By Courtney Elmes
Sometimes (or perhaps it is all the time?) the Universe aligns in mysterious ways. Synchronicities lead us down a path that doesn’t seem clear or make sense – yet it just feels right, something deep within our knowing, that we can’t quite put a finger on but seems to be guiding the way…
This is what brought me here, writing this blog today. I saw on Awakened Spirit’s website an Advanced Philosophy Course being offered by Stephen Cope, called “Awaken Your Calling”. I was drawn in immediately. Ever since reading his book, “The Wisdom of Yoga”, that was on our Sacred Earth YYT recommended reading list, I had been humbled by the fact that yoga is not the immaculate being that so many of us aspire to reach – but the journey of being the beautifully messy humans it takes to get there, perfectly imperfect along the way. It was a thoroughly enjoyable and relatable read.
This course was specifically focused on the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita, along with Stephen’s deep dive into said teachings in another book of his, “The Great Work of Your Life”. Well, it was a spontaneous last minute sign up and setting aside the funds but something was definitely pulling me towards the class…
And, if I’ve learnt something in life, it’s this:
“The more often you listen to that voice guiding you,
the more often it guides you.”
For the following 5 weeks a group of us journeyed into the realm of Dharma (a Sanskrit word highly condensed with underlying meaning) and beyond, with Stephen as our guide. With insightful prompts, we each opened up about the struggles and triumphs of our own individual journeys, what was unique to us and what resonated with one another, and reflected on how we could come into a mellifluous existence with our very own Sacred Duty.
We discovered there are 4 paths to fulfilment…
FIND YOUR DHARMA
What is your calling? Can you articulate it? What calls to you in the very fibre of your being?
GIVE IT ALL YOU’VE GOT
Once determined, bring everything into that duty, with passion. Find out who you are and do it on purpose.
LET GO OF THE OUTCOME
Grasping interferes profoundly – let it be, without the need to control. Relinquish the fruits. Both success and failure are irrelevant.
TURN THE WHOLE THING OVER TO A HIGHER POWER
Turn the whole thing over to ‘God’ – or whatever higher power resonates with you. We work in service as the Divine Channel.
It took me many years to name, claim and own what I consider my unique Dharma at this point in my life (for, the only constant is change), which is that of a Sacred Earth Activist – caring for the planet and her people. And yet, all roads were leading me there; I was heading that way all along. And truly, anything else seems like a distraction now.
As outlined in the book, TGWOYL, it isn’t always easy finding our way. I’ve had plenty of my own complete and utter breakdowns, just as Arjuna did on the floor of his chariot, unable to go ahead with battle and frozen in despair, wondering what the meaning of it all was and where his place was in the world. And yet, to be broken open is to breakthrough. By the end of the consultation with Krishna, Arjuna has clarity of faith and is willing to do the bidding of the Universe.
“If you bring forth what is within you, it will save you.
If you don’t, it will destroy you…
Not only that, if you do bring forth what is within you,
it will also save everyone else”
We realised that we must get out of our own way; that there is a higher power at play and we are merely the channel.
Looking back now, it is even clearer than it was at the time how this class brought me so many little golden nuggets I will treasure for, what I should imagine, the rest of my days! I cannot recommend reading ‘The Great Work of Your Life’ enough, and believe this was the perfectly conducted final class before Stephen’s well-deserved year-long break to work on his upcoming book about his beloved dog.
I am deeply grateful for all the profound lessons he shared with us, and feel all the more propelled towards my own calling… Knowing now that the more of us that are aligned with our Dharma – that sense that we are here on Earth for a reason unique only to us – the more complete the world will be.
