Perfection

Many religions and spiritual practices teach that to be spiritual is to focus on the divine, treating the material world and all it has to offer as illusion or ungodly temptation. This is often interpreted to mean that focusing on and enjoying many aspects of material existence such as money and the pleasure of a physical body is unspiritual or even evil. This teaching and way of living stems from dualistic thinking: from the belief that the material and spiritual are separate. It is difficult, maybe even impossible to grow spiritually if spirituality is something “out there,” separate from your body, thoughts, emotions, and every other aspect of your life.

The spiritual path, to me, is experiencing the divine in every aspect of the material. It is about going deeply into my experience as a human being and getting in touch with my divinity and the divinity in everyone and everything. This transforms the feelings of separation and of lack into wholeness and empowerment. Being human is a great tool for spiritual growth. We have so much juicyness to explore and work with!

Want to explore? Here are a few things you can try:

Tune into your body. Find a part of your body to appreciate. It could be any part, internal or external, large or small. I recommend starting with something you might not ordinarily consider, such as the crook of your elbow, your inner ear, or your blood. Gently place your awareness there, with a sense of wonder and awe. By approaching whatever comes to your attention with wonder, awe, you will experience increasingly more wonder and awe, leading to new perspective.

Once you can easily do this with your body, try it with a belief. Start with something that does not have a strong negative “charge” for you. For example: choose a food you love and work with the belief that it tastes good, or think of a close friend and work with the belief that you enjoy being around them. Gently place your awareness on the belief, with a sense of wonder and awe. Next time you eat that food or see that friend you might notice an enhanced ability to experience with more openness and depth.

As you develop your ability to work with your beliefs, you can then use it to experience the divine in beliefs that are triggers. Do you hear political news and feel angry at what someone says or does? Is there a situation at work in which you feel powerless and angry? A financial difficulty? Do you have emotional baggage or limiting beliefs about money, your appearance, your worth, your ability to meet your needs and/or provide for your family?

Whatever you choose to address, by experiencing it with wonder and awe, you can tune into the spiritual foundation of the material. Beyond the perceived challenges and limitations of the material world viewed from separation, is a place of peace, wholeness, acceptance and perspective- an experience of your own perfection embodied. It will change your life and the world.

Copyright 2009 Linda White Dove
http://www.lindawhitedove.com (for more articles)