It’s practicing peace and purpose, which might involve asking ourselves questions like, “How can I find fulfillment?” and, “How can I live the best life possible?” While some people connect to their spiritual selves by turning to their religion, and others find it in nature or art, our spirituality often has a heavy influence on every area of life. If you have any questions, 5 ways to survive family tensions during the holidays. 200 Great Buddha Quotes – Buddha Quotes on Love, Life… This person is watching you through the window; her glance protects you and surrounds you with sweetness. And both are based on the insight that the best way to bypass the ego, which cuts us off from love, is to learn how to undermine our feeling of separation. Taylor received her bachelor’s degree in multimedia journalism, with minors in professional writing and leadership from Virginia Tech. Yet, as Rumi says in another of his great poems, love is always there, always available, always ready to pour itself out to us. You could move to a new place that feels like a sanctuary, find a lover with whom you can be vulnerable, or even start a spiritual practice. "We must open our hearts to love because love is God. We are soon left to wonder where the truth lies in all of this. Love comes and sits with you when you’re feeling down and finds out what is wrong. Agape love can change your life and set you free. How to Have a Great Love Life Do you have problems in your love life or just want it to be all it can be? Agape love … Inspire your practice, deepen your knowledge, and stay on top of the latest news. Spiritual life quite simply is the life lived in and with God. He fielded the emotional crises of the other family members. “Over the years, I have come to realize that the greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity, or … Love is the offspring of spiritual affinity and unless that affinity is created in a moment, it will not be created for years or even generations. “Was it a reward for taking care of my father? Therefore, our spirituality or lack thereof can have an impact on our relationships. And why does love so often feel lacking, or painful, or both? “It was the music,” we say. Most of us get glimpses of the Great Love at some time in our lives—perhaps in nature, or with an intimate partner, or in the moment of bonding with our children. But true love -- what the New Testament writers called agape love -- is not based on feelings at all. That said, spiritual love can refer to a love that is rooted in or supported by a deep spiritual connection that helps us find meaning in life. Taylor Bennett is the Content Development Manager at Thriveworks. '” The thought struck him as so funny that he giggled—causing something of a commotion in the funeral chapel, as people turned to see what was making him laugh at such an inappropriate moment. If they do not select a partner who has a complementary or shared interest, then there will be conflict regarding their choices resulting in communication breakdown and other negativity that will impede the progress of the relationship, as well as impact their lives.”. Close your eyes for a moment and imagine you are sitting in the center of a vast flow of love. He asked himself, “How would I act if I did feel love for my father?” Then he acted on the intuition that arose for him. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, … Absolute Love. The practice of love—actions and attitudes that create an atmosphere of kindness, acceptance, and unity in ourselves and in those around us—is not only the basis of spiritual life, it is also the basis of civilization. Why can’t I feel it all the time? … Not feeling loved ourselves, we pass on our sense of lack to others, so that even when we try to give love, what comes through instead is anxiety or clinging. Whatever differences there were in our personalities, our mental and emotional states, she and I were the same on the level of pure awareness. Spiritual Love and Life Conversations is a podcast for women who want to get real about love and relationships, letting go of toxic and unhealthy relationships, thoughts, habits, and behaviors, so you … The words of the message talk about love and fondness. For the sake of discussion, let’s refer to these three aspects of love as (1) Absolute Love, or the Great Love, which Ramakrishna, Rumi, and the teachers of the bhakti yoga and nondualist Tantra traditions tell us is ever- present, impersonal, and the very underpinning of the universe; (2) our individual experience of love, which is quirky, personal, and usually directed at something or someone; and (3) love as sadhana (practice). One of my students, caught in an argument with her stepson, asked herself, “How would I be if I really felt love right now?” The answer that came up was “relaxed.” So she practiced relaxing with the breath and was able to talk with her son without the clutch of fear and judgment that had been polarizing the two of them. It amazed me to see how quickly the feeling of alienation and irritation disappeared. Finally, if a relationship lacks spiritual connection—whether it’s one-sided or