We can talk about spirituality until we’re blue in the face, but until we do something about it, until we can find a way to incorporate it into our daily lives, all the knowledge that we have does us absolutely no good. But how does one go about creating a spiritual life?
Let’s get one thing straight here – when I talk about creating a spiritual life, I’m not talking about getting religion, or channeling messages, or giving up on reality in order to pursue some idealistic goal of utopia.
When I talk about creating a spiritual life, I’m talking about blazing a way; creating and adhering to an inner path that will enable you to discover the very deepest essence of yourself and live a completely authentic life. There’s just one problem, there is only one way for this to work, and that is if you integrate your spirituality into every aspect of your being.
You can’t just dabble in spirituality whenever it feels good. In order for it to truly work you have to LIVE it, 24/7. Does that mean that you can no longer have fun and get the giggles and just kick back and enjoy life? Of course not! But in order for it to work you have to be committed 100%. The aspect of integrating your spirituality with your daily life has to be your top priority, and most importantly, it needs to be YOUR spirituality and YOU have to want it.
It can’t be done for someone else; as a reaction to someone putting pressure for you; not if it is going to work for you.
It can’t be someone else’s definition of what is right for you; it has to be what speaks to you and feeds your soul.
If you are truly interested in creating a spiritual life for yourself, then you have to stop dabbling and immerse yourself in your chosen method of spirituality, and when it comes to deciding which is right for you there are, quite frankly, only three options available for you to choose from at this point in time; either you will find your way by adhering to a tradition that is already laid out, or you will choose to blaze your own way to your destination, or you will choose to stay exactly where you are and be content with the level of spirituality that you now have.
Option #1: Some may find their way in a time-honored tradition; the rites and sacred writings of a particular religious path may speak to them on a deep fundamental level, and that is good. Better than good actually, because you have generations – centuries even of people who have gone before, who have asked the hard questions and have offered up their wisdom to share with you on adhering to this particular path. They will still encounter great difficulties as they travel their path, as they discover things about themselves and face up to some difficult decisions, but they will have the comfort of knowing that others have tread this path before them; and others are treading it now; that they are not alone.
Option #2: Others, however, may need to blaze their own trail; create their own path. Their road will be much more difficult for them, for while there have been plenty who have made their own paths, it is most likely that no one has ever gone quite the same way before. They are alone; their only companions being those others who have also decided on being their own pathfinders and who, for however brief a period, find themselves keeping company together. The one who blazes their own trail does not ‘dabble’ in spirituality, but instead moves ever forward, letting each topic lead them to the next and adding to their own tradition as they grow and learn and become.
Option #3: Yes, choosing not to choose is a viable option. You can elect to stay exactly where you are, to not pursue a spiritual life but to simply accept what is given to you, and that is okay too. It is understandable that you may have found your equilibrium; the point at which you feel that you are balanced and which works for you. If so, I applaud you. Very few people ever reach that point in their lives. But if you are staying where you are out of fear of the unknown; out of the fear of not stepping outside of your comfort zone, then you are, in fact, electing to remain ignorant of your true depth and potential. Even if you elect to stay, know that you always have the option of moving on, of pursuing a course of study later, when you are ready.
Regardless of whether you choose a traditional or non-traditional path, know that it is going to take dedication and commitment. There are going to be days when you feel like just curling up in a ball and not thinking about anything but some crazy show on TV and how good your hot chocolate tastes, and there’s going to be days when you just want to get silly and have fun and not think about anything serious, and that’s fine. But committing yourself to a spiritual path; choosing to live a spiritual life; choosing to live an authentic life is not something you can turn on and off at will; something that you do when you feel like it, for once you have started down your road, you begin to change.
In fact, over time it becomes who you ARE, and you have to be prepared for the fact that it is going to turn your entire world inside out and upside down. Chances are your life is never going to be the same again.
The Road Less Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I–
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
~~Robert Frost ~~
You must be logged in to post a comment.