The Lighted World

The spiritual aspect  within us communicates most easily in moments of quietness, supra- conscious would be a better term. During these times of quietness and inner peace,  the everyday ego is allayed and all the busy thoughts that usually occupy us of trying to fix things, make ourselves more comfortable, more secure, the work of every day survival, all these demands are calmed and deeper parts of ourselves can come forward and inform our daily decisions.

often while contemplating beauty or nature, or in the presence of love and acceptance. Those little moments that open without asking-when the world is suddenly clearer, brighter and full of meaning and significance. When joy suddenly arises and we are infused with a sense of some gentle power greater than our small every day selves.  These moments send deeply symbolic messages to or unconsciousness. This is a misnomer but one that is early recognizable by most,

                In those moments of spirituality, the small ego self can dip into the net of being, reaching out to the larger self. In all its expressions, spirituality is a surrender of smaller self to a greater vessel of understanding. 

I recently visited Turkey and paid homage to many of the religious sites there. One of these sites was Aya Sophia, the great church built during the Byzantine period , once the greatest cathedral in all of Christendom. Immediately when I stepped into the vast chamber of the main church I was overwhelmed and silenced by its power. I closed my eyes and felt my whole being infused with light. I spend the whole afternoon there, both with a guide (human) and with my husband. We wander around gazing at the frescos and paintings. We were both profoundly impacted by the holiness, light and power of this great structure which guided and protected the course of the near east for centuries.  That evening I was sitting at a café having supper, and suddenly I realised that I must let go of all the grudges that I held against people in my life. Somehow visiting this holy power spot complete washed away all my antagonism  that I held towards others. I realised in an instant that although I felt completely justified in my cutting off these people from my life, I had to forgive then and move on. I vowed to make amends when I got home-and I did. Out of the three people I reached to, two responded well and we are communicating again, the third person did not respond but at least I have only love and forgiveness for him. What he does with my request is up to him-as I’ve written before we are responsible only for our own decisions and lives.

                From these moments when we can hold and bring light, wisdom and guidance, into our being, we can have direct guidance about how to solve our problems. Suddenly we have insights into conflicts, respite from physical pain, relief from unwanted beliefs and ego blocks. So to foster any practice which allows the mind to experience these spiritual states is beneficial and can be fostered and developed so we can enter into this mind state at will. In times of crisis, sorrow, conflicts- we can stop, breathe deep and because of our training, go into our spiritual aspect and receive support, guidance and clarity.         

                If you would like to learn more about this wisdom practice, you can go to Long Boat Counselling website and order  “The River Books-Work, Love and Wisdom” (Star, 2007).

Taking in Light is one of best ways to practice World Metaphoric Transformation.

Try this!-Taking in Light

1.            Go to a favorite natural place where you can feel peaceful and tuned in to the world in an open, loving way.  Before you start- turn off all technology-yep all of it! Go alone. Prepare to be in your quiet place for a minimum of about 10 minutes- without purpose. Not for fitness, relaxation, insights or to better yourself in any way. Just prepare to enjoy your being as it is.

Stand for a moment with your eyes open and sense all the energy and light of the world around you. The way water is being transported up tree trunks, the way the world is spinning through space, the wind moving clouds above you, the multitude of creatures in the soil below your feet moving, creating, living, dying. Take a moment an appreciate all the process that surround you-photosynthesis, your breathing, hearts beating, birds flying, bees carrying pollen.See all these processes as interconnected and lighted.

2.            If you can, take off your shoes and stand bare foot on the ground, or if possible, lie down so the entire spine is directly on the earth. Become aware of your body, feel how your feet are resting on the ground. Close your eyes and come fully into the moment. Release any thoughts, obsessions, or worries that you may have. Use the image of light ( warmth, love, peace), all the energy and light that is animating the world around you,  coming in through your feet. See this light as going up your legs and into your spine, ascending slowly up your spine into each charka. Or if you don’t work with chakras, then just image the light ascending slowly up the spine, vertebra by vertebra. Take your time, let the peacefulness of the light transfuse into your entire body. Especially bring this image of light into areas of discomfort and pain in your body.

3.            After your mind as quieted, and you can feel the light coming into your body, then you can stabilized the experience by repeating some words. These can any words that suggest spiritualty, connection, peace. Or you may want to send out a short prayer. If you are in a conflict of any kind, take the next few minutes to image how this conflict will be resolved, not the details of how you will ‘fix’ it, but image yourself in the relationship when the conflict is resolved. In other words, jump out to the conflict into the solution. Don’t worry about how you will get there-that will be revealed as you proceed. First, just set the intention by seeing the conflict in a different way.

4.            If your thoughts wander, you can open your eyes and notice something in the environment. Let that omen be a guide to take you back into yourself. If you drift back into habitual worrying or other negative thought patterns, then return to the first step-imaging light coming into your feet from the earth. Rest, open your eyes, notice, deepen your practice. Repeat.

5.            With each message that you notice in the environment, breathe in that new thing that you have noticed .E.g. I see a green hedge which was cut down last year but this year it has grown up again. I take this as a reminder that I can ‘grow back’, even thought I was cut down by my accident. This is a symbol of my resilience. I am going to focus entirely on that sense of being resilience for the next few moments.

6.            Express gratitude to the earth. Come out slowly, take your time going back into everyday awareness.