Friday, December 10, 2010

Are You a Spiritual Seeker Like Me?

Do you ever wonder why some of us become spiritual seekers, while the rest of humanity continues to languish in darkness?

Dr. David R. Hawkins tells us why in his book Discovery of the Presence of God: Devotional Nonduality. In this book, he explains how we become spiritual seekers and how this transformation affects our lives. This book qualifies as an instruction manual for seekers like you and me.
According to Dr. Hawkins, some people are born with what he calls “a spiritual propensity.” The rest of us awaken later in life. A dramatic event -- such as a near death experience or “hitting bottom” -- can awaken us. Or we might experience a spontaneous awakening in what A Course in Miracles calls “a holy instant.”            
So a spiritual awakening can be gradual and subtle. Or it can be sudden and intense. Regardless of the form it takes, it launches us on a conscious spiritual journey. We become interested in all things spiritual and less interested in material things. We begin to ask questions like: What am I? And what is life's real purpose?
As our awakening continues, we undergo a personal and spiritual transformation. We no longer want to be what we used to be. Nor do we want to do what we used to do. A quest for spiritual knowledge and wisdom now motivates us. We want to know the Truth. In pursuit of this Truth, we undertake spiritual studies through books and on the Internet. We begin to attend spiritual workshops, seminars, conferences and courses. We start to seek out spiritual teachers, like-minded friends and discussion groups. In short, we become dedicated to our spiritual search.
Let me tell you about a Panamanian man who became my spiritual teacher in early 2003. I will call him “M” here. I had been doing intensive spiritual studies alone for three years when this teacher suddenly and unexpectedly appeared my life, precisely when I was ready for him. At the time, I was reading Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramhansa Yogananda, along with The Holy Science by Sri Yukteswar.
“M” began to meet with me nearly every Saturday afternoon and continued to do so for ten months, teaching me what he himself had learned in India. He called me “a selected one” and said a time would come when I would have to share with others what I was learning on my spiritual journey. He also told me of "another" like me and assured me that I would someday meet this "other" here in Panama.
“M” taught me many things that year. He taught me about the importance of Pythagorus, Melchizadek and Enoch. He taught me about Rennes-le-Chateau, yoga and tai chi, dreamwork, inter-dimensional travel, the true story of Jesus and Mary Magdelene, the pyramids, the Pleiades, and the physical symptoms of ascension. I'm sure he taught me many other things which I have long since forgotten.
It was an exciting time in my life! I was surging spiritually. But at the end of 2003, “M” disappeared from my life, just as mysteriously as when he first appeared, and I never saw him again. Because of what he taught me, however, I became totally dedicated to my search for spiritual knowledge and wisdom.
As a result of this kind of spiritual dedication, our level of consciousness can rise dramatically. In fact, Dr. Hawkins says that it can rise by hundreds of points on his Scale of Consciousness in a single lifetime. By contrast, most people’s calibration changes only five points or so during their lifetime.
Because of his spiritual dedication, a seeker can lose interest in other activities that once seemed important to him. These other activities may now seem shallow, irrelevant, disappointing, silly, or even irritating to him. Perhaps he regrets that he wasted so many years of his life on them. He now has better things to do and is no longer willing to waste his precious time on nonsense that fails to satisfy his longing for personal and spiritual growth. I, for example, became entrapped in a well-known social fraternity at the very end of 2003 just as “M” was leaving, and it took me five years to extract myself from its grip, despite my early disillusionment with it. It practically destroyed the spiritual progress I had previously made.
The spiritual seeker works to free himself from the oppressive bondage of this world, even though he knows he incarnated into it to learn valuable lessons. In contrast to his old ways, he now seeks to change himself rather than trying to change the world. He now knows that there is nothing wrong with prosperity and abundance, but at the same time, he also knows he can only find lasting happiness in spiritual endeavors and not in material pursuits.
The spiritual journey is seldom easy, and the seeker discovers this sooner or later when he encounters blockages, temptations and his own character defects along the way. He often experiences frustration, spiritual stagnation and “dark nights of the soul” when God seems remote. The ego clearly does not want him to learn the things he is learning.
But all of this can be transcended, and Dr. Hawkins tells us how in his book. Dr. Hawkins also cautions against getting caught up in spiritual sideshows and guru worship, cults, sects, and secret societies. These kinds of things can divert us from our spiritual goals, as happened to me. Further, he discourages us from trying to develop psychic skills such as divination, clairvoyance, channeling and mediumship, psychometry, and telepathy. These skills may occur spontaneously later in our spiritual growth, but early on, they can amount to what Dr. Hawkins describes as an attractive but potentially harmful “astral circus.”
There are two spiritual practices which Dr. Hawkins recommends. First, he encourages us to practice contemplation, which is a variation of meditation in which we consciously focus on a spiritual thought. Second, he encourages us to practice “random acts of kindness” at all times with no expectation of reward or recognition.
Life as a spiritual seeker is the greatest adventure that I can imagine! But what about you? Are you a spiritual seeker, too? How did you become a seeker? How has it affected your life? Please share your thoughts and experiences with the rest of us below where it says “post a comment.”

