The Gifts of Life

Visiting for the First Time? Read Me First

Perhaps one of the most important parts of a strong spiritual practice is the practice of tarka or reflective journaling. Reflection upon your inner and outer life is essential if you wish to progress along the path. These reflections on your life can help you see your mind more clearly. Your relationship to yourself, the world, and others is revealed in each journal entry. We can sometimes be blinded by our own beliefs or trapped in a cycle of thinking that is unhealthy for us.

Tarka can help us to illumine the way before us, discard old beliefs, and change our attitudes and ways of thinking.

This blog is designed to help you reflect upon your life and examine your mind so that you may travel the path of enlightenment with greater ease and harmony.

Set aside a little time each day to write in your journal and respond to the prompts in the blog.

The benefits of a strong tarka practice will reveal themselves over time, particularly if you take some time out each month and reread what you have written in your journal. You will find patterns in your life and your examination of these patterns will help you make the changes in your life that you are striving for. The wisdom you gain will help you live the life you seek.

Daily Reflection and Journaling Prompt

What you have done in the past does not matter. Every day is a great gift that you can choose to use wisely and harmoniously.

What will you do today to add to the bounty of life?

Swami K

Day 37 - Ganesh Part 3

Today's Tarka Practice
This week we are talking about the symbolism of Ganesh. You may want to go back and read parts 1 and 2 first.

At the feet of Ganesh lies food for the taking. This represents that the whole world is there for your asking. In other words, this world is abundant rather than lacking and we can partake in this abundance. We are not meant to deny ourselves or fear scarcity but to embrace all that is available to us.

How many times have you sacrificed something you wanted because you thought there wasn't enough to go around? Sacrifice is not needed because there is plenty for all. Most of us do not see the abundance in the world. Our fear covers it. However, when you awaken, when you move towards greater self-awareness, when you gain wisdom through self-realization, you will see greater and greater abundance and greater and greater beauty.

Here, I am reminded of the book and movie The Celestine Prophecy. If you view the movie, it can give you a visual experience of what it means to awaken to abundance and beauty. The characters that have awakened "see" the world differently. It glistens and shines. It is beautiful as it glows. It is heaven on earth. The characters that have not awakened see the dull, darker, world that is less beautiful, that is plain, that is bland, that is violent, greedy and selfish.

All we have to do is metaphorically "open our eyes" to see this beautiful, abundant world.

For your journal practice set aside some time to watch the movie or pick up the book. After watching the movie or reading the book, write down your thoughts. How did you react to the movie/book? What did it make you think about? Were you able to see more abudance in your life after watching/reading? How can you carry this practice into your life everyday?

Shanti