In last week’s article, I discussed why our world is in chaos. The reason for this is that most of humanity is too focused on their external circumstances and world than their inner world. It is our inner world, beyond thoughts, emotions and our personal stories, that needs to be revealed and cultivated in order to realize our true nature.
The question is, how does one excavate and cultivate their inner world on the path to discovering their true nature? Here are some ways to do this.
1. You must journal daily. Journalling allows one to get their thoughts and feelings out of their heads and onto paper and helps to put those into perspective and to start to learn more about your inner workings.
2. Meditate regularly. Meditation is a process in which you bring all your attention and focus to the space within you while releasing any thoughts that arise in your mind. This process helps you to shed all the superficial layers which wrap your inner world to get to your core essence or your true nature.
3. Contemplate death frequently. There is one thing that is for certain in this life and that is that we will all die. We must ponder death frequently, not to get ourselves depressed but to get a glimpse of our true nature because this is what will remain when our physical bodies wither away to dust.
4. Spend more time in nature. Nature is raw and real and reflects to us who we truly are. Spending more time in nature will allow glimpses into our true essence because we are one with nature and we all arose from the same original source, however you refer to that entity.
5. Love unconditionally. You do this by carrying out random acts of kindness, especially for those who do not know you. Examples of this are paying for the car behind you in the Starbucks drivethrough or feeding a homeless man on the street and spending some time with him. Our true nature is unconditional love, therefore, when we express this nature, through random acts of kindness, we reinforce and reveal who we truly are
6. Pray for knowledge and understanding of your true nature. Prayer is one of the most powerful tools at our disposal for personal transformation and inner grounding and is present in all the worlds’ religions in one form or another. Do not deny yourself the beauty and transcendence of this experience.
7. Find a spiritual mentor who you resonate with and read their books, listen to their podcasts and watch their talks. There is no faster way to awaken to your true nature than to emulate somebody who has already done this.
As you can see, there is no direct path to awakening to your true nature and shedding away all the false illusions of who you once thought you were. If you follow all or even some of the steps I have outlined above, you will come one step closer to revealing to yourself your true nature or your highest essence. You will also come one step closer to being able to transform the world around you for the better.
Dr. Nauman Naeem