spirit

In the quiet of Spirit

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Like silence after noise, or cool, clear water on a hot, stuffy day, Emptiness cleans out the messy mind and charges up the batteries of Spiritual Energy. Many people are afraid of Emptiness, however, because it reminds them of Loneliness

~ Benjamin Hoff

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Seeking Solitude is a deliberate choice. Find a space or place to recharge your energy. Uplift your mind, body and spirit. Reawaken familiar yearnings. Find a place within where thoughts are free to stay. Or, go wherever one’s spirit desires. A flight of fancy, a soaring of the imagination. All this and more is possible when in quiet solitude. Look within to find your passion then paint your life in vibrant colors. Find your bliss; where heart dances to love’s sweet melody, where spirit gambols in delight.

Inner Self

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It is when you lose sight of yourself, that you lose your way. To keep your truth in sight you must keep yourself in sight and the world to you should be a mirror to reflect to you your image; the world should be a mirror that you reflect upon ~ C. JoyBell C.

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Until our Inner Self and Outer Self merges into one and becomes calm and centered, we will continue to pursue our seemingly elusive purpose in life. If there is to be any purpose to our life, we need to be able to make a connection with our Inner Self, our true Authentic Self. To know our Inner Self is to know our purpose, our values and beliefs and to be mindful of our thoughts and actions. We take our breathing for granted when in fact it is the means with which to reach our Inner Self. Through meditation and by practicing slow, deep, rhythmic breathing we are able to reconnect and be graced with an encounter with our Inner Self. That moment during meditation when our mind’s eye takes us to a place where we come face to face with our Inner Self is a most powerful and loving experience. To recognize and be recognized as one and the same and feel the embrace of our Inner Self, is pure Bliss.

As the Great Egret keeps sight of itself in the mirror-like swamp waters, it feels no fear or threat. The harmony between the bird and its reflection is where we need to be in mind, body and spirit. The Great Egret draws energy from its calm and in its stillness is embraced in a surround of golden Bliss.

Inner-Compass

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In these dark and uncertain times, there can be great value in imagining a bit of star in each human soul. Not just that it gives some hope for humanity at a time when man’s inhumanity to man seems ever on the increase; but also because it points to an inner brightness that can light the way in dark times  ~ Michael Meade

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In order to achieve Inner Brightness we need to Self-Love and with that comes Self-Respect. Self Respect fills every facet of our lives. It is the foundation for all of life’s Virtues. We should never compromise our Self-Respect for anything or anyone. Virtues are the essence of our being, our very Spirit. The more we realize the impact that living our lives with virtuous intention has on ourselves and those around us, the more we will open our hearts to love and compassion.

Like this Gondolier guiding his Gondola through the canals, towards the Sunset, so do we journey throughout our lives towards our Inner Brightness guided by our Inner Compass. Trust, Love and Respect your Self.

Lost on the Spiritual Path

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You may tell the greatest lies and wear a brilliant disguise, but you can’t escape the eyes of the one who sees right through you ~ Tom Robbins

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Lying is as easy for some people as breathing. However, we will all lie at some point in our lives.  Just be aware of the enormous spiritual damage that occurs to us when we do.  Big, Tall, White or Small… they are all lies. The issue is not just the lying itself. We have to uncover the reason that forces us to lie to others and especially to ourselves.  This reason could be driven by angst or ego.  Another reason could be being someone else’s disappointment. That in itself is reason enough to try and recreate oneself! All this does is create dark and negative energy. If you want to progress spiritually, then you will need to work on your ego, fear, anger or perhaps even regret. Basically anything that is crippling your Spirit.

We should all be able to look into a mirror and be comfortable with the eyes of the one who sees right through us.  Like the seemingly perfect reflection of a Sunset on a Lake. The undercurrent has created a distortion in what would have been a perfect V formation of migratory birds.  Follow Your Truth. It is a hard journey, but your Energy will be stronger for it.

 

Let your Inner Light Shine

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If you live in this world with kindness, if you don’t add to other people’s burdens, but if you try to serve love, when the time comes for you to make the journey, you will receive a serenity, peace and a welcoming freedom that will enable you to go to the other world with great elegance, grace and acceptance ~ John O’Donohue

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It seems that as we grow older, we become wiser in that we realize, finally,  that the simplicity of life is exactly that…  a state, a quality, an instance of consciously being that frees us from the complexities of life. Once we find our balance and free ourselves of the bonds that hold us hostage, we will find Love, Peace and Tranquility. The light within will grow brighter and guide us and those we touch, be it fellow humans or pets, who in turn will guide and teach us.

