Honing Intuition

We live in a society that does not encourage introspection. Wherever we go, we are bombarded by "INPUT". I don't know if you have ever seen the movie, "Short Circuit" in which a robot, known as Number 5, begins to take on human characteristics. Hungry for information about everything, he keeps looking for input. Reading encyclopedias, watching television endlessly, checking out human behaviour.


Of course, as human beings we do need input about the world around us. We need to be informed in order to function well in the world. However, we also need to listen to our inner guidance, that still small voice within that represents our reaction, our emotional response to all this input. We need to reduce the volume of the input in order to savour what we hear and see, to assimilate that which fits and discard that which does not. For this we need time. The time we need is that time that we might otherwise spend watching television, listening to talk shows or playing computer games. Don't get me wrong, these activities are all well and good, IF we can do them in addition to our inner work. If they are instead of or for the purpose of shutting off our gut feelings, we are, indeed destroying our connection to inner guidance, our intuitive selves.

If we have already spent much of our lives squelching our naturally intuitive selves, can we recover what we have lost? Most definitely. With intention, with creating the time and space, with attention to our inner voice, we can definitely hone our intuition.

Now, what do I mean by "intention". Intention is more than simply desire. When I intend to pay heed to my wise, inner self, I essentially make a conscious decision to check in with my feelings in situations that require decision-making. How does this decision make me feel? Am I anxious or serene if I opt for or against a certain scenario? Do I want to escape into mindless activities, anesthesize myself with food, drink or some addiction? Do I like myself more or think less of myself? Where in my body am I feeling this certainty or this insecurity? How does it feel to live my life rather than coast by trying not to feel. Given sufficient attention the subtle emotions or physical sensations, elation, fear, butterflies in the stomach or headache become sufficient hints upon which I can base my decision.

How do I give time and space in my life for intuitive play? I don't call it work because, in fact, it is more play than work. I sit by the side of the river, a human-being NOT a human-doing. The art of BEING is particularly a lost art in our productivity focussed western society. There IS value in simply being. Meditation, whether sitting, attending our breathing or the more dynamic meditations of walking, dancing, even jogging bring us back into the wisdom of our bodies and away from the constant chatter of the mind with its rationalizations that can steer us away from that which is best for us. We can all find the time and space if we look carefully at our wasted time.

And what is this inner voice we seek or, in many cases, seek to drown out? It is that gut feeling, the thermostat of our wellbeing. All it requires to speak is our attention. We have all encountered situations, even in the busy-ness of our daily lives when we have sensed danger or, at least, unrest in social situations. We visit a home where the host and hostess have just been fighting, despite the forced smiles on their faces, we sense that all is not well here. Paying attention to gut responses to the many situations in which we find ourselves can shed light on what course of action is in our best interest, what decision is the most life-giving for us in the now.

Try it! That entity that you call the "self" will demonstrate gratitude beyond expectation. Make a date with yourself and pay at least as much attention as you would to a dear and trusted friend. In fact your intuitive self IS the dearest and the most trust worthy of any friend in whom you may ever invest your time to get to know.

Namaste

Marta O'Reilly