is 'service' spirituality?

I participate in a 'spiritual list'. Currently there is a big conversation going on about the importance of ‘service’ in our spiritual life – here is what I posted:

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I completely hear you about the value of loving in palpable ways – in my tradition, love is defined through:

• reality (real on the physical, in ways that are real for the body)

• affinity (an experience of our actual spiritual oneness) and

• communication.

Love is not about concepts, thoughts, especially not about feelings, or sex!


I am in agreement that service and giving are fruits (end products) of our spiritually-focused life – although what service looks like may not Always live up to expectations.

Although I appreciate posts reminding us of the value of love/service/giving/etc as priorities in the spiritual life, I am not in agreement.

I used to believe in the centrality of these activities.

I no longer see them as spiritual behavior per se (in themselves)

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I see spiritual behavior as (non-exclusively, but fundamentally)

1) spiritually receiving information and energy from Gd.

2) being/doing in the direction of my true self, in alignment with Gd – both within my own system and in my interaction with the world.


I believe the Spiritual Masters did/do this.

I am on my path to do this and I encourage my students to do this.

Doing this is More than enough to fill my plate!


Sometimes it may look like serving the poor, or serving the rich, or serving myself…

Sometimes this may be on another continent, or in the wild places, or in the city, or in my own family (ug!)…

Sometimes it may look like a perfectly ‘normal’ life, or living as a hermit, or as a ‘star’, or as an impoverished wanderer…


An example, Jesus referenced in Luke 7 (YLT) different ways one can be led to live a dedicated spiritual life, and how this often jives (not!) with social/religious expectations (requirements!):

And the Lord said, 'To what, then, shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like? they are like to children, to those sitting in a market-place, and calling one to another, and saying, We piped to you, and ye did not dance, we mourned to you, and ye did not weep! 'For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and ye say, He hath a demon; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and ye say, Lo, a man, a glutton, and a wine drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners…

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I invest a good deal of my time with my students to assist them to see and release ‘nice pictures’ and ‘ethics’ as well as ‘religious programming’ – and other concepts/beliefs/attachments/energy of that ilk – the kinds of ‘pictures’ that encourage the love/service/giving/etc we are talking about.

From my perspective, these concepts serve us on the physical level – they help the body be comfortable with others, grease the wheels of society and political systems, etc

But, from my perspective, they do not serve us spiritually.

I will say again, IMO, as a rule: being Nice, following morals and ethics, as well as general religious information do not serve us spiritually.

From my perspective, it is our job as spirit to listen (spiritually hear, see, know, whatever) to the ‘still, small voice’ which says ‘this is the way, walk ye in it’


Sometimes the voice will say go left, sometimes right.

Sometimes we will be called to do/be what others (and ourselves) agree with (oh, you are so, wise, smart, loving, caring, giving, etc).

Sometimes disagree with (oh you are such a sinner, evil, rotten, selfish, etc)

Doesn’t matter.


Sure our bodies don’t usually like going against our social and religious programming.

But we take care of our bodies, love them, retrain them – they learn to enjoy and profit from going the way of Gd instead of the way of the world… by and large…

In the old days, following our spiritual information could get us dead, imprisoned, etc – and there are times and places it still can – but usually not.

Often it leads us to the dreaded Social Ostracizing – which Feels like potential death for many of us – and most of us try to avoid this like the plague!

(in my tradition we call these ‘death pictures’, they are very valid experiences in our space – and they can be seen and released… yes, there is a theme here ; )


Our spiritual freedom is a gift from Gd.

It is a gift that our society tries to steal (pretty much) every minute of every day.

It is a gift, IMO/E, I do best to re-own and hold onto with both hands – so I am free to be my unique self in the world, and to follow my unique spiritual path. In this way I best love and serve Gd and best love and serve my neighbor, as well best love and serve my self.

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In my tradition, On A Spiritual Level, we believe strongly in personal responsibility. Not as a punishment or competition - but as a gift! (free will, always, and again)

I Cannot do stuff for anyone else (helping them) on the spiritual level, although I can assist if they choose to do it themselves.

