Biophilia: Pure Love of Life
I loved thy creation, hence I created thee. Wherefore, do thou love Me, that I may name thy name and fill thy soul with the spirit of life.· Bahá’u’llá
When I love you purely, I wish for you to be
always happy and healthy. I respond to your soul needs but not always to your
ego desires. I joyfully offer my time, money and energy in support of your
flowering soul. I am happy about your successes, even when that means less
attention and affirmation for me. I accept you exactly as you are.
When I love you purely, you are for me like a flower, a unique expression of
divine energy. I see your inner beauty even when you yourself cannot express
it.
When I love you purely, I communicate with you honestly, expressing to you my
true needs, feelings and thoughts. It is impossible for you to hurt me, because
true love expects nothing and keeps no accounts. I allow you to find your
happiness with whomever, and however you are guided from within.
When I love you purely, I see you not as my possession and ask not that you
love only me. That would be to limit your soul and obstruct your growth in
universal love.
When I love you purely, I experience your true Divine Self, as true love is
divine and perceives only the divine. I can never fear for you even when you
are passing through difficulties because I remember that you always have
exactly the needed tests, which facilitate the manifestation of your inner
magnificence, and the power to deal with them.
When I love you purely, I leave you in the proper moments to find your own
solutions and answers, even though I feel affirmed when I find them for you.
Out of love I allow you to discover the truth that is hidden within you.
However, in order to love you purely, I need to become stronger and cease
needing you to feel secure or worthy. I will need to transcend loneliness and
be with you because l love you, and not because I need you.
It is not possible to love purely that which I need. I can love you purely only
from a position of inner strength, self-sufficiency and fulfillment. And even
when you leave your physical body, my sorrow will not be from my love but from
my need for your physical presence. You are a divine being, which will have
been freed from its material vehicle.
My tears will be for me. But for you I will be happy.
Go forward my love. You belong not to me, but to the Universe. For that is what
you truly are... The Universe.
- Adapted from the forthcoming "Visions of a Virtuous Life" by Robert Elias Najemy. His most recent published work, "The Psychology of Happiness" (ISBN 0-9710116-0-5) is available at http://www.amazon.com - Please visit his online ezine, and find other great works by this author at http://www.holisticharmony.com/ for your enjoyment and even downloading for offline reading and sharing with others!
But if in your fear you would seek only love’s peace and love’s pleasure, then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love’s threshing floor, into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears.
· Kahlil Gibran
There is a growing movement back toward a spirituality that is life-loving, creation-centered and open, similar to that of the Native Americans and other indigenous peoples. In this process, according to Dr. Charlotte D. Kasl in her book Many Roads, One Journey, “our senses are open to take in the natural wonders of the earth, we live without fear” and our “playfulness and creativity are free to grow throughout our lives. Creative spirituality involves bridging differences by increasing our capacity to accept, understand, and be empathic to different people, their cultures, traditions, and values, and to stop thinking that anyone has a corner on truth or anyone has the right to exploit others. Like the earth, people are not objects to be exploited; rather, we are all a part of an interrelated whole. When we think we are right or we exploit others, we become alienated and miss the richness of human love.”
Love is the one thing that survives death, according to John Edward, a well-known and deeply spiritual medium. In his response to the tragic events and loss of life at the World Trade Center, he said, “I believe that one day the World Trade Center will be rebuilt. I believe that the people who have lost their lives deserve that much. The memories their families carry with them forever will be a monument as great as the buildings that once stood. They will mark the gifts they shared with us while they were here. And I believe that the new buildings will be known as the World Peace Towers — a beacon of hope, remembrance, strength and peace.” Often on his show, Crossing Over with John Edward, he will mention several little-known facts about a living individual in the audience to confirm that the message is indeed from a loved one that has passed away. But the one thing that is communicated most often is that the deceased individual continues to love and appreciate those who go on living and who continue to struggle with life, and to validate the love shown them while they lived.
To be a biophile is to be one who loves life, in all its aspects. An individual who expresses love in their actions and their thinking has no fear for what the Universe brings to them, whether it be adversity or gain, because they know that there is a lesson in the experience that will help them to grow spiritually. Practicing biophilia means that every fear-based act of another person provokes a loving response, as much as possible, from me. Loving one’s own life opens up the grandest of possibilities for creativity and the expression of passion at work, at home, in relationships of all kinds, and fosters and promotes mental, spiritual and physical well-being. It also expresses itself in a reverence for the natural resources of the earth and living beings of all kind, not just humans and domestic pets or personal property.
Love is the one thing that binds us despite the diversity of our human differences, and is expressed in our driving need for purpose and connectedness. Purpose is not the same thing as vocation, and connectedness is not at all like seeking approval and acceptance. Should either of these be confused or taken to an extreme, they would tend to obscure and unnecessarily complicate my life. Vocation becomes workaholism to the exclusion of loving interactions with others and a general neglect of self-care and nurturing, while having purpose defines life goals and attitudes in an affirmative, nurturing and spiritually whole manner. Continually seeking the approval of others denies my own self-worth and knocks the legs out from under my self-esteem. It sets unrealistic goals that remain continually out of reach, and strives for a kind of perfection that can never be gained. Connectedness grants to myself the right to have all my imperfections, experiences and potentialities because I am a part of Creation, and God knows I am a work-in-progress. It also recognizes the intrinsic value of other humans, animals, rocks, water, personal property, the train or bus you take to work, and all else that makes up the Universe, because those creatures and substances are the Universe in which we exist, and each item in it is also a part of that same Creation.
Both of these, purpose and connectedness, are based in love. Seeking approval and acceptance and working to the point of addiction - or addiction to anything as a diversion from facing life squarely and on its own terms – these things are based in fear, and my responses, my actions, and my thinking will give evidence of that fear. No matter what the Universe brings to me in the way of a “learning opportunity” (I used to call them “problems!”), if I am connected and if I have a purpose, then I perceive and respond to the situation or individual much differently than I would if I had no self-esteem, or had little value in my life for others.
It is not enough for me, nor is it for a rapidly growing segment of the population of this planet, to simply love my job, my wife, and my kids. It is not enough to just pass through life doing no harm, waiting for the good stuff to come along, trying to keep everyone happy, hoping that I won’t be punished for something I forgot I had done or for not doing something I should have done. There is more to life than that! And it isn’t that complicated after all. The Beatles told me that a long, long time ago. All you need is love.
I am learning not to allow fear to separate me from life, and I am learning to recognize fear in others. I am learning to love purely and to respond lovingly. I believe I may be becoming a biophile!
Michael
email: Michael@N-Spire.com
