be the change - tread the path

 

A couple of days ago I wrote an article explaining how I felt a little lost and in search of Guidance entitled ‘Where are the Messages, Teachers and Guides?’. Intially I wrote it for myself as I have some success with Automatic Writing but by the end nothing had ‘come through’ and I decided to post it on the site as a sign to others that we all hit these moments on our solitary Spiritual journey’s and that they are not alone in feeling that way.

Almost instantly (the fastest response by comment I’ve ever received) people were taking the time to respond and offer advice and direction. I was about to respond to each of them in the comments section of that post but in the middle of doing so I received a ‘nudge’ to reply in another article - this article. In doing so I’ll respond to the comments and at the same time give out a little Link Love to those wonderful people who took the time to join in.

First up was Mike from ‘The Absent Mind’ who called by 38 minutes after I posted the article to let me know he’d been there himself with a P.S. to ‘Trust myself….’. Nothing remarkable there you might say until I followed the link over to Mike’s site and read the two latest articles.

In them he describes how to ‘Fall apart Gracefully’ and how he has ‘hit a wall’ with his own Spiritual Development. Both beautifully written articles which describe his own Spiritual journey and his arrival at a place of ‘Nothing’. The articles are well worth reading and I’d like to share the following extract as I’m sure. like me, many of you have been, or are currently going through many of the circumstances Mike describes here.

I once heard one of my teachers say that an important skill for spiritual cultivators to learn is how to fall apart gracefully. What did he mean by that?

Well, perhaps if you are a seeker yourself, you at least recognize the “falling apart” aspect. You may have already experienced one or more of the following in the course of your awakening: emotional breakdown, mental breakdown, financial crisis, loss or upheaval of a significant relationship, health issues, loss of a job or angst over your career, or questioning just about everything concerning your existence.

In fact, if you are serious enough about spiritual cultivation that you will give anything to realize the Truth, then if you haven’t already, I guarantee that you will eventually experience all of these challenges at some intensity from mild to severe.

Next up was a really great friend of mine, now more like my big sister, who always has a kind word of encouragement for everyone she meets - Debs from ‘Deb_Inside’. Debs actually took the time to comment twice and although the kindness and love of the first message was very welcome it is the second message which I’d like to focus on.

Debs wrote;

It’s a new day and still this post of yours has stayed with me. Perhaps it’s not only your written words, but the disturbance of your spirit that is with me.

Teachers come in all forms. Not only the calm spirit who offers sage wisdom, but also the one who cuts you off in traffic and then offers a finger salute back to you.

Look long at these ones who cause you frustration, because there is some life
lesson that coming upon them has meant to teach you.

Debs is an amazing empath and has had to withdraw her connection from Spirit on many occassions because she feels ALL of the emotion. The last two lines spoke most to me as I have been asking Spirit why I keep coming across people who frustrate me? - and from a Spiritual point of view that’s an easy one to answer - because I’m frustrated myself.

One of the Universal Laws is that you will attract what you send out but that doesn’t make it any easier to overcome. How do you stop being frustrated when the things that are frustrating you are the elusive tools that you feel you need to move forward in your journey?

This again brings me back to my initial question of ‘Where are the messages, Teachers and Guides?’. To overcome the frustrations I need confirmations from those of you who have broken through the wall and suggestions of methods that I can have a go at myself. 

Following Debs was a wonderful message from Patricia from ‘Spiritual Journey of a Lightworker’ who is new to the Spiritual Blogging community but writes totally from the heart with passion and sincerity. I strongly recommend you check out her site.

The past 10 years of my life have been some of the hardest because I am supposed to listen to my own inner teacher. The little kid is my gets jumping up and down, throwing a tantrum mad because she wants another teacher to come along and tell her what to do. It hasn’t happened.

I went to India in 1999 to be told, go home and listen to your inner teacher. Circumstances were such, that before I left India, my outer teacher was no longer my teacher. It is so easy to trust others over that of our inner voice.

