(A post written 2 years ago, recently updated 🙂 ….feel free to share your comments at the end!)
Do you wish to grow towards being your authentic self,…
or continue to be pressured to “achieve”
based on the values and expectations of other people and society?
In today’s world, there is much pressure to conform and achieve according to the standards of other people and society. Success is seen as being “driven”, “motivated”, “famous”, “looking good”, “getting ahead” and accumulating status, popularity or material possessions.
Let us ask ourselves these questions,… Are we being true to our heart? Are we sharing the true essence of who we are? Despite our self-doubts and vulnerabilities, do we find the courage to keep moving forward and into the unknown? Is the life we live a reflection of our own gifts, talents, and creative expression? Are we sincerely devoted to our path of healing and growing? Are we in alignment with a greater, higher power rather than our ego’s shallow needs, wants and desires?
Mainstream society does not encourage self-reflection and completely neglects the inner journey of discovering who we are, embodying our unique, creative potential and a sense of purpose for our life.
“It’s not really sadness that gives you pain.
It is the interpretation that sadness is wrong that gives you pain,
that becomes a psychological problem….
How long can you be sad if you accept sadness?
If you are capable of accepting sadness
you will be capable of absorbing it in your being;
it will become your depth…” – Osho
Usually, we want to avoid, distract ourselves or move away from sadness as quickly as possible.
In a room full of people, it is the “sad” person who is being ignored by everyone because it is easier and more pleasant to wear a mask of pretend “happiness”.
We can do anything and everything to pretend our sadness is not really there, so as to protect ourselves from being overwhelmed by its presence.
This is especially true for men, who are culturally conditioned to be the strong protectors, work hard, fight and strive to create solutions – as opposed to show the softer feelings of their vulnerability, lack of self worth and fear.
Making our lives endlessly and excessively busy, we can become addicted to stress. This is a way many people in our modern society choose to avoid feeling their sadness. Today’s high rates of depression and suicide in many parts of our developed world are clear signs that we need to look at sadness, in new ways.
What if we embrace our sadness, wrap our arms around it
and ask what gifts it can offer us?
Some people I have met in my life, expressed humour, laughter and joy, while they were also equally connected to their gentle sadness. This is because they feel and share from their authentic self and their open heart. They allow tears of joy and sadness to flow spontaneously from their eyes and heart.
I am referring to people who have experienced challenging life situations, which pushed them into the depths of their heart. These people are open to ask questions and listen for answers,… answers, which can only come through solitude, patience and intimacy with our true feelings and emotions.
By consciously going within, which most of us try to avoid, these people have accepted that sadness is a natural and authentic part of our sometimes challenging, human experience.
Sacred Sadness opens our heart –
to our deepest feelings of vulnerability and gentle love. But also, it offers us the opportunity to feel compassion and share more intimacy and kindness in our relationships and with all beings.
When we feel the subtle energy of our Sacred Sadness,
we are not hurt, angry, a victim, sitting in judgement
or still looking for retribution for all the “wrongs”
that we experienced through others actions in the past.
We are simply ready and open
to feel in our heart,
our longing for love, forgiveness and compassion.
Hiding from our sadness, means we compromise for a superficial existence. We do not want (or are afraid) to feel the highs and lows of our life. To avoid the risk of making ourselves vulnerable, we close ourselves off from sharing love or being in a loving relationship. We play safe – so we cannot get hurt.
Avoiding our sadness can lead us on a path of never experiencing heart-felt empathy or compassion for others. Being open to feel our sadness can help us to relate to how another person feels in the deepest, darkest, most vulnerable moments of their life.
Numbing our sadness may help us to cope in our life for sometime…but ultimately, this will drain our creative energy, our life-force and prevent us from making choices that move us forward on our journey – in the direction our heart and soul are longing for.
The more I heal and grow on my journey,
the more comfortable I am to truly be,
in the stillness and beauty of my Sacred Sadness.
I have learnt to trust
that just like the season of winter, this gentle sadness can offer me valuable gifts
– if I welcome it, with an open, loving heart.
Sacred Sadness asks me to slow down – to be more present and honest with my feelings and emotions.
The closer I live with the natural rhythms of nature, in ways that support my authentic self, the more I have observed that my healing journey resembles a continuously flowing spiral.
This spiral provides me with many opportunities to go deeper – forgive, feel more love
and become more conscious.
I see sadness as invaluable to the spirals flow, because it pulls me inward to it’s centre – towards my heart and to love.
