The Awakening Soul:  Entering the River of Life

by Michael J. Tamura

Immersed in the thundering roar of the Rheinfall, I stood silent on an outlook overlooking the stampede of river near the Swiss town of Schaffhausen.  I watched as the churning white-waters of the famed Rhein gallop past the Rheinfallfelsen, relic of the Jurassic Age, standing guard like a pair of massive limestone gateposts to destiny.

Gaining entrance through the ancient gateway, the river cascaded down the drop, forming the largest plain waterfalls in Europe, on its long and arduous journey to the North Sea.  In the distance, I followed the meandering path of the river, once again glassy and tranquil, betraying not the slightest hint of the shuddering turbulence of its life just moments past.  Such is the peace found in the heart of every flowing river. Unchanged through the countless unyielding and formidable obstacles it encounters along the way, the water living as the river remains imperturbable, unwavering in its pledge to complete its pilgrimage to the open sea.

"When peace like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul."  

So penned Horatio Spafford, after enduring a procession of personal tragedies, including his financial ruin in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and losing all four daughters aboard the steamship Ville du Havre to the Atlantic just two years later.  His wife, Anna, one of only 87 survivors of the sinking, upon reaching solid ground, had cabled Spafford the crushing news, “Saved alone.  What do I do...?”  

How do we survive, much less realize fulfillment, after suffering such devastating losses?  For Anna, it was a voice that told her, “You were spared for a purpose,” that gave her the courage to go on.  For Horatio, a prominent 19th Century Chicago lawyer, the inspiration came to him in the lyrics he wrote for the now beloved hymn, It is Well with My Soul.  Either way, the message is the same: Whatever our lot, whatever life measures out to us, we must seek and fulfill our higher calling, our soul purpose.  Only then can we find that inner peace, flowing like a river, that leads us to our ultimate freedom.

A decade and a half ago, when my older son was fourteen, while waiting for his mother to pick him up after school, two local gang-bangers drove by and unloaded six rounds of  pent-up frustrations on him, their only living target in range.  Running zig and zag away from the gunman, he managed to dodge all six bullets whizzing past him.  After the terrifying ordeal, he shared a revelation with me:  “When you walk away from a close call, where you could’ve died, it’s because you have a purpose for being here.  I don’t know what it is yet, but I know I have a purpose in life.”    

All too often, however, especially in more spiritual circles, we imagine that when we do discover our purpose and begin fulfilling it, we will live lives of ease and comfort - we will be “in the flow.”  And, conversely, that should we fail to live our purpose, obstacles and difficulties will fill our lives - perhaps, as some form of divine punishment.  If we believed this, we may even despair that we are failing to live up to our purpose whenever we encounter great challenges.  We might also misinterpret as a sign of greater spiritual attainment the enormous success and prosperity enjoyed by some who may not even consider their soul purpose, much less attend to it.  All we need to consider to dispel such myths, however, are the great souls throughout history whose lives helped transform the dire conditions of human existence:  Divine incarnations as Krishna or Jesus, enlightened beings as the Buddha, leaders of humanity such as Gandhi, Albert Schweitzer, Mother Teresa, and Nelson Mandela, and countless others whose courage and compassion, when faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges, have paved the way for the rest of us.  It is a matter of history that not one such soul lived a life of ease and comfort.  Yet, few of us would doubt that each one learned to truly live “in the flow” and found peace.  We can never judge the nature of our inner life or that of others from the outward conditions we may face.  What truly matter in our soul advancement are the choices we make in how we respond to all that we experience in our lives.  

"Until he extends his circle of compassion to include all living things, man will not himself find peace." - Albert Schweitzer

The popular expressions, “Let go and let God” and “Go with the flow,” are actually profound instructions on how to respond to the various challenges we encounter in our lives.  They don’t, however, necessarily mean that if we “go with the flow” everything in life will always be easy.  Nor are they meant to teach us to become passive, letting things happen in the world just because it must be “God’s will,” and allow ourselves to become victims of complacency, indifference, and non-participation.  