two-sided—the relationship might suffer. At the time, however, I did what most of us do when we get a glimpse of unconditional tenderness: I projected my inner experience onto the person I happened to be with and decided (rather disastrously, as it turned out) that he was the love of my life and the mate of my soul. 65. Instead, the feeling I had in that moment was that there was nothing but love. One of the most spiritual things you can do is embrace your humanity. Check out “Leaving Depression Behind: An Interactive, Choose Your Path Book” written by AJ Centore and Taylor Bennett.". The time during which you are single is not wasted. Spiritual love rituals are very powerful and are only intended to help relationships with a strong and REAL connection. Love … And God will manifest in this world through your love. “Love … If we’re on a more knowledge-based yogic path, we may be taught to look askance at the feelings of bliss and love that arise in practice, because, we’re told, the spaciousness that is our goal is beyond such feelings. Love with a capital L: That’s the Great Love, love as the source of everything, love as radical unity. Therefore, if they are not aware of their life purpose, then they may select partners who are not in support of their life purpose. Restoring & enhancing love, passion, trust, intimacy, happiness & commitment. Just as physical life begins when our physical heart starts beating, our spiritual life begins when our spiritual heart starts beating. Home » Spirituality » What is a spiritual love? “My question is, Why is it that so many times, I can’t feel it?”, We were in the middle of a workshop I teach called “Exploring the Heart.” Elliot had recently lost his father, and so I asked him, “Are you talking about something specific?”. It was the surf! Raleigh, NC. We may not feel good about ourselves all the time, but we can practice treating ourselves gently, slowing down and breathing when we want to rush, or talking back to our inner voices of self-criticism and judgment. “It didn’t exclude my father, but it definitely wasn’t about him. Think of the agonies of the Sufi poets! Love is meant to heal. They complement and further our efforts in building a meaningful life. © 2020 Thriveworks Counseling | Privacy Policy & Terms of UseThriveworks is currently working towards complete Accessibility of this website. Your only task is to receive. Be happy! Some teachers tell us that our essence is love; others say love is a passion, an emotion that leads to addiction and clinging. “For instance, individuals may come together to raise children or create something for humanity.”, : Others enter our lives to teach us important life lessons that support healthy growth and development. I will not die an unlived life. He knew he should love him. As with many questions about our spirituality, there isn’t one definition or example of a spiritual love. The questions his experience raised are essential ones, questions we all deal with as we probe that most fundamental and yet elusive of all human feelings: love. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:16 “And we have known and believed the love … Elliot realized that when we really love someone, we’re attentive to even the smallest minutiae of that person’s existence. Love knows you’ll come through just as God planned, and love … In truth, it is. Everything was love. He created us with a soul that thirsts for what only … That said, as Holland prefaced, when we take the time. The following 200 Buddha quotes full of wisdom embody the spiritual leader’s emphasis on Love, Life and Happiness for living a more peaceful and meaningful life. Instead, it’s an active answer to one of life’s greatest questions: How can I, in spite of what I may be feeling at a particular moment, offer my best to myself and other people? So individual love is always touched with suffering, even when the love we feel is “spiritual.”. If you love God, then you will be able to love others. The great lie that the feeling of separation fosters in us is the delusion of being unloved, or cut off from love, of there not being enough to go around. When you open your eyes, look around you with the thought that the love you have been contemplating is still flowing toward you from whatever you see and from the air itself. We can’t help doing this. Dr. Alise Holland explains: “People come into our lives for either life blessings or life lessons. The Great Love, the love that is the kernel of everything, is present in everything, peeking out during every moment in which we feel a spark of tenderness, appreciation, or affection. We remember their numinosity, the feeling of deep connectedness they give us, and the fact that even when the love we feel seems inspired by someone or something in particular, it has a profoundly impersonal, universal quality. Yet when the father became seriously ill, the only person he wanted around him was his son. If we’re on a devotional path like bhakti yoga, Sufism, or mystical Christianity, we’re often taught that the way to enlightenment is to fall in love with God and let that love grow until it engulfs us and we become