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There is a space in the center of my being that is pure, empty of personal will, free of thoughts, of the imperfections of this lifetime, uncorrupted, indefinable, irrelevant to human understanding or use. This is the true I. Paring away the corruption, stripping off the accretions of pride and of shame, of memory and of expectation: this is the action of meditation. Heaven is the unification of I and the rest of reality, achieved in the pure being of the moment. I am I when I am removed from my “self.”

A smile, a song sung in harmony, a letter to a friend, a more-than-20% tip, a split-second decision not to argue (even though I’m right!), a hug, a wave, lending a book, a hand to shake, a condolence note, a laugh shared (at nobody else’s expense,) “I love you” for absolutely no reason, a genuine Thank You, a contribution to charity, a few extra  minutes of listening (even though I’m busy!), moving that insect instead of squashing her, recognizing blame and guilt as poisonous,  a smile, a song sung in harmony, a letter…

The pain of separation from the Holy Spirit is like the way we miss a loved one, but more evident in our behavior and our attitude. When we have become friends with God we realize that we are better when we are near to Him. We see that our criticism, blame, “pious” judgements and the resulting sense of alienation from life and our fellow humans – how we think when we are not living with and in the Spirit – results when we are absent from Him. The friendship of God can infuse our minds through meditation and end our negative thinking forever, allowing us to be friends with everyone and everything.

Trouble is inevitable. Our response to difficulty is determined by the state of our soul. An analogy can be made to our physical selves; we can avoid illness if our immune system is strong; protect our body if our muscles are in shape. Prayer and meditation are our spiritual calisthenics.

The goal of the consecrated life is not to reflect the light, nor is it even to generate the light, but to be the light itself.

Living a spiritual life is  like driving an automobile on a sightseeing journey. We cannot appreciate the sights we came to see while we are busy driving — steering, braking, manipulating the controls. We cannot experience the magnificence of each moment of life while our ego-mind is attempting to control everything. The practice of meditation and momentary mindfulness is learning to trust the automatic driving system which our car has, pre-installed but unfamiliar to us, which will allow us to move along the road without being distracted by the need to manipulate and control the vehicle of our soul’s journey.

Is my spiritual experience the same as yours? Is the goal we seek a universal, mutually recognizable state of mind, or a common condition of the soul? Absolutely not. The physical, psychological and emotional conditioning we experience by resolutely and diligently following a spiritual practice is unique to every individual; just as unique as the doctrine, theology or dictates of our teachers is different for each of us. Upon reaching freedom and enlightenment, each human being will still be as unique as his or her fingerprint. We will all be able to experience the universal consciousness, however, perceiving the ground of existence, the essence of pure being, or God. In this will we be united.

Mysticism. Mystical. Mystic… The exotic sound and provocative impression of these words make us think that there is some difficult and mysterious process, some arcane discipline that we must learn and follow to understand their meaning. Not so. When I see a flower, really see it, behold its beauty, it stops me from thinking “Why?” or “How?” I simply experience the flower’s existence. And the way I marvel at this reality, the beauty, the wonder of its being there, I become unified , even for a moment, with the essence of life. This is the mystical experience. I can experience it simply by choosing to do so; to think this way. The miracle of Creation, of Being, is transmitted to us by reality, without words, thoughts or ideas. This is mysticism, and it’s open to the public.

In ancient scripture, particularly in the Vedic and Hindu scriptures, we read of “overcoming death” or “putting death itself to death.” What is meant by this? Is our aim, or one of our aims, in spiritual development, to achieve immortality? Does it refer to the state of Nirvana, where the aspirant has gone beyond the necessary stages of reincarnation and has achieved perfection? Or does it simply mean that one aim of our development is to become so removed from conditioning, or comparisons of this versus that; so immersed in the quality of right now; so absorbed in God, in the universal Being, that death does not represent a threat of loss or extinction but merely another state of existence, neither good nor bad, nor sad, nor dreadful. Can we not progress to St. Paul’s question: “Death where is thy sting?”

From time to time I find myself in a disagreeable state of mind. Sometimes it is on awakening, after a less-than-perfect night’s sleep; sometimes in mid-day, amid the pressures and stresses of business life; or sometimes in the early evening, when my energy has run down, or before the evening meal. Obviously I have not achieved the perfect, “unitive state” that is the goal of my spiritual work, and the emotional energies of my subconscious are not erased from my mind. When I recognize my negative emotional environment I allow all thought to be released from my consciousness, allowing myself to have a meditative moment; turn my attention to the peace and perfection of God; and try with that to keep from inflicting my imperfection on other beings. This is progress.