Things are not always as they appear
We may have heard this saying many times, but what does it actually mean?
What we see on the surface is not all there is.
It is pointing to something deeper, something beyond the surface, to a deeper quality or essence. It is pointing to the possibility of a different way of looking at things, an essentially different experience.
Maybe we don’t know that what is on the surface … or in other words, that what presents to us … what presents to our senses immediately … is just one way of looking at it, until we learn to view things differently.
We have been taught to see things a certain way, but that doesn’t mean we have to stay with it. What if we could see things in such a way that we could easily and continuously open to joy and awe and playful abundance? Wouldn’t that be a more satisfying way to live?
One way of changin
g perspective is through the practice of inner reflection and spiritual meditation. Our own understanding and experience of the object, person or situation can change as we change our perspective of it.
Not only can one person’s view and understanding of what they see be completely different to another person’s view, within our own selves lies the potential to see something from many different angles, each one presenting itself as a completely separate reality.
This can be likened to living a multi-dimensional reality where we can flow from one dimension to another, or one parallel universe to another at will. Some people refer to this as quantum jumping.
This knowing, this flexibility, this quantum jumping potential, represents a great call to freedom
The invitation here is to go beyond what outwardly appears, what shows on the face of it and to open to something much deeper or to just simply flow into another way of seeing.
We see our world through filters of perception which colour our view and our experience of it. Like the paintings you see on this page. It is the same painting but seen through a variety of filters.
All of this opens the way to having more choice in our lives about what to focus on. No matter what situation we are in, no matter what issue we are facing or challenge we are having to negotiate, there is always choice about how we see it, how we feel about it and how we choose to proceed.
We tend to see our world through the filters of our mind, our perceptions, the learned ways of perceiving and conditioned ways of responding. We may see the world ‘through rose coloured glasses’ or we may interpret everything that happens to and around us from the stance of being a victim to circumstances and powerless to act.
Do you see things in black and white?
Are your experiences very tightly boundaried.?
This is X and this is Y … full stop … It can’t be any other way … no grey areas allowed
This can lead you to be inflexible and to feel insecure and unsafe when things don’t go according to plan
Are your experiences and your world coloured by, failure, regret, disappointment, lack or wanting?
No particular way of being or reacting is set in concrete
It can sometimes feel like everything is set in concrete and if we believe this to be true then our world and our experiences in it are defined according to the concrete view.
It may very well feel like that at times. Our conditioned way of being can become so ‘set’ that it almost becomes like concrete.
We cannot see any other way of being from that place. But what can really set us free is to become aware of how these ways of being have been put in place over the years and how they might be blocking the true flow of being-ness that we are all capable of acting from.
Indeed, underneath all of the appearances, all of our firm beliefs, our habitual perceptions, our sense of who we are as a person, a particular personality, is an essence of being that is greater than all of that.
Our essential nature is infinite and flowing, abundant, loving and true.
When we are able to tap into it, we then see everything from a much bigger perspective.
We can see how we and everyone and everything else fits into the greater scheme of things. We are able to step back and laugh at what we once thought were heavy troubles and burdens.
We become the compassionate observer of our own lives
We are able to make clearer decisions about how to move forward with the challenges we face.
All this because we have turned inward and seen things from a different perspective, a deeper reflective view. We have many more resources from which to interpret what is happening to us.
What would you do, how would you act if you understood yourself to be a being of infinite love, if you breathed in compassion, gratitude, joy, wisdom, expansion and so on, whenever you found yourself coming up against what felt like a major problem or issue?
You are much bigger, much wiser and have a much greater abundance of resources at your disposal than maybe you even realise.
Spiritual meditation is a means to access this part of you
By spiritual I simply mean the deeper, the higher part of your nature. Meditation basically means relaxed, deep, inner reflection, turning your attention inwards. Once you are able to access the higher part of yourself the way opens to living a life of happiness, abundance and well-being, no matter what is happening on the outside.
Try this short, yet powerful, meditative exercise:
- Think of something that is challenging you right now
- Take a few deep breaths to slow down for a few minutes and relax
- Make a list of inner resourceful states that you feel would help you – suggestions might be: the ability to love myself, self confidence, inner wisdom, gratitude, understanding the bigger picture .. and so on
- Spend a few minutes breathing in each of these resourceful states
- Run through the challenge/situation again in your imagination and see if anything has changed – have you gained a different perspective?
I would love to hear back from you about what you experience. Perhaps you can share in the comments below… or maybe in our Telegram Community Truly Transformational where you will find more support, tips and mindfulness exercises like the one above.
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Our Telegram community ‘Truly Transformational’ is full of resources for finding your true self, letting go of attachment to ego and moving towards a life of true happiness, peace, clarity and well being.
“Since I joined the group, I have learned how to slow my thoughts through simple breathing techniques, and then connect my breathing to my heart. I’ve learned how to quieten my mind enough to hear and listen to my heart. I’ve learned that I am enough, and I have always been enough, I am loved, and I have always been loved and am love. I have always been… I had just forgotten.
Now I am learning to remember. The best thing of all that I have learned, is that I always have a choice. I can choose whatever I like. I am learning to become an observer of my thoughts and reactions, which is enabling me to realize that there are other options, other thoughts to think… which create other feelings… I can choose to feel happy whenever I wish, no matter what I might have previously automatically thought.
I love this feeling – it feels like being free… to be me… to be happy and loved… and to love x Joy, much love and gratitude to you… Today, I am remembering, and my wish is that I remember this every single day of my life xxx” Liz Fleming