*********

Discovery of the Presence of God: Devotional Nonduality is Dr. Hawkins’ sixth book. I read this book and enjoyed it immensely. The teachings in it served as the basis for our Hawkins study group meeting on December 6th.
“Devotional nonduality” -- which Dr. Hawkins teaches -- may be described as a profound dedication to raising our level of consciousness, seeking enlightenment, and discovery of our one true nature as Self.  This book is available at the Spirit Quest store, along with other books by Dr. Hawkins.

4 comments:

  1. Roy, I am a spiritual seeker and have been since my adolescence. I would seek my higher self and commune with God in the hills of St. Andrews in Jamaica.

    Those were the most innocent and beautiful times in my early life. I oft reflect on them.
    Then I left for America in 1971, I was 13 yrs. High School was difficult. I was met with ridicule and laughter because I spoke Jamaican patois. My peers thought I was 'stuck up' conceited because I sought my own company to escape drugs and sex in High School. I turned to a sect that taught about a great crowd who would inhabit the earth peacefully.

    During these times I continued to read everything that I could get my hands on because I had a strong passion to learn and to explore. I credit my High School teacher who stimulated my love for reading literature and I went on to do write and review plays and literature in College.

    I turned to self-help books of enlightenment in my quest to learn who I am. During these times the god of materialism had a firm grasp on me and I was lost in its grip for years.

    Along the way came many teachers, some of whom I have forgotten. It so happened that after my mother died, and she was one of my greatest teachers, I found my soul mate that has influenced me greatly on my spiritual path.

    Along the way, I had met a mentor Rev. Rowe in attended Unity Church, he taught me that God was not “Santa Claus,” and I had to live my life in a responsible way and not run to God only to fix mistakes. I learned the universal prayer and used it to free myself of many burdens. I learned to ‘Let Go and Let God’. Then he turned me on to Gary Zukov and that’s how I prepared myself for my new life as a spiritualist and to find my soul mate after twenty years of searching.

    I returned to Jamaica in 1998, as a non-denominational minister, married my soul mate and started a new chapter in my life. Thereafter, I met a personal guru who pointed me in the direction of meditation and service to humanity. I served in my chamber of chamber of commerce for 8 years, teaching motivation in rural communities, and teaching values education in the school system. During this time, I met a teacher of One Love, an American, whom I helped to stage 4 concerts to bring conscious music to the youth. He contributed to my first major stage exposure as a performance Poet.

    I have kept on the path to truth. I continued to read Wayne Dyer, Deepak Chopra, and now David R. Hawkins, Dadi Janki, J.P. Vaswani and the work of other motivational writers.

    My journey has brought me to Panama and I am now taking A Course in Miracles and loving it because it affirms what I have learned through my struggles.
    I thank all my teachers and mentors who have guided me along the way. Although I have climbed many hills, there are many more left to climb. I will be publishing my poetry of the last 13 years in a book entitled: Poetry of the Rose of Sharon and Divine Thoughts, which I hope would help others on their journey of truth. I am on the path of truth. Will you join me?

    --S. Parris-Chambers

    ReplyDelete
  2. I have always loved to study and learn about different religious philosophies and in many ways, I embrace all faiths, because I believe in my heart that people have a right to worship as they see fit, and diversity leads to exploration and understanding.

    Ilchi Lee Books

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have read your article, it is very informative and helpful for me.I admire the valuable information you offer in your articles. Thanks for posting it..
    acim

    ReplyDelete
  4. I truly welcome this superb post that you have accommodated us. I guarantee this would be valuable for the vast majority of the general population. סיינטולוגיה

    ReplyDelete