Mother Nature is abundant, not only in the world of plants and animals, but also at an inner level in your metaphorical spiritual garden. Tending this inner garden is at the root of your entire experience of life.
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Green fingers are magic fingers
Anyone who gets into gardening – growing plants from seeds, harvesting produce and collecting seeds for planting again the following year – discovers just how magical this process is. This is the power of Mother Nature. She is constantly abundant and generous, and always creates much more than is actually necessary. When you start to grow your inner garden you will find abundance flows easily in your life, and your heart opens. Because you are a child of Nature, you will realise the natural treasures you can grow on your Tree of Life will spill over… your cup will overflow. You also become generous and joyous, even under trying circumstances.
Choose your plants according to your delight
When I teach students the twenty-two Shefa characters, I always tell them to choose the characters for their meditations according to their sense of delight. I say, choose the characters that call to you easily, that seem to be fun and joyful. It is true that some of the characters have been designed to support serious intentions, where you might need more focus in your life, or for sending blessings, or healing relationships. But the process in the Shefa Method is always based on looking for joy. The Jewish mystic, Rabbi Gikitalla, tells us we only have to open the gates to light and move along the mysterious pathways of the Tree of Life, and the empty spaces in our lives will be filled with joy, blessings and abundance.
Empty spaces
It’s an interesting phrase ‘empty spaces’. Modern psychological theories will explain that all kinds of addiction, and certain kinds of physical health problems, can be traced back to a feeling of ‘emptiness’. Our modern Western lifestyles encourage us to purchase and consume products that we feel will fill the gaps in our sense of self. But this is an illusion, and many of us are caught on an endless cycle of consumption, which fails to fulfil our deepest needs.
But when we retreat from the world and all its ‘buy me, buy me’ messages, and find a quiet space inside our own being, we discover a space that is truly empty – yet full at the same time. Like a gardener with a clear plot of land to dig, we have discovered creative possibilities that are only possible when we clear the decks of life’s mind clutter, accumulated after years of getting and spending. We know for sure we have access to the most immense potential, and we can choose what to grow.
Choosing what arises
When you spend time in deep meditation, you will experience a vibrating field of energy, both within you and around you. But this inner field can be planted and harvested. You can sit with this energy and introduce your intentions, using the Shefa characters I offer. Like a gardener with a collection of seeds, you can choose how to design your garden. At some time in the future, you may discover other planting options, but grow your skill as a gardener using these basic options before experimenting.
One of the most exciting things in this adventure is when you realise that the seeds you are choosing are, somehow, exactly right for this time in your life. And – most magically – you discover the seeds were already dormant inside your heart, waiting to arise when you began your new journey, cultivating your garden of Life.
Now your inner garden will flourish and your outer life will reflect your inner design.
Click here for more information about The Shefa Method and the Shefa characters.
