the seriousness. I try to find the funny in stress now.
Lead like a solider. One of my colleagues said that we should create a hotline for civilians to call a solider in times of adversity because they are that good at solving problems (she called it “Dial an NCO”). Whether it’s creating a mobile hospital in the desert from scratch, securing a forward operating base, or organizing the mass exodus of 200+ people from the basement of the Sheraton in Philly during a fire drill (which actually happened), soldiers understand the core of what it means to be a good leader.
Connect with something bigger than yourself. For some soldiers this means God, for others, it’s a sense of spirituality. For others still, their “something bigger” is their service in the military. The Army soldiers we train live and lead by a specific set of values: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage.
I helped teach resilience skills to thousands of soldiers and their spouses, and every time I said goodbye to a class, I got choked up because I saw my grandpa in every one of their faces. He would have been so proud of this work, and I thank these men and women for changing my life in the best possible way.
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Paula Davis-Laack, JD MAPP, is the Founder and CEO of the Davis Laack Stress & Resilience Institute, a practice devoted to helping busy professionals prevent burnout.
A caller to my radio show told me the following story: she had survived a terrible earthquake in her native country, lost her husband in that quake, emigrated to the U.S. with her surviving child, and worked to put that child through college. Now she was trying to follow her dream of establishing a charitable organization to help disaster victims, but she was becoming discouraged because her vision wasn’t materializing as quickly as she’d hoped.
Could someone who had come so far through so much really afford to be discouraged?
I told her in no uncertain terms to hang on to her dream. Be willing to hold the vision!
All of us are here for a purpose; when you find that purpose, hold the vision regardless of what difficulties or obstacles may surface. Holding the vision involves an unwillingness to compromise what you’re visualizing. It means being willing to face setbacks and what appears to be an uncooperative universe.
Even if you’re not convinced that you can make something happen that has never happened before, try creating a vision of your authentic self, destined to do great things, enjoy fulfillment, happiness, and success, deserving of the best that life has to offer. When that happens, you’ll be a vibrational match to the Source of all, and this new receptivity will become your way of life. When anything crops up that’s inconsistent with this vision, take the advice of Lao-tzu: “In order to eliminate the negative influences, simply ignore them.” Such words are so simple, yet so profound.
When you look back on your life, the trials the tribulations, the challenges and opportunities, you’ll probably notice the really big occasions hung finely balanced on the feather edge of uncertainty. On one side is the abyss of some indescribable failure, and the other, some seemingly monumental achievement. These moments invite something deeper of ourselves, something more complete, something more authentic. If we can face them with total acceptance and commitment, then we’ll connect with the full flow of the soul and it will carry us through like an unstoppable wave. When I look back at these times in my life, I see that this level of surrender, this level of commitment, required something special: “20 seconds of insane courage”…
Facing the darkness
I saw this moment of uncertainty we all face from time to time so eloquently encapsulated in a recent Matt Damon film “We bought a Zoo”:
“You know, sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage, just literally 20 seconds of embarrassing bravery, and I promise you, something great will come of it.”
~ Benjamin Mee
I can recall facing the darkness many times in my life, long before I realised I was simply creating it myself. Only later, I understood it was exactly these moments where I needed depth of soul more than anything. Yet an inner tightness and struggle – the need for an outcome – contracted my inner space so much, it strangled the very soul out of me. Although I worked hard to control myself, I was a quivering wreck!
If only
How many times have you said to yourself “If only”? “If only I’d done it this way, then that would have happened. If only I’d done that, then it would all have turned out alright.”
If I’d learned long ago to relax my grip on life and simply let the sweet spot of the soul sing through me, then all would have been different. But then of course, you have to know what you are not, to truly feel the sweetness of what you are.
So a point arrived in my life where I simply decided to let go. The struggle was not worth it any more. Even if it meant jumping off that cliff edge, not knowing if I could fly, I’d simply rather jump. Have you faced times in your life like that yet? A relationship that really needs to end, a crucial change of location or leaving a job that doesn’t serve? Such occasions eventually come knocking on our door.
Following the soul is just like this. It can begin softly yes. But certainly in my experience, true realignment is going to require us staring into the abyss of such uncertainty. Why? Because no matter how society conditions us to control life, nothing is ever certain to the soul.
It is uncertainty that makes the soul what it is.
The Sweet Spot
In these moments, that’s when we need to look for the courage. But courage to do what? To effort and struggle for some kind of talent, some kind of gift, some kind or reward, target or outcome? Not at all. These are exactly the things we need to let go of.
We need to soften into these and just let go. You’ll know when those 20 seconds are inviting you. You’ll feel it. You’ll feel the tightening in your throat which makes your voice squeaky or hoarse, the stiffness in your muscles that makes your body awkward and ungainly or the tightness of your chest that makes your breathing shallow and rapid. These are the tell tale signs that you’ve stepped into the 20 seconds.