* * * *
Sacred Sadness and Juerg Dreamturtle
13 years ago, I met my soul partner Juerg. Almost immediately, he shared about one of his key teachings – “Our Sacred Sadness”. He explained to me that our Sacred Sadness is the golden door to the deeper healing work of our heart.
“Sacred Sadness of our open feeling heart connects us with the experiences and people in our life
we long to forgive, feel love and compassion more deeply.
Sacred Sadness connects us with the aspects of our life
where we are not in harmony with our heart,
soul wisdom and our sacred life.”
My journey together with Juerg has taught me that Sacred Sadness wants to flow like water through us, at any moment.
I have to be really present and open for what Sacred Sadness is trying to show me about my life. This sadness can be triggered through another person, an animal, a song, a place or any other object or experience. In the end, it’s my choice whether to be receptive to my Sacred Sadness and pay attention for the “hidden” messages coming from my soul.
My journey has also shown me that it is not about receiving instant answers or lightning-bolt-revelations. Misty, grey and foggy days may prevent us from seeing far ahead – but in these moments we need to trust and above all, be patient and kind to ourselves.
During the season of winter, the energy moves inward….everything slows down and becomes quiet above the surface. Despite this, nothing in nature is ever completely dormant…there is a deeper, magical and mysterious process going on within. In winter, it’s important to remember, we do not need to explain or rationalise our inner process to ourselves or others.
It is my belief that one of the reasons so many young people are experiencing depression in our world is that they are not connected with these cycles and rhythms of nature, which of course we are all a part of. Young people are looking out at the world through the window of a social-media-screen where acceptance and value is put on “happiness”… but this happiness is often not really ever based on truth – it’s what we would like others to believe about our life and who we are, because we don’t believe in or truly feel good about ourselves.
It’s not easy for everyone to do,… but sometimes, the simple and best choice is to take a step back and lower the noise from the outer world, e.g. from technology, social media or whatever else drains our energy and makes it difficult for us to hear the voice and rhythm of our own authentic music – coming from our soul. Spending more time in nature, wherever we are and can, will give us what we are truly seeking and needing.
I have found that the more I can listen and follow the gentle guidance of my Sacred Sadness:
I can transform it’s energy into a deeper sense of love, completion, compassion and forgiveness.
I can begin to see my life’s path more clearly and feel more love for the people and experiences that have given me valuable (but not always pleasant) lessons.
I stop expecting my life to be an endless string of “sunny, happy moments”. Indeed, it is the sad and challenging moments, which give meaning and depth to my life and help me to grow in compassion and understanding towards others.
I have more energy and courage to follow my heart, and continue to make choices that truly resonate with my unique self – my authentic, soul journey.
* * * *
In this short video (8 minutes), Juerg describes Sacred Sadness and why he calls it the golden door to the deeper healing of our heart and love:
* * * *
Our work is to support people to heal and grow on their soul journey.
We are dedicated to our own personal healing and shadow work in our relationship. We have been journeying, travelling, creating and consciously doing this healing/shadow work together for 13 years.
We offer guidance and support for individuals/couples through personal sessions to heal and grow. Sessions are available internationally via Skype.
If you would like to do a personal session with either myself or Juerg, to connect with your Sacred Sadness or your core wound in this and other lifetimes, which longs for healing, growth and soul wisdom, please contact us.
We make sure everyone can afford a session with us. Write to us and we will find a way to make it happen. You can also purchase a copy of Juerg’s book “Sacred Journey.”
Please share your feedback in the comments below…or, write a personal message to me; any questions you may have based on this post, my/our work or just to say hello 🙂 If you enjoyed this post, please share it, follow my blog or register to receive notifications in your email box for my future posts.
I believe that when we are ready and open, a spirit animal will appear to us – as our teacher, friend and guardian. This spirit animal may be a life companion who remains close to us, throughout our entire life. Alternatively, different animals may appear to us as we change, embrace new experiences and grow.
The Lion represents courage to be our authentic self – to speak and act in harmony with our heart…even if it means, we stand alone in a crowd. The Lion does not expect others to lead him, nor does he search for followers. He seeks respect, rather than attention. The Lion knows he is here for his own journey of experience, learning and self discovery. He acts in accordance with his own heart / inner truth. He assumes full accountability and self responsibility for his own choices and actions. As a leader, the highest service Lion offers others is to live ones truth and lead by example with integrity and compassion.
The Lion asks us to contemplate the following questions within ourselves…
