MUSIC: “The Source.mp3” by Alexander Bell.

Over the centuries, many wise people have reminded us that “Love is the ultimate reality” and in our hearts we know this is true. Yet it is difficult to experience this for ourselves from the place where we often find ourselves – in our mind. The mind is a place of dualism. It sees positive and negative, good and bad; the mind is a realm of separation and division. So, because of its dualistic nature, it is impossible for the mind to see the perfection of Reality, because it also sees imperfection.

So we cannot perceive the Highest Reality with our mind, because the Highest Reality is unified, singular, whole, perfect. In fact, it is everything. It is the Universe, the one reality, which some call ‘God’. Yet the mind splits up this ‘everything’ into many things. Our perspective then becomes limited as we focus upon these seemingly ‘many things’ and become attached to them and identified with them. We look for answers from them, we look for security from them, we look for fulfilment and satisfaction from them. But they cannot bring us what we want, because we want deep inside is wholeness. We want to experience a deep sense of completion. So then we must shift our perspective from its fixation with the many parts. We need to step back to see the whole that these many parts are part of. That whole is the True Reality, perceived not through the mind, but through the heart, and experienced through your entire being.

It is like an immense jigsaw puzzle. 
Our attention is so much fixated on the individual pieces, how they look, how they might be useful to us and what they might mean, that we forget that we are supposed to see the bigger picture, of which this tiny piece is just a part. That is our purpose, and we do this by stepping back and getting a greater perspective. Once we do this and we see the bigger picture, which is Reality, we realise that the jigsaw puzzle is already complete. It was never even incomplete. Our mind had simply created an illusion of separation, of incompletion due to our limited perspective. This is all that is needed to perceive Reality – a shift of perspective.

How do we do this? How do we ‘step back’? Where do we look from? 

From the deeper part of our being; from our heart. We step out of the mind and it’s realm of conceptual perception, and we bring ourselves back to our heart and it’s realm of intuitive experientially. We cannot ‘know’ what is real, we must experience what is real, and that can only happen in the present moment. 

To do this, we must stop all activity and become still and silent. We will notice that our mind is busy and wants to remain active, but we do not preoccupy ourselves with the mind. Instead we relax our body, and feel the sensations present there. Is there tension? Is there stress? If there is, keep relaxing and breathing gently while you do. Moving our attention into our body is the way out of the mind. 

You are the light of awareness, it is true, so why occupy a limited realm full of chaos and noise and distraction? That is the mind. Bring yourself, your awareness into your body and feel the possibility of greater relaxation and peace that is always present there. You may feel physically exhausted, or restless, but take a few deep breaths and bring equilibrium to your energy field. Breathing in a consistent, fluid and gentle way will always restore equilibrium to the body. Let your body rest and be calm. If the mind tries to pull you back into thinking and stimulate your body, take a few more deep breaths, and come back to the feeling of relaxation in your body. Gently and slowly, peace will arise, and remind you of the deep pleasure of feeling at rest, calm, still and tranquil. There is no substitute for this feeling. It is the experience of being present to our body, and allowing harmony to be restored.

The mind cannot feel this feeling. As a substitute for peace, the mind likes to carry around ‘spiritual knowledge’ so that, with great satisfaction, it can tell everyone (and itself) “Look at how much I know.. I have accomplished something. I have reached my destination, I am knowledgeable, I am wise.” But this is just the ego. True wisdom is seeing reality from the heart’s perspective – as One –  and acting from this perspective. When we realise that separation is illusory, that we are One, that what we do for another we do for ourselves, our actions change. 

In selfishness, we ignore this truth, and live in a state of ignorance, as we choose to satisfy only our own personal desires. This is what much of the world is doing. However, there is no blame to be apportioned. There is much in society that speaks to the lower nature of humanity, that encourages selfishness, consumerism and greed, but it all relies upon maintaining a limited – and untrue – perspective on reality. 

When we fully realise that self-gratification keeps us stuck on the level of illusory separation and keeps us blind to Reality, which is more beautiful than we can dream of, the way forward becomes simple. We give. We help. We be of service to those in need, whatever their need may be. We all have abilities and ways we can be of service to others and enjoy doing so. When we do this we remember how good it feels to help others, to make the lives of others easier. This is the deeper satisfaction that life offers us, and it never stops giving us opportunities to experience it. How fortunate we are. Otherwise we would forever be lost in our own desires and the pursuit of egoic satisfaction, which in truth never ever ends, and only leads further into unhappiness and isolation.

Helping others is the way to live in deep harmony. It our purpose. Only through our actions we will remember this beautifully simple truth of life. Through our actions, we define our reality. Do you choose a reality of separation, where you are focussed solely on satisfying personal desires? Or do you choose a reality of unity, where you are mostly focussed on what you can do to help others? Let your actions demonstrate your choice .

There are so many ways we can help others – there is no limit. Everybody has something to share, something to give, even if it is just their time, attention and a listening ear. In fact, many people in this world are very much in need of this. How you give and how you help others us up to you. 

The most important thing is the desire within your heart to give, and your intention to put it into action. If you have the desire and intention to make the world a happier place, to help others, to maintain an open mind and heart despite all challenges and confrontations, you will always succeed. 

So remind yourself regularly of your heart’s deep need to be giving. How do you remember? By giving.

Alexander Bell

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