A Map To Here

IMAGE OF THE WEEK

We are grateful to Rupali Bhuva for offering this hand-made painting for this reading.

Many people tend to see spiritual awakening as a challenge, goal or spiritual destination  -- something to be achieved or accomplished. One advantage of seeing awakening this way is how it creates a sense of purpose  -- the sense of a goal or mission, a defined focus for your life. It is a map  --  a map along which your progress can be charted thereby giving a sense of progression.

There is nothing wrong with creating a meaningful stepping stone on the spiritual path. It is a mindset that can create a motion — a flow — that creates a powerful journey through the release of fear, to become more present, and to connect with your spirit. It is, however, only a stepping stone. And once your fears are released and you are consciously connecting with your spirit, it is a mindset that then needs to be released if you wish to step into the level of freedom that is not constrained by ideas of needing to get somewhere other than where you already are. 

To go further into your freedom is to release this idea of becoming something more. It is to realize that whatever you have conceived of as “being awake” is what you already are. You just need to open your heart and mind to see yourself clearly (which is to say — without fear).

Awakening is not about changing what you are nor is it about "not changing". It is about falling into a never-ending change of perspective, where everything is available to you in the timeless, eternal Now moment. The distance between you and “being awake” is a mirage. There is no distance except in our minds.

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Excerpted from this article.