On the Freedom to Choose

Reshape yourself through the power of your will; never let yourself be degraded by self-will. The will is the only friend of the Self, and the will is the only enemy of the Self.
(Lord Krishna, Bhagavad Gita)

When I was 5, I was supposed to go shopping with my mom, but somehow decided to go in a different direction. My mother was never very forceful so no matter how much she tried, she just couldn't get me to turn around. In the end she couldn't take it any longer and started crying. Only then did I come to my senses and joined her.

There is the Self that our spiritual community talks about and then there is the will to create something, the perceived longings of the "I". Sometimes we create what our Self wants us to and sometimes we are on our own trip just as that little boy who was supposed to go shopping with his mom that day. So somehow there is a consciousness inside of us - the will that Lord Krishna alluded to - that is free to choose between the two voices. This consciousness can be clouded at times but then there is life that reminds us to always take a stance. Life reminds us of who we truly are, but it is very much in our power to hold on to the self-will and we can certainly put blinders on.

Your homecoming starts when you realize that everything that happens to you is really the Voice from the beyond trying to remind you of who you truly are. Sure, there will be moments when the self-will takes over again, but these are just temporary distractions. It takes one look at your soul-sister walking next to you and you remember your mission. Once you get a glimpse of the Self, the self-will fades into nothingness before you know it.

The Surrender of Self-Will

To die but not to perish is to be eternally present.
(Tao Te Ching)

I think most of us understand what it means to be enlightened. It means the absence of a personal filter. It means living in the Now. You can get there if you are so absorbed by the moment that the " I" disintegrates and merges with your environment instead. " I Am" implies that the " I" has become part of the Now. Life invites you moment by moment to let this happen. If you perceive every voice that comes your way as a hint from God and every development that you encounter as spiritually meaningful, you cannot help but being captured by the magic of the moment.