And in these moments, that’s when we have to soften, to soften into these symptoms. When the outer world is screaming for some kind of external reaction from you, what we really need to find is an authentic internal response:
to let go of the need for an outcome
to soften into the body, move and let it relax
to expand the chest and deepen the breathing with calmness
to open into the void of presence
to let the sweet shot of authentic beingness simply swing through us
The return to light
When all the pressure is on, soften, simply open and then the 20 seconds expands into an eternity. Look for the authentic feeling that wants to bubble up, the authentic expression of beingness. Let it wash through and over you. Let the swing carry you so that you may hit the sweet spot of who you are…
In this moment, anything can happen.
In this moment, you can truly change reality
to something more aligned,
in harmony with the universe
and the essence of who you are
You are not your shame, your fears, your addictions, your games, your guilt, the internalized remnants of negative messaging… You are not your resistance to your true path … You are not your self-doubt… You are not your self-distraction patterns. You are not your escape hatches… you are not your pessimism about a life of meaning and purpose. You are not here merely to survive and endure.
You are Sacred Purpose.
No matter what others have mistakenly told you about who you are, no matter what mistakes you may have made in the past, you are here with a sacred purpose living at the core of your being. If that weren’t true you never would have made it down the birth canal. You never would have overcome what you have already overcome in your life.
You are Sacred Purpose.
Whatever your ways of distracting, postponing, delaying, armouring, avoiding, altering, feigning, artificializing, externalizing, superficializing your life… I encourage you to STOP IT NOW. This really is no game, this is completely real, this sacred purpose that courses through your soul veins crying out to be heard from below the surface of our avoidance. I cannot say this with enough assertiveness… To the extent that you identify and honour your true path in this lifetime, you will know genuine satisfaction, real peace in your skin.. You will be infused with vitality and a clarified focus, new pathways of possibility appear where before there were obstacles. You will know a peace that will buffer you against the madness of the world, a clarity of direction that will carry you from one satisfaction to another… Life will still have its challenges, but you will interface with them differently, coated in an authenticity of purpose that sees through the veils to what really matters. To the extent, that you avoid the quest for purpose, you will live frustrated, a half-life.. your avoidance manifest in all manner of illness, perpetual dissatisfaction, emotional problems, depression, addictive patterns, ALL REFLECTIONS OF YOUR own alienation from the purposeful root of your being.. You see, there really is no escape from reality, all there is, is postponement. you should be more afraid of avoiding your path than walking it.
You are Sacred Purpose.
AND It doesn’t matter what anyone tells you about who you are. There is so much of that. This is your journey. Even those with the best of intentions, cannot know the path you are here to walk. The REAL journey is not one of adapting ourselves to someone else’s vision, but instead, shaping who we are with our own two hands. The unique clay we work with lives deep inside our soul bones, awaiting our own detection & expression. You are the sculptor of your own reality- don’t hand your tools to anyone else. Only you can know the path u r here to walk.. it’s a personal decision, and it doesn’t have to be grandiose. Your purpose can be as simple as learning how to listen better, how to enjoy the moment without getting in your own way.. wherever the growing is, wherever you find genuine peace with path, wherever you feel unmasked and genuinely real.. in the survivalist world that we are coming from, we defined ourselves by what GOT US through the day, whatever masks got food on the table, whatever way of being endured this challenging life.. but we are at the beginning of a new way, a way of being that is sourced in who we REALLY ARE, not our egoic face, not our survivalist face, not the false face of our hidden power, but the real face, the real path, the no bullshit no hype no pretence expression of WHO u REALLY ARE and a life that fully and deeply expresses the magnificence that lives within you.. Your sacred purpose may be covered in dust, it may be HIDDEN FROM VIEW, but its still in there, sparkling with infinite possibility..
You are Sacred Purpose.
This is a call to action. A call to authenticity. A call to dig yourself out from below the bushel of shame and self-doubt that has plagued humanity. A call to get off the dime and do the real work to call yourself on your distraction patterns and excavate your own purpose in this lifetime. What are you here to learn? What are you here to overcome? What are you here to express? What does your authentic face look like? Who are you, above and beyond all the noise and haste.. this is not about money, or bullshit ideas of abundance, or gratifying your ego, this is about the real thing, the real deal, the vulnerable and courageous truth about who you are and why you are here. I ENCOURAGE you to take the question of sacred purpose seriously… to not postpone it for another hour, or week, or till you retire, until the next lifetime, til you finish school, or end your relationship, but to take it seriously now… To work like a dog to find out what lives inside of you, what you are here to express, what you are here to manifest and express, what you are here to give, to share, to learn, to create, to dance, to art, to walk…. You don’t know how long you have, it may be 60 years, it may be 60 seconds, you may not make it to retirement, you may not make it to tomorrow morning, at least if you are questing for your purpose, living your truth, you will not suffer when its time to leave your body in this lifetime, you will be living in your authenticity, this is no small achievement in this distracted world, where the unconscious media and manipulative marketers try to turn us generic and frightened so we will be locked into their script., fuck that. You are already have a script and it lives deep inside you…that script is your purpose, what you are here to express, to learn, to embody, to humanifest… So u decide which script to read- the fictional novel written by those who do not SEE u, or the HOLY BOOK written by your glorious spirit. When you walk through the gateway of purpose, you walk into yourself. You are sacred purpose, you are sacred purpose, you are sacred purpose. Don’t stop until you find it.