“Whatever,” is also a common reply by bright teenagers when they know their wishes or true feelings most likely won’t be heard anyway.  It’s not a willing, enthusiastic accord.  It’s often a kind of resignation without admission of defeat.  Yet, entering the river of life, living at peace, and letting things flow in our fulfillment of purpose is far from leading a life of passivity and “whatever.”   It requires of us a clear and committed choice at every bend.  Whatever difficulties and crises we encounter in our lives, we must learn to respond with compassion, grace, and wisdom as we continue in the fulfillment of our soul purpose.  Peace, like the flowing river, is never disturbed whether its waters float easily over a smooth bed or roar through treacherous gorges.  The water remains true to itself, no matter to what conditions it is subjected.  Just so, we must remind ourselves that it is never what happens to us, but always our response and the choices we make about all that happens, that define our lives.

We cannot afford to shirk, out of our fears, our soul commitment to learn to fully relate with one another and to the world of activity constantly surrounding us.  And we mustn’t ignore our fears and justify such non-participation in life by convincing ourselves that we are “going with the flow.”  To truly learn to live in the flow of life, we need to fully participate in life without attachment to all that happens in it.  As Jesus taught his disciples, “Be as passersby.”  We need to face squarely everything that life brings to us, but not obsess about them or let them distract us from our commitment to being whole.  If we grab onto an outcropping in a fast-moving river, we would be pulled in two directions.  Instead, we can acknowledge the stationary rock in the river, navigate around it, and pass on by.  We let ourselves flow past maintaining our certainty that our destiny is the open sea.

Letting our lives flow means surrendering to that which is.  We refuse to become a victim of circumstances.  For that which is has no beginning and no ending.  It is, forever.  Whereas circumstances and conditions of our lives constantly change.  They all come and go.  Thus, it is said, “Time heals all wounds.”  But, peace knows no wounds.  It just is.  No matter what is happening in our life, if we choose peace, we flow like the river.

Often the older one gets, the more one tends to live down memory lane.  This happens when the elderly is terrified of the certainty in his or her future: Death.  Yet, we regularly ask for death - each time we wish to be something else, somewhere else, somehow else than we are currently, we are seeking death, the end to the conditions of our current existence, our identity.  Death stems from our desire to separate from who we are because we cannot accept the condition in which we find ourselves.  Immortality is always within our reach if only we were willing to accept and love ourselves just the way we are, regardless of our condition.  For in eternity we are all that we are.  

But, today, there are 200 emails in my inbox demanding replies; Shanti, our Great Pyr, is barking for attention; our cat, Magic, is wanting out of the house; breakfast needs making; four articles need to be written; my younger son’s birthday is coming up; seven CD projects await my review and input; two major 3-week international tours need arranging; four good friends are in crises seeking help; another is dying; one just died; and I have five all-day seminars to prepare to present in the next two weeks.  My morning has just begun.  I am reading the river.  And I chose peace at each rapids.  It’s a beautiful day.  Life is flowing.
   
Entering the river of life demands our acceptance of our own selves, no matter what life may throw at us.  Can we commit to loving ourselves whether we are happy, sad, afraid, or angry?  Can we still love ourselves when we realize we have wronged another?  Can we love ourselves after feeling betrayed by a loved one?  Can we love ourselves when we are ill of health?  How often have we chosen against loving ourselves because of one condition or another that we refused to accept?  

How do we not love ourselves each day?  Let us count the ways.  We might, then, finally choose to set down our arms and choose peace.  For how long have we battled against our own selves because of pride and shame, or guilt and blame?  Yet, we don’t have to become better or good enough before we enter the river.  In fact, it is in accepting all that we are, all that we’ve been and done, and all that is yet to come, that we learn to extend our circle of compassion to include all living beings, enter the flow of life, and find peace - no matter through what rapids, gorges, and waterfalls we must navigate.


Michael Tamura awakens souls. With compassion, humor and wisdom, he guides people to their true destiny and life purpose. He is revered around the world as a master teacher, visionary, healer, clairvoyant, and pioneer of spiritual healing and psychic development. Michael offers innovative, inspirational seminars, programs and audio/video products of self-discovery, personal empowerment and spiritual healing. His celebrated, award-winning book, You Are The Answer, is available in bookstores and online. For more on his work, events calendar and products go to www.michaeltamura.com or call his office: (530)926-2650.