Breathing in, I smile. Breathing out, I give thanks for my life. I abide in the gift of peace.
Quan Yin is one of my guiding spirits; she is always with me. She is often depicted on the Lotus or on the dragon, but she can also be depicted riding waves. Unmoved by the turbulent waters beneath her, she stands in perfect stillness, offering compassion and mercy to the world.
How do we navigate internally, so that we can ride the waves and be clear and strong in the face of the ups and downs of this dimension? You can ride the waves by staying neutral. One of the many ways you can stay neutral is through the breath. A smile can also bring you into neutrality and lift you up and out of the poles of opposites. The poles are constantly pulling us up and down, and in and out, and the waves are all around us; they move through us and can envelop us.
Have confidence in your soul. If you place your confidence anywhere else, you will be disappointed. There is no husband, child, mother, father, job, amount of money, or anything else outside of yourself, that will allow you to become free and strong in the face of the waves.
The things you love in this life are the icing, but you are the cake. All those relationships and situations outside of yourself are blessings and lessons, but unless you have confidence in your inner being, you will not realize spiritual freedom. The only way you’re going to get to freedom is by going to your own inner territory with enough diligence, perseverance, and regularity so that you begin to forge your relationship between yourself and God. If you have confidence that you can do that, then you can do that. It is always there for you; it is ALL there for you. It is complete. It has already been bestowed, it has already been given, and it is just waiting for you to take it, realize it, and experience it.
Be simple and grounded, and you will begin to know more clearly and trust more deeply that you know what to do as well as how to do it and when to do it. All of those intuitive directional signals are within you and will guide you. You might ask, “Well, what about the principles of Buddhism? Christianity? What about this practice or that book?” There are many beautiful ways to enter the door of spiritual consciousness, but the ultimate way is you. There comes a time to stop shopping and looking around because there isn’t anything that you don’t already have. Now is the time to have confidence and to stop dissipating your energy in ways that are going to make you veer sideways instead of ascending to God. So really trust that. Trust Love. Thou are that.
So smile; smile and breathe. This will allow you to accept and have confidence in your soul. Your soul knows what it’s doing, knows what it needs, and knows how to get what it needs. It has nothing to do with anything outside of yourself–not the most incredible partner, not the most incredible amount of money, not anything. When you let yourself smile, all the energy ascends, and everything lifts and gets lighter.
A smile is really a posture of surrender, just as when a dog rolls over on its back and it drops all resistance. Drop your resistance and assume a simple posture of gratitude and acceptance. In just a few moments this practice will change your perception of something that is difficult, to something that helps you to remember and moves you into alignment with God.