The purpose of life can get pretty confusing at times in the search for the truth about the reality of existence. I find that one of the major lessons that is a theme for many people revolves around learning how to be independent. Independence is defined as a state of being not influenced or controlled by others in matters of opinion or conduct, and not being subject to another’s authority or jurisdiction.
In order to learn, we often gain the most understanding through experiencing the extremes. Many people will experience swinging between codependence and independence on the path to true freedom. In a long-term marriage, Beckie and I have needed to learn the balance between extremes and the value of supporting each other with regard to personal independence.
The first two years of our marriage, we had a poster on the inside of our bedroom door that read “I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations and you’re not in this world to live up to mine” (tee tee). The message did serve as a daily reminder of the importance of maintaining independence. Let’s get a whisper and some insights on independence:
Each soul will journey alone through this lifetime on the return to sovereignty, yet many will be there for them to help with learning, growth, support, karma, and understanding. Living under the structure of time and space allows the soul to experience aspects of the physical incarnation beyond mere survival. The ego will focus on survival as the main goal, which can lead to the perception of a threat that is masked as a false freedom.
The highest form of independence is enlightenment, which is the purest form of sovereignty held while in the physical body. Few souls will reach this pure state of living on the Earth, yet many will reach for the stars that hold the promise of a life illuminated by achieving a higher level of consciousness. Independence at the highest levels truly allows for love without conditions or attachments. Even momentary vibrations of higher levels of consciousness experienced during human incarnation are a reminder to the soul that it originally held complete sovereignty.
True independence is found in the balance of light and dark, by not opposing or supporting one over the other. When that balance is found, a soul finds Oneness with the divine and holds an interconnectedness with all living beings. Sovereignty is the stable energy experienced in a connection to Source that is free from attachment, free from drama, free from a desired outcome, and free from anything but the highest levels of the love that binds all matter. Freedom is connection without dependence, where there is no jurisdiction or authority.
To experience independence, one must gain the power of discernment to understand the perceptions that involve false freedoms. When one listens to their heart, the whispers of truth illuminate the path to freedom.
Bring joy, ease suffering and create beauty, then dance like you mean it!
Blessings, Russell
“You were born together, and together you shall be for evermore…But let there be spaces in your togetherness…Love one another, but make not a bond of love. Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not of the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.” Kahlil Gibran
