Chapter 30 - Spiritual Discipline
After a year of listening to other philosophers and their philosophies the old sage found he was becoming even more silent; it was not that he did not disagree with what others said, he found it easier for him to be just what he was. He understood that he was not his mind or his body but an eternal, immortal and infinite being who had chosen this lifetime to evolve. From day to day he continued to wander the land every now and then he would sit for a while and teach or tell stories or just talk to people. Wherever he found himself was where he was meant to be.
He understood that he was an infinite being who had cloaked himself in a body to experience life in the earthplane. His daily discipline was focused on what he could do to transcend this experience and be able to understand his journey better. He would open himself up to where spirit wanted him to be on this day.
As he wandered he thought about writing down some of the stories he told to his students and others that sat and listened, but he soon realized that the story itself was the key and it was a story that should evolve over time. In this way it would keep the essence of the story alive but allow for the story teller to share it through their own instrument. This would allow the story to grow and evolve in ways that the original storyteller would not think possible. Huo thought to himself that it was very much like what happens to humans who incarnate to add to their own story to the library of the Godforce; a story that is written each time on an empty soul adding to the Godforce in ways that the Godforce may not even have thought possible. Here we all were insignificant in our own way and yet at the same time without us the universe would be different. As Huo pondered this he was both humble and overawed at the same time.
Who would have thought a poor disfigured boy would have grown into a humble sage who travelled the countryside telling stories, teaching and healing. He wondered where the Tao would lead him next, but he didn't need to wait long as his next journey was as close as his next decision.
As he contemplated where to go next he was overcome by a feeling of nausea. At first he thought it might be the rice he had eaten night the night before, for it had been in his pack a long while, as he had not met anyone or had any fresh food for many days. As the nausea waves enveloped his whole body, he felt a strange shift in his being and all of a sudden his consciousness was ripped from his physical body and transported through a long tunnel into a place of exquisite beauty. The bright light and the sheer beauty was almost too much for him that he had to close his eyes. As he became used to the energy that surrounded he opened his eyes again and surveyed the landscape.
The picture before him reminded him of one of the landscapes painted by prince Heng, for there was a flowingness in all objects that could not normally be seen with the naked eye. In the past the sage had only been able to perceive this aliveness or flowingness out the corner of his eyes. Now he could see it with all his being as his consciousness was no longer weighed down by his physical body.
He floated around the new world. He could have walked but with is new found lightness of being it seemed more appropriate to float and allow the energy of heaven to lead him through this new land. He wondered for a moment where he was, but it did not matter it was just one more experience given to him by the Godforce. Some would have called this place heaven, others might have seen it as a resting place between lifetimes.
Just when he stopped to contemplate where he was, he was picked up on a beam of light and transported out into the universe. He looked back to see the earth rushing away from. It was a humbling experience. The earth which had seemed so big was now less than the size of a pin head as his consciousness continued its journey across the galaxy. He soon could see galaxies by the millions rushing by. The universe was far bigger than he could ever comprehend. In his feeling centre he could feel voices talking to him, telling him that there was an infinite number of universes and he himself was existing in all of them at the same time.
The words, images and feelings continued to flow into him at such an extraordinary rate that he could not keep up with them. He tried to understand what he was seeing, hearing and feeling but it was all too much. The nausea increased and he was shot back into his body.
He opened his eyes.
He was back on earth, on the side of a mountain, sitting in a lotus position, trying to comprehend what just happened. He realized his ego was trying to hold on to the experience, so he turned his focus away from the experience and onto the feelings of nausea that he was still experiencing. The feelings were not unpleasant. It was like there had been a shift in who he thought he was and the nausea was either a reminder of the change or his resistance to it.
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