Emotions are very natural. Becoming aware of emotions is a process that has two components.
The first one is to acknowledge our emotions. There is no need to deny how we feel in a given situation. If we feel anger, rage, resentment, helplessness, grief, frustration or fear, it is okay to feel them as they are. When we acknowledge a particular emotion, in that moment we stop fighting with it. Then there is a possibility of feeling the emotion as it is and seeing it clearly.
The second component is acceptance of our emotions. Emotional acceptance really means getting to a state where we own the emotion as ours. Many times we do not own our anger. We live in denial of anger. This denial only aggravates the anger and drains all our energy. When we own our anger, fear, frustration or sadness, it is a liberating experience.
A mother feels her baby as her own. She doesn’t judge her baby based on his or her color of skin or any other features. A mother feels at one with her baby and embraces the baby with unconditional love. In the same way, if we can hold our emotions as our own without judging them as good or bad, negative or positive, and just be with them, then something profound happens. The raw energy of the emotions is embraced and the energy behind the emotion flows effortlessly like a river.
Emotions are diverse, but the energy behind them is one. The source of the energy is our own creative center. By simply embracing an emotion without judging, we allow the energy behind the emotion to flow and merge into our creative center.
Emotions are pathways to our creative energies. They are sacred and divine. By breathing along with an emotion, we embrace it with complete awareness. By drawing or painting an emotion, we give a creative expression to the emotion. By giving ourselves a pause and practicing silence or practicing compassionate listening in situations that trigger disturbing emotions like anger and fear, we can shift our reactive responses.
How we react in a given situation is a conditioned reflex. These reflexes determine our personality and the reality we create for ourselves. By cultivating emotional awareness, we can respond to a situation in an authentic way rather than in a reactive way. We start shifting our reality to one that is based on love , mutual respect and self-worth.
A caterpillar inside a pupa may feel lonely, dark, unable to move and helpless. But it has a direct knowing and trust in its innate nature that it is bound to become a butterfly one day. The caterpillar continues in its pupa with unwavering trust and knowing in spite of its immediate environment. It is not discouraged or influenced by the immediate environment of its pupa, which is closed, dark , one that is not ideal for flying at all. However, an amazing metamorphosis happens inside the pupa and a butterfly comes out with beautiful wings, which can fly distances that a caterpillar can only dream of.
Just by being with the darkness and fear, we can go beyond them. With trust in our true nature, we can accept our emotions as they are. If we can return to the simplicity of trusting our innate nature, the dark and fear-based emotions transform themselves into inner strength, beauty and wisdom.
The beauty of our soul will manifest and express itself in unique ways. Emotions channelize our soul’s energy for this greater and unique purpose. Let us see our emotions as pathways for expressing soul’s beauty, and let us learn from the wisdom of a caterpillar. Let us treat our emotions as sacred, without judging them. Let us hold them with infinite patience, let them express our Soul’s beauty in ways that are unique to our self, and let the beauty and freedom of butterfly happen to us.
