In the “Spiritual Life” section of Allison Maslan’s Blastation (TM) she makes a statement that burns in my mind. She states:
It’s one thing to find balance in a state of meditation or at the local ashram, but give me the steps to inner peace in the grocery line or while paying the bills. How do we find the smoothest route through life’s tumultuous storms?
I haven’t done the exercises connected with this lesson yet – I wanted to wrestle with this statement for a while first and it seems a perfect statement to blog about so you can join me in the wrestling match.
This is where the rubber meets the road, isn’t it? Some of the questions this statement evokes are
- Do I walk my talk?
- Do those around me know what I believe by watching my behavior?
- Do I know what I believe?
- Do I give “lip service” to Spirit (God, Creator, a Higher Power, the Divine) or is what I believe a powerful driving force in my life?
- Do I take care of the spiritual part of me as well as I care for my physical part?
- Does my belief system give me joy in the grocery line as well as in a place of worship or in deep meditation?
- What/Who do I turn to in times of trouble?
- Do I have a feeling of “well-being” regardless of what is happening around me?
- Am I aware of “Spirit within me?” Do I go there for advice and help or do I apply the steps of problem solving according to the scientific method? Which works the best?
Questions just keep coming, but this is enough to deal with right now.
It would be so easy just to accept someone’s total package of beliefs without examining it first but it’s a decision that needs to be made at a soul level. And it is your choice. You are the one who has to listen to your soul’s longings and search out a path that feeds and satisfies these longings. Sometimes you have to examine various paths to know if they’re right for you and sometimes you come to a fork in the path and have to make a decision about which one to take next.. Sometimes we are afraid to follow our heart and choose a way that feeds us and gives us joy – it is easier not to make waves and not to take the risk.
If what you believe gives you peace and fills you with joy and if your beliefs show up in the line in the grocery store, or the unemployment line or the marching line of the military, then you know you are on the right one. If your belief system has no relevance to your daily life at home, in the office, in the field, in the car, on the stage, in the classroom or wherever, it’s time to take a look within and determine if you are on the right spiritual path or if you’re on a path at all.
It is so important to be true to who you are and each of us is a unique individual unlike anyone else on the planet. It may be time to examine your life and your belief system and make some decisions about where you are going spiritually. Thee’s no better time than now.
Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Have you examined yours?
