Friday, June 15, 2012

What is love


Love. What a word.
There are so many people -you included- who have been and are living Love in the best way we know how.The ancient teaching of loving kindness from the Buddha, which the Dalai Lama walks today continues on in an unbroken lineage. “Love your neighbor as yourself”- the message from Christ is still standing strong after 2012 years. Ammachi has meanwhile hugged 35 Million people in many countries and established 20 charitable institutions. . Such an immense power it is, flowing through all cultures, rich or poor, educated or not, old or young, among the animals, through flowers, the ocean, as an endless stream.
And there is Hollywood with all the romantic films and the promotion of the ‘happily ever after’ relationships that are being chased as a way to ultimate happiness. Striving for great success and the mountain of money, as proof that you are finally loved, worthy and good enough. The millions of messages we have received about what love supposedly is are endless and can lead into a maze of delusion filled with suffering. And the song “All you need is love” keeps going round... 

What actually arises in you as you read this word: Love? What do you experience, when you feel into what Love is, beyond preconceived ideas, beliefs and opinions? What happens, when you allow yourself to drop some defenses (yes, we all have them), follow your yearning and open deeper into your precious heart? What discovery might await you here? How might Love move you to act in our world as it is?

We have buried this jewel for so long, in many complicated ways. Yet, we all have the capacity to remember what is true. Sometimes it emerges in moments, when our heart is touched- maybe by a loving embrace, by a beautiful sunrise, by a genuine caring touch, when we are giving someone a hand or offer a gift without expecting a return, when a kind word is spoken, when we touch the sacred that is immanent in all of life. Here love is, so simple. It’s just that at times we have veils before our eyes, are lost in the mind, or might want to force love, or block the stream with all sorts of stuff from our vast personal collection. We might close off to love altogether, because we got hurt at some point, when being open and vulnerable -so love becomes dangerous, something to be avoided and controlled. For some, love is just a feeling or a state to be reached through the next “bliss” event. Most go bargain shopping to somehow get more of love from somewhere or somebody- nobody knows where. As soon as you think you’ve got a taste securely in your pocket- puff it is gone. It cannot be contained, for the mystery is far too great to be held in a box. There is a lot of searching for love and a lot of fingers pointing in many directions. Easy, to get lost in that.

I invite you to let yourself notice all the places where love shows up for you, to open a little more to all the ways it is present, to be aware of the stream flowing through you, even in the very fact that you are breathing, to drop concepts, heal some pain and let love touch, fill and move you.
I encourage you to dare to act on the love that is in your heart- without conditions. Undefended. For love to be real it needs to be lived, no matter how imperfect it might appear. Thank you for every loving act and step you have ever done. Every seemingly little bit of true love matters. It ripples further than any of us might see and has a greater impact than you might realize. Just like the drops of water are finally causing the dam to break- and by that the river of life is flowing free again.

May you trust the true flame in you, let it shine through the mess and beauty of this world. May you feel and know that you are embraced and loved by life, just as you are, no matter what happens on your path. May your hands bring forth love, as an offering for all. You are it. Blessings, Nicola    www.nicolaamadora.com
 Copyright, © 2012, Nicola Amadora. All rights reserved

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