There is lots of talk about individuality in today's world but, ironically enough, that individuality is all centered on the ego and self-gratification how one looks, presents him/herself, finds a career, etc. These are important. We need to live comfortably and must be able to support our families. But all of these endeavors direct attention to the body the outside part the part that houses our soul.
Then there is the progress that has been made by living a more natural lifestyle; eating organic foods, using natural products, etc. These, too, are important. We need to honor Mother Earth and our bodies by not polluting them with chemicals. But, again, its all directed to the body; to the outside, rather than the inside.
Just as each of us has our own unique relationship with our children, siblings, friends, etc., we also have a matchless relationship with God and ourselves.
Only your journey within will help you connect to your real individuality your own individual relationship with your Higher Self and God.
Even when you are praying in a group, prayer is an individual act. Have you ever noticed that when you meditate in a group of people, after a while you are able to go deep within yourself, where it's just you and your awareness of that which you are meditating on; all the people have fallen away? They no longer exist. Then, when you come out of the deep meditation it can be jolting or surprising to you to be "back in the company" of all of those people. That is because you have been deep into exploring your own individual spirituality, and then you come back to the collective.
The collective can be a group of people, society, religion, etc. The collective also can be a protective insulation from exploring, discovering our true identity and unique relationship with God, Natural Spirituality.
Now, by no means am I condemning society. We all need to participate and do our part. Religion is a bona fide path for some folks and has help tens of thousands of souls to be Self Realized. Groups have their purposes as well. What I am saying is that for those of us who are looking for more than what we have found in (and were able to get out of) the collective, Natural Spirituality... awakening our own real individuality and unique relationship with God... can bring us back to wholeness.
The collective does not want us to have our own individuality. The collective wants us to stay a part of them and not to separate. Religion is just one of those collectives. Religion is something you have to learn. Its not something you are allowed to be.
On the other hand, Natural Spirituality is not something to learn but something to be.
The collective can be a protective insulation from exploring from discovering our true identity and unique relationship with God from Natural Spirituality. We can see how others get so involved in work, gyms, church, helping others, relationships, etc., that they are just too busy to make the time to explore and discover who they are beyond the superficial trappings.
Some of us were like those people, until something woke us up and we realized there was more that we wanted out of life. Those things, which are good things, no longer fulfilled us. We needed more to feel whole. We needed to know more about our Truth who we really were why we are here and where we are going.
And so began our journey out of the collective and to our inner recesses.
Turning within is one of the ways to begin to reconnect to your own true spirituality; that piece within that cannot be seen, heard or touched by our limited mind and senses.
Silence is a vehicle that takes you within. But its hard to reach a place of complete silence. The mind is always chattering. Unless you are in a soundproof room, you will hear sounds that will distract you. You can use a headset that will filter out most of the sound, but it might be uncomfortable after a period of time. So what to do? You give your mind something to focus on. Transcendental sound vibrations are the sounds that not only give your mind something to focus on, but serve as the highway that is needed to drive your vehicle down deep deep within that place that is not of the body, mind or world.
Transcendental sound vibrations can be mantras, names of God, or something from the scriptures. Any of these would do. Listen to or repeat one of these over and over for at least ten minutes; focusing continuously on the sound vibration of the words being heard. You don't have to memorize them; that's just the mind doing its thing. Just listen and focus on what you are hearing. Then after ten minutes or more, sit in the silence, putting your attention behind the heart chakra area. Honor the silence. If thoughts arise, let them come and go without processing them. Do this for another ten to fifteen minutes and then gradually bring yourself out of the silence.
If you do this on a regular basis (daily, if possible), after a while you will notice that things don't upset you as much, or that you are not reacting the way you used too. You are aware of subtle nuances you didn't notice before. You will begin to feel more at ease with yourself and intuitively know what you need to do. You become more aware because the outside noise isn't affecting you as it once did, thus allowing you to see, hear and react to things differently. All of these changes will occur just by giving yourself the time to go within and discover your own true Natural Spirituality. This person who is calmer, not as reactive and more attuned to the peace and joy that comes from within is who you really are. We all have our own individual peace, joy, wisdom, power, love, creativity and intelligence that make us different from each other. Going within begins that journey of reconnecting with all of this and developing our own Natural Spirituality.
When we are deep within, communing with our Natural Spirituality, we also are communing with God. It is in the silence that we become realigned with God and our own Natural Spirituality, thus watering the seeds of peace, joy, wisdom, power, love, creativity and intelligence.
That is the function of reconnecting to our Natural Spirituality; watering those qualities of the soul to help us develop into the unique individuals we have come here to become.
Our own spirituality is the process of merging ourselves with the Divine. This process allows us to fulfill our goal, which is complete fulfillment and happiness living both our spiritual/eternal and temporary lives simultaneously, thus fulfilling our purpose in life.
About the Author
Michael Hoare, D.D., is an author, minister and certified Angel Therapy Practitioner. He is the author of Returning to WHOLENESS Discovering Ah-Man, which chronicles his journey to recovery and redemption and the founding of his spiritual recovery program: Ah-Man. Through a series of retreats and one-on-one counseling sessions, Hoare teaches men and women to embrace the Ah-Man within them by creating a loving relationship with ones self, God and others; openness with other people; a sense of integrity; and the ability to communicate; all by incorporating trust, forgiveness and acceptance, thus allowing them to reach spiritual recovery and wholeness while attaining personal healing. You can find him at http://www.ah-man.com
Article Source: http://goarticles.com/article/How-Natural-Is-Your-Spirituality/8237290/
