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The Path
To Inner Peace
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What is REAL inner
peace? How did the Masters find it? Is it possible for us to
achieve in this seemingly crazy, hectic world in which we live?
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Yes, it is
possible to reach inner peace, but it will not come over night. And it may take many
lifetimes to achieve what the Masters have learned and taught us.
In order to
understand inner peace, one has to stand back a bit and take a look at who
you really are. Briefly, you are a spiritual being caught up in a
human, 3-dimsional experience.
Ancient
mystical wisdom tells us that our God-centered spirits discovered planet Earth
aeons and aeons ago. We decided to slow our vibrations down so that we could
appreciate the wonders of the material, 3-dimensional world.
After that
initial experience, we jointly agreed that we would bring a sense of sacredness to
this planet by blending Spirit with matter. In other words, we wanted
to being a sense of God-energy and Heaven to Earth.
Over
time we lost our
way by over-identifying with the pleasures of the physical world
and all it could offer. As a result, we've gotten stuck here. We now find
ourselves in a cycle of life-death-karma
until we awaken spiritually and find a balance between our mind-body-soul. When we do,
our spirits will be free from the material world we find ourselves attached to lifetime after lifetime.
Each and every
one of us is a part of our Source. Prior to arriving on planet Earth as a human family of
souls we were always God-centered. Everything we did was a result of our sacred
relationship with All That Is. We constantly experienced a deep and profound inner peace
because of our connection with the divine.
As we lost our
way in this material world of 3-dimensional reality, we drifted further and further from
God-centeredness. The more we drifted, the more we lost our inner peace. The more we lost
our inner peace the more we experienced suffering
and pain.
All
of this occurred because of free will choices
we made that separated us from our Creator. It has nothing to do with God punishing
us. It has everything to do with the past, ego-based choices we've made, individually and
collectively.
Because of divine
wisdom and God's perfect plan, we will never find lasting happiness or a profound sense of
inner peace outside of ourselves. We may be able to rent it for a while, but it will never
be permanent. Nowhere in the physical universe is this possible.
There is nothing in the
material world that lasts forever nor can anything material, regardless of the degree of
pleasure, provide a deep and continuing state of peace and happiness. One must go within to find it.
What is
within? God. The inner journey, the discovery of remembering who we really are is the
path to inner peace. It is only when we are God-centered in all we think and do that we
will finally achieve the lasting peace we've forgotten about.
The Masters know this. Nothing
perturbed them. They saw through the illusion of the physical world and all of
its false
promises... promises we have yet to detach from.
What are some
things we can do to begin the journey towards inner peace. Here are a few thoughts and
suggestions, much of which comes from the Peace
Pilgrim, a modern day saint...
"Your lower self (ego) sees
things from the viewpoint
of your physical well-being only.
Your higher
self considers
your spiritual well-being.
When you are governed by your lower self you are selfish
and materialistic...
if you follow the promptings of
your higher self you will see things realistically
and find harmony within yourself and others.
Body, mind and
emotions are instruments which can either be the self centered nature or the
God-centered nature.
The self-centered nature uses these instruments,
yet it is never fully able to control them,
so there is a constant struggle.
They can only be fully controlled
by the God-centered nature.
When the God-centered nature takes over,
you have found inner peace."
The Peace Pilgrim has expressed her thoughts as to how we can achieve inner peace...
"No problem ever comes to you
that does not
have a purpose
in your life...
that cannot contribute to
your inner growth.
When you perceive this,
you will recognize that problems
are opportunities in disguise.
Bring your lives into harmony
with the laws
that govern
this universe.
Every one of us has a special place in the life pattern and no two people
have the same part to play
in Life's Pattern.
There is guidance, which comes from within
to all who will listen.
We must remain open to God's guidance.
Every morning I thought of God
and thought of things I might do that day
to be
of service to God's children.
I looked at every situation I came into
to see
if there was anything I could do there
to be of service.
THE SIMPLIFICATION OF LIFE...
This (simplification) was made easy for me.
Just after I dedicated my life to service,
I felt that I could no longer accept more
than what I need while others in the world
have less than they need.
During this period I was able to meet my expenses
on ten dollars a week...
$6.50 for food and $3.50 for lodging.
Then I
discovered there were some
purification's
required of me.
The first was the purification of the body...
this had to do with my physical living habits.
Now I eat mostly fruits, nuts,
vegetables,
grains and no meat.
Another is
purification of thought.
If you realized
how powerful your thoughts are,
you would
never think a negative thought.
There is one more purification, and that
is
purification of motive.
What is your motive for whatever
you may be doing?
If it is pure greed or self-seeking or the wish
for self-glorification, I would say
don't do that thing.
The motive, if you are to find inner peace,
must be an outgoing motive.
Service, of course, service.
Giving, not getting.
Your motive must be good
if your work
is to have a good effect.
The secret of life is being of service.
Then there are the relinquishments...
- the
relinquishment of self-will, the ego
- the relinquishment of the feeling
of separation
- the relinquishment of all
attachments (no
one is truly free who is still attached
to
material things, or to places or to people)
- the
relinquishment of all negative feelings
There will be
hills and valleys, lots of hills and valleys, in that spiritual growing up period (attaining inner peace).
Then in the midst of struggle there will come a
wonderful mountaintop experience...
the
first glimpse of what the life of inner peace is like."
This incredible woman, whom
many likened to a "western Gandhi," found deep inner peace, the
kind that truly lasts.
She lived in our lifetime.
Her faith in All That Is was proven by walking thousands and
thousands of miles back and forth across America for 25 years, trusting that
God would provide all of her needs. All she had was the clothes on her back.
And she slept and ate whenever it was given to her by others.
All of this
was done for the love of
humankind, all for peace, all for God. Believe me, she knows what she's
talking about when it comes to inner peace.
Peace
Pilgrim was written by her many friends. For a FREE COPY write to:
Friends of Peace
Pilgrim
PO Box 2207
Shelton, CT 06494-2207
(203) 926-1581
friends@peacepilgrim.org
SYMPTOMS OF INNER
PEACE
Tendency to think and act spontaneously
rather than from fear based on past experience
An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment
Loss of interest in judging other people
Loss of interest in judging self
Loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others
Loss of interest in conflict
Loss of ability to worry (a very serious symptom)
Frequent, overwhelming episodes of appreciation
Contented feelings of connectedness
with others and with nature
Frequent attacks of smiling
through
the eyes and heart
Increasing tendency to let things happen
rather than make them happen
Increased susceptibility to love
extended from others
as well as...
the uncontrollable urge to extend it
Author Unknown
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