How do we know when a great opportunity is staring us in the face? Throughout a typical day, life presents us with a choice of futures, and all we need to do is decide which door to open. Sometimes, the significance of our choices is not apparent at the time. The difference between choosing left or right, perhaps, could take our lives into completely different directions. So without the benefit of hindsight, how can we tell what’s best for us?
With every decision we make we adjust our heading and course through life. Sometimes the adjustment is minute—very often we choose that which is familiar and comfortable to us, even if it isn’t ideal. We may decide to stay within the bounds of accepted conventions and continue dogmatically on our way. And that’s understandable—a little bit of caution can be a good thing.
On the other hand there may be an opportunity to change course and to open ourselves up to exciting new ideas, experiences and a perhaps even a profound sense of meaning or fulfilment.
So what is the best approach? Is there a way to recognise those hidden opportunities that are so easy to ignore? The following narrative explores ways in which we can take greater control of the tiller, and thus take a more active role in shaping our lives.
Before we begin, I would like to you take some deep breaths. If you are sitting, relax into your seat, allowing your muscles to gently unwind and feel heavy. Try and relax all the little muscles of your face and head.
If you can, breath softly though the nose, and utilise your belly to help fill your lungs. We are going to allow the following narrative to awaken your imagination. Really try to visualise the scene. Take your time to step into the story and allow your awareness to soak up every sight, sound, touch and smell.
Slow your reading speed down now—remember, it’s not a race. Slow it down so that you can really focus on each phrase, and give yourself time to properly experience the unfolding moment. Treat it like a waking meditation, and you will gain so much more from the experience…
Now, let’s return to the intriguing world of Spero, and see what stories are unfolding today…
Narrative Meditation
The soft melody of scents sang of far-away lands and serpentine merchant routes—thyme, orange, turmeric, incense, parsley, soap and smoked meats. Dohgi traced a familiar path through the market to buy fresh ingredients for her evening meal. The day had been like any other recently. Neither terrible, nor memorable. Work had been tiring, moderately stressful and uninspiring.
She had accomplished some good work today, and all in all, she should have felt pleased with her efforts, but in truth, satisfaction was far from what she felt, or had felt in a long time. As she navigated her way through the busy streets, Dohgi mustered what strength she had left to filter out the constant hubbub of the streets. Demands on her attention. Shopkeepers, market-sellers, peddlers; the casual appraisal of strangers, the unwanted gazes, even the friendly smiles that needed to be returned; the hints of potential dangers, from merchants’ carts and stray dogs to boisterous groups of youths; bustling throngs to weave through, signs, advertisements, signals, buskers, the aroma of restaurants and street vendors. The stimulation was incessant, the choices were relentless. And for what?
Each choice, each yes-or-no decision, each offer of wares or requests for money took another piece from her. The string of places she had to be, each at a particular time, weighed upon her thoughts. It felt as if her days were filled with an unending chain of commitments and offerings, where she would be required to trade another small piece of her soul in exchange for just getting by. But to what end? What was the purpose of all of this? What meaning was their in this treadmill of existence?
Feeling jaded and frustrated, she became aware of what she could only describe as a bleary cloud, that had seemed to be follow her around recently. No, not a cloud exactly… a weight, that pressed down on her. She had become used to brushing away its oppressive presence and getting on with her day. On some level, she had become adept at denying it was even there. But today, as she ploughed along with her routine, she began to admit to herself that this weight was real.
As she probed it a little with her feelings, she saw that it took the form of a question. Or perhaps more accurately, an assertion. She turned her mind’s eye to look directly at it. And she knew what it meant. It was the oppressive realisation that there was no meaning in this. No meaning in what she was doing, how she was living. At a very deep level, something was missing. And it had been that way for some time.
It was then, coming back to the moment, that she was presented with the sight of a door, across the street. It was a door she hadn’t really paid attention to before, though she had passed it many times. She knew the street well, for it wasn’t far from the home of a friend. Now then, what had her friend told her about this place? Dohgi was sure that she’d mentioned it more than once.
Dohgi racked her memory. There was an interesting story behind this door, she was sure of it, but she could not recall. Whoever resided behind this door ran a business—this much she remembered. An unusual but interesting business. A consultancy perhaps? A service?
Dohgi remembered a few, vague details of her friend’s account, but as she searched her memory and stared at the door, it seemed to call to her. From her core something resonated at the sight of it, with its beautifully carved frame and small, ornate awning. Her intuition told her that what lay before her was something significant. Something important to her life, at this very moment.
