Now for the 3rd Approach–and this one will get mystical. I perceive Alignment as something that simply “is”, partly something you receive, and partly something you “do”. As in, Align with Love.
I have been journaling, musing, and reflecting on the notion of Alignment for many years. Let’s start with what the dictionary says Alignment is. One definition is “the proper positioning or state of adjustments”, or “a forming in line“, as in being lined up. Another is “an arrangement of … forces in relation to one another.“ https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alignment
I want to be very careful here to say that I do NOT believe Alignment means you have to be in some perfect state of being! As I processed this in my own soul, I wrestled with the idea of being “just right”. I live in a world of precision as an accountant. Numbers have to match, be accurate, and agree with one another. When you have OCD, you believe things have to be “just right” to feel peaceful. But Alignment as I am imagining it, is NOT that.
Alignment is a fundamental aspect of the universe–
things, people, situations need to “line up” in order to flow, function, and be harmonious.
I am NOT talking about everyone agreeing/believing exactly the same things. We know in history there are numerous examples of people enforcing a False Alignment on others, demanding they bend the knee to some ideology or doctrine. I am talking about a deeper, True Alignment, beneath what we see and experience, that I think is even deeper than our perceptions. Deep.
I believe there is a “Great Flow” to the Universe, a Love-Flow, which is how God is manifesting Himself/Herself/Itself in everything everywhere. Religious folk will recognize this, non-religious folk will be skeptical, and rightfully so, but please play along. I imagine a Great River, illuminated with Light, glowing and flowing, becoming what God has intended all along for the Universe. I don’t think this negates our choices, but contains them. I am getting into deep waters that are outside my scope as a non-theologian layperson. But, we don’t have to have doctorates to live well, be decent human beings, or be Aligned with this Love-Flow. No disrespect to those more learned!
I already talked about being Open and Light. These two Approaches create space. Alignment fills that space. God aligns you, and you cooperate, not by “trying hard”, or following commandments, but by allowing yourself to be Aligned. We may not like the notion of some Supreme Being “aligning” us, but again, it is not a forcing on the Being’s part, but a receiving and absorbing of God’s love. The sunlight hits your face, and it just falls on you. You feel it’s warmth, and it caresses you. If this seems hard to grasp, consider how at some point, we all experienced some form of love, maybe a parent (hopefully), maybe a friend, or a romantic relationship. We felt something from that person, or for that person, and we took actions, actions of love. We asked them out, we cleaned our room, we visited them in the hospital, we made sure they were fed and clothed, if you are a parent.
In other words, we aligned with their love for us, or our love for them, and we acted accordingly.
Somewhere, somehow, we felt love or warmth for someone, and aligned with them. We may have formalized it and gotten married. We may just have a buddy we watch soccer matches with, but in these examples, we had some alignment with that other person based on common interests, common feelings, shared experiences, etc.
We know the power of alignment in shared beliefs and causes. Reciting the Serenity Prayer with a group of fellow addicts can be powerful. Praying the Lord’s Prayer, or some other established saying in unison with others, can be very powerful, even is we might not fully agree with the saying!
I imagine also on this River of Flowing Light, being on a sailboat, as shown in the Blog Picture for this post. I am not a sailor, and do not know how to be one, but I know you have to adjust your sails to catch the wind. You must align with the wind, or be buffeted by it. Likewise, you must adjust your rudder to align with the current. (Yes, I know with a motor, you can by-pass all this–but there is still “drag” and it’s not as efficient. It is more work to not go with the current and wind.)
Even Jesus, in his famous encounter with Nicodemus in John’s Gospel declares: The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going… (Jn 3:8, NLT) Jesus plays with the metaphor of wind, relating it to the Spirit of God, and I am imagining it similarly. Will we align with that Wind-Spirit, that we can’t “see”, but can sense?
When we choose to be unloving, stubborn, un-open, and not living with lightness, we go against what I wrote earlier: the Alignment that is a fundamental aspect of the Universe. Of course I can’t “prove” this. But I believe it. I hope you, dear reader, will play along. Even if you can’t buy into my notion of the universe, can you at least consider that being kinder, gentler, and loving is better for the world?
I believe there is a way to live in harmony with this Great Flow of the Universe. There is a way to be Aligned with God/Spirit/Other Being–and that way is to Align with Love. Starting with Openness to others, Lightness with yourself, and receiving/being/practicing Alignment. It is a way to have peace inside your soul, true friendship with others, and connection with the Divine. I probably am not able to articulate this as well as I would like–but I hope you can feel/perceive what I am saying. Deep down–I sense this is so. More than belief–I know. I feel like I always knew and knew I had to share this with others. I had to say it with my own words, so others could hear it and align themselves with God and Love in their own ways.
The Approach of Alignment is recognizing the deep, omnipresence of God and Divine Flow in all situations, regardless of how they may appear to the contrary! At any given moment, your body is doing a myriad of things, from pumping your blood, to receiving all kinds of data from your senses, and you are not fully aware of it. The planet is spinning on it’s axis and hurtling though space and you are not “feeling it’ moment by moment, but you see the sun rise and set, the seasons change, and you believe it is so, because others told you so. I am telling you, I think this is how we can respond to the Spiritual Universe, with these Approaches, as there are unseen and unknown things we can’t hold in our hands, but can only be perceived and partially felt. These things matter, and we ignore them at our peril.
To ignore them, to not be Aligned, to be closed and heavy,
hurts ourselves, others, and the world around us.
Next, I will talk about Obstacles to the Approaches. I want to talk about the “Unholy Trinity” of Ego, Expectations, and Myths. I will continue unpacking Alignment, and what it means, and how to Practice with it. Until then, be kind and gentle, with yourself first, and with others second. Be open, be Light, be Aligned with the deep Divine Love-Flow in this Universe. Believe it IS–even if life told you “no way”. Dare to believe, even if your hopes were long crushed–there is a True and Deep Alignment that you can find, where you will find freedom from the prisons of heart and mind. Trust.
Stay tuned-
Eric, the Wordsmith
BP10