Rejoice: There is No Choice

We all want to be brilliant, to use up every bit of talent hidden beneath our inner admonitions of failure, ineptitude, and worthlessness. Some people work so hard to rise above some societal stigma, that they wear themselves out trying to prove their innocence and value. Few escape the limits imposed on them from their families, schools, or churches. Given these parameters, it is amazing how many actually emerge to be brilliant, creative, and compassionate.

What is it that brings out our distinctive abilities, even when we are thwarted at every turn? A religious person might say it is God’s grace. A motivational speaker will tell us it results from motivation, a good attitude, excellence, and persistence. A psychologist might mention the support of family, loved ones, or a mentor. Every system has an explanation for that which really cannot be explained. When I lie in bed in the morning, I resist getting up. I stretch, read, meditate, but in some unchosen moment, I hop out of bed. I wonder, at those times, what it was that pried me out of bed in just that moment. Two moments before, I was tied to the bed, then suddenly I am up in a flash.

I want to explore something, and you might think me mad, yet I cannot leave this idea alone. The idea is not new, and it is most popular in the eastern culture. The theory is that our creator created everything in the world of form so we could experience limits as unique possibilities. God, or Source, was the same, bliss and consciousness, yet Source wanted to explore all variations of creation. This action of exploration is called Leela or divine play. This all sounds plausible, but the intriguing aspect is that it means that Source, or God, is not only the creator but is the creation itself. When easterners speak of Leela, they deviate a bit in their definition, but the part that interests me in all the definitions is that Leela is a play of consciousness, and consciousness is the source of all. This is where it gets interesting, though I am not sure the concept of Leela incorporates this aspect of consciousness. And I must add this: concepts are not reality. They are the vehicles we use to try to express something that cannot be fully expressed or understood. I can tell you all about a diamond, but until you see one, all the information I push toward you is relatively irrelevant. Back to this theory or concept, which you can laugh at, given I have just destroyed its efficacy. God/Source is the doer, of everything. We think we have free choice, but we are an instrument of the Unlimited, and there is no choice. Just as I hop out of bed without making a conscious decision, Spirit operates through us, not just making that one leap, but making every leap and every choice through us.

This might seem like a terrible idea to the independent thinker and to the culture that almost worships the idea of free choice. To put this bluntly, we have absolutely no choice. Source does everything through us, as a part of the unfolding of the infinite universe. Maybe that’s a clue that we are Source, living our life as a unique individual. Hum, the whole idea brings me to a weird kind of freedom. It means that I can chose anything I want, thinking it is I who is choosing, even though every thought I have is made through me, not by me. All this may or may not be true, but in sifting through myriads of experiences, philosophies, and teachings, I can see its merit. And in my brief moments of being fully awakened, it was true. I was never the me I thought I was, separate from the Source, and I never had any choice. If spirit is living through me, I can just enjoy the ride. The idea that there is a me, is a lovely, complicated, original creation of Source, but “that me” does not really exist. When something happens, I do not have to freak out. I can know it was what was supposed to be. I can change it if I want, while remembering that I am not really doing the changing. And if I want to freak out, that is okay too. This is not an excuse to go out and do crazy things, but if the me I think I am, does crazy things or make mistakes, those actions were always the movement of Consciousness.

I write about this for a couple of reasons. One is that it helps me parse out things, and the other is to see if there are others, meaning you who are reading this currently, who are on the same page. We live in a no fail universe, and though it may seem as if there are many injustices, ultimately there is a stream of bliss or consciousness that flows through everything. It is divine intentionality, and it is That which we should trust, because we are That. And that is about all I can say, except that the more I realize that there is no me, and that the me that I think I am has no choice, the EZier I find my life to be. And that’s all, folks.

 

 

We Are Superstars

I read a novel entitled The Trick of Light. The heroine hired a private detective to find God. There were many adventures that eventually led to their grand discovery. The quests were laced with synchronicity. The mystery of God was unlocked coincidence by coincidence. When coincidence serves a purpose, we call it synchronicity. As I read, I became the characters in the book; I lived in their sense of awe.

The book reminded me of The Celestine Prophecy, and while I remembered the story line, the content of the book was long forgotten, so I reread it. The book narrative centers on a quest for and discovery of nine insights. The first insight focuses on meaningful coincidences. It says as the collective consciousness of humanity awakens, people become more aware of synchronicities. It is easier to see what is happening personally than to see changes in the collective consciousness, but it is comforting to know that the ability to have and notice guidance from the universe is increasing for everyone. Even though the insight came from a novel, I believe this to be true. We are waking up. People believe the end is near; but I believe the beginning is not only near, it is ever always here.

The universe flows in a perfectly orchestrated harmony. Some refer to this as Divine Order. The flow provides a moment by moment individual plan for our lives. The plan is always available, alive, and active. The plan is often referred to as dharma in eastern philosophy. It is the path of right action. When the mind is clear and alert, the plan surfaces. Our actions are frequently sourced by the plan, but the urges are subtle and feel so natural, we are not aware that our behavior and actions are dharmically aligned. (In case you are not acquainted with Dharma, in Hinduism, dharma signifies behaviors that are aligned with the order that makes life and the universe possible, and includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and “right way of living.”)

