They say no man is an island.
Is that true?
Can this figure of speech be modified, philosophized, personalized?
As I am tumbled through time and yoga, I think of this saying and discover that it is no longer true for me.
I find myself to be what it says I am not, an island.
I am an island, which means I am a small piece of land
disconnected from a large mass of land.
So philosophically speaking, I guess it comes down to how connected to the whole one feels in this particular creation. (Do you feel that you are one with all of this and that that is all there is to know?)
Or, how connected to one’s self one feels in this creation. (Do you feel that in this material creation everything is everything and that identification with this oneness soup is what holds me back from knowing my independent spiritual self, atma?)
Can one feel connected, be connected, accept and even celebrate that connection while also knowing, experiencing and relishing not being connected to the whole?
I am an island because although I am out here as a piece of land and as a member of this operation we call Earth, I am still independent, belong to myself and retire unto myself.
Although, like everything supported by the waters and pillars of this creation, I am a dependent....yet I am also isolated, remote, lush, abundant, self sustaining and satisfied.
I sit back within my island self and observe the world going by without the heavy influence and industry of the main land as my identity.
As fate has caused me to face up to the realities of this creation, inherent within it human frailty and nature’s conduction of exploitation, birth and death, my world has become smaller on the outside, but larger on the inside.
My satisfaction with the outside world continues to diminish while I cater to my inner world and make ready myself for the next location of my spiritual person-hood.
Satisfaction with my inner world grows, independent of the laws of this creation, as I let go of needs, dependencies, old ideas, people places and things.
One of my goals has always been to conquer even the most slight feelings of anxiety. This is extra challenging in a world where one of the main ingredients is anxiety itself.
But as a result of Patanjali’s yoga standard, I've found out it is possible.
It takes effort but it is worth it.
Telescopes, like advanced souls, work better on islands; less visual resistance, less electrical influence, quieter and a great place for calm study.
It’s the same for the spiritual aspirant, the more like an island you allow yourself to become, the clearer, brighter and better will be your spiritual reception.
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