Longing – the energy of desire. The need deep within it can only be satisfied with MORE. Many times we see longing as a restless soul desperate to dive into the deep waters to escape the prison island where we feel abandoned.
The spiritual practice of longing is drawing out the sacred within and finding the MORE that is without ego or lust. It is a deeper practice that allows for a fluid and limitless realization found in the deep waters of the ocean. It is the spark that ignites passion. To have a yearning spiritual practice one never needs another to light the fires, rather you become the spark for others.
To live the spiritual practice of longing is to live an ecstatic life even when in practice it is mundane. To live the spiritual practice of longing is to see the moon and experience the wings of desire that carry us there. To live the spiritual practice of longing is to dance erotically with the sun. it is life itself.
Ask yourself if you feel a longing. In which direction is it pointing you? What are you thirsty for? What will quench the thirst? Do you feel the spark? Or are you trying to start a fire with no spark inside?
Our longing is an echo of God’s longing for us. Our longing is the living imprint of divine desire. John O’Donohue
Spiritual Practice: Shape your desires. Write what you long for, draw what the longing looks like to you, or dance your longings. However you are called to express your desires is perfect. Ask yourself how this year expands or limits me. What does the expansion feel like, the limitlessness of longing, how do you experience it? Can you see how your longing is a Divine wish?
Meaning does not come to us in a finished form, ready-made; it must be found, created, received, built. We grow our way towards it. Ann BedfordUlanov
Meaning in life. meaning in spirit. We all want to have meaningful experiences, for life to mean something, to us and to others, but is it something that just happens or is it something we discover or can we really practice meaning?
The meaning has parts: seek and create. Seeking is simply the action of seeking a new perspective that resonates within. Creating is simply the action of shaping an experience. Everything in our Universe has meaning. You are looking for resonant vibrations to be created into form. Sometimes it is simply the act of creating new perspectives from our act of seeking.
A traditional Mantra to practice while breathing as a spiritual practice of meaning (try it lying down facing the sky, standing on a rock looking down, any new position to give a new perspective of seeking and creating)
Forward Breath: Old Wise Man
Breathe out: what are we going to create?
We must remind ourselves that although our lives are small and our actions seem insignificant, we are generators of this universe and we create meaning with each act we do or don’t do. kent nerburn
Every action, every spiritual practice, every experience has meaning, even inaction. The spiritual practice of meaning is intertwined and interwoven with every thread of every other spiritual practice. The gift comes when we allow ourselves to see with a new perspective through an open mind and heart.
Spiritual Practice: For a week record in your journal the actions you took and the meaning you experienced and record any inaction with your experiences. After a week, go back and look at each entry and look to create a new experience by looking at the experience in a new light. Can you see it from another person’s perspective? Can you see it through the eyes of love? Or maybe through the eyes of action when you didn’t take any action? What you learn from this simple practice can change your entire outlook on life.
Existence will have no meaning for you if you yourself do not penetrate
with active love, and if not in this way you discover its meaning for yourself.
Everything is waiting to be sanctified by you. Martin Buber
The spiritual practice of meaning is fueled by actions of active love. When we actively love ourselves, others, nature, the universe, then we will discover the meaning of each experience.
Spiritual practice: create a book of meaning. Recycle an old book you no longer read by pasting meaningful quotes, acts of love, or photos that hold moments of personal significance. Write your meaning words in marker. Do this weekly or whenever you find meaningful words or images to include.