Three doorways - ricknotesricknotes

In our spiritual practice we seek a direct connection with, and experience of, the divine; the energy of creation. There are many spiritual practices that can develop our capacity to receive and hold this connection. There are also three doorways that are available to us.

These doorways are:

Love; the agape often described in religious texts. Overwhelming love, that when embraced, results in our hearts “exploding”.
Wonder; the awe of the magnificence of nature, the cosmos and life. Overwhelming recognition of creation manifest, that when embraced, results in our hearts reaching out to the cosmos and vanishing in expansion.
Deep, pure grief; the loss of everything. Overwhelming appreciation of the transitory and everlasting nature of life, that when embraced, results in our hearts breaking completely open.

These doorways all lead to the divine through our usual state of consciousness being overwhelmed; our heart “quakes”, and divine energy enters and can sweep through us like a tsunami.

We know we are on the threshold of these doorways when, often unexpectedly “something” inside of us shifts, we may attempt to speak but our voice breaks and stops, tears well up in our eyes, and the door the divine cracks open. In that instant we suddenly connect to the divine and begin to “disappear”.

Initially this energy is foreign and almost always is so huge that it is overwhelming beyond measure. We feel our small selves begin to be swept away, and may feel panic. Our inclination is to quickly close the door and regain our composure; to regain our imagined sense of being in control – sometimes with a commitment to never open the door again. Or we may falsely believe we can open the door, just a little, stay in control, and have a peek through the crack.

However if we are willing to let the door swing wide, and ride the tsunami that will sweep away our emotional, physical and psychological landscape and references, we can begin to create a lasting relationship with the divine.