Listen to What Your Soul Has to Say About That

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 Worth reading from off the web ~
'When I first started my blog, and before I linked it to this page, I showed only a small handful of people and they were strictly sworn to secrecy. </p><br /> <p>And then I allowed a few more people to find out. And a couple more and then I just kind of let go of who was going to read what I wrote. </p><br /> <p>But the next phase was hard. I was so sensitive about what people would think of my writing. Would I get those mean trolly comments? Why did my Likes just go from 100 to 99? No focus in that moment on the 99 people who stayed - I wanted to know about the one who left. </p><br /> <p>It's a Thing, expressing ourselves. Whether we have a blog or write books or give talks or just speak our truth and make a stand for love in the post office queue. It's a Thing. </p><br /> <p>And it's a Thing because this stuff has deep roots. Roots into our childhood - and all the ways we learnt to fit in, to go under the radar, or to stand out, or to keep peace, or to help others - all the many ways we learn to get loved rather than rejected. </p><br /> <p>I think it's unrealistic (for the majority of us) to think that we will ever reach a point in our development where it simply does not bother us at all what others think of us. </p><br /> <p>But we can deepen into a love of truth - and even the smallest inkling of who we really are - that becomes more important than what others think of us. And it doesn't mean we won't get our feelings hurt every now and again or we won't get offended. We might still even obsess over that one person who unsubscribed from our blog. But when truth is more important, we will weather those storms and learn those lessons and process them properly so that we bounce back stronger each time. </p><br /> <p>I do think that's possible. And it's also totally necessary if we want to live authentic, loving lives. We need to find a way to listen to what our soul has to say and see ourselves from that perspective as much as we can so that we can show up authentically and in a real, loving way. </p><br /> <p>And if this is an area that is tough for you, really, take my hand. Because when we join together, we can stand for love and speak our truth and keep it real. And we are all needed. Only you can say what you want to say in the way you say it. Never mind that others have a larger audience (there will always, always be someone with a larger audience by the way) - the important thing is to be authentic, to show up, to join in the conversation. </p><br /> <p>And because we are only ever really talking to ourselves anyway (with others listening in), what really matters is that we speak our truth as clearly as we can. </p><br /> <p><3'

I think it’s unrealistic (for the majority of us) to think that we will ever reach a point in our development where it simply does not bother us at all what others think of us.

But we can deepen into a love of truth – and even the smallest inkling of who we really are – that becomes more important than what others think of us. And it doesn’t mean we won’t get our feelings hurt every now and again or we won’t get offended. We might still even obsess over that one person who was unkind. But when truth is more important, we will  weather those storms and learn those lessons and process them properly so that we bounce back stronger each time.

I do think that’s possible. And it’s also totally necessary if we want to live authentic, loving lives. We need to find a way to listen to what our soul has to say and see ourselves from that perspective as much as we can so that we can show up authentically and in a real, loving way.

And if this is an area that is tough for you, take my hand. Because when we join together, we can stand for love and speak our truth and keep it real. And we are all needed. Only you can say what you want to say in the way you want to say it.  The important thing is to be authentic, to show up, to join in the conversation.

And because we are only ever really talking to ourselves anyway (with others listening in), what really matters is that we speak our truth as clearly as we can.

Hollie Holden – Notes on Living & Loving

 

Dissolving the Ego in Meditation

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Worth reading from off the web!

While the ego works tirelessly to feed itself, the soul can simply ‘be’. Meditation is a great way to ‘let go’ of the world around you and tune in to your own nature.

budha-usaMeditation is the practice of turning inward to the energy that lies within. It is a tool that every human being has the ability to do. And yet so few practice it, probably because the ego races the brain, and that most of peoples views of meditation are distorted. The mind may interpret meditation as something that ‘weird people‘ do, or people who need ‘calming down‘, or ‘those who do not fit in’. You may have heard how people say “I’m too busy to meditate” or “I don’t need to meditate“.

“You should sit in meditation for twenty minutes a day – unless you’re too busy; then you should sit for an hour“.

Believe it or not, meditation actually frees up more time for you because it enables you to see beyond your conditioning by using the contemplative eye – the eye of observation and awareness. Meditation is the art of returning to your true-self. There is no need involved in this. Arguably, one could argue that it takes more strength to meditate than it does to lift heavy weights in the gym. After all, it must take willpower and resilience to ‘be still’, and observe the mind without judgement, in such a frantic world. Don’t confuse ‘being still’, with sitting still. Sitting still means doing nothing, whereas ‘being still’ implies the withdrawal and retreat to the center of your soul.

One more point that needs to be stressed is how the human brain perceives things. The mind cannot comprehend certain events or circumstances, so it will form its own picture, alienating those who do different things. This picture is generated on the basis of past events and experiences, all of which make up the ‘conditioned mind’. The ego in the mind makes people believe that some things in life should never be explored. This is a limitation. People are imprisoned by their thoughts. Nobody can tell you what meditation exactly is, nor what you will feel when doing it. You must do it yourself, before drawing a conclusion. If you cannot reach the peak of the mountain and see all of what surrounds you, then your opinion is invalid.

Eternal Peace

Ego destroys the present moment. How do you let go of ego? Well, the answer lies within. You simply don’t. Being aware of the ego automatically dampens it down, slowing its momentum, and eventually destroying it. You can manually shift the gears in your brain from automatic ‘doing’ mode to conscious ‘being’ mode. That being said, don’t over-think ego. Be still. Be aware. The ego will get bored.. And eventually leave too. I bet you have all heard of the phrase ‘a need for a need’? A hidden dissatisfaction of some sort. You ‘want’ something yet you are confused as to what you ‘want’. Maybe this dissatisfaction arises as a result of neglecting the soul?

Once the ego crumbles, your soul will be revealed. So what is the opposite of the ego? Peace. Wisdom. Love. Unity. All of these will arise. If you do not let go of ego, then life will be extremely difficult, and suffering may come (although that may be necessary for you to awaken to your true self). Realize that the present moment is all there ever is, even now, right now, this is a moment of your life that you should cherish. Smile! This realization will empower your inner being and nourish your soul with freedom and prosperity.

Letting go of ego, learning to ground yourself in the ‘here’ and ‘now’, and turning inwards to the deepest-most-inner-depths of your soul, will ultimately, lead to inner peace, and provide a great sense of worth. What a great revelation it is to know that the happiness you had been ‘wanting’ for so long, is actually inside of you. Start appreciating everything in life, even the moments that you think are ‘little’, and don’t take anything for granted. Discover your indwelling spirit that lies within.

Written by Oiver Tehrani

Excerpts from the Original : http://thewayofmeditation.com.au/blog/dissolving-the-ego-in-meditation/