A couple of days ago, while mediating to a Hemi-Sync guided meditation, I received a new mantra to move forward into my future with.
Before I get into my new mantra, if you are curious as to what a Hemi-Sync guided meditation is, let me explain. Hemi-Sync is short for Hemispheric Synchronization, also known as brainwave synchronization which was created by the founder of the Monroe Institute, Robert Monroe. Using various sound waves, the brain produces a third sound in your head called binaural beats. When listening to these beats via headphones, an expanded state of awareness can be created.
That is a simplistic explanation of Hemi-Sync so check out the Monroe Institutes website for more info. As for the guided meditation I listened to using Hemi-Sync, you can experience it here .
The guided meditation suggests that I ask the question, “What is the most important thing that I need to know or understand at this time?” So while in deep meditation that is exactly what I asked.
At first I got nothing, nada, zilch. When I meditate, I usually get some form of image or colour in my minds eye but on this day, the movie screen in my mind was a fogged up view. At one point I thought that I was probably wasting my time and there really were other, more productive things I could be doing with this half hour. Then suddenly, the words just popped into my head.
I call these instances of unexplained “aha” moments, divine downloads. You can tell when sudden thoughts or ideas are not from your own mind when they comes totally out of the blue and are usually not related to your current train of thought but your intuition or gut instinct just knows to pay attention.
I was not looking for a new mantra, that would have been the furthest thought from my mind. In fact I would have said I was expecting something more on the lines of a creative idea as an answer to the “What is the most important thing” question. But as simple as this mantra is, when it downloaded, I knew that the message was profound.
Be who I am. Do what I can.
The more I thought on my new mantra the deeper the understanding of what these 8 little words really meant for me moving forward in my life.
Be who I am.
If you have read my posts in the past, you will know that I call myself a recovering people pleaser. When you people please, you put other’s needs ahead of your own. It is a form of searching for validation from an outside source by seeking approval for your selflessness. It is a slippery slope because you can never fill your soul with outside approval so the more you try the less validated you end up feeling.
To truly be who you are is to understand that to feel validated, you need to fill your own soul with the things that really matter to you, regardless of outside opinions. Intellectually that sounds easy enough but as humans, we strive for outside validation so that we can understand where we fit in with our families, community or tribe.
We have a pre-historic need to fit in. Heaven forbid if we are kicked out of the tribe because we are different. There are lions and tigers and bears out there in the real world. This need is so old and universal it is part of our DNA. So at some level you are actually fighting against your genetics. The fear of being who you truly are and being shunned for it by your loved ones or your peers is very real.
For me, to be who I am requires me to step into my personal power regardless of what other people think. That is my truest meaning to the first sentence of my new mantra.
Do What I can.
To do what I can means that I must listen to that little voice inside of me and act in a way that is congruent with my morals and beliefs. Walk the talk so to speak.
In other words, if I am being who I truly am, I need to show it and prove it, by doing it.
Sometimes, doing what you can means doing absolutely nothing. Just keep your mouth shut, say nothing and let others find their own way.
In a modern world where everyone has an opinion and wants to be heard, that is a very hard thing to do. We have become a society of critics and trolls.
What I can do is live my life for myself first and foremost. Focus on my own personal goals and be responsible for myself and my actions.
Tend ones own garden.
Imagine what would happen if we spent as much energy looking after our own backyard as we do critiquing our neighbours. Words like pride and self worth come to mind. This of course is an analogy for minding our own business. A lesson, I know, I was taught as a child.
But think about it, we are living in a world were we are inundated with advertising and other peoples messages. A quick Google search tells me that we see between 4000 – 10000 ads a day. 40 years ago it was only around 500 a day. Is it any wonder we have a hard time minding our own business?
Think about the pressure that would be taken off your shoulders if you also took on this mantra. The need to be all things to all people would no longer be an issue as you only have one person to answer to – yourself. You would only have one person to please – yourself. You would only have one person to strive for – yourself.
Does this sound selfish to you? Well if striving to be the best person you can be by always acting as authentic as possible and then only offering the help that is compatible with your true self is selfish, then I fear I have life all wrong.
It is not my destiny to be the worker drone, robotically going about my day in service of someone else’s goals. Do you feel that way too? That is not to say that I do not choose to be in service to others, but rather to serve from my original slant of life. Because, after all as my new mantra says, I can only be who I am and do what I can – and you can too.