one with the Beloved. Spiritual blockages removal: This article takes a focused look at some of the causes of spiritual blockages, including those that are completely outside our own control. ‘Oh, my God,’ I thought, ‘I’m having a spiritual experience, right here at my father’s funeral! It becomes veiled by our thoughts and feelings, and we start to think that love comes and goes, that we can feel it only for certain people, or that there’s not enough love to go around. This experience inspired a burning desire to get back to it and ultimately became the motive for my spiritual practice. Love and/or compassion are often [quantify] described [by whom?] Imagine that love is flowing toward you like water or passing into you like a gentle wind. At this level, love is another name for Absolute Reality, Supreme Consciousness, Brahman, God, the Tao, the Source—that vast presence the Shaivite tradition sometimes calls the Heart. All great stories are love stories. Say, “I love you”, “I’m sorry”, “I appreciate you”, “I’m proud of you”…whatever you’re feeling. When partners are connected to their spirituality, then they can identify the purpose of a relationship.”. When spiritual teachers use the word love, what kind of love are they talking about? “Of course,” he said. My boyfriend wants to hold off on our engagement and get to know each other better—what does it mean? Elliot and his father had been polite strangers for nearly 20 years. Louise and Robert present a practical philosophy based on seven spiritual practices. If you pose this query to yourself—or, better yet, ask yourself (as Elliot did), How would I act if I were feeling love?—you will eventually discover the practice that helps melt your frozen heart, so the love that always hides behind our emotional barricades can show its face. I choose to inhabit my days, to allow my living to open me, to … If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. The problem was that Elliot couldn’t dig out a single nugget of love for his father. 1 John 3:14 says, We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Spiritual Love and Life, United kochin. Key themes cover: • The … as the mainstay of spiritual … Here is one overlooked secret of having a great love life: C. S. Lewis was quoted once as saying, "When I have learnt to love God better than my earthly dearest, I shall love … What is a spiritual love? He slumped down in his seat, deeply tired, with no more effort left in him. Love, light, and light is God; in other words, totally unfathomable!" Law of Herukhutt – it specifies that God doesn’t influence your life Therefore, he will not punish, rewards or even protect you. Hunger Was God’s Idea Hunger was God’s idea. The state sprang up seemingly out of nowhere, a sensation of tenderness and ecstasy that seemed to ooze out of the walls and the air, carrying with it a sense that everything was a part of me. Required fields are marked *. As ananda, the Great Love is woven into the fabric of the universe, which of course also puts it at the center of our own being. If you are looking to be inspired, please read these life-changing buddha quotes. In fact, we often begin the inner life as a search—conscious or unconscious—for a source of love that can’t be taken away. If you want to grow your spirituality, we have some beautiful passages for you to read and inspire you. These spiritual loves can serve different purposes: some are meant to walk with us through life… **As of September 2018 Spiritual Love and Life Conversations is on hiatus** Stay in touch with me at www.thespirituallovehealer.com or in the Spiritual Love Circle at www.spirituallovecircle.com You. The first is the practice of recognizing that the awareness in another person is the same awareness that is in me. I appreciate ur approach to discuss the very rare factor of society’s spirituality because inner peace is more important for our mental health. Love is the universal, cosmic, all-encompassing ultimate theme. You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings. (“God’s joy moves from unmarked box to unmarked box,” Rumi wrote. Gift a Yoga Journal membership and save 20% →, Gift a Yoga Journal membership and save 20% →, The Simple 5-Part Practice To Encourage Self Acceptance, 4 Travel Destinations Unexpectedly Packing Deep Yogic Lessons, Criminal Justice Advocate and Yogi Steven Medeiros is Taking Life’s Challenges in Stride, Spiritual Leader Ram Dass on Zen and the Art of Dying. Until your soulmate makes their way to you yet when the love God... The universal, cosmic, all-encompassing ultimate theme cookies should be enabled at all happiness in life definitely ’. The feeling I had in that moment was that there was nothing but love,. Feeling unloved or believing we had to work with a demanding, critical, narrow-minded boss self-improvement tips.... Nearly 20 years life, in this verse, is an author, meditation! Spiritual life … the best thing to hold spiritual love life on our website ’ added first. Sitting in the relationship you want to grow your spirituality, then they can identify the purpose of a ”... 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