Listening to the Sound of Your Soul

This article is provided courtesy of 3H0 and was written by Dr. Shanti Shanti Kaur

Have you ever been in a situation where the facts added up, the agreement made sense, it all looked right, you were nodding your head, and yet you had a thought or a fleeting feeling telling you this was not the way to go? And you said yes anyway because the information—as processed through the intellect—was louder than your inner voice? And you kicked yourself later when your intuition proved to be correct?

We’ve all been there. To keep from going there again, we need to develop a stronger relationship with our inner voice so that when it speaks, we acknowledge it and follow its guidance. Usually we hear it, then minimize, dismiss, ignore, or talk ourselves out of it.

The Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan said, “The greatest tool you have in your life is to listen. Why? If you listen, you will listen sensitively. And you will be shocked how fast you will become intuitive.”

Japji Sahib, the 38 pauree (stanza) morning prayer composed by Guru Nanak [1] includes four paurees that describe the powerful effects of deep listening to the sound of the soul. These paurees teach us to listen to the sound current of our own divinity. Yogis call this sunia. Guru Nanak says that by listening deeply, even the blind find their way.

Every person has inner guidance available to them and a choice to listen and live with its support. The inner voice is the voice from the soul. It is our guide and guardian. When we allow it, permit it to lead us, say yes to it, consciously agree to it and trust it, life is joyful and with ease. Otherwise we are handicapped and life becomes a hassle.

How does this work? The frequency of our divinity—our soul—influences the quality of thought. With each breath the mind has the opportunity to consolidate that frequency. When we practice mantra, its sound modulates the breath so our mind has sufficient prana (life force) to carry our own divine frequency. When our thoughts and feelings resonate with the soul, conflicting thoughts and emotions are quieted and we can sense the guidance of intuition that is always present.

The Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan once spoke about the relationship between the neutral mind and intuition, or inner guidance. He explained that the neutral mind has its own mantra: “Guide me to the Lord, my Lord.” Right now, take a moment to slow your breath. Repeat these words for three minutes. When you are done, notice the quality of your thoughts and how you feel. Let this practice become a habit.

Each day my work brings me face to face with people who are forced by difficult circumstances to call upon their inner guidance. Following are examples of how two different people—names and identifying information have been changed—went about it.

Carol felt she did not have enough vitality to undergo the treatment her oncologist prescribed for metastatic breast cancer. She was worried that the treatment would make her too exhausted to recover. She spoke with her oncologist who told her he was covering his bases; that the treatment was necessary but not urgent. She postponed the procedure and asked friends to gather each week to practice healing meditations for her and friends who lived far away to pray daily for her recovery.

“I was not against the doc’s advice. When I got quiet about it, I recognized that I just needed to be stronger to do it. Listening to my intuition was the best thing I did in the two years I fought cancer. There was always one decision or another to make and a lot of conflicting information came my way. Learning to be still and let my guidance work was the right path for me.” When the time came for treatment, Carol had minimal side effects and recovered fully.

There are times when we don’t have a clue—no inner voice, no guidance, no clear confident knowing—just the roar of conflicting thoughts; times when we would really appreciate some input. These are the times to sit and actively meditate. Yes, actively. Sometimes we need to move before we can be still; sometimes we need to make sound before we can be silent enough to listen and hear. Practice Breathwalk [2] (traditionally taught as charn jaap), or a kriya or meditation that includes elements other than sitting still.

Phillip was told by a pediatric cardiologist that his eight year old daughter, Rebecca, had a heart condition that required surgery. This type of surgery has considerable risks and Phillip and his wife wrestled with the decision. His yoga teacher recommended he practice the Meditation for Guidance. He began to practice this meditation regularly, whenever he had a question that needed answering.

Philip had a strong sense that his daughter would not survive the surgery and that there were options he was not yet aware of. He then pursued second and third and fourth opinions. Finally, he took his little girl to a physician in a larger city who told him the child had been misdiagnosed. Instead of a heart condition, Rebecca had a chemical imbalance in her blood that made her heart function abnormally. All that was required were mineral supplements and Rebecca recovered. Phillip was so affected by this experience with meditation he became a Kundalini Yoga teacher!

We tend to consult our inner wisdom when we are facing Big Questions, have a weighty decision to make, or a major conflict to resolve. Yet our inner guidance is available all the time, for the smallest of actions, even when we don’t directly ask for it. Ahhhh, if only we would listen…

Recently I was heading into a meeting when the phone rang. Notebook, pen, meeting minutes, and handouts cradled in my left hand, cup of Yogi Tea in the right. Looking around I saw a place to put the cup: next to the door I was heading out of was a narrow platform that hovered over the office printer. Just as the cup met the platform, my inner voice said, “Not safe; the tea can spill onto the printer.” The surface was flat. I thought, “How risky can it be?” I was in a hurry and this was convenient. So I left it there and picked up the phone. Within two seconds a co-worker swooshed through the door and the vibration jiggled the cup and the tea spilled onto the printer, just as my intuition said it could. Hurry and reason overcame the message and now I had to clean up the mess.

A spilled cup of Yogi Tea, no biggie. Yet how much easier to just listen and obey?

 

Meditation for Guidance: Strengthen Your Inner Voice

 

References:

[1] The first of the ten Sikh Gurus, a saint and minstrel, and the founder of the Sikh lifestyle

[2] A Breathwalk audio program is available through www.spiritvoyage.com


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