In all traditions, the path to encounter with the Sacred, the Holy is described as the hard path, the path that demands much of the seeker, the narrow path that we must walk alone. And this path is often symbolically represented by animals. Strong, often solitary, lordly animals like the lion, the jaguar, the bull or the stag.
The ancient Celts revered the stag as Lord of the Forest, the lone one who watches, protects, and cuts paths that others follow. It represented purification and Divine authority.
Buddha was often represented as a deer, and in Medieval times, Jesus was symbolised by the regal, watchful stag, divine protector, sometimes by the unicorn, a powerful, solitary animal with the power to cleanse and purify that which it touched.
The ancients, you see, understood that the Spiritual is not soft, cuddly and tame like a puppy. It is strong, sturdy, disciplined; it is primal, authentic and powerful. By facing the challenges of the Spiritual life, the Buddhist Noble life, we draw on the inner strength of a stag or a lion.
True spirituality requires self-discipline, mindfulness and resolve. To choose and follow a spiritual path, whether it be in a formal spiritual tradition or not, takes an earnest desire to understand and be good, and the will and courage to follow that desire. And when we do, we build self-mastery, inner power and the strength to hold to that path even in the darkest, roughest of times, or return to it after losing one's way.
It is that strength that enables a person to do what is right, good and decent no matter the cost, to act with integrity and compassion in a society that harms and lies ... That is what it means to live a Spiritual, a Noble life.
Spirituality is at heart an attitude of active goodwill towards all living beings (including oneself and the living planet), and the desire, will and courage to act for their wellbeing.
It can be a tough and lonely path, though the rewards are many and great.
Images:
- Nelson Mandela, whose courage saved a nation and set an example for the all.
- Father Lazarus, whose rocky search for meaning brought him to a cave in the Egyptian desert, where he and other monks pray daily for all humankind and nature.
- Peter Edwards, who lost everything trying to teach Australia how to heal the land and farm sustainably.
Though immersion in a spiritual tradition can be nurturing, supportive and edifying for the committed seeker, traditions can be corrupted, their foundational teachings so watered down or misunderstood that they cause harm instead of good.
The genuine seeker, therefore, must learn to be discerning, to test the waters of a tradition, so to speak, and if entered into a tradition, to take from it only that which the heart feels is good.
L'eglise Paroissal Saint Pierre
One can, however, live a deeply spiritual life without formal religion. I know environmental activists whose lives, values and beliefs are profoundly spiritual without any reference at all to God, Great Spirit or worship. Theirs is the spirituality of Nature of which we human beings, blind and ignorant as we can be, are a part. Their goodness is powerfully expressed in their loving goodwill and commitment to all life forms.
Nobility comes in many forms. To me, American linguist and social critic, Noam Chomsky, who hardly if ever mentions God, is as spiritual in his constant probing and questioning of American values and actions, and calls for honest, ethical, responsible government and actions as the hugely inspiring spiritual leader and activist, Martin Luther King. I find the richly informed writings and teachings of environmentalists like Stephan Buhner to be as spiritual as the biblical psalms, sometimes more so, and their deep understanding of the consciousness of Nature as spiritually wise and uplifting as the inspired writings of Eileen Caddy and Dorothy Maclean, co founders of the spiritual-eco centre Findhorn in Scotland.
Eileen Caddy & Dorothy Maclean, two of the founders of Findorn.
What these and other awakened human beings demonstrate is that a principled, authentic, noble way of living does not come easily. It takes commitment, persistence, the willingness to face setbacks and take risks. It takes effort and inner discipline.
It demands much of us, and holds us to account for our choices and action. It challenges us to learn what kind of person we really are, and to develop the commitment and self-discipline to be live truly human, authentic lives.
(Image: Wikipedia)
The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are. ~ Carl Jung