Spirituality: Moments of the Heart

"Spirituality is the river from which the divine flows."

Nature, sport, the arts, creativity and religion in all its colours and flavours: they are united in those moments beyond the logical, rational ego - those moments of the heart, of synchronicity, the essence of spiritual growth.

According to the Meditation Society of Australia, it's is important to realise the vast difference between religion and spirituality. Religion is divinely guided but ironically seriously hamstrung by its scriptures. The ancient texts whose goal was to inspire, conversely have often imprisoned their flocks in a mire of dated and frequently irrelevant dogmas and rituals.

Supposedly infallible, more and more often amidst the scrutiny of modern science, these texts have commonly been found to be anything but watertight, historically with political interference rife and even doubts about the identity of authors. Importantly, religious followers have been seen historically, as exactly that - ‘followers’. While the masses were largely uneducated, they were taught a faith that rested largely outside of themselves; to a God in the sky and his intimate priests or rabbis or the like, the ‘followers’ were taught to follow meekly (not unlike sheep) in fear.

This exploitative doctrine of ‘following’ and ‘fear’ is one that permeates the halls of governments even today, the marriage of religion and state is still well understood to be mutually beneficial for those seeking power.

Religion, by its nature, begins in the head and often stays there. Many times people get so transfixed dissecting a particular scripture and interpreting its many permutations and combinations, that whole other sects or even sub-religions are formed. Taken to the extreme, fundamentalism raises its ugly head and the masses that religion was trying to unite are separated into inevitable conflict or war.

Spirituality on the other hand puts worth back in personal experience. It values the experiences of others, the profound wisdom of religion, the inspiration of the creative and the transcendent, but in the end places ultimate responsibility for spiritual wisdom on the revelation of the truth within oneself.

It is not enough for the spiritual aspirant to simply have read a truth, that truth must be experienced, then compared with the intuitive revelations of the heart and if the tally be true, lived in full in each heartbeat and breath.

The cornerstones of the highest religious practices - faith and love - are not outside of ourselves with a God in the sky but are born first within the heart of the seeker. The spiritual aspirant quickly recognizes the universal truths that lie at the heart of all religions, and further than that, sees them again and again in art, music - in fact, all human endeavours. Spiritual philosophy becomes a celebration of the heart, and of the fractal uniqueness of journey that each of us travels.

Finally, spirituality is of action, of becoming, of living and ultimately of realisation. It is of no use to talk or to philosophise or have all sorts of good intentions. Real spirituality speak of not one thing being affected by hours of the deepest religious argument - rather it would prefer one second of the thoughtless peace of the heart.

It is said that the mind and the ego do not actually know anything to be true, they just believe whatever is repeated. This, in my view, is the birth of blind fundamentalism. Spirituality feels that the heart is the fount of wisdom and that each personal revelation of ours is a direct experience of our own sacred and infallible truth.

This truth is one, but at the same time many - not unlike many observers watching a sunrise, each seeing the same one light, but each experiencing it in different ways. This is the essential beauty of spirituality - it recognises the one light that shines through every one and every thing but understands there are not many, but infinite, beautiful paths to it.

Preparing for Meditation

"Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there".

Unknown

Introduction

The Meditation Society of Australia's website shows some that exercises are intended to help keep your meditation practice new and fresh. It is usual to find that sometimes your daily meditations aren't as rewarding as perhaps previously, nevertheless, it is crucial to keep practicing, at least 5 minutes a day. Most people find that after some time, the benefits of meditation are revealed in their life, even before they fully understand what meditation is. This is normal. Remember that meditation is an experience of the heart and not of the mind, for us to learn how to meditate, we need to trust the messages of our heart.

It is best to create a permanent meditation place. Your meditation place may be anything from a quiet room in the house, a table or a corner of your study desk, to even the shade of your favourite tree in the backyard. It doesn't matter where it is, just as long as you are able to find peace of mind there and access it regularly. On a little table, place a cloth and other inspirational objects - such as a leaf from an amazing forest, a beautiful crystal, a crucifix or other sacred object, or a picture of a spiritual figure. If you cannot have a permanent meditation place, it is just as effective to create this space anew with every meditation. Just have the components (e.g. cloth, inspirational object, candle, incense) in a bundle, ready to go. Put simply, this place is an entrance to your heart - think of it as a shrine to your soul. Whatever inspires you spiritually is perfect.

Preparing for your meditation

Proper preparation for your meditation is extremely important. Mentally, you are unloading your mind of all extraneous thoughts and beginning to focus more on your spirituality. Physically, you can express this by taking a shower (to “wash away your troubles”), brushing your teeth, and generally “purifying” yourself. If this is impossible, try at least to wash your hands and face.

Ideally, you already have a permanent meditation place, in which case you might like to make sure it is clean, and if possible, light a candle and some incense, place some fresh flowers on the table. It is helpful to use this time to begin to focus on your spirituality. Prepare the meditation place with reverence - pay attention to your movements and feel the grace that comes with the joy of spirituality. Light the candle and incense, place the flowers, with no other thought but the now. If your meditation space is temporary then as you are setting it up the same applies.

You might like to take 5-15 minutes to read some spiritual writings, reflecting on and absorbing their meanings, perhaps taking notes in a special diary reserved only for spiritual reflection. Then - this is very important - sit with straight back, relaxed but extremely alert and take at least seven, deep, slow breaths. With each inward breath you are opening yourself to the true, peaceful and loving nature of the universe. Your outward breath releases the frustrations and tensions you unconsciously hold on to. Let them go. Now begin your chosen meditation exercise. During all the exercises your focus should be from your heart.

Afterwards

After your meditation, you might like to sit quietly for a while longer, to gather the feelings from this session, to bring your experiences in to the “real world” and not just forget about them. You may wish to write some notes or a poem in your diary, compose a song, paint a picture... Be conscious of the revelations or intuitions that you may be feeling - it is crucial that you listen to your “inner voice” so that your real self can begin to guide your journey.

A piece of fruit, placed on the table and consumed with reverence afterward, makes a tasty ending to a meditation!