During my time with the Church of Divine Man, and its teaching arm, the Berkeley Psychic Institute, I became aware of the question of whether I was in, or out of, my body. Up to that point I had heard about “having an out-of-body experience” as something to strive for, with the expectation that being out of the body was how we connected with something greater than ourselves.
I soon learned that being out of the body was no big deal. I was out of my body most of the time, and if I’m honest with myself that's still true much of the time today. It goes along with being human, learning to become fully aware of ourselves as God.
Spirit is not “out there,” but within us. It doesn’t exist in our thinking, and so we can’t intellectualize it. We can try; I know I do. But in the end we know ourselves as eternal spirit, and see God in all things, when we are present with what is happening, noticing the body’s reactions, feeling the emotions that arise, and choosing consciously in that moment who we will be in the midst of all of it.
I’m finding that I’m much more true to myself when I feel my way through things, rather than think my way through. My thinking can lead me down the path of being reactive or defensive, and can limit my ability to see my highest truth about how I want to proceed in any situation.
But if I first choose to just sit within myself and fully notice the experience, my emotions are felt and honored and processed. Sitting with emotions can be uncomfortable, and that’s why we tend to think and react instead. But if I go within and allow myself to really experience how I feel about something, I can usually move forward from a place of peace, forgiveness and understanding that all is here for my good.
One simple technique for going home to yourself is “pulling the aura in.” When we attend to things out in the world, and are affected by them, our aura expands to encompass all that we are attending to. The aura is the energy field around the body that many believe contain our spiritual energy, and they can get very big!
You can try pulling your aura in like this: Without effort, allow yourself to “see” or sense how large your aura is. Does it seem to envelop a much larger amount of space than just yourself? If so, begin to pull the edges closer to you, and allow everything that your aura had contained to be released to divine consciousness.
When you sense that your aura is about 12 to 18 inches out from your body and no more, take a moment and notice how that feels. You may be aware of your body quieting down, and feeling less anxious or responsible.
I do this sometimes at night when I’m having trouble falling asleep. I bring all of my “energy” back so that all I’m aware of is my body and about 12 inches beyond it. My thoughts quiet, I'm aware of my heart beating, and I exist fully in that space without distraction. In that moment, I am one with myself. I am.
As you move into the "home of yourself," you will likely find even greater amounts of peace and joy!
May you come home to yourself often, and may this tool be a blessing. . .