Author and writer on spirituality, psychology and American psyche
Spirituality And Social Change: An Interview With Corinne McLaughlin
Posted: 5/18/11 08:38 AM ET
Those who despair over the gap between their vision of a more environmentally sustainable, just and peaceful planet and the world as it is can find inspiration in Corinne McLaughlin’s call to become practical visionaries: Those activists, she says, who remain steady in their work over time by keeping their “eyes on the horizon, their feet on the ground, and their hearts on fire.”
Pythia: I’d like to start with a simple question. What is your definition of a “visionary”?
Corinne: A visionary is someone who sees the future with both insight and foresight: Insight into the deeper causes and meaning of events in the world, and foresight, or an intuitive grasp of the big picture, such as the trajectory of politics and popular culture.
Pythia: You write in your book that you’ve seen many visionaries fail to manifest their inspiring visions. What do you find is the biggest obstacle most visionaries face?
Corinne: The problem I find with a lot of visionaries is that they’re too far ahead — perhaps their vision won’t happen for another hundred years. That’s why I like to help people focus on “next step” visions that are more doable.
Pythia: Why is being too far ahead of one’s own time a problem?
Corinne: Thinking that something that is far in the future can come sooner leads to unrealistic expectations, as well as rigid and dogmatic perspectives. It can also prevent visionaries from seeing what’s possible right in front of them. Our work is to translate what we might receive from a flash of insight into things that are useful today.
Take for example the recent uprising in Egypt. I could hold a positive vision of how this could all turn out, but I know it’s not going to be as simple as that. It’s one thing to get rid of a dictator. The harder part is to create a viable democracy that empowers people. But what I found inspiring in Egypt is how, during the revolution, the people organized their neighborhoods, created street clinics to help the wounded, and cleaned up after their demonstrations. These may seem like small things, but to me they are examples of practical, effective visionaries at work.
Pythia: You write that as a young woman in the sixties you were inspired by people in government and their dedication to public service — such as President Kennedy and Robert Kennedy — to enter government service yourself. You then went on to work at various Federal agencies, such as the Social Security Administration and President Clinton’s Council on Sustainable Development; you’ve even taught meditation to some government agencies. How did these first-hand experiences shape your development as a practical visionary?
Corinne: I believe strongly that social change isn’t just about demonstrations in the street against the wrongs in society. There is also the path of the social innovator who creates new institutions and the path of the reformer who goes within an institution and makes incremental changes. Based on my own experience, I learned that implementing a vision in an institutional setting involves working with conflict resolution and a whole systems perspective. It’s important, for instance, to have a multi-stakeholder perspective — in other words, you can’t just go charging in with your own ideas, you have to appreciate people’s different perspectives, then work to find common ground and bring the various parties to the table in a respectful dialogue.
Because I frequently encountered obstacles such as old, entrenched ideas, ongoing power struggles, or the lack of staff and money, I also learned to develop patience and detachment. In federal, state and local governments, administrations, philosophies, and policy initiatives change. If your vision aligns with the values of the current administration you’re working with, you can make some progress — but that could all change in four or six years.
Pythia: Together with your husband, Gordon Davidson, you’ve also taught the path of “Ageless Wisdom” for many decades. What has this spiritual perspective brought to your calling as a practical visionary?
Corinne: What I’ve taken from my spiritual study is the wisdom of living a balanced life. My spiritual path has also helped me to be more emotionally centered, to be more understanding of those that disagree with me, and to learn how to let go of some of my power issues so that I can be more effective and bring a sense of humility to my work — while still having the self-confidence to be effective.
Pythia: You write about how easy it is for activists to burn out, and list different ways that they can stay “spiritually sane.” What contemplative practices do you teach activists that can help prevent disillusionment?
Corinne: Many activists just see what’s wrong: they want to stand up to injustice and educate people about it. But I think it’s equally important for activists to hold a more positive vision of what’s right with their country: what’s going well, and what they’d like to grow or see more of. I also like to encourage activists to take some time each day to sit silently or take a walk in nature as a way to be in touch with their inner wisdom and peace — and to remember why they are on this path in the first place.
Steve Taylor, Ph.D. – As a psychologist, I have been studying what I call “awakening experiences” for a decade, and have recently published (with a co-author) a new study of 90 such experiences in The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology.
