Course

Course: 

I've always loved the spiritual text A Course In Miracles, from my first discovery it held a certain promise to me, that this was the way, if only I devoted myself to its page and practice I would reach enlightenment, or at the very least be a happier, more at ease person. It took me years to finally commit to finishing the workbook, completely the daily exercises, reading the entire textbook. This was no easy task, demanding, working diligently to diminish ego's hold on me. After years of starts and putting the exercises aside, and now fully committed to its study, I finished, a monumental year of study and surrender complete.  

and of course everything was just the same.

ego had its hold.

or perhaps maybe a little less so, it doesn't really matter, my ego is less of a concern now, as is enlightenment and showing signs of spiritual progress. That's not really what the Course is about anyway and it seems that even after years of study I had missed the point entirely. Only love is real, there it is, from its opening words the Course sets its agenda clear - the ego isn't the problem, it's simply an appearance, a lens through which we view the world. It's our identifying completely with the ego that leads to a troubled world. 

and so we find ourselves here. 

in a very troubled world. 

I'm no longer a student of the Course, although I often turn to it for inspiration, finding comfort in its words and some of the exercises still. The past few years have brought their own sense of surrender, life happens like that, providing loss and fulfillment without much effort from our part, and we learn from this if we pay attention to its flow. That first important lessons remains clear though, only love is real, and I see that more deeply now, living it in a way that only life delivers, brought here through loss and sorrow, grief, and ultimately the joy of surrendering to it all. 

just life. 

yes, it's a very troubled world, the illusion of power is held by a few who worship control, exploiting the less fortunate to gain even more, destroying the environment, causing irrevocable harm. That doesn't sound like love, it's not the reality that the Course wishes us to show. Is there an answer? A way out of this troubled world? 

honestly, I don't know, it seems doubtful, overwhelming really, too much for me to consider on my own. And yet, I do believe that only love is real, no, more so than a belief, it's a deep faith that life itself is the answer, it's the reality of love in display and practice. Only life is real, it seems obvious, and yet we take it so thoroughly for granted. We don't have to surrender, there's nothing to practice and no spiritual texts to study, unless we wish to, or it brings us joy and a sense of fulfillment in some way. Life provides us with every opportunity to grow, to let go of the past, forgive, to be embraced by the grace and love found only in in this present moment. It's all here, now, a complete course in life, love, and surrender.

perhaps that's the answer, that it's not really a troubled world at all...

it's just life.

and we're still learning how to live it. 

~

Peace, Eric