Even though we are romantically linked to the idea of individual free choice, it appears that our minds and choices are not as individual as we think. We have access to an expanded mind that has more knowledge and information than our local mind has experienced or accumulated. Why do we turn down a street we normally do not travel and later find out there was a traffic jam that would have held us up for an hour? Most of the time we have no idea the consequences of our actions, but theorists say that if even one thing changes in the past or present, the future is modified in numerous ways.

When people think of the plan for their lives, they look toward setting goals to achieve that plan. They look to the future for what will bring meaning and purpose into their lives. They work hard to make their dreams come true. There’s no problem in doing that – it can be somewhat effective, but most people don’t figure out what will make them happy, and, after years of following a dream and accomplishing their goals, they feel even less fulfilled.

Lady Gaga spoke at Yale’s Emotion Revolution Summit in 2015. She shared her struggles. At one point she thought about giving up music. She felt lost and was doing too many things she did not want to do. She found that the more she said no to the things she did not want to do, the more she liked herself. She chose to be in line with her path of right action rather that doing what would further her career. Do you remember her speech when she won an Oscar? She said that people told her that her music would not work. By that time, she lived from her dharma, not her drama. She followed the trail of her heart and became a superstar. Though we may not obtain awards for our actions or career achievements, we all are called to be superstars in our own lives. We do not want to play our lives to please others, nor do we want to tower above them; we want to stand equal in the light of brilliance that we all share.

What if we truly inhabit the present moment, tune into our emotions and bodies, in addition to our heads, and live from that space? Certainly, there would be more synchronicities and a greater awareness of meaningful connections.

We are superstars when we live from the mystery of our lives rather than the mastery of them. It is time give up trying to do important things and trying to be important; what we need is to be present, alert, and aware. When we do, we find that not only do we discover more adventure and satisfaction than our intellect could have planned for or manufactured; we find that life becomes EZier and EZier.

 

Creative Solutions

I used to have an office in a strip shopping center. The outside was barren, so I placed a flower-filled whiskey barrel by the front door. It welcomed clients and softened the look of the otherwise stark entrance.

Unfortunately, the plants vanished. I would replant, but after a few days, they would be gone. The plant thief took them one by one, as if by disappearing slowly, I wouldn’t notice. The plants were perfect for the front door, but I was unwilling to keep replacing the plants. How could I discourage the plant bandit?

My intuition buzzed with the perfect answer. I printed out a small note and placed it prominently in the glass window behind the planter. The note read, “These are planted in honor of my beloved Aunt Lima, who passed away recently.” It worked. There were never any more plants taken. I started having fun and honored my friends’ and clients’ deceased relatives. “These plants are planted to honor the beloved mother of Jane Stiles.” I changed the dedication sign every few weeks and my friends and clients felt comforted as they passed by the planter. I used real names for the deceased and loved ones. It felt right to be straight and to make this more than a ploy to fool the plant snatcher. The process eventually moved from being a solution to a problem, to a sacred act of honoring others.

My office was in an isolated area, so I tried to leave my office at night with my last client. One evening, when I had stayed late to do paperwork, there were several teenagers hanging around the front exit. None of them looked like the girl next door. They numbered six, so I waited for them to leave, but the night wore on, they remained near the door, and I was ready to go home. My intuition hummed. When I exited, I greeted them, “I am so glad you are here. It is scary to come outside alone at night. Will you watch and make sure I get to my car safely.” The Hell’s Angel’s lookalikes smiled and collectively responded, “Yes ma’am. We will take care of you.” I felt safe and protected as I slid into my car. I waved goodbye to my newfound heroes.

Once again my intuition served me. I’m not sure if I was in danger or not--maybe the kids were safe, but I didn’t feel safe, and the creative solution released me from my bondage. In another similar incident, my daughter and I delivered a carload of Christmas presents to the projects. We drove into the impoverished area in my late model El Dorado Cadillac, which was fashionable at the time, and parked in front of Miss Betty’s apartment building. I felt like a target; we didn’t fit in. What had I been thinking, going alone with my young daughter? There was what looked to be a gang at the end of the street, and again my intuition provided a quick reaction. I got out of my car and asked if the boys knew Miss Betty Smith. One of the boys responded affirmatively and I asked if he knew where she lived. He did. I told the boys I had a car full of presents for Miss Smith and said, “This a too much stuff for us to take alone. Will you please help us deliver these presents to Miss Betty?” So the Crips*, my daughter, and I headed to Miss Betty’s place and made her day. Again a wonderful solution.

My daughter once wrote a paper on incidents that formed her values. She included that day as a turning point. Her recollection was not about feeling afraid; she was touched first-hand by the kind of poverty she witnessed. That day she decided she would always help when she could, and she did. I watched her grow into a compassionate woman who spent years in a profession helping underprivileged populations.

There are times when we are faced with real and imagined danger. Rather than freak out or being frightened, looking for creative solutions can rectify an otherwise unpleasant situation or even help us avoid a potentially dangerous one. We won’t always be able to come out of every situation unscathed, but when we live with an expectancy that there is always a better, easier, and safer way to confront any situation, we are less apt to trip ourselves up when faced with a potentially bad one. It only takes a few seconds to check in with our intuition, and I’ve found that when I do, it always makes my life EZier and EZier. I hope you are never faced with these kinds of choices, but I’m sure if you are, you will find that holding back the fear and making friends of your supposed enemies will make your life EZier and EZier too.

*Name of a notorious street gang. These weren’t really the Crips; I made that up.