Cultivate the consciousness of the inner life. “Do not follow the way of the worldly-minded.” (Isha Upanishad). Learn to seek God by seeing God.
Seek to earnestly know who you are. Self-knowledge is the source of freedom, peace, joy and love. It is the basis for enlightened character.
Realize the truth regarding the immortality and perfection of soul, thereby overcoming the worry and anxiety which arise from false identification with the physical and mental bodies.
Treasure the virtues of the Soul. They are wisdom, goodness, selflessness, purity, joy and love. Desire for “special status” of social position, fortune, and vain beauty obscures the true wealth of the Soul.
Cultivate humility. Humility is not self-abnegation nor cowardly passivity, but strength of character by the grace of God. It is identification with the source and perfection of all our powers of righteousness. In the words of Jesus of Christ Consciousness: “I of mine own self do nothing. Blessed are the poor in spirit.”
Learn to transcend the self-limiting concepts of time, space and relationship by renouncing such attachments to the world of opposites as these: myself/others; pleasure/pain; life/death; success/failure; praise/blame; fortune/misfortune; superiority/inferiority.
Value the sacredness of love—believing in and acting according to its transforming and perfecting power. Selfless love ennobles every life and establishes the heart on God. It strengthens the will, brings peace to the mind and purifies the heart.
Give up the idea that your inmost self is separate from others. In our truest life—in our aspirations and even in the difficulties we face in walking the path of God—we are one. No blessing or gift from God is exclusive or momentary.
Place the ideal of God above all else in your life. The objective structure of our life is meaningful and rewarding only inasmuch as it is sustained and guided by spiritual understanding and enduring faith. Have courage to let all go but God.
Learn to perceive this universe as friendly and your life as auspicious and blessed. Everything is the manifestation of God, and soul is perfect—now and evermore.
Find ways to practice and share your idealism through service. Selflessness, the duty of spirituality, is the glorification and adoration of divinity everywhere. It includes charity, trust, understanding, kindness and helpfulness.
Accept that the spiritual art of living is hard work, requiring sincere and devoted effort at all times: “Narrow is the way and few be those that find it.”
Frontiers of the Spirit
Swami Kamalananda