It’s good to have you here for another Meditation Monday. I know you probably have a very busy schedule, like most of the planet… Thanks for showing up.
So how’ve you been?
Are you having a good start to your New Year?
Or are you finding it difficult to maintain or keep up with your New Years’ resolutions?
If so, I’ve got good news. You’re not alone. You may find today’s show quite helpful. We are going to be talking about the concept of Transcendence.
Continuing on with our series here at Mountain Zen Den where we’ve been discussing the concept of cultivating what we call your “Garden of Well-being”…That is, traits and qualities you would like to develop and have in your life; things like Gratitude, Love and Simplicity, Joy and Tranquility; developing an appreciation for Beauty, and a sense of Wonder. Last week we talked about cultivating Wisdom.
Now we’re going to try and put it all together, and talk a bit about “how” we do this.
In the midst of life’s struggles, sometimes it can be really hard to maintain our focus and stay the course. “I don’ feel like showing Gratitude, or Faith, or Love or Joy when things aren’t going my way.” So how do we do it? We do it through Transcendence.
What is Transcendence?
I like to think of Transcendence as allowing oneself to rise above the mist and clouds of doubt and confusion and obtain a 30,000 foot view in order to live in a new understanding of life with joy and grace and ease. It is a complete surrender and trust in that new perspective or lens through which we choose to view the world.
In their book, The Inner Work – An Invitation to Freedom and Lasting Happiness, Mat & Ash, (also known as the Yoga Couple), break down the work of Dr. David Hawkins, best known for his book Power Vs. Force and The Map of Consciousness, which is a proven energy scale to actualize your ultimate potential. Deep, exciting, heady stuff, I’ll admit, but simply put, a proven method to becoming your best self.
It was Abraham Maslow who said, “That which a man can be, he must be.”
You and I were created with a purpose in mind, and until we begin working toward realizing that purpose, we will never be completely free or happy. That, my friend, is what the Inner Work is about. And as the name suggests, it is work, but as you strive to become the best version of yourself, there comes new, powerful joy and energy, transforming you into that which you were made for; Clark Kent becoming Superman, so to speak.
So step into the phone booth and let’s begin…
As we start on the journey of personal transformation, we encounter the limiting themes of consciousness like shame and guilt, hopelessness, grief, fear, anger, desire and pride. These are all lower themes of consciousness, egoic thought patterns we can all identify in our life, and then aim to transcend them. It begins with recognizing and identifying them.
Shame, for example, is the lowest theme of consciousness, rooted in the thought,
I am unlovable, unworthy, unwanted and undesireable,
“It is triggered by perceived rejection. Shame represents the complete opposite of the Truth, and is the ultimate forgetfulness of who we truly are. It can range from mild embarrassment to the epitome of “evil” and rejection by the Divine”.
It generally stems from the mind’s story of past experiences and memories of rejection, failures, embarrassments, abuse or neglect. We’ve all been there in one way or another. The really sad and ugly thing about shame is that, taken to its extreme, it can lead to suicide, murder, genocide, rape, hate crimes and torture. Bottom line, shame represents the ego’s desperate cry for love by ironically trying to prove how unloved and unlovable it is. It’s the darkest of places to be. I know. I’ve been there.
So how do you and I Transcend this lowest theme of consciousness and all of its many layers? In The Inner Work, Mat and Ash teach that “in order to let go of the story of shame, we have to replace it with compassionate understanding of ourselves and others. We do this by remembering that we were, and always are, innocent. Our innocence is still there, and can never be taken – only temporarily hidden due to misunderstanding. Our ultimate healing will eventually come by forgiving all those who wronged us in the past, thereby setting ourselves free… For as we do unto others, we do unto ourselves.”
This is so beautiful, and yet so seemingly difficult, if not impossible. What are some practical steps we can take to do this?
Well, we can begin by developing a New Narrative. An inner dialog of Affirmations we learn and remember by repetition. We release the old thoughts and replace them with the new.
For instance, your New Narrative to transcend the theme of Shame could look something like this:
I am always loved. I can never be beyond God’s love. I am perfect as I am. I am whole and complete exactly as I am. Other’s opinions of me have nothing to do with me, but are a reflection of themselves. Anyone projecting shame is living with their own shame. I give this shame back to its sender. I love myself. I am divinely beautiful. I am loved as I am. I am accepted. My voice matters. I will not allow abuse any longer. I will speak my truth.
You get the idea… Can you feel that? That shift in Energy as you affirm the Truth that you are loved and whole just the way you are?
You can do this with all of the limiting themes of consciousness that are holding you back from being your best self; with guilt and fear and anger, etc.
To learn more you may want to check out The Inner Work by Mat & Ash for starters.
We’ll leave a link in the show notes.
Now, if you’re ready, let’s do our meditation for the day…
As you begin meditating in the mountains today, focusing on your breath, picture yourself letting go of old, destructive thoughts and habits and feelings and emotions, and replacing them with new, energizing, loving healthy ones…
Nature Soundscape Rocky Mountain National Park Courtesy National Park Service