In the words of Saint Augustine, "Our whole business ... in this life is to restore to health the eye of the heart whereby God may be seen."
This quote carries a great deal of personal significance for me presently, but, I believe, also carries some worldly relevance in the wake of this unprecedented election here in the US. Whatever your version of God may be, I feel like He/She/It might be feeling a little more necessary, or at least comforting, in these uncertain times.
And if our business is to restore this eye of the heart in order to see God, then how might one go about doing that?
Well, one way is to redirect our awareness and our energy inside ourselves ... to begin to heal our psychospiritual selves ... and thereby to create a magnificent inner sanctuary in which the heart feels so supported and safe and sacred that it feels joyously awake and connected with the Divine.
In working with this very process myself, I have come to believe that there are six key ingredients to creating a truly magnificent inner sanctuary. These are ingredients which we all possess. In the immortal words of Huey Lewis and The News: "You don't need money. Don't need fame. Don't need no credit card to ride this train." You can do it where you are, and as you are.
To make a truly magnificent inner sanctuary takes the following:
Time – It doesn’t happen overnight. Just as the physical Self needs ample Time to heal dis-ease, so does the psychospiritual Self.
Commitment – It takes an active dedication and Commitment to the process to continue doing the necessary work when things start getting really real.
Forgiveness – It’s going to get hard if true healing is allowed to unfold. The ability to Forgive is paramount for continuing to delve into the darker, more neglected areas inside – Forgiveness of old transgressions (committed by Self and by Others), and Forgiveness of the Self for wanting to find distraction when the Work becomes difficult.
Silence – Sometimes it takes getting really quiet to hear our inner truths – especially the ones that we might not be so comfortable hearing.
Permission & Priority – This is a big one for me. I am someone who tends to focus on the needs of Others and to place a higher value on them than on my own. But, in order to really dig in and sort my internal affairs, I must first give my Self Permission to do so, and then place the highest Priority on that task. I must relinquish my hold on the desire to help others on their journeys and instead put most of my energies and resources on meeting my own Needs.
Love – Pain is what blocks us from flowing fully and freely in the Waves of Pranic Bliss that is all around us. Untended Pain is what most of us have buried deep within ourselves, until such a time comes when we feel strong enough to tend to it. Love provides that strength. Love allows us to tend to those old wounds. Love is the only sure tonic for Pain.
This is the lesson I’ve been dancing with most closely these past couple weeks: Only I am responsible for meeting my Needs, and I am NOT responsible for meeting anyone else’s needs. I might ask for assistance from others, but they are under no obligation to give it, nor are they obligated to give assistance in the way I am asking them to do.
And since my Feelings are generated as a direct reflection of whether or not my Needs are being met, then my power to meet my Needs also translates into my power to determine my emotional state. This is huge! No one else can make me happy. No one else can make me unhappy. No one else can bring me out of a swoon and into a foul mood. Only I can do that. And I can also undo it … by getting clear on what my Needs are and finding alternative paths to meeting them. I have the power! I am in control! I’m driving this train!
It's the same for you, too. Only you can determine how you see the world. Only you can determine how the world affects you. Only you can determine whether or how often you choose to see through the eye of the heart and view Divinity in all that surrounds you ... even the darker shadows. For it's only in contrast to the darkness that light's brilliance is unleashed.
I wish this gift for you: That you are able to awaken the eyes of your heart and see God. That Love and Light become the filters through which you express your Self and through which you interpret the world.