“To love what you do and feel that it matters — how could anything be more fun?” -Katharine Graham, US newspaper executive
One of the greatest ways to develop your calling and achieve mastery or excellence in any discipline is by exploring the lives of others who have achieved what you are wanting.
With the technological and information age about us, we have the ability to learn in a nearly infinite number of subjects about many of the great people in history and present who have achieved magnificence in their respective discipline or vocation. An example close to my heart is of achieving a state of enlightenment. This is a topic that has become more pronounced in our world, in our newspapers and magazines, and has become a type of calling for many.
Using the example of those who became enlightened, if that is something you are desiring or feeling called to, then you may wish to study and learn about those who have become “enlightened”, “awakened”, or “illumined” before.
You might explore the life of Jesus, through the new testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Essene Gospels. You may also wish to study how Lester Levenson awakened and came up with the Sedona Method and overcame the likelihood of death within three weeks ultimately living another 40 years or so in great health. You may learn how Buddha grew up and who his teachers may have been, how Paramahansa Yogananda became self-realized, about the 30 days of illumination Walter Russell experienced from which he came to a state of knowing everything.
A neat personal project would be for you to explore their lives, how they came to experience what they did, what led them to do what they did, who their teachers were and so on.
Once you have found out more about them, begin listing their names on a sheet of paper and below each name identify 10 -20 key aspects about each of them that you feel led them to be the Masters of their arts or professions.
Once you have those 10-20 for each one, cross reference them with each other and consider what the main links are between them? What one, two, and three things do they have in common?
Ultimately those one to three links will also be clues for you and a reflection for you for what you need to do in order for you to create or experience what you admire in all of them.
When it comes to enlightenment, the main themes all of these individuals have in common is that nearly all if not each one of them, spent a good deal of time in solitude, eventually studied themselves and stopped looking to others to discover who they were, let go of the teachings they had learned and went straight to the truth for themselves and ultimately discovered the magnificence of “God” Source through their own inner exploration free from Dogma, judgment, and ego/mental/intellectual understanding.
Once a person figures this out, ultimately he/she would then follow in their footsteps as the Masters after them did as well. This means putting these same aspects into action!
These headings may be helpful if you would like to apply this same example to what you are wanting to Master… be it becoming an excellent chef, an NHL hockey player, a world renowned opera singer, an Olympic level archer, a master healer, or a top teacher. You could also look in to the lives of Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Carolos Slim, and Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud to determine how they accumulated their mass amounts of wealth. You could look at people in your life that you know who have optimal health and use this same technique with each of them so that you can begin to understand how to create this for your self if optimal health is something you are wanting.
Here is a sample of how you might do this:
Jesus (this is based on conjecture but fine for this exercise) -was loved unconditionally as he grew up -was supported with guidance and wisdom from those around him -was fostered to develop his own inner connection -studied other ancient texts and wisdom -was not attached to anything or any place -spent great time in solitude during his wanderings
Paramahansa Yogananda -was fostered to develop his own inner connection by his parents and teachers -studied with other great masters and teachers (this correlates to the guidance and wisdom up above) -quoted as saying the only question we are really here to answer, “Who am I?” -travelled a great deal -spent a great amount of time in meditation -was loved unconditionally by his guru and other teachers
Walter Russel -had a moment turning into 30 days of what he called illumination -spent ample time in reflection and meditation on his own -always strived to look forward and to the benefits of every situation -and so on.
You have the answers at your fingertips. You have merely but to determine what you are wanting to explore!
An alternative does exist to all of this… You could simply discover “your own ultimate way” through your own life experiences – through ups and downs learning from your successes and your pitfalls – ultimately discovering who you are, and discovering how to achieve wealth, optimal health or anything you truly desire through your own inner and outer blisses and creations.
Either way, it starts with you!
Warmly, Joshua
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© 2007-2013 Joshua Zuchter. All rights reserved.