The Spark Within

Then these years and their players passed away

As though they had all been merely dreams.

Ibn Shaddad on the death of Saladin,  March, 1193

It is an amazing thing to witness the incredible efforts man makes to deny the truth of his existence. He plots and intrigues; he begins wars and then brokers peace agreements only to break them again; he creates and destroys economies; he amasses wealth and then squanders it away. His empires rise and fall. To address the difficult questions of the hereafter, he builds hierarchical religious systems out of the teachings of truth, his material-bound mind misinterpreting the sacred words of these enlightened teachers. His religious systems become the deciders of man's eternal destiny. Over the centuries, millions upon millions of innocents die in 'holy' slaughters.

Through all of his days he remains resolutely fixed on the here and now - what is known as the material reality. And yet, by the very fact he lives, his ultimate destiny is to cease to exist as a material being. He does not like to think about this fact, so he ignores it until he is forced to face it - perhaps when a family member or a loved one dies - when he is rudely brought face to face with the reality of termination. He grieves for a time, but eventually as the memories fade and the pressing matters of the here and now reassert their power over him he is able to once again ignore his mortality and return to his blinkered beliefs - that what he is doing matters and for him death is a long way off and not something to dwell upon. He convinces himself his efforts in this material reality have value, weight and purpose. His whole existence is focussed on this belief. Inevitably, one day he will die and his greatest efforts will become superseded by those of another, and then yet another who will come in time after that - and so it will go until the end of our existence. As the centuries and millenia pass, he will become dimly remembered - perhaps even forgotten - no matter how powerful, pioneering, or accomplished he was. With enough passage of time even the works of the most memorable of men will become nothing more than a momentary acknowledgement lost among the fleeting thoughts of future men.

For those who are locked into a material existence, these words are horrifying to read for they seem to deny the purpose of life, and invalidate the perceived self-serving rights of man's existence. If one has determined their whole purpose is to exist in the here and now and do the best one can with the life they have, how dare another suggest this belief is flawed. What then are the alternatives? That life as we live it has no meaning? Nihilism? Minds which function solely at the material level will automatically react in this manner because for them there is only life and death, life being what we know because we are experiencing it, death being unknown and a cause for fear, therefore to be avoided at all costs and only faced when there are no more chances for escape. The 'lucky ones', according to those of the material mindset are the ones who die instantly and without warning. 

So, we live like this.  We live lives which are ultimately purposeless and meaningless, experiencing this reality in decaying and aging vessels we worship and identify as who we believe we truly are. We spend money on these vessels, clothing them, abusing them, enhancing them. Our material eyes are forced to watch the relentless passage of time as our vessels age and weaken - the bloom and beauty of youth a mere moment in time. Yet despite this evidence we still do not accept our mortality or question the way we pass our time. We strive and strive against the truth that continually haunts us. When will man wake? When will man understand a gracious spark of eternal consciousness exists within each and every one of these feeble and temporal vessels, that this consciousness is what we should be devoting our time and energy upon and not these ephemeral, passing vessels? We do not exist here - caught as we are - in this temporary reality to become subsumed by its trinkets and passing amusements. We are here to realise we have disconnected from truth. With perserverance and commitment and the use of the tools contained within us we are meant to reconnect back to the source of the spark we carry within. It is there that we remember who we really are. 

Those who understand this have great perspective. They do not fear death, they do not feel intimidated by the passing fancies of the human race. They do not understand the purpose of war, the accumulation of wealth or the need to desensitise oneself from the vacuum that materially-locked beings must endure as the trade-off for disconnection and denial of their true self. Those who understand know peace. They experience life in all its wonder and do not concern themselves with whether they will be remembered by temporal vessels. They live meaningful, purposeful, and enhanced lives blessed with the awareness their existence is a gift and a challenge - a challenge they have understood and through determination and commitment have overcome against incredible odds. Every action, every thought, every pursuit has at its core the purpose of connection with source via their spark of consciousness.   

If then, there are two ways to experience this reality, either as a material being or as an aware being, why then do so many choose the path of materialism? Unfortunately most do not realise there even is a choice. The beginning of awareness comes with an internal prompting to observe how one is living their life, and having the courage to ask oneself hard questions. One must be prepared to face difficult truths and to act with conviction upon the insight that they have gained. The path they will walk will be lonely and difficult and will require immense faith in their quest for finding truth, but if they prevail and do not become caught in one of the multitide of traps along the way, they will one day cross the boundary between this material world and reconnect with source. Home. Here they will rediscover the unending source of profound beauty, depth, and truth. Here they will realise everything they gave up to arrive at this point was worth it all, and more. When they open their eyes and look out of their vessel with their awakened eyes, they will understand all. They are no longer a prisoner to fear. They are no longer troubled by the concerns of a temporary vessel. They are free, and live freely, enjoying even the encumbrance of their vessel with joy.

Within each of us is consciousness. That consciousness is a miniscule drop of source, from whence all life and truth emanates. Source exists at the root of every reality in every possible universe. Everything you believe you are comes from source. Everything you hope for, seek after, and question is prompted by your own consciousness, by source itself. It is crying out to you to listen, a voice of truth suppressed by a world of lies.  

The Spark is within you, your vessel contains it in this reality. You are not your vessel. You are a fragment of source.

And you have a choice. 

Originally published on Breaking Every Paradigm Jan 28 2013