Awakening to the still small voice within. An introductory look at where we're headed.

Adrift in the World

Humanity is facing a crisis, aimlessly adrift in a sea of hostility, greed and selfishness, growing ever-increasingly discontent with life. All around us, people are longing for something better, a better way to live, greater happiness, lasting peace and a more fulfilling life.

All of these problems are caused by a lack of understanding of our own true purpose, lack of attention to the still small voice within, and the resulting rift which that lack of understanding has caused between our body and soul. In the calm pure depths of your own heart there is a fountain of truth, love and understanding, a wondrous flow of supreme guidance which is far greater than anything that the rational mind has to offer.

In these chapters, this fountain of truth, this flow of supreme guidance will be called Divine Presence, but please, dear reader, do not be distracted by any particular name. Some may choose to call it True Nature, or Truth, or Sat Nam, or Buddha-Nature, or Ruh, or Spirit of Guidance, or Ruach, or Holy Spirit... but the name does not really matter, words are only metaphors which help us to recall something. All that truly matters is that one remembers their own true nature and finds a way to allow the Divine Presence, that still small voice within, to be the very foundation for every moment of one's life.

This series of articles will strive to provide tools and encouragement to re-unite your body and soul, empowering you to fully embody your own true purpose in life: a life filled with love, harmony and beauty.

The Calm Depths

Beneath the ever-changing waves and turbulent surface of the sea, there is an abiding peaceful calm which permeates the depths. Similarly, each human being has a turbulent surface (the ego), and calm abiding peace deep within (Divine Presence).

The word "Divine" is used here to emphasize that this calm abiding peace which is found deep within the heart of every person is something which far surpasses mere excellence and defies simple description, it is a brilliantly radiant inner source of beautiful traits such as loving-kindness, generosity, joy and compassion. For those who believe in a Supreme Being, the Divine Presence may be seen as radiant attributes of that One, our connection to the All-Mighty One, and might be called Holy Spirit. For those who believe otherwise, the Divine Presence can simply be seen as the ultimate of ideals for the guidance of mankind.

When one lives primarily on the surface, life seems to be a source of great suffering due to the disorder and commotion of the ego, but when one lives primarily in the calm peaceful depths of the heart, all of life is filled with the abiding peace and profound tranquility of the Divine Presence.

Life is not about "you" or "me". That is, life is not about the little self, the ego, which most people mistakenly identify as "me". In truth, life is about the unfolding, blooming, and free expression of the true Self, the depth of the heart, the Divine Presence within.

Learning to see the difference between the turbulent surface (the ego) and the calm depths (the Divine Presence) in one's own life is often called awakening, and is truly a pivotal point in one's spiritual evolution. After learning to see the activity of the ego, one can begin to rise above it.

The little self, the ego, can be a formidable barrier between the worldly realm and the spiritual realm, which is to say, between the body and the soul. In those who are excessively preoccupied with, or attached to, the self-centered concerns of the ego, the ego acts like a veil or obstruction between body and soul, causing the Divine Presence to be veiled or obstructed. As soon as the obstruction is removed, the Divine Presence will begin to flow more freely into one's worldly life, bringing love, harmony and beauty to every situation.

Here are two fundamental steps which lead toward living in harmony with Life's Purpose, the wedding of body and soul:

1) Rise Above the Ego: Rise above any excessive preoccupation, attachment, or identification with any self-centered thoughts or concerns of the ego.

2) Abide in Calm Awareness: Strive to live in a continuous state of calm awareness wherein the still small voice within, the Divine Presence, can be heard and followed in the present moment, thereby bringing love, harmony and beauty into every situation.

To experience the divine union of body and soul, thereby finding lasting peace and happiness, one must rise above excessive preoccupation with the never-satisfied, self-centered, divisive ego and aspire to embody the tranquil, ever-present, all-inclusive Divine Presence.

Student: Sir, if one gave up the I, nothing whatsoever would remain.

Ramakrishna: I am not asking you to give up all of the I. you should give up only the "unripe I." the "unripe I" makes one feel: "I am the doer. these are my wife and children. I am a teacher." Renounce this "unripe I" and keep the "ripe I" which will make you feel that you are God's servant, his devotee, and that God is the doer and you are His instrument.

Sri Ramakrishna

Only the word "I"
   separates me from God.

Yunus Emry

Finding Purpose

The true purpose of your life is the conscious and free expression of the Divine Presence in the unique manner by which you, and only you, are divinely empowered to bring the love, harmony and beauty of Divine Presence into this world.

God is within you; you are His instrument, and through you He expresses Himself to the external world.

Bowl of Saki, Hazrat Inayat Khan

Now when he was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them and said, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you."

