Living in a compassionate, loving and enlightened way is our natural state. Too often stress, anxiety and depression, with fleeting moments of happiness are seen as normal. Alternatively, we can try our best to find happiness, only to find it elusive. This happens because we are looking for it in the wrong places. True happiness lies within.
When we turn our attention inwards we can develop an authentic relationship with how we really think and feel. True compassion begins with ourself and as we live in a more expanded and open-hearted way, we feel more loving and connected with others.
Seeing and understanding are the way to love and compassion. ~ Buddhist saying
It is important to note that compassion is different from sympathy. Sympathy indicates we feel sorry for another and can have air of superiority. Compassion comes from a deep, wise, non-judgmental place. It is where we are loving, empathetic and kind to another regardless of their hurt or conditioning. We remain in our very open heart space.
The only sin is ignorance. ~ Buddhist saying.
We all do the best we can with the skills we have at the time. If we are in pain or suffering, it can be helpful to tap into wisdom that resonates with us. This can be externally from books or others wise words or looking within to find the answers.
When we know what the best loving choice for ourselves is, we are living in an enlightened way. David Hawkins, in his book Power vs. Force, states that enlightenment or conscious loving is not even that hard. He says it’s possible to learn the skills to get there—and this can be done by anyone with the desire to do so.
Enlightenment is said to be relatively rare not so much because of the difficulty of following the necessary steps thereto, but because it is a condition of interest to very few, particularly in modern society. If we were to stop one thousand people in the street and ask them, “What is your greatest ambition in life?” how many would say,
“To be enlightened.” ~ David Hawkins.
It is easy to think that we want more power, more prestige, but at the root of it all what we really want is to have true intimate connections with ourself and others. To be able to have wonderful, life-enhancing relationships, rather than struggling with chaos and ongoing drama. We don’t want a life where we constantly have to try hard to get what we want, but rather one that flows with ease and grace. Most of us do not want to be spending hours and hours doing work that we don’t like, but do it anyway because it pays well.. If we really looked within, we would realise, that we want to do work, that we truly love. Our true purpose is to engage in work, that makes our heart sing, and our soul shine, as we joyously share our gifts and talents with the world.
To feel light—to have a life of light—free of worry and stress. The opportunities and the knowledge are there for us to have this life. It is up to us to make the choice to follow this path. To have the courage to look within, to take that first step…