That is one of the reasons that I write and that my blog has come into being. What I have learned is that each article that I write for others is really written for me, for my healing. I am learning to trust my inner teacher.

As I listen more, more comes my way. It is not selfish to put yourself first on a Spiritual level. An empty vessel has nothing to give anyone. Fill yourself to full first before offering it to others.

Damian,trust yourself. You really do have all of your answers. If you constantly give to others and don’t leave anything for yourself, you not only become empty but you begin to resent those that you are giving to. I have been there, done that. It was a very painful message for all concerned.

Love yourself as others already do.

This was very timely and incredibly insightful as I have been looking into the possibility of going away for a week to a Spiritual retreat but I’m now questioning if this will give me the opportunity to move forward. But distancing myself from my family is not something I want to do. ‘Take them with you’, I hear you cry - and I’d certainly Love to but finances are incredibly tight for us and a holiday of any kind is way out of our reach right now.

I thank Patricia for stating that it’s OK to put yourself first, this is a part of me that I have real difficulty with. Putting others first is something that makes me feel good, and yes I know it also allows me the opportunity to escape from myself but everyone needs to escape now and then. There are many other ways that I could do this which would be detrimental to me, my family and my Quest so I’ll stick withing helping people.

But yes Patricia I agree, I’ve been there too and have spent the last ten years or so representing people as my job but I let this all go a few months ago as I no longer cared about their successes and this was having an impact on my own life leaving me hollow and searching for direction.  

The next person that came along was Steve who has only recently entered the Blogging world with his very promising site RaisingConsciousChildren.com.

Steve added;

stop looking. or rather stop pretending to be looking. you know what your next move is. we all know what the next move is.

are you worried others may not be ready for your next move?

whatever the reason you are being held up… you are creating it. if you have too many options to choose from then YOU are creating too many options.

figure out why you are creating so many options.

what is the real reason you are being held back?

you know your next move.

Again Steve’s words hit home ‘pretending to be looking’ - this isn’t a concept I’d even considered. If I’m pretending to be looking then this implies that I’m fearful of something, but what? And yes I am creating the options but only in relation to other people and not wanting to ‘put all my eggs in one basket’. I’m keeping my options open because I’m unsure of direction and how this new life will unfold.

When I read my Tarot cards and receive messages from fellow psychics they all relate to the same thing. They all say that I have a wealth of information and that it is now my time to become a Teacher and pass that info on to others. I do know my next move in a small way as I was ‘nudged’ to expand my Tarot and Medium readings beyond my own guidance and direction to offer them as a service for others.

I’ve been developing a new form of reading that provides the information in a much more accessible form but I’ve been hesitating how I should provide the Service. Do I include them on this site as a fixed fee service? or do I offer them on a ‘Donation for a reading’ basis? The latter fits better with me as it gives people the opportunity to pay what they can afford and also the chance to pay so much, then return with more once they have seen the quaility of the service.

So in a way, Steve, I AM worried others may not be ready for my next move? Very intuitive.    

The next supportive comment came from Nneka @ BalancedLifeCenter.com who stated;

I felt moved to comment. I’ve am where you are. Ever since I read the book Way of the Peaceful Warrior at 16, I’ve wanted a physical spiritual teacher. It’s been 16 years, Socrates still hasn’t shown up.

I am finding that I have to trust my Self to get the knowledge that I want. That it really is all in me. Sometimes, I go back to wanting a teacher and someone says the thing that I knew in my being as if the Universe is saying, “If you insist.”

You will find that place within. You are right there now, you just have to open to it and trust yourself. You really are that in tune with Spirit.

Excellent advice and given straight from the heart. The reference to Socrates brought an instant smile to my face and reminded me that you have to enjoy the journey and meet everything with good humour. I’m quite good at this on most occasions and my children act as a constant reminder that Life is about having Fun.

Another new friend Christy from ‘Christy’s blog | Blogging a road less traveled’ (gorgeous banner) wrote;

I read your words and feel like have written them. I have been where you are.

