 |
 |
 |
 |
Surrender is a word that can invoke a negative reaction. For more than five hundred years the newly arrived citizens of the United States have created a culture that prides itself on crafting and being in control of our destiny. We do not like to lose, a game, a business deal, a relationship or a war. Yet, like prayer, surrender has the potential to connect you to source. In fact there are many ways we can benefit, and actually win, by surrendering.
Many forms of spiritual practice focus on learning to let go of our ego. We surrender our ego. This form of surrender relates to all of the things we want to accomplish or win in life. Our mind and ego tell us that we want to accomplish or create some defined outcome. Naturally, when we do not see that outcome occur we get upset because we feel like we are not winning, not creating our destiny. Instead, if we surrender to what is happening we can more clearly be in and accept what is happening right now.
There is a common resting pose done in every yoga class in the world. It is Balasana, Child Pose. You sit on the floor, squat towards your heals, bend forward to rest your forehead on the ground and lay your hands down beside your head. This resting pose is actually a pose of surrender. You are prostrate. Your head is bowed. You are in supplication with your heart raised above your head. It is a defenseless position where you accept what is, as it is. Someone could come up and kick you. This rarely happens; but the act provides an opening where you accept wisdom, grace and actions that are beyond your own personal will.
Balasana is strikingly similar to the Sajdah posture, done five times a day during Salat, the Islamic ritual prayer. During this position Muslims recite: Subhaana rabbiyal. Alaa, Allahu Akbar . Translated: Glory to my Lord, the Most High. God is great. Abu Huraira, a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and the narrator of the Hadith reported that the messenger of Allah said: The nearest a servant comes to his Lord is when he is prostrating himself, so make supplication (in this state).
One translation of the Sanskrit mantra Om Namah Shivaya is this: I surrender to consciousness. What does this actually mean?
Step back 15 billion years. That incomprehensible amount of time is when scientists believe the Big Bang occurred. At the moment of this auspicious event all of the matter and energy of space was contained at one point. The Big Bang was not a conventional explosion. Rather it was an event that began to fill all space with the particles of the embryonic universe. Energy and consciousness rushing outwards. Some of this elixir creates the infinite variety of physical objects. Yet there is another aspect to the mixture. One of energetic consciousness that permeates both the space between physical objects and the objects themselves. This is cosmic consciousness. It is the field that allows shamans to travel through time and space for healing. It is the medium through with your intuition, foresight and non spoken communication travel faster than the speed of light.
Do not confuse cosmic consciousness with collective consciousness. It is like apples and oranges. Collective consciousness is the very temporary set of beliefs that a large group of people have. It is neither true, nor permanent. It is the collective fear or enthusiasm about the economy. It is the collective prejudice for or against a certain group of people. Because it represents the energy and consciousness of a large number of people, the collective consciousness has considerable power and sway over our thoughts and emotions. However, at the core, it is totally artificial.
Cosmic consciousness, on the other hand, is much larger and time transcendent. The etymology of the word cosmic derives from the Greek word kosmos which means order. There is also an inherent vastness to the cosmic that exceeds what any group of people, even the population of the entire planet, can conceive at any one time.
When you surrender to consciousness, which is considerably different than willpower, you allow yourself the opportunity to let the wisdom and order of the cosmic determine an outcome. You can rest comfortably knowing that cosmic consciousness contains wisdom and foresight that no group of people can construct within a purely mental framework.
When you allow yourself to surrender to consciousness and to what is; the opening and understanding that you receive enables you to accept the current situation and future outcomes. Ironically it creates new windows and opportunities by which you accomplish goals and outcomes that you are unable to manifest willfully. By surrendering you win.
