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Blessings, Lisbeth. As spirit beings in a human body, we often find ourselves confronted with the difficulty of being human. Life on this planet brings its valleys, its trials and its grief. Our physical bodies feel physical pain, the aging process and exhaustion, our emotions feel abandonment, hopelessness and estrangement. Life can be hard. Meanwhile, our culture promotes the illusion of what life should be like. We yearn for the fantasy of becoming rich, forever youthful, famous and loved. That's why we worship sports heroes or watch TV shows like American Idol or The Bachelor. But life is not like television or the movies. When we're confronted with failure or rejection, those dreams are destroyed. This is where the use of alcohol or recreational drugs comes in. If you've been living in an illusory world and someone wakes you up with a cold dose of reality, our natural reaction is to want our dreams back. Drugs and booze ease the pain and allow the user to re-enter that dream-world state. That is why you see what you call the “lost soul” look in your friends’ eyes. In fact, something very intrinsic to their wholeness is missing. For some who are disillusioned with life and are disconnected from their soul’s meaning and purpose, addictive substances allow an escape from their existential pain. Instead of searching for the light in spiritual or soulful endeavors, they look for “spirits” in the bottle. They use substances to attempt to fill a spiritual emptiness inside. The sense of ease, carefree attitude and reduced anxiety associated with addictive substances acts as a proxy for the true bliss, connection and peace of Spirit. The solution to the conundrum of being human can take two paths: One is to reconnect with the Sacred in Spirit. This can take the form of spiritual practices such as meditation, yoga, chanting, reading of sacred scriptures - seeking the Light of Spirit. Spiritual mentors or teachers can compassionately act as guide to reconnect with spirit. A spiritual healer can help by assisting the seeker to reconnect to their Higher self through developing energetic awareness and spiritual intention. The second path is to reconnect to the Sacred through soul-oriented activities. This approach is not outward and beyond ourselves, but rather an inward, downward process of encountering our soul. The soul is our true self, those qualities that most deeply define and express who we are and the unique contribution that we were born to bring to the world. This too is where a sense of community and joint intention to bring healing to the planet gives a sense of meaning and purpose. Often a soul-oriented psychotherapist or nature-based wisdom guide can assist on this journey to wholeness. To end, here is a poem by the thirteenth century poet Rumi:
We've lost our retirement funds, home, farm, beach home, cars, so called friends etc. But through all of this we have both become much more spiritual and aware of our surroundings. We have realized what is more important in life. In the next year or so we want to move to South America and do some type of work that will benefit the lives of others. It really hurts when you lose friends and family due to personal and financial losses. I guess my question is we've been going through these troubles
for the last 2 years. Is there something we still need to learn
from the hardship?
I don’t believe there is something you “need” to learn from the hardships. Saying that one “needs to learn” suggests that you brought these problems to yourself in some conscious, intentional way, and therefore must experience the learning from it as karmic justice. It is well to be leery of “blaming the victim” when negative events happen. Sometimes we misinterpret the message of books such as “the Secret” to create guilt and frustration for ourselves as the conscious creator of our own suffering. Spurred on by guilt we find ourselves looking over and over again to find the meaning behind life events. We end up exhausted, vaguely guilty and disconnected from the Source. Truth is, we may not know or find a meaning for why horrendous events occur. That does not mean that we allow ourselves to become passive recipients either. Sometimes in our relentless quest to find meaning in our suffering, we forget to allow ourselves the time to truly grieve our losses. To grieve is to honour that which you held dear -honour the energy you expended, grieve the missed opportunity that the loss of income might have offered, grieve the friends who could not act with compassion, grieve the old way of being that is now being called to a new way. Grieve the “home of belonging” as poet David Whyte speaks of, and realize that you are creating a new home of belonging that is not so much a physical home as a soul place in you. The act of grieving allows energy to move through and release, as opposed to being stifled and held in the body. Much joy, clarity and intentional action can ensue. Continue to live day by day. Grieve when it is time to grieve, move forward when the opportunities present themselves, offer compassion to those who make irrational judgements, surrender any sense of guilt, and replace it with a sense of responsibility. Think of the word Response – Ability. You have an ability to respond to what life has presented. Clearly you are already finding new pathways and a world view that includes making a difference in the lives of others. I salute your bravery. Live your dreams from the place of joy and expectation, rather than dread that more will happen. Your fear, guilt or shame will do nothing to stop life events. Your positivity, love, new energy and compassion will on the other hand create a way of being that will serve both you and others. Love and blessings on that journey, |
Have you wondered about the language
of soul? Do you struggle with spiritual concepts that seem too esoteric
and abstract? Is there a life crisis confronting you that obscures
your vision on the path? Do you long to walk a spiritual path but
feel confused? |
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