Streets of Gold?

It is funny for me to think now on the views I once held of heaven. I remember the description of heaven having streets of gold. Now I am sure that would be a beautiful site but what more would it be. I don't want streets of gold. Rather give me a sandy beach. Let me feel its grit between my toes. Let me see the calming movement of a lake or sea. Let me have the refreshing coastal air blow through my hair. That would be heaven to me. Or even give me a path in the forest. Let my feet trod on an uneven path full of nature's debris and undergrowth. Let me drink in nature and feel alive. Let me lose myself in the reality that all that is truly is one. That would be heaven to me.

One

“Believe me, my boy, ‘That’ which is the subtle essence in all that exists has its Self.
It is Brahman, Consciousness, Awareness, Reality, Love. It is Self and you are ‘That’!”
- The Chandogya Upanishad Part 12 verse 3
Truly you are That and I am That. We are united. There is no one who does not fit or belong. Everyone belongs and everyone fits. The truth is we are all One.

Bliss

Bliss is deep happiness. Bliss is the state of being full of joy. It is not like the simple forms of happiness that come in and out of our days. It is not just some momentary and fleeting emotion, rather bliss is our innate possession. It is the natural state that belongs to us when we choose to be awake to God. The union of our spirit with Her spirit is bliss. The feeling of deep completeness that is so positive that nothing else around you matters. This is bliss. The best part is that this wonderful reality and this liberating state is easily accessible. When we focus our hearts and minds on God and come to the place where we forget the distractions around us, we can enter into this state.

The Importance of Focus

The mind is like a man peering out the window of his city apartment that overlooks a busy street. All day the street is filled with activity. The man may passively watch the things happening in front of him or he may choose to focus his eyes on one item. Even though he can see what is going on around him, the happenings are not his. He is simply an observer. The mind is similar. Every moment that we are awake the brain is flooded with information. Perpetually our minds are barraged with information and feed back from our environment. Most thoughts do not come simply from our own conjuring. They represent our awareness of what we are sensing around us and within us. We choose to interpret this data. Some thoughts we have inform us and help us, while others can derail us. Anxious thoughts birthed from stress and fear often pass through our minds. These futile thoughts can clear our mind but in their negative fashion make our hearts cower. Doubts come to mind and cripple our ability to improve ourselves. The more we entertain negative thoughts the more we begin to internalize their ideas. We begin to see them as our own thoughts and they shape our identities. Yet the mind need not be like this. The mind is at our control. We can choose to focus it on the thoughts that we desire. We do not have to waste any moment on passing thoughts of doubt or fear, rather we can redirect our thinking to positive things. Most importantly we can focus our attention on God. We can make Her our focus. When we purposefully reject negative thoughts and replace them with purposeful thinking about God, we give rise to our spirits. Only then can we be awake to God.

Mystical Union: At The Heart of it All

Mystical union is spiritual communion with God.
Mystical union is the unspoken desire of all.
Mystical union is the underlying aspiration of the human soul.
Mystical union is what gives life.
Mystical union is what connects our souls to divine joy and peace.
Mystical union transcends all other rites and rituals of religion.
At the heart of most religions is the desire to find meaning, truth, and God. These faiths have paved roads with ritual, liturgy, and dogma. Yet the destination is simple. The destination is not far away. The destination is found where our spirit unites with God's Spirit. This is not a reality that needs to be obtained but only recognized and embraced. We are spirits living in a greater Spirit who pervades everything. There is no escaping this great being. Our connection point is our own spirit which is connected to Him. This connection point is where we can know God. Connecting with God, our spirit with His Spirit, is mystical union.

Spiritual Aspirations After a Non-Victorious Day

Like a small amount of water sloshing in a hollow barrel so is the yearning soul at the end of a non-victorious day. Each day starts new and bright and is filled with potential. The potential for accomplishing tasks and for personal growth dangles each dawn like grapes on a vine waiting to be picked. Yet from the moment you awake, you are faced with a choice. How will you begin? Should you rush into the needs and activities of the day or should you immediately retreat into God through the prayer and meditation. The former will easily oblige your choice and fill your day with momentary purpose. The latter can transform your course. This choice will change you and hence reshape your focus for the day. Sleep has refreshed your body and now the spirit needs refreshing. The former may allow you to start accomplishing needed tasks right away but the latter will give you true meaning in what you do even if in the end it accomplishes less. The former often ends in defeat and the latter can lead us to victory. None of this is to imply that you cannot start out your day wrong and midstream turn it around, but strong discipline is a matter of consistency and not a crisis response.
So this day ends for me, a day of activity. Soon after waking up, I rushed into activities until finally this evening the reality hit me. For all of the tasks I have completed, I have not grown. My barrel is not filled (not even half way). My soul is not aflame with passion for my God. Rather I am tired. My soul feels empty. My soul yearns for what it has missed out on all day. I yearn for the spiritual life that is found in God. This day was not victorious. Yet it is not without value. Besides the many busy tasks I did accomplish, I learn from what reminds me. The yearning I feel at this moment teaches me to choose a better start tomorrow.

The Punctuation Mark of Humanity???

I love question marks! Although in life it is exclamation points and periods that I seek, it the question mark that I hope describes me. I want to know truth. I want to find facts. Treasures of truth exist in periods and exclamation points. They are golden nuggets of wisdom that teach us about the true nature of life and reality. They are simple and profound statements. Yet in order to find them, I need question marks. This inquisitive mark is what leads me to them. It is this interrogating sign that ensures me when I have found what I seek. This is important because the other signs can sometimes deceive. Lies, misunderstandings and half truths are also packaged with periods and exclamation points. They are like fool's gold. They can be signs of a closed mind. This is not the case with the beloved question mark. It is the voice of study. It is the symbol of open-mindedness. Some day I hope my knowledge is in periods and exclamation points. I hope that I will be full of the wisdom of the ages but for now I am a learner. I am growing. Curiosity births question marks and these allow my thoughts to take wing. Question marks allow me understand. Yet this tool of punctuation is not just my symbol, it is the symbol of us all. Some would like to believe that this is not the truth. Their minds and hearts are filled with periods and statements of belief. However, in my life I have not encountered any infallible sages. This means that we all share this mark. All of us are growing and learning. We all are on a journey and it is this punctuation point which alone can lead us to our destination.

I Choose to be Awake

I am not sure about you but for me life can easily carry me. There is so much to do. There are so many things that I feel I must be concerned about. Busyness can be the rhythm of your life. Yet the things I care the most about quickly fall to the side. I do not want that. I cannot settle for that. I choose to not let that happen. Right before me at this very moment is God. She surrounds me and is through every molecule that makes up me. In spite of all of the troubles and pressures before me, there is a greater reality. There is a loving God inside me and throughout everything. I will not let the reality of my busyness make me lose sight of the ultimate reality. I choose to be awake to God, who is ever with me. I choose to be aware of her presence. She is the artistic source of us all. She is peace. She is happiness. She is my greatest support. Today, I choose to be awake to her.