Is your Soul beckoning you?
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Is your Soul beckoning you?
We have all heard the phrase, ‘The sky’s the limit’, and it is usually said as a way of encouraging people to ‘follow their dreams’; a type of rah, rah-ing to let people know that you believe in them and their ability to get where they want to go and to not give up.
The implication is that with enthusiasm and optimism, you can overcome adversity and achieve your end goal. A sense of ownership and emphasis is placed on these goals and how we imagine we will get there. The stronger the conviction, the harder we strive for results, even if it means that our body is pushed beyond its limits – it’s all considered ‘character building’. Yet, as much as we applaud this way of living, we commonly experience a distinct lack of harmony and flow in our day-to-day life and most find that love, joy and truth are seemingly in limited supply.
Furthermore, apart from perhaps short bursts here and there, attaining any sense of inner stillness and settlement is simply deemed unrealistic and/or unnecessary because we are too busy ‘getting on with life’. We try and fill the gaps in a plethora of ways, be that alcohol and drugs (legal and/or illegal), through the use of technology, such as social media, through shopping, exercise and sport, work – both paid and unpaid and so forth. But while these strategies work at the surface level, deeper within us the unrest continues. In truth, what has happened is that we have lost our connection with the innate qualities of our Soul and can no longer ‘hear’ what it is communicating to us.
Interwoven with all our ideals and beliefs about how life should be is our quest to carve out a niche spot for ourselves. For most of us, our identity is based on various aspects of our lives such as: family heritage and traditions, gender, appearance, skin colour, nationality, cultural group, health and level of education, skillset, qualifications and career. We subsequently use such benchmarks as a way to measure our success in life, be that by way of a marriage and children, as a carer for others who cannot, or need additional assistance to look after themselves, material wealth, holding a position of formal or informal high standing in the community, or perhaps as someone who reaches a pinnacle in a particular niche area, be that in sport, music, arts, politics, or in whatever field draws recognition and public attention. Maybe it is at the other end of the spectrum through being a career criminal who continually calculates how to successfully evade the law and ‘get away with’ their illegal behaviours! Regardless of our focus point, we find ourselves on a treadmill, endlessly trying to find new ways to navigate through the complex, dense maze of what we refer to as ‘everyday life’.
What we usually don’t consciously realise is that the harder we strive to build a certain type of setup for ourselves, the narrower our ability becomes to sense and feel what is going on in the world. In other words, we shut down our clairsentience and with it our direct line of communication with our Soul.
Our world shrinks down to a conglomeration of beliefs, ideals and expectations we have absorbed and hold dear that, subtly and not so subtly, cap all our words and movements and feed us all sorts of thoughts about ourselves and others. It is a Soul-less, cold world where we live restricted by self-doubt, conviction, ownership and what we judge is good or bad, right or wrong. Any inkling of connecting with and transparently displaying our innate inner qualities is quickly shut down and treated as though they are foreign entities. No wonder exhaustion exists in pandemic proportions around the world!
For most, the aim is to continue on each day, seeking to better certain aspects of our lives so that we can enjoy what we classify as ‘a good, comfortable life’. Our achievements are used as a way of measuring our worth and serve as proof that we are contributing to the makings of a ‘decent’ society. If we are not causing any disturbing ripples in our community, and are obeying the rules and financially living within our means and paying our bills etc., we are deemed to be good, law-abiding citizens who are doing the right things. So, with our ‘encouragement award’ tucked under our arm, on we go, trying to keep everything running as smoothly as possible, yearning for anything that promises to make life easier, while outwardly focused on ‘looking the part’ that we feel is expected of us. We have learnt from an early age that protecting the status quo is a ‘must’, often without us realising what is happening. And even if we do, it seems that it is a price worth paying.