I Cannot heal anyone but myself (of course together with Gd, and the mighty spiritual forces I am aligned with), although I can assist if they choose to do it themselves.

(Trying to do these things For others is a great way for me to lose energy, health, joy, life… and make a very small difference in the world - > been there, got the T-shirt ; )


But, the up side is: the more I allow Gd to heal Me, the higher I allow my vibration to go, the more I learn to own my space, my path, my power, my spiritual abilities, my relationship with Gd and the many spiritual friends available… The more others around me do these same things for themselves.

I learn new tricks, it is easier for them to learn new tricks…

This is not just theory to me – I have watched it happen, over and over and over.

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I invested my 20’s working in non-profits. I have seen first hand so many examples of how ‘good’ is done with the right hand, while ‘evil’ is done with the left.

I have spent a lot of time with spiritual people and do-gooders (as I am one myself!) And it is interesting to watch our shadows playing in our ‘good works’ (we see it on this spiritual board with almost every post, except our own!)


One of my dearest and longest friends, as an example, is the most sweet, caring, giving, loving, spiritual people one would ever want to meet. She does many good works and makes my life and many lives around her So much better. And at the same time, she has a big streak of meanness/hate/cruelty running right down the middle. She doesn’t see it, most folks don’t see it – but it creeps out and does ‘evil’ – like the snap of a whip.

I am not bringing this up to judge my friend (and I have similar shadow stuff myself, of course!), but to point to the absolute necessity of allowing Gd to heal us, deeper and deeper. This is of primary importance before going out to ‘save the world’, IMO. Because if we don’t, the ‘good’ we mean to do, can sometimes (often?) come in a dung wrapper.

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If I am doing stuff, even obviously ‘good’ stuff, but I am doing it because I think it is a good idea, or the ethics I was trained in says it is a good idea, or I am compulsively trying to look or be good, or earn karma-points, etc (anything other than: Gd told me to do it, here, now).

Then there is a chance that my ‘helping’ could be hurting.

There is a very good chance that my ‘helping’ isn’t helping.

There is an almost definite chance that I am diverting time/energy from the unique contribution I could be making, that possibly only *I* could be making, that it is my blessed opportunity to be doing in the world right now.

I am missing that opportunity and the huge and multiplied effect that my service may have in the world for others…

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That’s enough
Random thoughts, quickly typed, full of holes
But meant to point in a direction, which I hope can be of service to some.
Thanks for ‘listening’.

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a further conversation about service and spirituality:
(questions in italics, my responses follow)


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Now whether you agree/disagree with what my premise is (service to others is true love manifestation) ... that’s an entirely different conversation and one that I would like to have.

Generally, and on an everyday level, I agree that there is a high correlation between what looks like ‘service’ and ‘true love manifestation’. But I believe sometimes ‘true love manifestation’ may sometimes not look like ‘service’ to some, maybe many.

Jesus cleared the temple, he verbally chewed up Pharisees and spit them out (and that is putting it very kindly), I believe this was ‘true love manifestation’. Does it look like service to you? Did it look like service to them?

Many times ‘true love manifestation’ looks to me like leaving someone alone. Not helping. This is a very hard thing to do. Does that look like service to you? Does it feel like service to them?
(Believe me I am a big ol’ healer / helper – please let me help! Leaving them alone is ‘service’ in my book ; )

IMO, it is best, on a spiritual level to un-collapse these two ideas, so I can be free of my concepts (baggage/compulsions) about what love is, and what service looks like. And therefore act in what (according to my spiritual information) seems to be a beneficial way.

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You are not in agreement that service/giving are priorities in a spiritual life. Do you mean that they are not "the" priority? Or do you mean that they aren't any priority whether it be a small or big one?

Thanks allowing me to clarify, from my perspective – service is the fruit, not the sunshine, water, dirt.

Service comes out of our spiritual life – it is the cart not the horse, imo.

AND, service may not even look like service to most folks, although often it will...

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I understand that we each go thru personal spiritual development and what’s true for me is not true for you (i.e. we are each on our own path).

Agreed.

