Continue walking in the corridors of eternity

Continue walking in the corridors of eternity

In an article on ageing, the author gave the following advice to those who live a sedentary life: `Walk, walk, walk. Doing so will help you resolve health issues, and remain fit and alert.' He was speaking about physical fitness. There is also a spiritual dimension to this, because, as embodied beings, our body is an important part of our spiritual nature.

If we don't continue `walking', the lack of motion depletes our energy. Spiritual walking, like physical walking, is moving towards productive goals like creating happiness, nurturing loving relationships, working hard, spreading peace, serenity and tranquility. Many are stymied by a tepid attitude to life. Lukewarm, they have no passion for life. Sometimes, they are plain neutral in a pejorative sense. But, when faced with death, we can no longer remain neutral.

There are times when we need to be still, but not motionless, because motion is energy . When i watch trees grow, i notice how imperceptible their growth into full glory is. They look so tiny in the beginning, but there is an inner growth that finally manifests in full outside growth.

Spiritual walking is like that. There are times when we may stumble and fall. There are moments when our energies are depleted by stress, dysfunction and regression. But there is an inner momentum, and if we make the right choices, that will keep pushing us forward till we realise our destiny.

People have very different conceptions of their final destiny. Some think in terms of annihilation and cessation of all our functions. Others believe that beyond death there is eternal life. Eternal life to me is that we keep walking. If we walk in the presence of God on this earth, we do it partially. In the after-life, i believe that we will walk in the presence of God fully.

And how does that tie up with the material world? The material world is important so long as we remain detached from the results of our walking. Will we always be successful? Perhaps not. Will we always attain our goals in this life? Maybe not. But, by the very fact that we are walking and creating motion and energy in sync with creative forces in the universe, we are walking with the correct attitude which influences our choices, inclinations and our intellectual and emotional life.

Spiritual walking is to walk in the now. Though we integrate our backgrounds, history and past consciousness, by relating them to our walking in the present, each step that we take today is taken in the present. If we have any regrets, the very forces that propel us forward are also the spiritual forces that bring renewal and rebirth, helping us to overcome those regrets.

We are accompanied in our journey by the God of the impossible. By walking, we move to higher levels of consciousness. In this walk, we carry people along with us. We influence the `other' and begin to relate more with significant others and less with those who are sometimes a drag on our energies.

So, as embodied spiritual beings, let us keep walking, past the clouds of doubt and distress, despair and fear and hopefully we will still continue walking in the corridors of eternity.