Growing up, comments or rewards and punishments are meted out according to the standards, values and beliefs of those around us, who themselves have already become socially conditioned by the expectations they have absorbed to that point in their lives. It is very common to find that anything that gives clear clues as to the unique power and magnificence we each have within our essence, i.e., our Soul, are quickly quashed from early childhood and on into adult life. In Australia particularly, people dare not shine too brightly for fear of the ridicule that they will be flooded with by people around them. The ‘tall poppy syndrome’, as it is known, makes sure that children and adults alike ‘know their place’, which is to remain hidden somewhere within the pack, or be swiftly met with a hostile ‘how dare you – who do you think you are!’ response.
We quickly learn that staying within the permitted limits set by family groups, cultural, legal, educational, health, scientific, economic and political systems, and underpinned by various mainstream religious sectors, pays off as it tends to keep us safe from rejection and abandonment by others around us.
Furthermore, if that is not enough, the media, especially social media, is quick to demonise anyone who does not conform to expectations. As we move from one life stage to the next, everyone learns where the boundary lines, both visible and invisible, have been drawn – and if we step over the line, there is always someone or something ready to castigate us for our ‘carelessness’.
So, having learnt our lessons well, the drive to gain external approval becomes even further entrenched as we focus on improving the exterior picture we present to those around us. It’s an endless ‘bettering ourselves’ process that drains our life force, and there is no end point where we can feel we have ‘made it’ as the goal posts keep moving. And all the while we find ourselves caught in a juggling act with how to obtain our dreams and desires while staying within the limits we can feel we must abide by to ‘fit in’ with family, friends and the rest of society.
We may rebel in small ways, such as binge on junk food or ‘have a big night out’ with alcohol and drugs, or languish on the lounge for a day watching a screen of some description. But overall, we know what types of behaviour are excusable in the eyes of society and will be written off as being OK and a justified way of having a bit of ‘fun’ or ‘me’ time’, versus what will be frowned upon and forcefully condemned, for example, through words, looks, gestures, ostracising and/or imposing financial repercussions. We feel every bit of the criticism energetically and perhaps temporally, leaving us feeling unsettled and commonly drowning in blame, self-doubt and self-loathing.
We succumb to the enormous forces on us to stay within the accepted markers of what society deems as ‘normal’ everyday life. We don’t even think to question this model of life, yet it exerts control over our lives with a vengeance. Our sense of ‘who we are’ becomes even more fractured and centred around gaining recognition and identification based on tangible outcomes and achievements. Is it any wonder that rates of poor physical and mental health and wellbeing, family abuse and violence and drug and alcohol use are rising, and that the state of the world in terms of conflicts, corruption, greed and human trafficking are all as prolific as ever when life has become so intense?
Meanwhile, our connection with our Soul is pushed further and further into the background. But does this matter and if so, what can we do about it?
We all know the joy we feel when we witness the curiosity and wonderment that a baby or young child shows in the people and environment around them. We can’t help but smile when a baby looks at us wide-eyed and full of transparency. Who they are in their essence is on full display without any sense of needing to apologise for their natural spark and, unless in threatening circumstances, there is an openness to having a warm, non-judgmental and expectation-free relationship with those around them. But we lose this ability to feel free and willing to let the love we innately are out and similarly, let the love of another in and instead get caught in trying to meet all the demands of the world around us. The restrictions imposed on us both temporally and energetically, are huge; when, where, what and how we are to think, speak, eat, drink, sleep, move, spend our money, undertake study or work, vote, drive a car, have sex etc., and in our desire to be a recognised as a ‘good’ person, we don’t dare challenge the status quo.
Sometimes the response to this pressure is to try harder to better ourselves and at other times, it seems easier to give up and withdraw. Yet, whichever way we turn we find that this way of living has become ‘normal’. It is all regarded as ‘just life’, yet while there are moments of elation which we put down to ‘luck’, ‘chance’, ‘good genes’, ‘intelligence’ etc., there is still a base point where we can feel that the life we are living is ‘not it’. Most don’t dare admit it, but they can sense that there is something missing; something that is hard to name and quantify, yet nonetheless its presence is felt. What if this nameless substance we can feel is our Soul inviting us to re-connect so that we can become whole once again?
