Today, I was walking absentmindedly towards Afternoon Delight. As I leisurely strolled along my way to brunch, I watched my feet step on an ant that was running around right in front of me. I didn’t have enough time to react and pull my feet away, and I killed it.
Oh what would it be like to be so powerless like an ant? All of your hard work and memories at the mercy of someone else.
Our lives. We must work hard to keep.
Hello hello! Whether you’re an old reader, new reader or a stranger, welcome.
This blog documents my journey and thoughts as I add them into my book of Life. Life is a wonderful wonderful thing, not just because it’s a box of chocolate, but also because when it hits you hard, you are struck by the awe of this marvelous creation. Even when you undergo suffering, you can choose to emerge feeling as alive and vibrant as ever; you can emerge as someone wiser and stronger than before.
Some of you may know that I blogged at Existential Life previously. I’ve gotten a new blog address every time I feel like I’m entering a new phase in my life. This is another one of those transitions. I used to ask myself what the meaning of life is. Why are we here? What’s my purpose? Why do we experience suffering? What will make me happy? What does this all mean?
Now, life doesn’t seem so existential anymore. It seems more like a growth process, a journey, a stream of connected experiences. The mythologist Joseph Campbell once said,
“People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. I think what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonance within our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive. That’s what it’s all finally about. “
It rang true with me. With all these questions, I, like many others, am simply seeking an experience of total connectedness to everyone else, to nature, and to our innermost being.
During this past year I’ve met many many great friends and mentors, who have deeply guided my spiritual journey and lifted me up when I’m down. For that, I am forever grateful. I’ve also had the chance to read to learn more about the great works and journeys of fascinating human beings. Some, including Joseph Campbell, Hermann Hesse, Eckhart Tolle and Ken Wilber, have left an indelible impact on my life. I used to look far and wide for happiness. Where is it at? Why is it so elusive. These writers have helped me see that there is a whole lot within me too. There is a whole lot within all of us. No matter what you call it – God, Buddha, Spirit, Consciousness or whatever, there seems to be this Light, a tremendous source of energy and wisdom, within us. I have yet to experience this personally, but somehow, I feel that it is there. I feel that there is a universe within. There is no need to search anywhere else. There seems to be no need to be existential, because if I can connect to this universe within me, I can be alive and connected with each and everyone of us.
Have you heard the saying ‘Life is what happens when we’re busy preparing for it’? It happens to me a lot. And I think that it’s because there is a plan for all of us. We are here for a reason. I always wonder why I go through some of the things I go through. I think there’s a reason, although I don’t know that just yet. But the most profound four words I’ve encountered says this:
Let go. Let God. (Or Buddha, Yahweh, Spirit, Higher Being, whatever you believe in)
Isn’t it beautiful? Let go. Let God.
And so my new phase in life begins.
Let go. Let God.
A Universe Within: My Spiritual Journey 