Sunday Sermon [Your Original Self]

¡Hola! Everybody...
Woke up late, and I’m headed out the door... the following is a summer rerun. I think the “exercise” at the end is pretty cool. What is your original self? Don’t answer! LOL

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-=[ Original Self ]=-

“There is an inescapable sense of our original being in us, however much it gets battered by experience and repetitive conditioning. The original sense is that I’m good, I’m me, and within me that me there is the source of my health and well-being and vitality.”

-- James O’Dea

For centuries, we have operated on certain scientific assumptions about our reality. “A” causes “B.” An object cannot be in two places at the same time. Time moves forward, never backward.

No argument, right?

However, in the last few years quantum physics has made us challenge everything we take for granted about our reality and thrown it into a blender, forcing us to look at reality anew with a child’s eyes. In the same way, I have been encountering many people who are questioning the most basic assumptions about what it is that makes us human. To be sure, countless people talk to me about spiritual matters often taking place outside the realm of organized religions. People everywhere are searching for spiritual meaning in a very personal way.

Life 101…

For the most part, these seekers are asking questions: What do we all have in common? Why do we, unlike other species, have a dimension of life we call spiritual? What causes us to seek for something more? I think the answers to these questions have the potential to impact all of our relationships, not merely the romantic ones. I think that romantic relationships -- or the struggle to find them -- can illustrate what I would like to articulate today: our innate, or original/ natural self.

Think about when two lovers first fall in love: there is this unbridled optimism, the feeling of walking on a pink cloud, and the invincible sense that anything can happen, nothing is impossible. I am sure if you would whack someone in the throes the first blooms of love, that person would merely smile at you and pay thanks.

Juan and Juanita meet, and though they have both experienced betrayal and pain in their past relationships they are now certain of their love. “We are meant to be together, there is a destiny,” says Juanita before the wedding. “I know we can make it, I know we can. You can do anything as long as we’re honest with each other, we’re going to make it.”

Juan and Juanita could be anyone you know, they can be on Facebook, or live on your street. What happens to you when you read the story of their beginning? Perhaps, you may feel more than a little cynicism: you have heard this kind of optimism before and you know where it leads. But my point is this: can you also recognize the certainty Juanita -- bless her soul -- was feeling? This feeling is a peek into our original self, the part of our selves that is connected, that is at the same time a part of us and larger than we are. This is the way we really are and we do not have to wait until we “fall” in love to connect with this powerful aspect of ourselves.

No one starts off a venture, romantic or otherwise, expecting to fail. Everybody has a vision. We all possess a gut feeling about our real potential. We feel it when we start something new, before the ego-centered Mini Me starts its poisonous whispering. A relationship, a business, having a child, moving to a new house -- each opens a whole range of possibilities, of beginning anew. We all have a feeling of who we are, what our life can become, and what this planet could be.

Vision -- what I define as the creative ability to construct our reality -- is the fuel to our actions. It gives meaning to our lives, provides the inspiration to stretch beyond our self-imposed limits. Vision guides us in investing our energy, allows us to overcome obstacles, and, in a group of people coming together, vision is the glue that keeps them together and motivated. Just look around these loosely connected blogs, or social networking profiles for a minute and you will get an idea of what our collective vision is like.

This creative energy, vision, is also something that I feel is born within us. We are born with a sense of awe and wonder that is untouched by the limitations of the constructed world. This ability to engage in innocence is what makes childhood a time of wonder -- possibly the only time of wonder a person will ever know. Although this child-like wonder is unaware of the stresses and disappointments of the adult world, this is our true self; our true heart of wisdom. It actually knows something that is ultimately real.

This original self -- the wisdom of the heart is worth exploring. If we examine our own assumptions whenever we embark on anything new, whether a romantic relationship, a business venture, even a spiritual practice, tells us a lot about ourselves. If we pay close attention to how we feel and act when we are initiating something new, we will discover a great deal about our selves.

Try it!

Try this experiment before reading on. Think back to a specific time when you began something new. It could be entering a new relationship, buying a new house, starting school or a new career. Try to recall the imagery – the vision – you had of how things would go. How did you imagine how you would meet each situation? How did you anticipate being received? Just close your eyes and remember.

Good…

If you have a pen and paper handy, write some notes about these assumptions. You will discover something valuable about your heart.

It has been my experience working with people these last ten years that there is this ingrained habit of cynicism and disappointment. “It won’t work out,” they think, or, “I don’t have what it takes.” Oftentimes my work involves asking them to go deeper to the original vision before the voice of the Mini Me kicks in. It might be just an image or feeling. For some who have experienced extreme hardships, they might have to go way back to how they felt when they were much younger.

This innocent vision, the kind we live as children and later hide and repress as adults, emphasizes a playful approach to life: laughter, connection with the body, physical pleasure and the uncensored expression of life. In this state, we know nothing of achieving goals in a structured and imposed.

I will share with you what some people have shared when asked to reach back:

Happiness Happiness is the beginning and end point of our plans

Contentment We may desire things we could get in the future, but aren’t our futures desire-free? You are sitting on that fuckin’ beach with that special someone, watching a sublimely beautiful sunset. Do you imagine your mind as being distracted at that point?

Being fully present None of our fantasies, even of the perfect date, includes time spent worrying about other things. We often plan to be fully alive, empowered.

Harmony In our vision, we assume being in tune with others.

Fulfillment We do not expect dissatisfaction. We anticipate integration and feeling complete.

Success No one plans for failure

Honesty When we connect to our innocent, open heart, we do not plan to lie. Some have even said that honesty is the essence of being.

Love,

Eddie