Recently, I realized that I had to live for me first. Your teacher is the “still small voice” inside of you. Trust it!

You must find your joy first and then share it with everyone. Stop thinking it is so difficult. Tell yourself it is EASY and all the answers will come flowing in. It is that simple.

This is the same advice I sent to a good friend a few weeks ago when they were struggling with getting organised - and how wrong could I have been. If someone can already do something then it will always seem ‘easy’ to them. I’ve been driving for twenty years and it’s second nature for me now but I still remember how lost I felt when I first sat behind the steering wheel.

Here’s an activity for you all to try to demonstrate the perception of ‘easy’. We’ll start with something that we all see as being easy but I know my kids had a great struggle with - Tying your shoelaces. Now write a set of instructions explaining how to Tie your Shoes - sounds ‘easy’ doesn’t it. Now post the instructions on here for us all to follow to the letter and let’s see if by emptying our minds and by following the instructions we’ll have a nicely tied pair of shoes.

I’ve tried this before and the answers are SO complicated and difficult to follow that you soon see that an ‘easy’ task is far from it.

But now I’ve said that Chrissy is totally right - if only I had the instructions for the first ‘connection’ and I spent time practising. But who has the instructions?

Then came this wonderful comment from Vitor (Sorry no link - do you have a site? You should!);

Who says you have to sit in meditation to communicate with yourself? All your life, every moment of it, is a spiritual experience. It seems you are drawing an aritificial distinction between the time you spend doing “spiritual activities” (such as meditation), and the time you spend “in real life”. Remember that everything you see is transformed by your unique point of view, and your inner wisdom shines through as you look at the daily occurrences in your life from a fresh perspective.

Whoever or whatever you see as a teacher, will be your teacher. You’ll find what you’re looking for in the most unlikely places. For example, some of the teachers I’ve learned from in the last couple of days:

-A corporate brainwash I had to sit through about being a good slave for my employer
-My irrationally violent cat
-A dream about a piece of meat
-Your blog (in a way you probably didn’t intend)

Keep your eyes, your mind and your heart open!

I’d like to thank Vitor for this as this is exactly what I’ve been doing. I see my signs in many forms but am still blind to many others. They come to me in recurring numbers, mainly Eleven and Twenty-two, and I noticed while putting together the first draft of this article it automatically saved at 22:44 so took that as a sign that this was an important article to complete.

I also take notice of recurring pieces of music and once I receive reference to the same song three times over a day or two I take the time to look up the lyrics and see what they have to say.

But that just lets me know that they are around but I’m still lacking in the flashes of inspiration and real ‘messages’. What other ways do your Guides speak to you so I can keep an eye out for those signs too?

Vitor, I’d love you to expand on the four examples as they sound totally fascinating. You’re welcome to Guest Author on here or post on your own Blog but please let me know the link so I can include it in the next installment.

And then finally (for Now) another message from a beautiful person who has been a companion on my journey since it began - Nathalie from ‘One Life Among The Many’

Going through the same thing here too

I’ve been sending out all my questions into the universe first, asking for guidance and then getting upset that after a while I still didn’t know what to do…but I noticed that once I stopped looking for the answers, the answers would come in ways I wasn’t expecting them; from deep within myself.

I don’t consider people my teachers, but I do see many as helpers - everyone guides everyone in one way or the other. It may not seem as anything at first, but everything has an effect on our live, as ripples in the water, hardily visible at first but then becoming clearer.

Nathalie covers the Spiritual concept of Surrender and something I do when I feel that I’m hitting a wall - ‘If you do not know what to do, then do nothing’ but in doing so Nathalie has tapped into the poet within her to explain this concept with her wonderful water analogy.

I’ll leave it there for now as I’m really interested in what you all have to add or what you’ve seen in each others comments. If you wish to comment then that would be great but if you have more to add then please use the Contact Form and I’ll include it in Part Three.

Take care and a million thanks to all of you for your wisdom and support,

Damian