Where has that young, loving, playful and joyful child gone – the one who often confounded those around them due to the remarkable innate wisdom and intelligence that shone through at times and made others wonder and perhaps half jokingly remark that it seems like they are an ‘old Soul’ and have been here before in a previous life? What if energetically all the exquisite Soulful qualities that we had as a baby or young child remained untarnished inside of us, and were only hidden from sight due to that natural spark being progressively shut down through the demands of the external world that is quick to condemn or praise on the basis of whatever society deems is an acceptable benchmark for attitudes and behaviours. The vast majority of us have learnt to live a functional existence, but at the expense of losing a connection with our Soul.
Living in alignment with the Soul is actually our true ‘normal’. This is where we will find a compass for living that is only ever pointing to true north. It never lies or gets caught in comparison or competition or in calculating the next move we need to make to prove ourselves in some way. Our Soul is constantly ready and waiting to confirm every speck of Divine grandness that we each innately have in our essence. It is a sacred, limitless space that is untouchable by the outside world and is ever ready to lovingly offer us access to the ageless, ancient wisdom and intelligence that no mainstream school or educational institution can provide. There is no substitute for The Ageless Wisdom we have all come from and this wisdom remains forever accessible when we open ourselves to what our Soul is communicating to us.
"Look beyond your imperfections, for there is a grandness that cannot always be seen; but it is there, ceaselessly looking after you with all its Divine love."
Serge BenhayonTeachings & Revelations for The Livingness Volume III, ed 1, p 60
Our body is the conduit through which we can access our Soul. When we allow ourselves to stop what we are doing and simply focus on our breathing and what we can feel as we move our attention from one part of the body to the next, we begin to feel a stillness inside that calls us to let go and simply allow our body to lead the way. The more we learn to do this, the more we gradually start to tune into what is being communicated to us from the inside out rather than the other way around, which is how the majority of humanity lives. We are re-learning to live with body, Soul and mind all working together in harmony, i.e., accessing, moving and communicating with multidimensional love, wisdom and intelligence, just as we did when we were a baby. So, do we continue to live under the domination of the external world – or do we return to our true home, i.e., the limitlessness of our Soul and to the grand spaciousness it offers?
It does take commitment to realign ourselves back to this true way of living and we do need to do a stocktake of our lives and be prepared to discard all the extra baggage we have accumulated over the years, including letting go of any sense of needing to prove our worth to ourselves and those around us. We have tried living that way and eagerly sought the promised rewards of energetic, physical, material, spiritual and mental safety and security, but in the long run the results have been woeful for us and society in general. It initially offers an effective distraction away from the sense of unsettlement and lack of stillness we can feel deep within – but there is always an end point and then we are back on the hamster wheel again …
Only we can change our movements so that they are in alignment with a life that is responsive first and foremost to our Soul. Some may feel ready, while for others, making any changes in how they live feels too risky to contemplate, in which case they continue on with life as per usual. However, for those who can feel the energetic pull to embrace a more wholesome way of life and are willing to take responsibility for how they are living, Soul-filled magnificence awaits them.
There will always be moments where we slip back to old ways, especially if they promise quick relief or a reward of some description. But when connected with the Soul we are able to simply observe them for the distraction that they are, and then refocus our movements so that we get back on track again. The bonus is that the more consistent we become in connecting with our body, the deeper the connection we develop with our Soul and we discover just how universally magnificent and limitless we really are – and that is both inspiring and worth celebrating at any age!
"The connection to myself is not something I “go and do” outside somewhere in nature, or in any specific seated position, it is a way of living – a conscious awareness of what quality I choose to carry myself in and thus, what quality will be brought to all of my actions. There are millions of different ways to express yourself in your day, going about the daily routine, in a connected awareness to what can be known as the true essence of who you innately are. This for me is Religious, the living practice of connection – anywhere, any time, any place – a living practice of connection that is equally available to all."
Natalie Benhayon (2015) cited in Esoteric Teachings & Revelations Volume II, ed 1, p 571
Filed under
Empowerment, Essence, Responsibility, Self-worth, Soul