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Some are messengers, some are teachers, some are masters, some are students ... and all of these individuals have great purpose.

Agreed

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But if we're talking about truly living in spirit ... being one with light ... having Christ consciousness ... reaching love manifestation ... what do you think the characteristics of such individuals are/have been?

I believe each Master has a very unique manifestation, focus and energies – as we each do.

And of course they share things in common.

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What are their priorities?

Oh, that is like a whole book, if I try to think about it…

I ask God and I see a picture that looks like: being one with the Light, like being in a waterfall of light, very bright – aligned with Source, as well as grounded in the physical world.

From my perspective, How that manifests on the physical, again, is completely unique, to each of them, and for each of us…


On a spiritual level, I see how it manifests; it spiritually looks like clouds, or waves, billowing out from the Master, in all directions (when the waterfall hits bottom it plumes out...). From my perspective, it is the energy billowing out that matters most, Not any particular way it looks on the physical…

On the physical - Peach trees make peaches, plum tress make plums. They just do it , no effort, no shoulds, no agenda, no try. It is like falling off a log – and there is fruit ; )

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Christ taught, he spoke, he did miracles. In teaching he filled the hearts of many. In speaking he brought hope to many. In performing miracles he was an example of breaking the shackles of this world to many. But it was in his actions with the poor, the sick, the helpless and the discarded ... did he show the many.

Jesus, from my perspective, did a whole lot of NONE of that for ~ 30 years.
Three decades is a Very Long Time.
He was Jesus the Christ and he did relatively nothing of note for ~10/11ths of his whole entire human life!

I believe out of (from, because of) his quiet, non-obviously miraculous/healing/serving/inspirational/freedom-producing/demon-casting/etc 30 years, he was ready for public ministry.
Before that, not-so-much…

He did his work, deepened in himself and in the Father, increased in Knowledge and Power, etc.
He was centered in who he was and what God had him to do. Then and only then did he go out to serve… as he was led/called to do, not just any ol' thing!

Even then, in the last ~ 3 years of his life, he was constantly moving away from the crowds. He consistently sought out the quiet, if he had to at night, to be with the Father, to do his spiritual work – or else he couldn’t have done what he did.

Great fruit. Amazing fruit. Fruit comes in its season, not before.

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That’s my opinion – thanks for asking!
; ) w

You Can't Be Loved Until You Make Peace With Betrayal

I watched Helen Hunt’s movie (Then She Found Me) yesterday. I watched all the special features today, including the movie with director’s voiceover. I recommend the movie. I found it moving: funny and sad; insightful, true.

Turns out I had written about some main themes in this movie 14 months ago (below) – because I had read Helen Hunt being interviewed about it and I was really moved.

I watched the movie and didn’t realize it was THAT movie until it was done. I’d ‘accidentally’ bought the DVD at goodwill for $4 because it had great people in it.

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Monday, June 02, 2008

Hi Friends,

I haven’t seen Helen Hunt's new movie, J & Y weren't overly impressed by it.

But, I received some treasure from reading about her process with it. This is from an interview Redbook, May 08:

I spent a lot of years writing, then put the script away because I just couldn't get it made. The best movies have one sentence that they're exploring, a thesis, something that people can argue about over dinner afterward. I couldn't say what that was.

At the time, I was wanting a baby. April's younger in the novel, and I thought, You either have a baby, want a baby, or don't want a baby, but you don't nothing a baby if you're in your 30s or 40s. Then a friend sent me an essay by James Hillman [author of The Soul's Code] called "Betrayal." I studied and studied it. I started to realize that people will think this movie is about adoption or motherhood, but for me it's about this issue of betrayal. April feels betrayed by everybody. She betrays herself. She feels betrayed by God. I finally landed on the idea that you can't be loved until you make peace with betrayal. With that, I had a compass for the movie.

I read this line and I was arrested by it:

you can't be loved until you make peace with betrayal

WOW, That sets an interesting and useful context for issues I have been chewing on and struggling with in the last few years, and for most of my life. And it is not just me, I see other folks that I am close to be “hooked” around the issues in this arena.

