What’s your notion of abundance?

Many quite limiting ideas will pass without scrutiny under the guise of goodness. You may feel quite virtuous, for example, in hating evil, or what seems to you to be evil; but if you find yourself concentrating upon either hatred or evil you are creating it. If you are poor you may feel quite self-righteous in your financial condition, looking with scorn upon those who are wealthy, telling yourself that money is wrong and so reinforcing the condition of poverty. If you are ill you may find yourself dwelling upon the misery of your condition, and bitterly envying those who are healthy, bemoaning your state — and therefore perpetuating it through your thoughts. If you dwell upon limitations, then you will meet them. (Seth, The Nature of Personal Reality)

The Parable of the Talents in Mathew 25:14-30 is a tough one to swallow for our Christian friends. In it, the landlord gave 3 talents to one servant, 2 talents to the other, and one talent for the third, implicitly expected them to do something with it. The first and the second servants invested their talents and received 3 and 2 additional talents, respectively, and the landlord let them keep it. However, the third servant was a cautious fellow and hid his talent. The landlord was outraged and took the talent away from him.

We all have talents, and we all have a way to share them with others in a way that profits us as well. Ego is where there is perceived scarcity. In abundance on the other hand, the ego is wow into oblivion. Abundance is our birthright and we have to find a way to materialize it in whatever way a happy spiritual life is manifested for us personally. It’s always love, and ease of living and creation, often nature and art, sometimes material abundance and professional excellence. What’s your notion of abundance?