Day 318/366 days Towards Self-Mastery.
There is something profound and as yet indescribable in the concept of presence, being present. To some extent my curiosity is satisfied by the advances in Unified Field Theory. In some way this theory can explain the process of evolution if we take the energetic and informational nature of the planck field into consideration.
I want to say that I subscribe to the laws of nature, but what are they if not interpretations by others. There's this tension within me when I consider the crafted laws of humankind and the laws of nature. I'm guessing somewhere there was an attempt to articulate what seemed to be or should have been understood by all. Yet in that idea is born cultural norms that don't always serve the greater good.
Some decades ago after following the modern wisdom of establishing a career, seeking a certain lifestyle and more and more money to fund it, subscribing to social norms and expectations and trying to fit in, I began to question the wisdom of this drive to survive.
As I visited nature frequently with a question, "what does nature do?", I discovered that nature allows. Nature exists. Nature responds and nature adapts to the changing conditions. Nature doesn't strive, yet nature thrives.
How could I be like nature?
All my striving and driving had depleted my energy and taken me off my natural path. That, and the desire to extract myself from an unhealthy field of experience that I perceived my childhood to be.
My decision was to attempt to stay present to the next step. Take the next step. Dig deep, feel into my heart, and take the next step.
It took a long time and a lot of patience to slowly, slowly turn in the direction of my natural path. The path that my ancestors had paved before me. The path that I knew and the path that was most natural to me.
There's an argument that we humans have more faculties and capabilities than the rest of nature, yet I wonder if we have used those resources wisely. We are yet to truly understand the nature of our own consciousness, a wisdom that the ancients and indigenous cultures understood impeccably.
We can think of consciousness as memory. The body has memory, many layers of memory to make it what it is, a human form. Memory from ancestors, from childhood, from society, from experiences, from the collective. So too does the Unified Field have memory. All memory.
It's made sense to me to take the next step. To feel into what was present for me and do the next thing.
To this very day, I take the next step. Each day I make the commitment anew to take the next step. It's an exercise in presence that has brought me back to my path. It enables me to build on what went before me, and provides access to natural memory that supports my next step on my forward journey of growth and development.
We reap what we sow. The actions we take today will reap rewards in the future. It is always so. If we take actions that are fully aligned with who we are, we ride on the wave of our ancestors' experiences and will reap the rewards that will naturally flow out of our aligned actions. Expansion and growth will be assured.
If we sow the seeds of exotic plants that are not suited to our climate, we will see the plants grow and struggle to adjust to their environment. If we sow seeds given by others who are well-meaning but ill advised, we may be lucky enough to reap some rewards of their intent, and it will be combined with our self-doubt and muddied commitment.
Be present to what is real for you. Connect with your ancestors, resolve within yourself your family conflicts and traumas, so that you are free to be present to the lineage to which you belong.
366 days Towards Self-Mastery
When I considered my New Year's intentions for 2020 I had just one: To allow my heart to love what it loved...and let it lead me. (If not now, then when?)
I've spent months working on integrating my life. To live life more fully with my home life, my interests, my work, my responsibilities, all coming together, all connected. I want to give each the attention that they desire and need, and still have time and energy for the others. That means living and working from the heart.
As I was clearing out my bookshelf over the Christmas break I discovered Simple Abundance. I set it aside to explore it on New Year's Day as I lazed through another delicious day of nothingness. Sarah, the author, says this book is about living in grace. Living in grace I realised, is about Self-Mastery.
My thirst for understanding the human condition has driven me all my life, and hand-in-hand with self-mastery it has been a life-long goal. And seeing as I love to write, that living in grace is about self-mastery, and I love a bit of a challenge, then if I am truly going to let my heart lead, I really don't have any other choice. So scary as it feels, I'm starting out on a daily mission of leaning into the suggestions of this daybook and making a daily post to keep me accountable. If not now, then when?
I'm Josie. You can find out a little more about me here.
Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy: by Sarah Ban Breathnach.
This book is written for the Australian and NZ market because it refers to seasonal changes. It's available on Amazon here if you'd like to follow along.