At the waters edge one pristine morning, I was overwhelmed by the experience. The vibrant colors, texture in my feet on the sand, my skin being touched by the breeze — the simplicity of Life moving in such beautiful ways and landing in my awareness, my perception. A thought passed through that I had heard somewhere before, that “Life is here for us”.
Indeed, it seems true that the Earth, plants, air, sun, ocean and all their natural ecosystems clearly support Life. They nurture our well being and our very existence. I sat for a moment in gratitude that no matter what the trappings of our outer life look like, we are fully supported. Life is here for all of us.
If we observe nature, we can witness it’s incredible ‘generosity’. Everything just gives. The natural regenerative energy at the center of the Earth continues to make it’s way to the surface and create new land. A healthy soil continues to nurture healthy plants and the sun shines ceaselessly allowing our oceans to remain liquid, helping to sustain our atmosphere and feeding every living thing on Earth.
There is nothing in nature that is not an offering to the rest of Life. Even a forest fire offers new regenerative material to the soil and an earthquake resets the alignment at certain places in the Earth’s crust. In the midst of that continuous giving is also receiving, resulting in a deeply harmonious inter-connectedness. Life is meeting itself in complete and utter generosity, through many different forms.
As I sat, and my senses continued to expand, a feeling arose that I am also here for Life.
It occurred to me that the natural motion of the Life inside of me also, is meant to be an offering to the rest of Life. Here is where things get interesting, and we can begin to see a subtle, yet profound, difference between our modern way of thinking and the Ancient ways.
In Western Mind perception, my thoughts would fall well into the category of ‘being a good person’, including: ‘It’s better to give than to receive’, ‘Blessed are the meek’, and ideas that have been elevated in our society like ‘selflessness’. While there is nothing at all ‘wrong’ with these ideas, it seems clear that they are coming from doctrine, belief systems and perhaps ‘enlightened teachers’ that we are drawn to emulate. We become focused on the resulting behavior instead of the living journey of Spirit.
The elements of nature, on the other hand, have no ideology. They do not think, as far as we know. Plants, wind and the Earth do not have a centralized brain. There is no intent to give, to be kind, or to sustain Life. These are pure expressions of Life, and each blossom in their own natural fullness. They are simply being in the only way they know how.
This Ancient pathway takes us into a direct relationship with the pure Life inside of us — that which is simply Alive. This energy, just like the external nature around us, is not calculating in it’s generosity. It is fulfilling it’s natural expression as Life Itself. What beats our heart, lubricates our eyes, exchanges oxygen in our lungs (and every other chemical / electrical process in our bodies) is the Mystery of Life Itself. What we see as ‘functions’ of the body, were pathways of Spirit to the Ancients. When we can drop into this frequency of attention, and experience the awakening of this dimension of being, we develop new perceptions of ourselves, as well as our outer ‘reality’.
Meeting the Life inside of us, and allowing it more space, motion and voice will guide us towards a Generosity of Spirit we may not have thought possible. We become instruments of Life, not by trying to emulate a noble idea, but by embodying the Spirit that we are.
What ways are you finding to come back to the Living Embodied Moment?
How does that change your experience of Life?