Animals, particularly domesticated dogs, live their lives with such dignity, loyalty and acceptance. They love unconditionally, trust unconditionally and their inner light shines through ever so brightly. Can we not learn from them? To serve Love unconditionally? What great Humans we could become, worthy of our place on this planet we call Earth.

This post is dedicated to Maggie Moo 10/26/2006 – 1/27/2020

A Window to the Spirit within

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The eye is the window of the soul; even an animal looks for a man’s intentions right into his eyes  ~  Hiram Powers

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Trust the spirit within so that your good intentions reflect in your face and, especially, in your eyes. The key to successful relationships lies solely in our ability to take in the perspective of another. It is that skill of being able to look at things from a point of view other than our own that we begin to create an all encompassing life which embraces mindfulness and compassion. We all see things differently but differences in perception should not alienate us.

We are all one and the same when it comes to Love.

Unlock your Life Purpose

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The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Sometimes we feel more comfortable securing ourselves within our innermost thoughts. All our emotions, mostly negative, are locked away in the darkest recesses of our minds. We have a padlock for each hurt, grudge, failure; each personal inadequacy. Sadly, with each padlock we take away our sense of purpose, our strength of spirit, our personal power. Therefore, it is imperative that we find a way to free ourselves of these inhibitions. We need to focus on Spirit, on Passion. We need to focus on Purpose. The unlocking of Purpose is essential to our health, to our happiness, to our physical and spiritual growth.

We need to smash the locks that hold us hostage. We need to break out of our self-made prisons and walk free, with Purpose and Meaning.

 

 

 

Spirit of Nature

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Thunder is no longer the voice of an angry god… No river contains a spirit… no snake the embodiment of wisdom, no mountain cave the home of a great demon. No voices now speak to man from stones, plants and animals, nor does he speak to them thinking they can hear. His contact with nature has gone, and with it has gone the profound emotional energy that this symbolic connection supplied ~ Carl Jung

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Maybe not. There are those of us out there who still try to preserve the spirit of Nature, if we would just use our inner energy and power of Thought. We live in a world of Illusion. Two worlds in fact. Day and Night.  We have laid claim to the Day whilst the night belongs to the animals, the creatures, the plants and Nature’s elements: Earth, Fire, Water and Air. Which is the real world? Most likely the one under cover of night. The one that lives in the moment.

We need to spend more time away from the cyber world we have created and find ways to let nature balance our lives.  We need to become more present minded. Everything in the ‘natural world’ lives in the moment whilst we tend to either live in the past or,  be constantly wishing ourselves into the future.

This quote was written by a man who was born in 1875 and died in 1961. It is now 2019. We need to prove him wrong. We need to make our personal connection with nature and the time is here and now.

Spirit of the Wind

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While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit bird before it flies away ~ Rumi

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Behold your Spirit and embrace it with unconditional love so that it may fly high on the wind. Even a cage sans bars has the power to hold us hostage.  We should not be a caged Spirit caught up in a Universe of limiting thoughts.  We are meant to be free.  To feel, to experience, to live, to love, to learn and, yes, to teach. We may feel as if we have no purpose at times but even the smallest of gestures, perhaps just once in a lifetime, will make a difference to some one or some thing. If we learn to love and be loved we will embrace our Spirit.

If we learn to love and be loved we will behold our Spirit.
Love is like a bird; it needs to soar!

Migratory Spirits

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Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving ~ Kahlil Gibran

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And so, how do we know when the time is right to follow our Spiritual Path? As with the migrant birds there is a voice within.  If only we would listen to it.  It whispers to us with such certainty as to when to take flight and even the direction with which to proceed. As migratory birds form a V to make their flight easier so then should we form our own V to ease our Spiritual Journey. If we live mindfully and strive for moral excellence, our V will take beautiful form.  Naturally encompassing the 12 Virtues.

Love, Humility, Perseverance, Respect, Honor, Sacrifice, Truth, Compassion, Bravery, Fortitude, Generosity and Wisdom.

If we lead with Love and fly with a Winged Heart, the rest will follow.