By Dr. Dennis Merritt Jones
Living with Reverence, A Fast Track to Living a Spiritually Grounded Life
“By having a reverence for life, we enter into a spiritual relation with the world. By practicing reverence for life we become good, deep, and alive.” ~ Albert Schweitzer
Florida blesses us with a year-around climate that encourages growth of just about anything planted in the ground. With a plentitude of rain and a plethora of sunny days, there is a preponderance of green showing up everywhere. As I sat peacefully in my meditation garden this morning, I drew my eyes to some weeds that were popping up among the rocks surrounding my beautiful statuary. My first inclination was to pull them out because I didn’t want weeds to encroach upon and spoil the “perfectly groomed sacred space” I had dedicated to my meditation practices. Thankfully, before I could act, that ever-present, quiet voice within gently whispered, “Be still and know, this too is sacred.” So I sat with the weeds and invited them to be my teacher. What was it I could learn about myself and life from the intrusion of a few errant weeds in my meditation garden? Emerson was on to something when he said that “A weed is a plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.” Point taken; perspective is everything. In an instant, what, one moment earlier, I perceived as an inconvenient, unsightly nuisance, instantly became another opportunity to practice reverence.
Reverence is the act of seeing through the form and recognizing and honoring the Life Force at its center, as well as its circumference.
In my work as a spiritual mentor, people often ask if there is a “fast track” to living a balanced, fulfilling spiritual life. Easy-peasy: Seeing the sacred in a weed can be a spiritual experience if we are willing to look beyond form and see the perfect Life Force therein. No less true, to see the sacred in ourselves and others can, likewise, be a spiritual experience; in either case, the only thing required of us is to deepen our perception by dropping our judgments. Our judgements are the primary thing that separates us from the awareness of our oneness with all of Life.
Practicing reverence is how we transcend our judgments, which sets us free from the tyranny of the ego-self.
The ego thrives on fear and separation by labeling everything and everyone as good or bad, desirable or undesirable, right or wrong, and so on. It’s easy enough to transcend our judgments with those people we love, like, and respect. However, it can be a bit more challenging with certain others, especially if they hold core values and beliefs that differ from our own. Between pandemics and politics, we don’t have to look too far for ample opportunities to practice reverence beyond the circle of our comfort zone.
While we may prefer roses over weeds, it doesn’t mean one is more sacred than the other; the divine imbues itself equally in all living things. What value shall we place on all that our eyes gaze upon today? Where and when might we begin the conscious practice of reverence? We don’t have to wait until we die to have a spiritual experience; it awaits us in the present moment. Above and beyond all appearances, opinions and circumstances, know there is a light, a sacred Presence, within you right now. Recognize It, honor It, and revere It, and It will set you free to see it in the world. A spiritual experience awaits you in every moment of this day if you have eyes to see and it begins in the mirror. Reverence yourself first, remembering, as within–so without, and your life shall become the sacred journey you came here to have–and that’s a beautiful thing.
Peace, Dennis