by Satanus 70 Replies latest jw friends
Can be.
What that voice is, is hard to describe. What it is not:
The Art of Listening to the Still, Small Voice Within
By Gail Brenner on March 16, 2010
“Every time you don’t follow your inner guidance, you feel a loss of energy, loss of power, a sense of spiritual deadness.”
Shakti Gawain
I saw the film “Crazy Heart” yesterday. Jeff Bridges plays an alcoholic country singer who connects with Jean, the lovely mother of a 4-year-old son. At the climax of the story, Jeff Bridges’ character loses the little boy in a mall while he is at a bar having a drink. In the aftermath once the boy is recovered, Jean screams something like, “I knew in every bone of my body not to get involved with you, but I did.”
This got me thinking. How is it that we know in our bones the best course of action for ourselves, yet we take another path? And how often does it come back to bite us? We even have a phrase for it – against our better judgment. If our judgment is so good, why are we going against it?
The “Yes!”
Let’s begin our exploration of this important topic by looking at what it is like to know something in your bones. For me, I just know it. There is a definitiveness, an undeniable truth, a “yes!” This knowing does not arise from the logical and rational mind. It is not caused by emotions. It is clarity, pure and simple, that seems to just appear in my consciousness.
I was recently speaking to someone who was deliberating about a decision. I asked her if she ever had the experience of “yes,” of knowing something was absolutely true for her. She brightened, and told me about her clarity in deciding to marry her husband and in choosing a fulfilling career.
Isn’t this something we all know – this deep inner certainty?
Listening and Turning Away
Spiritual teacher Adyashanti says that truth is always speaking to us. The voice might be quiet, but it is ever present, guiding us to navigate the river of our lives with perfect intelligence. Are we listening, or is the inner cacophony too deafening to hear?
We can make our way to that still, small voice of truth by recognizing what makes us turn away from it.
It is not the voice in our heads telling us what we should or shouldn’t do.
It is not a story justifying our actions.
It may not look logical.
It is not what we are propelled to do out of fear.
Or out of neediness.
It cannot be discerned when we are clouded by strong emotions.
When our internal experience is crowded with stories, opinions, doubt, justifications, fear and other emotions, we aren’t quiet enough to allow the truth to be heard. And this is where we get into trouble.
Consider Jean from “Crazy Heart.” She knew in her bones not to continue the relationship but was misled by desire, inadequacy, and romantic ideals. I know I have made similar choices in my life. How about you?
If we make life decisions by listening to the noise – and not the silence – these decisions come from fear and unconsciousness. And we eventually suffer the consequences.
As we all know, the pull of the “noise” can be very strong. So strong that we don’t even consider stopping, pausing, inquiring into what is best or right. We blindly choose, or we opt for what seems logical or appropriate. We take the path that fits our ideas of how things are supposed to be. We are swayed by intense emotions.
We ignore the gentle tap on the shoulder that could show us the way.
Discover the Still, Small Voice
How do we know when truth is talking?
It moves us toward love – for ourselves and others.
It ultimately brings enjoyment.
There is no sinking feeling that something is wrong.
The body unclenches.
There is a sense of clarity, excitement, or relief, an undeniable knowing.
It’s fascinating to become familiar with your inner wisdom, and here are some ways to experiment.
Go to the grocery store without a list. Bring your attention inside, and listen to where you are directed to go.
Rather than doing an automatic behavior, such as turning on the TV after dinner, sit quietly and see what you feel moved to do.
Let go of your morning routine. Stay in bed, and wait for the inner signal to do the next thing, and the next. (At first, you may want to wait for the weekend for this one.)
The true path for our lives cannot be figured out or created. Our job is simply to listen, and in the listening, we will be given all the guidance we need to do exactly the right thing. When we listen, life unfolds mysteriously. We get out of our own way and allow the still, small voice to be heard.
How have you turned away from your inner wisdom? What have you learned? What is your experience with the experiments described above to get to know the quiet inner voice? I’d love to hear….
I listened to my small voice the last time I spoke to my mother. My mother accused me of not caring about her and my father. That way she said it was nasty and meant to hurt. After she said it I paused for two seconds and in those seconds decided that a nasty retort wasn't necessary. After I got off the phone with her I really thought about what my mother was actually saying to me. What she actually meant was she was afraid that I didn't care for her the way she wanted me to. And on some level she's right. I cannot love my mother the way she wants me to. I cannot be her doormat. I cannot put her first. I cannot live my life the way she wants me to. I will not leave my husband for her. What I can do is see her for who she really is and listen really listen to my small voice when it tells me that I am not evil selfish person my mother tells everyone else that I am. I don't have to let her push my buttons.
After I got off the phone with her I really thought about what my mother was actually saying to me. What she actually meant was she was afraid that I didn't care for her the way she wanted me to. And on some level she's right. I cannot love my mother the way she wants me to. I cannot be her doormat. I cannot put her first.
Wow. Me, too, with my mom. After lots of analyzing, I came to that same conclusion. It's kinda sad.
xo jonesy
tal
That is a good example, mrs jones.
' what my mother was actually saying to me. What she actually meant'
Of course, it doesn't mean giving in. Respect for your own, yourself must always by protected.
S
No matter how strong 'we' are, we will always mourn the loss of our mothers.
I say this to all the wimmenz out there .. with much love
xo
tal
No diss to the men, my dear S.. I just meant in that special mother-daughter way.
xo
t
Understood, tal.
Sometimes, listening to that small, quiet voice means doing something totally out of the box. The question then, is, do you have the nerve to step out and do it. Reminds me of that scene in indianna jones, where he stepped off the cliff. There was an invisible ramp or something. Dont go jumping off cliffs, its just an illustration.
S
yup, good illustration.
xo
tal
Satanus this is so important for those of us who had such ordered lives in the WTS. We do need to listen to ourselves and find out what we really need, perhaps for the first time ever. Stop listening to others and feel what we really need and know that we are not being selfish but we are healing ourselves. That this will be good for us and also for everyone we love.
