Author: Ilene Dunn

Heaven. “The Peace that surpasses all understanding”, ‘unconditional Love’, Truth with a capital T. The image of the soaring eagle, palpably alive in an eternal moment of boundless freedom and joy.

But, how do we get to Heaven?

in the depths of human suffering, finally burned to ashes.

in the steepest climb where muscle and sinew and will, finally release in free fall.

in the excruciating moment of anticipation and dread, finally suspended in timeless mid-air.

At the end of these heroic dreams, we awaken to God’s open arms embracing us in the home we never left.

Home

Freedom

As human beings, we seem to interact and think we understand each other. But not really. The bubbles we each live in pop more often than not. I often wonder if the words I’m speaking have a totally different connotation for the person I’m speaking with. They nod yes, and then their actions do not align with what I perceive agreement to look like. It often feels like something was lost in translation.

We think we are speaking the same language, but our meanings may be totally at odds.

We project our own world onto everything and everyone around us,
as others project theirs onto us.

We are stuck in an ego identity, with certain language baggage based on the beliefs and judgments that make up this identity. We cannot hear or see beyond this baggage barrier.

Consequently, what you think of me is none of my business.
For all I know, you’re reacting to your past, your fears, and your beliefs and judgments.
But for certain, whoever or whatever it is, it is not me.

Freedom is in realizing that I am responsible for my reactions, and you are responsible for yours. My reactions have nothing to do with you, and yours have nothing to do with me.

When we are free from our ego identities, we are able to connect with other beings.
We are in the universal language sphere.

 

 

 

Forgiveness is about seeing another as a being, and not as an object.

Forgiveness is about allowing another not to be imprisoned in our beliefs and judgments of all the labels we want to squeeze them into. Mother, father, friend, brother, sister, lover, child, husband, man/woman, and on and on.

What we cannot forgive, is their inability to live up to our beliefs and expectations of how
they should be, living in our labels.

When these people disappoint us, by failing to live up to our beliefs and expectations, we are devastated. Because, these beliefs are the bedrock of our identity. They define our ‘reality’. So it’s really our failed beliefs that cause our suffering, not the person that just walked in another direction.

Most importantly, we also objectify ourselves. We play many roles (mother, daughter, friend, partner, etc.). When we do not fulfill our expectations about ourselves, it sets-off our own self-inflicted guilt and suffering. This is the root cause of unforgiveness. When we can
accept ourselves in all our frailty, limitations, and darkness, we can do the same for others.

So, what if we could give up our identities, and see ourselves not as
woman, lover, friend, professional, and on and on? We would be left with just being. We would be able to forgive and accept ourselves and others, as cut from the same cloth ~ a part of humanity with all it’s uniqueness, irrationality, and vulnerabilities.

We would be left with the acceptance of our shared humanness.

Without an identity there would be no failed expectations to forgive.

Forgiveness is about allowing others, and ourselves, to be ourselves.

We would be free.

Forgiveness begins with self-forgiveness. This entails observing, allowing our unforgiveness, and all the accompanying emotions to simply be there. No suppression. No distraction. No denial. And in time, the energies will dissipate.

The state of allowing is the path to our wholeness.

 

“Freedom’s just another word for nuthin’ left to lose. . .”, like all our beliefs.

Beliefs  are compilations of expectations used to filter the world we choose to see.
Expectations formulate your judgments of what belongs in ‘our’ world, and what doesn’t.
Judgments control our reactions.
Reactions send us to heaven or hell.

Freedom, is no beliefs.

Discoveries

How to Get to Heaven

PASSING THROUGH THE EYE OF THE NEEDLE*

There are times when gradually or suddenly some of us feel that life is no longer, alive. What we once defined as ‘living’ ~   moments of excitement, desire, passion, and drama, ~ are now missing.  Painfully, missing. Painfully meaningless, and painfully empty.

For some, these periods fade in and out. For others, major events precipitate a permanent loss of worldly interest and involvement.

For an undeterminable time, we struggle with trying to ‘go back’, or heal or escape this hopefully, temporary condition. Finally futility sets-in. We seem to endure a moment to moment existence in emptiness, for what seems like eternity.

We are stuck in the eye of the needle*. There is no going back, and we are confronted with the unknown in front of us.

At the very thought of the unknown, fear paralyzes us. When we finally start to thaw, and the fear becomes an energizer of sorts, we start turning our attention to something we did not see before. We begin to become aware of our self. Not as a participant in the world, but as a character created by the world.

Who is this? What is this?

We become conscious of this persona, it’s vagaries, thoughts, and emotional reactions. And as we become more interested in this phenomena, we start to separate our identity from it. It becomes a  separate entity in itself. It becomes a specimen under our microscope. And, we become a fan.

Interest and fascination grows. Maybe, for the very first time in our lives, we are aware of a pull to simply observe something, without a twinge of judgment, or selfish motivation. We find that in observing and discovering the deep and wide of this character that we use to think was us, a new spark has been kindled.

We have stumbled upon the inner world . . .

*”The eye of a needle” is scripture quoting Jesus recorded in the synoptic gospels: “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Self-discovery is the path to wholeness.

‘Wholeness’ is enduring inner peace, confidence, and joy ~ no matter what seems to be occurring outside of us.

We become as little children, following our hearts, our curiosity and sense of adventure ~ free of time constraints, free of people-pleasing, free of goals or reasons, and most importantly – expectations.

We feel complete without any effort on our part.

When we are captured by the wonder and delight of a baby, or nature, or beauty, there is total fulfillment and wholeness present ~ nothing to be added or subtracted.

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Below are some random insights into the area of Self discovery ~ a path to ‘wholeness’.

Wholeness is the balance of the light and the dark. Wholeness is freedom.

Beliefs are our security and our prison.

I Believe . . . Our beliefs direct and form our life stories. We can choose differently at any time, just by adding two words, “I choose . . . to believe…”

Freedom is no beliefs. Is awareness. Is forgiving.  Is knowing I don’t know.

WYSIWYG is simply that what we focus on becomes our reality. We can choose what we want to focus on. We can choose our experience of reality.

To explorer The Unknown is a willingness to see ourselves beyond the limitations of who we think we are.

 

Being here, in this very moment, is rare.

There seems to be a glass wall separating us from life in 3D living color. We can see it, but we cannot touch it.

We are on the other side of the glass wall, called no-life. Here dwells the past, the future, and endless distractions. We are mired in our minds at the cost of suppressing our aliveness. We are being dragged on by the unseen, rejected and crippled ‘children’ of our psyche.

Our life force is numbed by our mental stories (beliefs). The age old battle between the heart and the mind. However, our life force can only be suppressed to an extent before it explodes, and must finally make its way to the surface to be released. This is life saving and life generating.

The process of being in the moment, begins with observing this impacted energy, which we call emotions. With curiosity. With no agenda. Just because. Ah yes, and with courage.

With eyes closed, put aside the mental drama and focus on the emotion. Locate this sensation within your body. How does it feel? Anxious? Suffocating? Overwhelming? Paralyzing? Dark or light? Size? Shape? Color? Weight? Observe it in great detail.

Now increase the intensity of that sensation. Let it in. Really feel it. Magnify it to monster-like proportions. Like holding your breath underwater, hold it. Hold it.

Keep holding, expanding, and feeling that sensation until it suddenly releases.

There is now only spaciousness and freedom.

We are being the pulse of aliveness.

Being