Some people call it burning the candle at both ends. I call it, a passionate life.
The expression of passion is unique for each person, but the quality is the same. I can best describe it as throwing myself into life in the same way I throw myself into the arms of the Beloved, with total abandon and ecstasy. Some people may caution that this is reckless and dangerous behaviour as life can be full of pitfalls. However, if we love life as the beloved, with full trust and sensitivity, life responds and becomes friend, lover and guru.
When I left my hometown at the age of 15 and went in search of the essence of life, my mother baked me a bannock to wish me luck, just like in old Irish fairytales. When I was 12 years old, she and my father had told me, “We don’t have money to offer you financial support, but we offer you our trust in your intelligence. We see that you are a very intelligent and sensitive person, and we want you to know that we trust you will make the best possible choices in life. We will support your life choices.”
This initiation gift into adulthood, given by my parents was a touchstone for me. Since they trusted in my intelligence, I asked myself at regular intervals if my various life choices were intelligent. To this day, I am steeped in gratitude for the trust shown by my parents towards my unique way of being.
Many other adults I met expressed grievous doubts towards my decision to leave the treadmill of society at such a tender age. I was told: “First you should finish school. Then, you should get a job. When you are earning enough money, then you should get married and have kids. And after you have put your kinds through school, and are ready for retirement, then you can go chasing your foolhardy dreams.” I responded; “First I will follow the calling of my soul, and after that, if I have time, I will consider your list of musts in life.”
Other people gave me dire warnings: “You are too young to realize the danger out there. You will certainly be killed, or at the very least be raped! And you have no money! Where will you sleep? How will you eat?”
An exception to these kinds of warnings was the words of wisdom offered to me by a world-renowned artist who I became friends with at the age of 13. He had dark penetrating eyes, a white beard and charismatic presence. His words resound in me to this day: “Out of all my life experience, I have just this piece of advice to give you; follow the flow. Don’t question where the flow will take you. Just go with it.”
One time I asked him, “When you are in the process of painting a masterpiece, what is going on inside of you? How does it feel?” He answered me, “When a true masterpiece is happening, there is no mind. I am simply painting with my penis. My whole body becomes one big penis, in the process of painting.” Even at that tender age, I immediately grasped what he was conveying. If I could say it in a nutshell, it would be: “Live passionately, live totally, live in the moment, be your own unique essence.”
I took in his advice and followed my flow by hitchhiking to India. By following the flow each moment, I found myself meeting Osho in Mumbai, in February, 1973. To summarize this meeting, I can simply say, I discovered heaven on earth.
Just in case this following of one’s passion sounds too airy-fairy, I will offer a reality check. It was a constant challenge. I didn’t know where I was going. The warnings of well meaning adults rang in my ears. I had to sleep many a night by the side of the road. I often didn’t know where the next meal was coming from. Hitchhiking through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan is not a picnic. In spite of all that, somehow, by going totally for my truth, and following my intuition, life brought me to the best possible being I could ever hope to find on this earth, a great enlightened Master, a living Buddha.
This didn’t mean that challenges were over. In fact, the greatest challenges were yet to come, such as the challenge of stripping ego to the core from every possible angle, or the challenge of deprogramming from the whole past, including past lives and ancestral memories. And of course, there was the challenge of living in a spiritual and free sex community.
By telling my story, I am in no way suggesting that people leave their vocation and hitchhike to India in order to live their passion. Don’t do what I did. Follow YOUR inner flow. What do angels whisper in your ears at night? Where does your inner treasure reside? Who are you called to be from your innermost heart? Go for that with all your passion, and you will be triumphant. Perhaps you are called to be an entrepreneur, or a film maker, a musician, a dancer, a poet or a clown. If you follow your passion, fulfilment will walk hand in hand with you through life. It is so important, that as we get older, we can look back and say, “I have not missed any opportunity. I have been and continue to live my soul calling with all the joy that brings.”
One of the incredible effects of living our passion is, that as we open up to receive, this mysterious existence gives us so much more than we could ever dream of. This is simply because existence thrives on abundance and generosity. However, of course, we have to meet life half way. There is a saying from the Islamic tradition, “Trust in Allah but tether your camel first.” I would like to propose a new saying: “Trust in Life and move your MOJO!
When the fountain of our being has received tremendous love and abundance in life, there arises a strong urge to overflow and share it. These days, I continue to live my passion, which expresses itself rather like a whirlwind, travelling the globe, offering groups and participating in the transformation of countless individuals. As this goes on, I sense the collective consciousness awakening to the true meaning of being human. I call this awakening, ‘conscious love.’
Note: Mojo is a slang word from the USA, which means life force energy, or life juice.
(Article taken from Sarita’s website: www.tantra-essence.com)
