Developing Enlightened Spiritual Attitudes

By Ariadne Green
A woman meditating outdoors at sunset
Most of us are naturally interested in rising up the spiritual ladder to spiritual self-
mastery. A good part of the climb is definitely about shifting your attitudes out of the
conditioning of limiting and negative beliefs and adopting values that are deemed
spiritually aligned. Spiritual values are those that feed the soul and advance your spirit
and human understanding. Striving to become consistently virtuous spiritually strong
compassionate generous self-aware wise and of course happy will steer you towards
spiritual e!cellence.
"he mind can be stretched directed coached and nurtured to accept a spiritual
perspective to life and to adopt attitudes that are aligned with love. But training your
mind is only part of the answer. #ithout your heart actively driving your thoughts your
mind will tend to revert to old conditioning and love will be absent from your thin$ing.
More than %doing the right thing% it is about living a life filled with love&a life that is in
the spirit of the %authentic you%. 'ou are a uni(ue %love-note% in the universe and it is
your tas$ to discover your innate spiritual gifts and to rise in each occasion to use them.
Everyone needs a bit of spiritual coaching to shift the mind out of spiritual deadness and
habitual patterns of thin$ing that are culturally driven. )ere are some insights and tips
derived from a few e!periences at the supermar$et that should offer some food for
thought*
+ut 'ourself ,irst #hile Still -onsidering .thers
"oo many of us believe to be considered compassionate and $ind and an all around
good person one must submit sacrifice and consistently put others first. A case in point*
An old gentleman in his late seventies moseyed over from the side and cut three places
in line at the (uic$ chec$out stand of the supermar$et in front of a beautiful young girl
who was holding two gift bows and a greeting card with a nun caricature on the front. /n
bac$ of her and in front of me was a senior citi0en who wal$ed with a cane. /n fact / had
fallen off a ladder that wee$ and had considerable discomfort standing in line. #hen /
pointed out to the girl that the man cut in front of us she said %/ don1t mind.% / am sure
she was thin$ing she was doing what the nuns taught her in catechism* %Age before
beauty% or %respect your elders%. But the conse(uence of her allowances for one
masterful old man who / intuitively $new had done the same thing more than once
created stress for four more people in line in bac$ of her.
2now 'our #orld /s Being -reated in the Moment to Enlighten 'ou
3ife is a meaningful play presenting you with reflections signs and messages at every
turn aimed at advancing you spiritually. 'ou have only to believe it to open your
awareness to it and to decipher the signs and messages before you. "he situation at
the supermar$et had many layers of meaning. "he girl holding the card with the
caricature of the nun and the old man who by the way had a bas$et full of Bounty paper
towels were reflections carrying signs. 4oticing what was in the man1s bas$et offered
another layer of meaning to the situation. )e was a %bountiful% man perhaps because he
thought himself deserving. Seemingly then the message was that there are situations
when we need to put ourselves first to collect life1s bounty an attitude ad5ustment that
li$ely everyone in line needed to appreciate. "he greeting card1s message didn1t become
clear until today when / went bac$ to the store to loo$ for it. / $new it held meaning to the
situation. #hen / found it / couldn1t retrieve the message until / combed the store and
as$ed everyone / came across if they could read Spanish. .ne of the chec$out cler$s
helped me out. "he outside of the card read %/t1s a sin.% "he inside read %that you loo$
so beautiful year after year. % / glanced behind me and noticed a woman wearing a
purple tee shirt that read %More beautiful than words.% )ow many of us grew up thin$ing
it is a sin to be beautiful6
Surrender 'our 4eed for +eace and Serenity
/f it1s complete peace of mind you are after you are on the wrong planet. )aving the
right spiritual attitude is not so much about striving to maintain a state of peaceful bliss
as much as raising your heart fre(uency to embrace yourself when confronting a difficult
situation. +eace of mind is more apt to come after the successful resolution of a
problem meeting a challenge with an enlightened perspective and reali0ing that the
challenges are there to evolve you. 3ife lessons can be uncomfortable and messy.
-hanting .M while meditating raises your consciousness yes. But true peace comes
first through self-acceptance and pushing through anything that is uncomfortable with
spiritual strength.
Defend the 7ight to Give 8 3ove /s 4ot a -rime
At the same supermar$et ne!t day / was handed a coupon for a dollar off a pound of
coffee along with my change. #ith a smile on my face / offered it to the ne!t person in
line and told her if she didn1t want it / would 5ust leave it at the side of the counter for
another customer. Before she could answer the cler$ said %Give it bac$ to me.% She
snatched the coupon out of my hand and said that she had to throw it away. /t was store
policy that if / didn1t want it it goes in the trash. /n a culture where the simple act
thoughtfulness and generosity is policed by policies of greed it is no wonder so many
hold bac$ from giving. ,ran$ly / was so shoc$ed by the e!perience / was tongue-tied. /f /
had my druthers / would have made her fish the coupon out of the trash and ta$en it
outside the store to give to the ne!t person / saw.
7emind 'ourself -ompassion /s the %3aw of the 3and%
An even more dramatic confrontation this time with a dispassionate cruel heart
happened the wee$ before. A developmentally disabled young woman about the age of
9: seeing that / had a pac$age of .reos in my bas$et at the supermar$et stopped me
and said %/ want some .reos too but / don1t have any money.% She was as innocent as
innocent can be having the intelligence of an eight-year-old. / told her to go down the
aisle and get herself a pac$age and she came bac$ with only a snac$ si0e pac$
consisting of ; .reos. #hile we stood in line she compared her si0e pac$age with mine
and changed her mind thin$ing she could have a larger pac$age because / was so nice.
She said %/ want one of those% pointing to my pac$age. By then we were standing in
front of the cler$ and / was ready to pay for my purchases. #hen / told the girl to get a
big pac$age the cler$ scowled and yelled at the girl %4o you can1t have a big pac$age.%
She ran out of the store. #ith my hands on my hips / confronted the cler$ %/f / want to
fill my bas$et with pac$ages of .reos and give them to her it is my prerogative.% /
pointed out that she was developmentally disabled and hungry. "he cler$ proceeded to
lay down the %law of the land% as dispassionately as anyone could. %/ don1t care that she
is disabled% he said. %She shouldn1t be here pestering customers and begging for food.%
,le! 'our Spiritual Muscle
Although / was tempted in both situations to silently chant %.m% and say prayers of
forgiveness / $new something greater was being as$ed of me. / had to as$ myself
%#hat is the great lesson here and what is being as$ed of me6% Spiritual mastery
re(uires we understand the lessons and opportunities that are being presented. #e
must recogni0e our places of spiritual wea$ness and that often we are being called to
e!ert spiritual strength in order to ma$e a difference especially when confronted with the
%love-police%. My tas$ was to defend my right to give and be an e!ample of compassion
generosity and love. "he best way to accomplish that was to confront someone whose
disdain for the impoverished and disabled needed a confrontational tone to humble his
arrogant soul.
2EE4.-.M