Primal Healing and Art

 

 

         As this season rolls into a New Year, this time of year inspires each person to live up to the model of charity, generosity, love and unconditional acceptance. 

 

        The month of December marks the birth of faith, abundance and freedom. For many people, the holiday season is a time for self-reflection. Did we reach our goals? Did we change our attitudes? Did we forgive? To me, the greatest act of faith is creativity. Creativity forces us to learn to simultaneously give and receive. It ignites the question, where do I belong in this world? What do I have to give, what do I need to receive in order to live a creative life? Creativity is the holy longing to commune with our soul.

 

        Many religions teach that it is better to give than to receive. However, life is cyclic and if we give then we need to be able to receive. 

 

        Many of us have difficulty receiving a compliment, a gift or a day off. How many of us put our need to relax, sip a cup of tea, and walk along a beach last on our list of priorities? Let alone receive our creativity. How many of us believe if we turn off the phone and ignore the doorbell that we are doing something wrong? In order to listen deeply, feel our creative soul we have to learn to say no.

 

        For most of us, it is hard to stand still, do nothing, and receive. However, compare the act of receiving to a car being refueled. Can the car move without gas? 

 

        To simply be and receive allows us to channel creativity, inventiveness, healing, pleasure, inspiration and dreams, and imagine visionary ideals. When we receive, our hearts and souls fill up, ready to pour out into inspired action. If we do not learn to receive, we are deprived of our basic right to enjoy life, and the results can be depression or illness. 

 

        The gift of giving one ones' heart and deeply receiving one's soul is an experience that can uplift a person's spirit and heal others. Every day we are given a choice to grow, evolve and heal. Lawrence Kushner, from his book Honey from the Rock states, "There is a kind of awareness that defies logic and is seduced by the mystery of paradox." Our biblical stories show us, that from nowhere, water glistened from a rock; loaves of manna appeared from thin air; and an ordinary being talked to angels. It takes a vigilant urge to surrender to a sacred code of authenticity and grow past our limitations in order to be true to our heart's desire.

         These spiritual attributes help us to build strength of character and open us to receiving our authentic voice, creativity and purpose: Commitment, Impeccability, Ordinariness, Sacrifice and Non-judgment. 

 

Commitment creates the bond that allows for intimacy to flourish with ourselves and others. It is the boundary that keeps us grounded in our values and dreams. If we cheat ourselves of our commitments; even for a second, we will always find life difficult and blame others for our shortcomings and lack in our lives. How often have you said, "I will eat better, walk every day, take time to breathe and feel, finish that poem, drawing, book, spend more time with my loved ones," and then come up with one excuse after another? Every promise broken, even the tiniest one, plays havoc on our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual body and causes us to feel depressed and anxious. Commitment keeps us whole so we can give and receive. When we commit to receiving, at times it can appear to be a selfish act. We have to say 'no' in giving away our time to people and situations that influence us to break our commitments. Commitment allows the adult in us to hold the child's dreams and hunger for a better and more fulfilling life. Commitment sets boundaries. We learn to say 'yes' and 'no' so we can stay on track with our life's calling. Sticking to commitments and boundaries takes maturity and a fire in the belly. A deep urge to change and live our lives differently, even from the way we have been brought up to believe and feel. 

Impeccability builds trust and aliveness. When we engage in a task, whether it be scrambling an egg, studying for an exam, painting a picture or outlining a budget, if we participate in that activity with every cell of our body, then we are being impeccable. Our impeccable nature feeds our soul to follow our commitments. Follow through and being fully engaged develops dependability and responsibility. Only in a bond with our impeccability can we travel through the dark into the light and remain true to ourselves.

Ordinariness makes a person humble and open to possibility. If we think we know it all, are better than others, compete, compare and judge then we never access our wisdom and caring for others. The most heroic humans, Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, carried out magnificent feats in their ordinariness. They did not strive for perfection, grandiosity or special treatment; they only wanted each human to be treated with dignity and compassion.

Sacrifice comes at a crossroad, a transition into a deeper understanding of life. In order for change to happen, one must sacrifice something. Giving up smoking, drinking, obsessive spending, or sugar is a sacrifice when you use it to make yourself feel good. Eliminating addictive habits from your lifestyle is difficult for most. The rationale, "eat, drink and be merry," seems logical when we do not know what tomorrow might bring. However, self-exploration of our deeper purpose is squelched when we collapse into our addictions, co-dependency to please others and conform. Sacrifice teaches you to be alone and trust your deeper calling. 

Non-Judgment: If I were to choose the most spiritual attribute, and the most challenging one, it would be non-judgment. We cannot get to first base as long as we judge others and ourselves. To live in the polarity of right and wrong, good and bad, better and worse, pass and fail, we will always be in judgment. Rigid thinking stops growth. Life is an and....and...and... Non-judgment allows for the good, bad and ugly to exist. Nothing is perfect. No one is perfect. To be human is to be imperfect and inspires us to stay true in the uncertainty of growth.

 

        To live a life of creative and intuitive insight comes from receiving with loving-kindness every part of who we are. We have to be uncomfortable in not knowing and faith in our imperfections. In silence and meditation we can receive and rejuvenate our bodies/mind/spirit. In a receptive state we can bring pleasure, joy, originality, and release judgments. When we receive, our purpose in life comes to us from the most powerful, creative source of intelligence.

 

       Mythology and ancient teachings tell us to listen to our hearts and discover the mysteries of the life that vibrates through and inside of us. Societal standards influence us to conform and accept the rules of the game and ignore our hidden dreams. Each of us needs to surrender to our hearts to receive and hear our own individual truth. Then we must decide how we want to live our lives, where we belong, in order to create a meaningful life. This takes great courage and commitment.

 

        Leo Tolstoy, the Great Russian novelist, said, "True life is lived when tiny changes occur." This holiday season ask yourself, what do you really want? When you recite a prayer, light a candle, and talk to the heavens, are you being truthful? Are you walking your talk?  

 

        To be the unique, creative person you were born takes the power of faith to face our fears, hurt and pain. It takes breaking our hearts open and pouring out our most authentic expression and ask for our deepest needs to be fulfilled; even if we don't know the outcome.

 

        Faith is a bird flying alone into the night. It is human to be afraid of where our faith will guide us. It takes courage to create a life worth living.