There were occasions when moments seemed to take on an unreal feeling—where the world seemed to shift somehow. Whether it was more a landslide inside her mind, reshaping her perception, she wasn’t sure.
These were the moments that could creep up on you, unexpectedly, in the middle of a normal day—where time became elastic, and the situation became a fulcrum. This moment felt like the centre of mass, the point of contact in a larger, precariously balanced structure. An innocuous but pivotal moment, tucked away in the seams of the day.
Perhaps everything hung on this—a possible route out of her malaise, through a door out of the ordinary.
She had surely looked at this door before but only now was she truly seeing it. Instinctively, she could sense the choice that lay before her.
One the one hand, she could continue down the street, and perhaps call in on her friend; enjoy some tea and a chat—a little respite from her numbing and unfulfilling week. Or perhaps… perhaps she could choose a different path. Something unfamiliar, a little scary even. There was something compelling about this option, something that bristled with potential. Having walked down this street so many times, only now could she see there was an opportunity waiting for her.
Dohgi watched the door as if waiting for it to do something. It possessed a kind of gravity. Finally, and deliberately, she took a step towards the door. It was like she was walking downhill. As if she were being lead by the hand, or tugged from the belly by an unseen force. As she drew closer, she noticed a small brass plaque to the right of the door. A little closer, and she could make out the etched writing:
Surgery of Ms J Faruq-Malhotra
Philosopher
Dohgi held her breath. She was now standing upon the doorstep, poised ready to knock. She was at a crossroads that demanded a decision—to act, or not. To accept or reject this opportunity. To either continue onward into the unknown, or to retreat back to into her familiar, if empty routine.
Her heart raced as she stood at the precipice. “I can always turn back”, she told herself, subconsciously knowing this to be untrue. Lifting her hand to the door, she knocked and waited. She had leapt off the edge of one reality and was in that dreamlike gap between, scared of what lay on the other side. The limbo stretched out into long moments between breaths, until finally, the door opened. A smiling face greeted her, and she was invited inside.
One last look along the street. One last look at the her normal life, as it had been. On later reflection, it had, over increments, become an unthinking kind of existence.
But now, she had chosen. On some level, she had probably made this choice the moment she’d caught sight of the door. Perhaps even before that. Now she crossed the threshold… but into what exactly? Every ounce of her being told her that when she eventually emerged back onto the street, the world would never feel the same again.
So it was, that over the next year, as Dohgi paid visits to the Philosopher, she was taught how to see her life—and the world—in different ways. The Philosopher revealed to her hidden mysteries of existence, and the nature of consciousness. She altered Dohgi’s perception of time and space, and opened up new continents in her mind. She instructed her on the philosophies of the great thinkers, and their interpretations of the natural forces that presided over realities, both physical and spiritual. And after one year of discovery, she realised that enlightenment was not so much a destination, but a continual process. And through this process she would find a deep sense of meaning, of purpose and spiritual contentment.
She could feel it happening already, even though she was just a novice, still at the very start of her journey. Indeed, she would walk down that street many more times, but indeed it was not the same street. And she was not the same Dohgi.
She was a person remade. Such was the joy of self-discovery that sometimes she felt as if her spirit could burst. When she awoke in the mornings, she was now grateful to her former self, for recognising the opportunity that had been shown to her that day. She was thankful for taking the time to really see what lay before her. She was thankful for making the brave choice—to embrace a path of self-discovery—and choose the Philosopher’s Door.
We all encounter moments in our life that are like seeing the Philosopher’s Door. We are confronted with an opportunity or choice that may change us in a profound way, for the better. Perhaps that opportunity has been staring us in the face all along, but we have had not the vision to see it for what it is.
If we really wish to lead more meaningful and spiritual lives then we must seek out avenues and pursuits that may lead us to self-discovery and learning. We must keep a look out for ways to develop a richer awareness of life, the world around us, and the nature of our inner selves.
Rewarding experiences don’t necessarily mean seeking greater thrills, exotic holidays or materialistic gains. They can come in the form of teachings that can help you see the world in greater colour, or allow you to truly examine yourself in ways that can give you an understanding of what makes you tick, and where you can make real spiritual, philosophical and psychological improvements.
So always be ready to embrace an opportunity of this kind, should one cross your path. Allow yourself to be open to the idea of new teachings and lessons, even if your knee-jerk reaction may be to walk on by and carry on as normal. There are always ways to improve your well-being, emotionally, mentally, spiritually. All you have to do is walk through that door…
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