Recently I came across the book Open Heart, Open Mind by Tsokni Rinpoche. Tsokni is a Tibetan Buddhist monk, married with children, living in the US. So he has a finely-tuned blend of wisdom, interlaced with juicy life-experience and practical understanding. His book is a gem! And this paragraph in particular struck a real chord with me: “Look at your life.
Look at the ways in which you define who you are and what you’re capable of achieving. Look at your goals. Look at the pressures applied by the people around you and the culture in which you were raised. Look again. And again. Keep looking until you realise, within your own experience, that you’re so much more than who you believe you are. Keep looking until you discover the wondrous heart, the marvelous mind, that is the very basis of your being.” Look within. Although it sounds cliche, it actually isn’t.
When we take some quiet time to look deeply within ourselves, we can be pleasantly surprised by what we find. Underneath all the layers of thoughts, emotions, beliefs and patterns of behaviour, lies a place that is calm, quiet and happy. It is like reservoir that is always full, not matter what may be going on at the surface. When we learn to touch this place inside ourselves, it is life-changing. For me, it took many years of wanting more from life and from others, of searching, partying a fair amount and eventually surrendering through the practice of yoga before I realised that the fulfillment I wanted all along was right under my nose!
Indeed it was like a home-coming. It took a little while for me to fully come to terms with what this new perspective meant for how I was living my life and for things to fully-integrate, but now I wouldn’t have it any other way. This awareness IS everything. There is a radiant being inside each of us, just waiting for the right time to emerge. Again, again and again. Blessings ~ Natalie
