On our search for spiritual growth, we come across a lot of information. The web is teeming with spiritual sites, new books are released at higher rates than previously and new “gurus” are popping up everywhere. In lots of ways, this can be a fantastic time to be on a pursuit of knowledge. Most of us have now been trained to look for this knowledge outside ourselves. We’ve delegated responsibility for the learning to others; our parents, our teachers, our boss, the media, or some guru who seemingly have most of the answers. “Just tell me what things to believe” seems to be the mantra of the current knowledge-seeking individual. We look for the one source, the one book, the one philosophy that can give people the answers course in miracles author. Then we could just relax. We’ll own it all figured out. But how can we know who the best spiritual teacher is? Just how do we know who to be controlled by?
There’s a trouble with assigning the responsibility of our learning to others. They will always offer their knowledge from their perspective. Especially in regards to spiritual matters (although certainly not limited by them), another person’s the fact is definitely not going to be your truth.
It isn’t that other folks don’t have anything of value to show us. They do. The issue occurs once we shut down our personal brains and take an “all or nothing” approach. Either anyone has nothing of value for all of us, or we assign them the status of guru and believe everything they say.
Realistically, however, that’s nearly just how it works. Everyone you meet, every book you read, exactly what gets your attention has something of value to supply you. Not everything they say will do the job, but there’s always a nugget of truth there for you. You only have to find it. You’re not really looking for anything new. All you really need to do is remember what you know, deep down inside.
How do you recognize it? You can feel it. There’s resonance once you hear or read a thing that rings true for you personally, a rush of energy, a feeling in your gut. It feels good. It feels right. And you merely understand that it’s true for you. Haven’t you ever read something or heard someone speak words that did actually expressing something you’ve always seemingly known? It’s like they were taking your thoughts and simply organizing them in ways you hadn’t previously had the oppertunity to do. It felt like they weren’t really giving you new information, but alternatively reminding you of something you already knew. Which was a bit of your truth.
There’s no body guru, book, website or anything else that will give you ALL the answers. There is no-one to offer you most of the answers, because no body is having the exact same experience that you are. We’re all unique individuals, living our personal unique lives, and having our personal unique experiences. And we all have our personal unique truths, our personal unique pair of answers.
With this at heart, I encourage one to always use your own personal guidance to find out which information is right for you personally and which isn’t. You are your own personal best spiritual teacher. You might find some information on the web or in books (wherever) that you accept and some that you don’t. Some things will “resonate” with you, you’ll feel it in your gut. This is you remembering what you already know. Some things will evoke no reaction at all. Some may evoke a poor reaction. You may think some of it is really a bit “out there” ;.
I encourage one to take what resonates with you and leave the rest. Seek out whatever sources you’re interested in, be it books, websites or other people. Once you begin to cover attention, you’ll realize that the answers to your questions are all around you. You may overhear a snippet on radio stations, have a seemingly chance encounter at the supermarket or see a write-up in a newspaper that sparks that feeling of resonance, of recognition.
Take those items that resonate with you and leave the rest. There’s nothing wrong with this information, it just isn’t for you personally, or may not be for you personally right now.
You are your own personal best teacher. You are the only one who knows what’s right for you personally and what isn’t. Listen compared to that inner voice, think for yourself and don’t delegate the responsibility of deciding what’s true for you to anyone else.