Accessing the Support that is Always with You

I want to share with you a quote by Joseph Campbell that is on the first page of the first chapter of my book Belonging to Life.

People say what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life.  I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking.  I think that what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonances within our innermost being and reality so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive.

Everything we have been exploring together in these blogs comes from this intention – to rediscover and live from the joy, clarity and wisdom that come from truly being alive. We have also touched on the truth that, even though our true nature is one of well-being, most of us live in a very narrow world of struggle, always trying to make ourselves and our lives be different than they are.

The way out of this endless game of struggle is not to try to get out of it – that would only be more struggle – but rather from the willingness to LOOK and to truly see our particular brand of struggle – to see it, to love it and let it go. In previous blogs, we have been exploring how to bring our compassionate attention into our immediate experience so we can see through our struggle and make contact with the joy that is always right here, right now.

But I want you to know that there were times in my awakening where I didn’t know how to look and times where I didn’t even want to. In working with those times, I discovered that one of the most healing things we can do at all moments of our lives, but most especially when we are stuck, is to live in questions. It is one of the most powerfully transformative tools available to us, and we are only beginning to tap into its power. No matter where we are, no matter what is happening, living in questions can bring clarity when we are confused, courage when our strength has failed us, hope when we are filled with despair, and vision when we don’t have a clue about which way to go.

Living in questions is different from just asking questions. Our old way — ask a question and look for the answer — is necessary in our day-to-day lives. But asking questions in this way when we are caught in struggle can bring us frustration, confusion and despair. What I am talking about is a new way of working with questions in which we discover that the power of questions is not in finding answers. Rather, the power of questions lies in the questions themselves.

There are two keys to learning how to access the power of questions. The first is not to look for answers. The beauty of asking questions without looking for answers is that it doesn’t seduce us into struggle. The whirling, spinning, grasping mind that is always trying to figure things out puts up a barrier between us and the wisdom within us that knows how to bring balance in any given situation. When we ask a question without looking for an answer, it creates a vacuum that has to be filled. It is a law of physics. The intelligence of the universe rushes into the vacuum of a question, and the answer automatically, in its own time, condenses out of the unknown and into our lives.

The second key is to expect answers. The art of trusting that the intelligence of the universe will answer our questions comes to each of us in its own time and in its own way. It helps to notice that we do live in a sea of intelligence. Everywhere we look we see its handiwork, whether it is the exquisite balance of the web of life or the amazing healing that happens in a body if we experience a paper cut or are in a severe automobile accident. The more we pay attention to life, the more we see that this intelligence permeates and penetrates absolutely everything, including the challenges in our lives. It also becomes evident that the resolution to every problem we have ever had or ever will have is nestled in the heart of the challenge. Life waits for the question. Moments of pure questions always signal the life that we are willing to listen.

In the next few blogs, we will explore together how to bring the phenomenal power of questions into our lives so that we can bring clarity where there is confusion, openness where there is tightening and compassion when there is judgment. In the meantime, here is a link to the chapter, “The Healing Power of Questions” from my book The Gift of Our Compulsions: A Revolutionary Approach to Self-Acceptance and Healing.