Lesson 294
My body is a wholly neutral thing.
“My body, Father, cannot be Your Son. And what is not created cannot be sinful nor sinless; neither good nor bad. Let me, then, use this dream to help Your plan that we awaken from all dreams we made” (ACIM Lesson 294 2:1-3).
A question often asked on a spiritual journey is, “How can I be in the world but not of it?” Once one has awakened to Truth then comes the journey of how to integrate that Truth into daily life. It can be referred to as is living in the Real World while living in the real world. It is common to want to retreat and abide in Truth while in solitude. Sometimes that is called for and necessary. However, the journey does not end with awakening to Truth, that is where the journey truly begins because from that critical point do you become a steward for ascension, you become the walking Christ, teaching others The Way. But how does one do this without absorbing and giving in to the madness of what we used to believe was the real world?
Neutrality and equanimity. You look upon the world around you from the Truth within. You see nothing as good or bad; right or wrong; angelic or evil. As Buddhist and yogic teachings suggest, you look upon the world with a sense of non-attachment. You can take it or leave it. You are happy when something is useful and honor it by letting it go when its purpose is complete. This philosophy can be used on any earthly thing, even the body.
Our biggest attachment tends to be the body. It is easy to see how this could be so as this highly attuned vessel we abide in feels oh so real, feeling every bump in the road to calm seas to celebratory sunrises. It is easy to want to feel good all the time and leave aside the bad, in particular when we feel the bad leads to a death of some sort. However, the body is just as neutral as the rest of this human experience and holds just as much divine purpose in the process of awakening.
“And yet a neutral thing does not see death, for thoughts of fear are not invested there, nor is a mockery of love bestowed upon it. Its neutrality protects it while it has use. And afterwards, without a purpose, it is laid aside. It is not sick nor old nor hurt. It is but functionless, unneeded and cast off. Let me not see it more than this today; of service for a while, and then to be replaced for greater good” (ACIM Lesson 294 1:5-10).
The body is a supreme communication tool used by the Divine and the message it deciphers is the means by which we live as Light in our daily lives, being the Way Show-ers to our fellow brothers and sisters. The body is the car we have chosen to drive around in this life. It is our mode of transportation to explore the Divine and Her flow of messages. But when it is time to lay it down like all other worldly things, because its purpose is fulfilled, we honor it and we peacefully let it go. Thus, while we abide in it, why not take care of it while it is of use? Give it good, healthy, sustaining food. Give it rest when it calls for it. Give it love. Give it beautiful landscapes upon which to gaze on. Talk kindly to it and about it. Place it amongst kind beings that support its divine purpose. In doing so, you liberate the dense form and transform it into Light.
Once you liberate yourself from your attachment to the body, you open up to a whole new level of freedom. Your being and the body feels exactly like what flows through it, Light. It is our attachment to making the body real that makes it so dense. It is what makes us fearful and worry when we, or a loved one, gets sick, ill, or hurt. But how peaceful it is to shift our perception to one of neutrality towards the body, when we observe our vessel from its purpose in the Real World, and not maintaining the dream of the real world. In this, is the body wholly and holy neutral.
The body serves a divine purpose as Light flows through it to the world. It is a beacon and bridge from the Real World to the real world. It is dedicated to the awakening and it walks The Way with you. Treat the body with equanimity while also being aware of honoring such a fine vessel for its service to the ascension of humanity. Via the body, let God teach you how it is beyond possible to be in the world but not of it, as you serve as a Way Show-er. Namaste.
