Spirituality

splat splat splat

All Out of Love

Quotes from Albert Einstein

"The finest emotion of which we are capable is the mystic emotion. Herein lies the germ of all art and all true science. Anyone to whom this feeling is alien, who is no longer capable of wonderment and lives in a state of fear is a dead man. To know that what is impenetrable for us really exists and manifests itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty, whose gross forms alone are intelligible to our poor faculties - this knowledge, this feeling ... that is the core of the true religious sentiment. In this sense, and in this sense alone, I rank myself among profoundly religious men."

"When the solution is simple, God is answering."

"All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree. All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man's life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom."

"The human mind is not capable of grasping the Universe. We are like a little child entering a huge library. The walls are covered to the ceilings with books in many different tongues. The child knows that someone must have written these books. It does not know who or how. It does not understand the languages in which they are written. But the child notes a definite plan in the arrangement of the books---a mysterious order which it does not comprehend, but only dimly suspects."

"True religion is real living; living with all one's soul, with all one's goodness and righteousness."

"I cannot conceive of a personal God who would directly influence the actions of individuals, or would directly sit in judgment on creatures of his own creation... My religiosity consists in a humble admiration of the infinitely superior spirit that reveals itself in the little that we, with our weak and transitory understanding, can comprehend of reality. Morality is of the highest importance -- but for us, not for God."

You have the same force running through you that allows the planets to move, the earth to orbit, the seeds to sprout, and the flowers to open. There is not a separate God for each person. There is one universal intelligence flowing through all of us. In the sacred space within us we are all one and the same. We know that we are spiritual beings trying to learn how to be human. We know the best within us is love, kindness and compassion. Yet our egos, both individually and collectively, have campaigned long and hard to promote a false idea. How sane is it for people to be killing each other over disputes that ancient egos created long before we arrived? How sane is it for us to believe that some of us deserve to eat the food that God provides and that others do not deserve it by virtue of their geographic location? When you center yourself and find your quiet inner sacred space, you know the loving presence that does not discriminate. You know that specialness is not something bestowed on some and not on others. You know that it is absurd to believe that a Muslim baby will burn in hell because of not having Buddhist or Christian beliefs. You know that Australian aborigines are equal in importance to royalty. Your sacred self tells you this. -- Dr. Wayne Dyer
If we feel a distance between us and the Lord; remember, it's not the Lord who has moved.
In the book "A return to Love Love" is what we are born with. Fear is what we learn. The spiritual journey is the unlearning of fear and prejudices and the acceptance of love back in our hearts. Love is the essential reality and our purpose on earth. To be consciously aware of it, to experience love in ourselves and others, is the meaning of life. Meaning does not lie in things. Meaning lies in us. When we attach value to things that aren't love - the money, the car, the house, the prestige - we are loving things that can't love us back. We are searching for meaning in the meaningless. Money, of itself, means nothing. Material things, of themselves, mean nothing. It's not that they are bad. It's just that they're nothing. -- Marianne Williamson on love THE MOST BEAUTIFUL ROSE The park bench was deserted as I sat down to read Beneath the long, straggly branches of an old willow tree. Disillusioned by life with good reason to frown, For the world was intent on dragging me down. And if that weren't enough to ruin my day, A young boy out of breath approached me, all tired from play. He stood right before me with his head tilted down And said with great excitement, "Look at what I found" In his hand was a flower, and what a pitiful sight, With its petals all worn-not enough rain, or to little light. Wanting him to take his dead flower and go off to play, I faked a small smile and then shifted away. But instead of retreating he sat next to my side And placed the flower to his nose and declared with overacted surprise, "It sure smells pretty and it's beautiful, too. That's why I picked it; here, it's for you." The weed before me was dying or dead. Not vibrant of colors, orange, yellow or red. But I knew I must take it, or he might never leave. So I reached for the flower, and replied, "Just what I need." But instead of him placing the flower in my hand, He held it midair without reason or plan. It was then that I noticed for the very first time That weed-toting boy could not see: he was blind. I heard my voice quiver, tears shone like the sun As I thanked him for picking the very best one. You're welcome," he smiled, and then ran off to play, Unaware of the impact he'd had on my day. I sat there and wondered how he managed to see A self-pitying woman beneath an old willow tree. How did he know of my self-indulged plight? Perhaps from his heart, he'd been blessed with true sight. Through the eyes of a blind child, at last I could see The problem was not with the world; the problem was me. And for all of those times I myself had been blind, I vowed to see the beauty in life, and appreciate every second that's mine. And then I held that wilted flower up to my nose And breathed in the fragrance of a beautiful rose And smiled as I watched that young boy, another weed in his hand About to change the life of an unsuspecting old man. --Author Unknown
The fragrance always stays in the hand that gives the rose. -- Hada Bejar	The power of a man's virtue should not be measured by his special efforts, but by his ordinary doing. -- Blaise Pascal
One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious. We can never really know. I simply believe that some part of the human Self or Soul is not subject to the laws of space and time. The natural history of the mind is no further advanced today than was natural science in the thirteenth century. We have only begun to take scientific note of our spiritual experiences. The angel personifies something new arising from the deep unconscious. Whether invoked or not, God will be present. C. G. Jung From Words over the entryway to his home

