Paying Attention to the Signs

It seems that the Universe is constantly trying to get my attention.  The other day I found a piece of paper on my desk that belonged to a Bhagavad Gita card deck that came to me in some way that is escaping me now.  It was enlightening, reminding me that Bhagavad Gita translates into “The Song of God.”

What I also learned was that the Gita was traditionally passed through oral means since it was believed that the sound vibration has the divine power of utilizing mantras.  It sounded a bit daunting.  Not seeming much more there,  I filed the paper back with the deck and went about my day.

Yesterday, when I was one hour early for a meeting, I headed to Starbucks for a tea refresher. For reading,  I took a book that was in my car by Eckhart Tolle titled the Power of Now.  It is a guide to spiritual enlightment that was published in 1999.  It was purchased almost ten years ago.  This is my third time reviewing the material.  When I opened the book to a marked chapter, my eyes were pulled to the center of the page. 

There it said, on page 68, “So do not be concerned with the fruit of your action-just give attention to the action itself. The fruit will come of its own accord. This is a powerful spiritual practice. In the Bhagavid Gita, one of the oldest and most beautiful spiritual teachings in existence, nonattachment to the fruit of your action is called Karma Yoga. It is described as the path of “consecrated action.'”

Okay, now the universe had my attention.  Twice in one week is too much to ignore.  The other interesting caveat to all of this, is that I just joined a Yoga studio and have been practicing yoga for a month now, three times a week.  Not only that, I have been asking for signs on guidance for the last third of my life.  The overwhelming answers have been that it is really about doing humanitarian gestures and focusing on how to give back. Then the question became, was it about one person at a time, one classroom of kids, or do I go big? 

That brings me back to what the Tolle said in the passage I stumbled upon. It is not about being concerned with the outcomes of my work.  It is really just about the work.  Getting to this spiritual place is quite another level all together.

So now, in response to two Gita encounters, I am reading and studying the timeless wisdom. I am using Yoga to still my mind and to master the self.  When that is attained,  my time here on earth will be done.  It is my desire to awaken my unbridled consciousness and to reach the highest levels of spiritual attainment.  Sound easy?  Not really.  Yet it is not going to stop me from trying.