Awakening and gratitude gave us strength

In this episode we discuss the concept of creating value when life is difficult.

Awakening and gratitude gave us strength

Awakening and Gratitude Gave Us Strength

Podcast Summary

Concept of Awakening and Spirituality for Modern Individuals

In our latest podcast episode, “Awakening and Gratitude Gave Us Strength,” we embarked on a journey through the profound themes of awakening, gratitude, and surrender. These concepts, while ancient, hold significant relevance in our modern lives, offering pathways to deeper understanding, resilience, and personal growth. As we navigate the complexities of today’s world, embracing these principles can help us find balance, purpose, and connection. In this blog, we will explore these themes in detail, sharing insights and practical tips to incorporate them into our daily lives.

Concept of Awakening and Spirituality for Modern Individuals

Awakening is a timeless concept that speaks to the heart of what it means to be truly alive and present. In our discussion, we examined how modern individuals can integrate the concept of awakening into their lives. Awakening is not about reaching a specific destination but about the journey itself. It’s about becoming fully present and allowing ourselves to experience the moment without the incessant chatter of our minds. In today’s busy world, finding moments of stillness can be challenging. However, practices such as meditation, mindfulness, and spending time in nature can help us cultivate these moments. These practices allow us to peel back the layers of our thoughts and societal conditioning, revealing our true selves. They help us connect more deeply with the world around us and within ourselves. For instance, a simple meditation practice can significantly impact our mental and emotional well-being. By taking just a few minutes each day to sit quietly and focus on our breath, we can create a sense of calm and clarity. This practice helps us to be more present and aware, allowing us to navigate life’s challenges with greater ease and grace.

Gratitude in Difficult Situations

Gratitude is a transformative practice that can profoundly impact our lives, especially in difficult times. During our podcast, we discussed how gratitude can help us navigate challenging situations with strength and grace. By shifting our focus from what we lack to what we have, gratitude fosters a sense of abundance and resilience. In difficult times, it’s easy to become consumed by negative emotions and thoughts. However, by intentionally practicing gratitude, we can reframe our perspective. This doesn’t mean ignoring our problems but rather acknowledging them while also recognizing the good in our lives. It’s about finding silver linings and appreciating the small blessings that often go unnoticed. For example, during a particularly challenging period in my life, I started a daily gratitude journal. Each evening, I would write down three things I was grateful for that day. This simple practice shifted my focus from my struggles to the positive aspects of my life, helping me to feel more balanced and resilient.

Surrender and Personal Growth

Surrender is a powerful concept that is often misunderstood. In our discussion, we explored how surrender can lead to profound personal growth. Surrender is not about giving up but about letting go of the need to control every aspect of our lives. It’s about trusting the process of life and having faith that things will unfold as they are meant to. Surrendering allows us to flow with life rather than resist it. It creates a space for transformation and healing by releasing the tight grip of control. Personal growth often requires us to confront our deepest fears and insecurities. Through the practice of surrender, we can face these challenges with a sense of peace and acceptance. Trusting the process of life means acknowledging that while we can influence our circumstances, we cannot dictate every outcome. This trust can lead to a deeper understanding of ourselves and our place in the world. It fosters a sense of inner peace and resilience, allowing us to navigate life’s ups and downs with greater ease. For instance, during a difficult transition period, I found that surrendering to the uncertainty allowed me to discover new strengths and insights. By letting go of the need to control the outcome, I was able to embrace the process and learn valuable lessons along the way.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the themes of awakening, gratitude, and surrender offer powerful tools for personal growth and spiritual development. By integrating these principles into our daily lives, we can navigate the complexities of the modern world with greater ease and grace. Awakening helps us to be present and connected, gratitude fosters a sense of abundance and resilience, and surrender allows us to trust the process of life. As we continue on our journeys, may we embrace these concepts with open hearts and minds. Let us find moments of stillness in our busy lives, practice gratitude even in the face of adversity, and surrender to the flow of life, trusting that we are exactly where we need to be. By doing so, we can discover deeper meaning, purpose, and connection, enriching our lives and the lives of those around us.

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Abdi Assadi is unlike any other healer or spiritual teacher ever encountered. He is an expert in martial arts, and a dynamic healer practicing a diverse array of Chinese and Eastern Medicine, indigenous shamanic rituals, and meditation techniques. With a clinical practice in New York City for almost 4 decades, Abdi has accumulated a vast knowledge of real life experience working with several thousands of individuals, guiding them through the most difficult times, and teaching them how to understand themselves. One of the greatest things about him is he merges the human psyche with the spiritual psyche.

Steeped in deep wisdom and insight that is rare to find on this planet in these modern times, Abdi has an extraordinary ability in perceiving and comprehending human souls and their individual psyche. Guided by the divine, Abdi guides you to open up and see beyond your limited Self, into your own soul. His impeccable discernment enables him to unleash personal remarks that pierce through your veil, statements that you will never forget and in an instant alter your perception of yourself and your reality.

– Quotes from Shadows on the Path by Abdi Assadi:


All spiritual masters teach us that love is an activity before it is a condition – and that love is all-encompassing.
Page 18


It felt like I was coming off a race track and driving in a school zone. He knew, years before I did, that my speed was my way of suppressing my early childhood anxiety, and that only slowing down could heal it.

Why do you need to use all these words like God and spirituality? It is right here Abdi, all around you, all the time
Page 40


one does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.
Page 51


Ultimately it keeps grace out of our lives because we are using our will power to manipulate every event and person around us.
Page 74


His lesson, which I had begun to learn for myself, is that outside circumstances do not define our internal experience if we can surrender into them. Painful or undesirable situations will always arise; true suffering comes from our ego’s desire to resist life as it is.
Page 77


Note from Pernilla:
I met Abdi in the fall of 2014 and when I arrived in his office the first thing he said was, “It’s time that you stop carrying other people’s anxiety.” In the year that followed, my entrenched codependency patterns reared their ugly heads and I was confronted with a part of myself that I had never even known was there.

A few years later, Abdi said, “When are you going to start writing your book?”I looked at him in surprise. I was not a writer. My expertise was centered around creating crazy good Excel spreadsheets. However, I started writing and collecting notes about life issues and life experiences … and here we are a few years later.

Sally Kempton is a preeminent meditation teacher of our time.

She is an expert scholar in Hinduism and all Hindu texts especially in Kashmir Shaivisim. Formerly Swami Durgananda, she left monastic life in the 1980’s to teach publicly. She has written several books and is one of the most known and loved spiritual teachers in our time.

Note from Pernilla:

I met Sally at one of her workshops at City Yoga in LA in 2003. She had the most gentle and loving disposition, and I just wanted to always be around her. I was fortunate to have been part of her two year-long “Transformative journey” courses in 2006 and 2007 and many retreats ever since. She is the true representation of unconditional love and transmits intense shakti from her Guru Swami Muktananda.

Sally is the primary building block and foundation in my spiritual journey. Without her, I would have never found and stuck with meditation – the most transformative experience of my life. Without her, I would have been lost without a clue where to go next. Her wealth of knowledge of yogic philosophy and incredible understanding of the human condition is what makes her a force to be reckoned with.  She understands your depth and makes you feel seen, heard, validated, and deeply loved.