“It’s too much of a hassle”

Still on Patmos, Greece. That small, but beautifully formed island of Good Times. Every year (this year is the last year here actually) we have a get together of all the European Ishayas of the Bright Path.

A wonderful time it is too. Some seriously profound teaching, so profound I'm left slack jawed in amazement (not pretty to see I imagine), some “so sore, can’t keep laughing” belly laughs, and a ton of good food and sunshine.

(I seriously LOVE Greek salads) Now - I don’t want to rub your noses in my holiday, not at all.

I wanted to point out how amazing it is, being here with my buddies and fellow teachers, my “tribe”.

It's such a great event - and yet in the past I have been guilty of almost not bothering to go. 

You see, getting here is EPIC.It involves all sorts of driving and flying and staying nights and ferrying and all the rest.

And we have Bubba in tow, and even though she’s a seasoned traveler now, it’s still not a walk in the park.

As such it can be easier to think “what’s the point? So much effort for 8 days? I’ll stay here at home where it’s easier”… do you know?

Yet the PAYOFF is way more than my mind can ever quantify. It’s huge: lifting, elevating, inspiring, on-going.

Putting yourself in the way of More isn’t always straightforward.

It involves a dedication from you.

It involves getting off your bottom and doing something - sometimes something new, often something that means a sacrifice from you.

But it’s always always worth it. Always.

You always get way more, way, way more. More Life. Something you might not be able to measure, but something you KNOW that is way more important than anything you can measure.

So whatever it may be - and you know what IT is, for you, you do - stop putting it off because it just seems a bit hard, or a bit scary, a bit unknown or a bit whatever.

Take one small step to get that thing. And then another. An end result can be overwhelming - but small steps are easy.

It’s worth it.

Go well! Arjuna

"What are you doing here?" A large question ...

Lots of questions about purpose at the moment - I think it must be the moon or the alignment of the planets poking you or something.  (Porpoise?)

But it’s a great question: “What am I doing here?”, everyone asks it at some stage. Since I believe that what I'm doing right now IS my purpose, here’s my experience of coming to this point:

I was told early on to follow my bliss. Do what I loved doing as much as possible because life was short. It made sense, so I did. Even though I had a heavy study programme at university, I tried to balance it and so I went out and listened to bands as much as possible and kayaked and snowboarded my little patootey off.

So Passion is important in life. Doing stuff you love. Now maybe you need to get a job so you can take care of your responsibilities while you do that, earning those fun tokens, maybe if you’re lucky you can find a way of being paid to do what you love. Just be careful you don't turn what you love into a work drudgery.

In living your Passion you also realise that it only increases when you share it, when you help others, and that's nice too - they win and you win and they win in an ever ascending spiral.

Then there’s Presence. If you’re aware, doing your Passion, what you love, it makes you Alive, it immerses you in the moment easily. You soak in Presence more and more and that bleeds out into even your most mundane of tasks. Wonderful! Presence will also give you Patience, contentment, full enjoyment of each and every moment. It will help when you are in those times when you don’t understand why, as in why is this happening to me? Why am I doing this? Why am I here?

More importantly, Presence means you are centred. That is the core of all Purpose - you are most effective and Alive when you’re centred. Without centre you can rush around all you like and have little influence. Presence means your words and actions become aligned with your own innate wisdom. You already know what you want to do or say, many times you doubt it - that you’re good enough, that it’s the right thing, that it's worthy enough, and “who am I to say/do that any way?” The more centred you stay, the more doubt just evaporates and you're no longer afraid just to try, to experiment.

The more centred and filled with Presence you are, the more you are a lighthouse for anyone seeking the same truth within themselves. Your centred Presence is a balm for any troubled soul, and you won’t get lost in their suffering. It truly is, and that is before you say or do anything.

Be guided by Passion and Presence. You will find that Passion and Presence begets your Purpose.

Following those two brings you clearer and clearer to understanding what you’d like to do, what you’re here to do, but most importantly how you’d like to be - and that is the most crucial thing, I think, because the internal is your foundation for what you do. Get the internals right and the externals follow nicely.

I’m rapidly typing this because it's coming out faster than I can write, and so I hope you get what I mean. Let me know if you have any questions at all.

Go well! Arjuna

PS. Presence, Passion and Purpose - meditation can be more than “just” a meditation, it can be an enhancer of all of these things. It allows you to tap into your own innate wisdom more and more, so you truly live the life you were born to live.

Want to know more? Head this way:

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This kind of toast is the answer to all questions, do you not agree?

To some people, the question "what is the meaning of life" is contained in a perfectly made piece of avocado on toast.

It was long good, way before instagram food peeps got on the bandwagon.

If you’re from New Zealand you’ve been putting on the marmite (NZ version) before the avocado -

Which takes the whole thing into another dimension.

And if you’re a wild culinary explorer,

A touch of hummus after the avocado.

Bacon too, of course (of course!!) if you’re so inclined (and I am).

