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Monday, May 25, 2015

That Still, Small Voice Inside Us All

Last night my wife described me as a wise person inside an electric ball of emotion, and  I thought that summed things up quite accurately.  I often react with emotion first, and then after a day or so, I gain a bit of understanding which puts an entirely different spin on things and allows me to be at peace with how things are.

I think we all have a wise person like this inside of us, someone who can see things from many different perspectives, not just our own.  Some people tap into their wise person though yoga or meditation, others, though simply listening regularly to that  still, small voice inside of them.

Regardless of the method, I believe that  wisdom is something we gain from looking inward rather than searching for something outside of ourselves. If we  practice listening to that small voice, and we are truly honest with ourselves about what we hear, eventually what we do  hear will become loud and clear, replacing all those negative thoughts that would otherwise cause us to respond emotionally. And so the more we practice this mindful behaviour, the more grounded and calm we become. For me, the time between initial emotional response and calm understanding is becoming less, and I look forward to a day when it takes up as little time and space as a thoughtful pause. 

The question, however, remains, where does that still small voice that enables us to find such wisdom come from?  Is it something that each of us carries around within us,  like a seed that grows when we water it with our attention; or is it a window to a greater consciousness, collective or otherwise?  Regardless of what we may believe, somehow when we listen to that voice the conclusions we arrive at about what is right and good, and about how we should treat each other, end up being remarkably similar. 

For me the fact that the Mystics of the past and everyday people like you and I can come away with comparable wisdoms after meditating on life's questions, is proof enough to me that there is something more, something greater, something that through our inward seeking  connects us all to each other and to a source that is true and good, in ways that science has not yet, and may never be able to explain.