So, of course, I immediately found this essay (last night), and I am already profiting from it - and I expect I will continue to find continued blessing as I dwell here. Hillman presents several aspects to this issue of betrayal that I find to be useful places to stand to consider my own world-view and experience; it has already given me useful insight into others’ choices around things like intimacy and leadership, as well.

If you are interested, here is a link

http://www.blacksunjournal.com/psychology/18_betrayal-part-1-of-3-by-james-hillman_2001.html

(remember, eat the fruit; spit out the pits)

hope you are enjoying your cycles of love and learning,

in life,

wendy

in case the above link disappears, I put a copy of BETRAYAL here 

Mountains are not better than valleys. Valleys are not better than mountains.

I have been getting schooled in some things the last couple weeks - the main message of which, I keep getting as:

Mountains are not better than valleys. Valleys are not better than mountains.

Which is the picture and words for the general concept:

dichotomies, or opposites - just Are in this reality, and are not (on a spiritual level) to be set in competition (including judgment) with each other. Mountains and valleys each just Are.

I may Prefer one thing to another at a particular time/space, but in and of itself on a spiritual level -

left is not better than right

fat is not better than thin

old is not better than young

rich is not better than poor

death is not better than birth

war is not better than peace

you probably get the idea...

(Of course, spiritually, one becomes more or less beneficial for me the moment Gd says - 'go left', or 'sell all you have and follow me'. I am bringing this up to be clear, but this is an aside from what I am learning right now...)

In context, a couple weeks ago, Gd started me working with Jesus on a Big healing project - basically integrating 2 large ‘bags of energy’ = basically 'lost parts' of myself. (one bag can be called ‘shadow stuff’; one could say the other bag is a ‘male’ counterpart to myself).

This full integration will probably take about a year, but the perception of change within (and outside me a bit) is palpable. The enjoyable part has been that I feel increasing more whole – remarkably so – like Swiss cheese getting filled in. Or like I was filled with billiard balls and now all the spaces are getting filled with sand – it is bizarre! The interesting part is learning to ride the wave of different emotions and ‘ways of being’ that are surfacing, that I haven’t had to ‘handle’ consciously as I am now – like male aggression! The challenging part energetically is – there are many reasons why I separated these parts of myself (beliefs, experiences, limits, lies, judgments, etc). So, predictably, as I reintegrate these ‘lost parts’, it is intense and stirs up many things that I need to allow Gd to wash away, if I am to keep going and not pop / die / go insane - whatever!

So Jesus has encouraged me to work with Lao Tse (yeah, the ~4–6th century BCE Chinese Philosopher, founder of Taoism, who the wrote Daodejing)

Lao Tse has been extraordinary in assisting me to let go of the many things that cause me to be ‘bent’ and reject my *self* – things like judgment, etc. These issues caused me to separate myself from myself. And now, these issues are in the way of re-integration…

Lao Tse has been assisting me SO Much with these changes. And with helping me to open to receiving energy from Gd that helps me to release judgment etc, allow more balance, and continually let go. I have been calling the energy equanimity, which is probably accurate, but doesn’t feel big enough. I have found reading a definition of ‘Pu’ (a major concept in the Daodejing) feels like it may be a more well-rounded description of the energy I am receiving from Gd, and foundationally what I am learning from Lao Tse (I have some stuff below on Pu if you are interested)

Anyway my picture for this learning of non-judgment and balance is – The mountain and the valley next to each other – juxtaposed – with no prejudice, no preconceptions, no better-ness between them…


Pu

lit. "uncut wood"

translated "uncarved block", "unhewn log", or "simplicity".

represents a state of receptiveness, child-likeness.

Pu is a symbol for a state of pure potential and perception without prejudice.

In this state, Taoists believe everything is seen as it is, without preconceptions or illusion.

unburdened by knowledge or experiences.

no right or wrong, beautiful or ugly.

only pure experience, or awareness, free from learned labels and definitions.

It is this state of being that is the goal of following wu wei.

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an associated post, with Lao Tzu: Finding Balance: let the waves come, let them go