And that is all that is needed to satisfy many souls.

For some though,

This is not enough.

They want to know why …

Not the why of toast, because such toast needs no why,

But as in,

Why are you here?

What’s the purpose?

What’s the meaning of your life?

Beyond a lovely cup of tea and slice of fruit cake, with Wensleydale cheese - of course.

Satisfaction comes from two different sources.

One - as above, is the good things in life.

Toast, food in general, cool stuff, adventures, time with loved ones.

The other, more subtle source, is well … more subtle, innit?

The ultimate of satisfaction is found in your own being,

In your own presence,

In that inner sense of quiet, calm, content wholeness,

The unspoken “all is well” that you experience when you tune into this moment in time.

It needs nothing but remembering to remember it.

And that inner experience gives EVERY outer experience so much more “quality”; it makes everything so much easier and more fun.

You find this foundation and everything makes sense.

That unseen hole you may well have is filled.

Your purpose becomes obvious.

When you find the “how” to live, the “what” to do comes.

Now - you can’t think about this -

You have to do it.

You have to taste it.

And the only time you can do that is now.

Alright?

Go well!

Arjuna

PS.

If you want a helping hand to this experience -

The tools so you can remember to remember,

Any time you like -

In any moment, cutting through the thoughts and feelings that you want to ignore for the experience of goodness.

Here's how to start, with this free challenge:

https://arjunaishaya.lpages.co/houradaymindful/

Why?

The news of the bomber yesterday in Manchester, Why?

It's so easy to lose it into rage and confusion and fear.

I have no answers why stuff like this happens to innocent people,

But I do know what the question is - for me at least.

"What can I do?"

In my small sphere of influence -

What can I do to spread understanding and acceptance and compassion?

What can I do to end ignorance and fear?

What can I do to grow and nurture what is good and right about life?

It's so easy to get stuck in a loop of merely surviving, of getting through life.

Events like these are a reminder that I don't want to merely survive,

I want to make sure I leave this planet a better place than when I found it.

And I know for sure whatever I say or do, the foundation for that begins within me first.

Take care, Arjuna

Purpose and Peace

Many people ask: "How do you be full of peace and yet live a full, rich life?", as if they are two distinct things.

They aren't two different things. Being peaceful and full of purpose actually nurture each other. You can't live a complete life without either. So many people sell themselves short, either chasing their goals at the expense of their peace, or chasing their peace at the loss of their goals.

It needn't be this way. All the great people of this world have both - they embody a seeming paradox of having an intense will and at the same time possessing a huge humility. They have direction and certainty and yet are open to more, open to learn.

Coming to know that still quiet place inside gives you a platform so that you can experience the same. Its two branches coming from the same tree: The ability to be completely calm and content and yet dedicate your attention to whatever you wish.

In other words, you can access a complete dedication to your goals, a one pointed focus on what you are called to do and not let anything stand in your way, and have an absolute ability to "let go" and "go with the flow", to be completely loving and present to this moment.

Its important that you know that this isn't an either/or option.

So many people have made it so over the years. Because of this common movement it seems that this idea has become "true". Luckily the Truth is not democratic.

The more you experience the quiet presence inside, the more you'll come to be authentic, to live life in your own way. And then the more you live your life, the more peace and the more certainty you will find in activity, in busy-ness. It will become so that you cannot live any other way.

You can have your cake and eat it too. Everything is right here, within you.

Passion and Purpose

When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live a life so that when you die, the world cries and you rejoice - Anon Have you wondered what your purpose is? For what reason you are on this planet?

I got so excited when I met the Ishayas because I felt like I had found my purpose. The simple ability to be able to choose to experience that certain "something"... that spaciousness beyond my mind... that full, calm, clear "presence" within... that state of "Flow"...

...whatever you want to call it, it filled a hole in my heart that had been there for a long time. Committing my life to that choice was the only thing that made sense to me. Realizing that I could help others to the same experience just made my heart sing. I’ve always wanted to help others and here was the thing.

Have you wondered what your purpose is? For what reason you are on this planet?

Your purpose is exactly the same as your passion. Passion is the motor that gives drive to the GPS direction located in your heart. You all know what your passion is, the hardest thing is that we feel we should be doing something else. It’s that old chestnut of who we are is not good enough; what we want to do, we shouldn’t.

Everyone I’ve talked to about passion is almost always seeking permission to do the things that bring them the greatest joy. We know what we love to do, sometimes we’re just waiting for the acknowledgement that we are allowed to do that, that it’s okay to do that.

So here it is: You are officially allowed to do whatever it is that makes your heart sing. God definitely wants you to, that’s why she gave you a heart that could sing.

There’s a question that the Ishayas asked me once that never fails to align my life: “Where in my life am I compromising?” Some of you may remember that. Part of compromise is living a life that isn’t completely full. You know that in your heart of hearts. Time to have a look and see if there is something you need to be doing. Follow your passion, make a difference.