Gospel of Luke 17:20-21

When the wind blows, we cannot see the wind, yet we know of it's presence and its movement by the visible signs such as ripples on the water and leaves blowing about. Similarly, the still small voice within is the ultimate comforter and nourisher, one who is unseen, yet who is known by the visible signs and revealed gifts. 

If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray to the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

Gospel of John, 14:15-17

Living in harmony with Divine Presence does not mean that we should ignore the inspired dreams and selfless desires which can bring well-being into the world, but rather that we should fuel those dreams and desires with Divine Presence, not personal attachment.

This profound change of focus, from self-centered to selfless, does not mean that we should reject progress such as personal improvement, or scientific achievements, but rather that we should pursue such progress empowered by Divine Presence, realizing that our greatest potential will be realized when we are in harmony with, and acting as an instrument of, the Divine Presence.

Awakening to Divine Presence, the Still Small Voice Within

The foremost obstacle to one's own lasting happiness is the belief that true happiness is dependent upon fulfilling some worldly desire. For example, in seeking happiness some may accumulate material possessions, or strive for power, or pursue fame, or hunger for certain relationships, or blindly follow man-made authority. However, true happiness is only found while following the still small voice within, the Divine Presence.

Blinded by craving ... fool that I am, I desire the cause of suffering. When suffering emerges due to my own fault, why should I be angry with anyone else?

Shantideva, tr by Vesna and B. Alan Wallace

That is, true happiness, enduring happiness, is not found by chasing after or clinging to anything in this world. True happiness is only found when one rises above desire, above clinging attachments, and arrives in a state of acceptance and harmony with what is.

There is nothing inherently wrong with progress and advancement, they are natural and desirable. Nonetheless, our greatest problems arise when we cling to our worldly desires, worldly thoughts and worldly attachments, thereby causing immense suffering for ourselves and for others.

We need to be in this world, yet never forget that we are not of this world. That is, although we are participating day-by-day in this ephemeral physical realm, the greatest of strength, guidance and happiness only arises from the eternal spiritual realm.

I am eating the bread of this world,
      and doing the work of that world.

Rabi’a al’Adawiyya

The challenge for those who are ready to awaken from their routine of daily dissatisfaction and unsettled slumber in this world, is to rise above the primitive reptilian brain, rise above the animal self, rise above all such divisive layers of self-deception, and awaken to the realization of the Divine Presence within, which is all that truly matters.

It is not very important to distinguish between two opposites. What is most important is to recognize that One which is hiding behind it all... seeing One in all things, in all beings.

The Smiling Forehead, Hazrat Inayat Khan

Some may call it rising above, others may call it diving into the depths, yet regardless of the metaphor, such awakening to the Divine Presence leads to a magnificent new viewpoint wherein all of life is consciously arising from One Life, and wherein all that we see in this world is inextricably intertwined because there is truly but One Life manifesting as many.

How can one explain spiritual progress? What is it? What is it like? Spiritual progress is the changing of the point of view.

Sufi Mysticism, Inner Study, Hazrat Inayat Khan

All too often, mankind today is discontentedly languishing in the pathetic state of not knowing how to find happiness and relying upon what other people tell us to do. Such dependence upon external guidance from others is one of the most urgent problems facing mankind at this point in this world's evolution. True happiness and a sense of great purpose in life are only found deep within, yet the outside voices such as advertisers, bosses and government all expect (and often demand) that we all become unaware, little more than mindless automatons, easily led from task to task, job to job, store to store, war to war, by their self-centered prompting.

Surely it was bad enough when it was merely a church or religious group trying to demand our subservience, but today our employers, the mass media, advertisers, and governments all strive to stifle the Divine Guidance and replace such profound insight with blind obedience to their self-serving dictums.

Throughout history, as the social order has begun to flounder, great mystics such as Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad have tried to chart a better course for mankind, a path of individual righteousness arising from individual communion with the Real, the Divine Presence within. The great mystics have all heard the still small voice within, a "knowing" which arises from the utterly silent depths of the heart, and so too must we learn to hear that same profound inner guidance if we are to evolve beyond mere animal behavior and awaken to our true potential.

Your purpose on earth is to manifest the Divine Presence in your own unique manner of expression, bringing love, harmony and beauty into the world in your own way. Each and every person is a unique creation, imbued with certain specific potentials which wish to ripen, blossom and flower in their own time and in their own manner.

Such divinely guided blossoming and flowering is your birthright, yet more and more we are duped by advertisers, governments, employers, and even friends into believing that our happiness depends upon on satisfying external demands, when in fact the greatest happiness can only be found by turning within, hearing the still small voice of the Spirit of Guidance which re-unites body and soul, and then, armed with that new-found footing upon which to stand, re-emerging into the midst of daily life with every step and every thought empowered by guidance from that still small voice, the Spirit of Guidance, the Divine Presence within.

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with love,
    wahiduddin

Nov 1, 2008