Is it possible for humanity, or even a portion of it, to embrace a truly universal spirituality? If so, what would a universal spirituality be based on? And would such a spirituality be able to offer a path to complete spiritual realization? The answers to these questions have become more urgent as the world becomes smaller through technologies of communication and transportation. While we can appreciate the need for greater understanding and acceptance of our differences and greater recognition of our common humanity, should this spell the end of religion as we know it? Is it time for a spirituality that is founded upon universal principles, or upon a scientific spiritual psychology? Can we dispense with forms if we have found the essence? Can we separate spirituality from religion?

splat

Suffering is a journey which has an end.
-- Matthew Fox

Pain is part of life.

To live a spiritual life, we need a way to understand the suffering we sometimes endure. Looking back at other difficult times can give us a better perspective of the pain we feel today.
All of us can recall a loss or a sudden difficult change that we never would have chosen for ourselves. Perhaps it brought us face-to-face with insecurities or doubts about our survival. Now, after the suffering has ended, we see how much we grew. We changed; we were strengthened and, perhaps, were liberated by what happened to us.
Thoughts about today's suffering may not be clear as to what good it holds for us. But we are on a journey, and it can only happen one step at a time. We know that journeys teach us great lessons and they do have endings.
Our pain today affirms that we are vital and alive. We know others suffer as we do, and we can turn to each other to give and receive comfort while we are on the journey.

© 1996 Hazelden Foundation from the books Today's Gift and The Promise of a New Day

THE PROMISES

We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace.

No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows.

Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us.

We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.

-- From the AA Big Book, page 83.

splat

Awakening to Spirituality: A Spiritual Insight

Spirituality is unconditional. You cannot be a spiritual being sometimes. You are spiritual when you are feeling highly enlightened. You are spiritual in the depths of depression. You are spiritual in the moment, and you are spiritual in the midst of confusion. The only difference is that at times you tend to lose sight of your spirituality.

One person is not more spiritual than another. One may be more in touch with his spirituality, but that does not make him more spiritual - it only makes him more awake...

splat

Bible

The nonphysical universe is made up of an infinite field of unmanifest intelligence (mind-stuff, consciousness, Spirit, God...), which is the basis of all physical matter -- including you and me. That mind-stuff (of which you are part) responds to your thoughts and seeks ways to physically manifest them.

But our focus is so entrenched in the day-to-day business of conducting our physical lives that we often lose touch with this greater truth. Albert Einstein put it this way:

"A human being is part of a whole, called by us the "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest--a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us... Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison."

SPIRITUAL GROWTH is a process the same as physical growth or mental growth. Five year old children do not expect to be as tall as their parents at their next birthday; the first grader does not expect to graduate into college at the end of the term; the truth student should not expect to attain inner peace overnight.

splat

   You as a single individual have a sacred quest. That quest involves coming to know your higher spiritual nature and inviting it to show you the way of the sacred self in your daily life. This means denying the demands of the ego if those demands contradict the guidance of your higher self.
      Our world is a collection of individuals urged on by the loving presence within all of us to achieve the sacred quest personally and collectively. The world will become a peaceful, fulfilled, cooperative, loving, truthful, tolerant and pure environment as the individual parts that make up the collective consciousness restrain their egos. As is the microcosm, so is the macrocosm. The whole behaves precisely as does its individual parts.
      The world is encountering a spiritual deficit that reflects our need to consciously get on the path of our sacred quest. As our higher selves begin to triumph over the ego in the daily decision making of our lives, we will truly be making progress on the path of the sacred quest for all of humanity. You must banish all doubt about your ability to facilitate such a quest and begin to know that you are both the microcosm and the macrocosm. The world ego is destined to be restrained as more individuals look within and consult the highest part of themselves. The doubts are vanishing and the spiritual revolution is well under way.

-- Dr. Wayne Dyer

For lots more Spiritual nourishment, Click Here.