“If you’re not humble, life will visit humbleness upon you.”
— Mike Tyson
It’s not that life wants you to be small, it’s just that life wants you to know who is truly in charge.
(A clue … it’s not us!)
Life wants us to be remarkable, magnificent even, and the fastest way to that is to surrender to a higher power, whatever that may be for you.
Now, it seems most definitely that you cannot just give over responsibility to this higher power, i.e. “Tell me what to do!” or “Make the decision for me!”.
I think we all already know, it’s just that a) we’re too busy to listen, and b) we’re scared to take the leap.
Tune in, then act.
But how do you know if you’re doing it “right”?
Joseph Campbell once talked about knowing if we were on the right path was a matter of seeing if we were following a path already laid out.
If that was the case, then that was not our path: We must create our own.
This does not necessarily mean being alone or not following advice, not being part of a spiritual teaching or tradition. Guidance and community is necessary.
Paradoxical that may seem, but the inner journey is full of paradox.
Paradox is an unusual thing, our poor little human egos cannot handle balancing two seemingly contradictory positions.
However:
Can you be humble and magnificent? Vulnerable and courageous? Tender and tough?
Yes, yes, and yes, of course. And you must.
As Carl Jung wrote, “Only the paradox comes anywhere near to comprehending the fullness of life.”
A full life is not necessarily about how it looks on the outside.
Restrictive rules, shoulds and other tough definitions of how you must behave will always fall short of the Truth as it is lived.
Then how can you navigate your way to knowing the Truth of your soul and expressing that in every single moment?
You need a way of aligning and anchoring your attention within.
That will then guide you to meet the need of the moment. It will show you who you are, how to be, and what you need to do.
It’s the most precious thing you can do for yourself.
Go well!
Arjuna