Philosophy, Faith, and Daily Living

“In this broad Earth of ours, / Amid the measureless grossness and the slag, / Enclosed and safe within its central heart, / Nestles the seed Perfection.”
That quote is from Walt Whitman’s “Song of the Universal,” a poem that captures the essence of my philosophy.
Some people, a few of my friends among them, dismiss the idea of philosophy, of thinking about it in any kind of daily context because it’s not a “practical” thing. It is to me.
I have always engaged in any job, relationship, or even interest with passion, which means I require a soul conviction that I believe in, have faith in what I’m doing. It means I understand it thoroughly. It means I have developed a personal, practical philosophy about it, whether I operate from Ego- or Heart-energy. It’s the reason I quit a couple of jobs, because the practice and what I was asked to do did not align with my philosophy; I am incapable of mindlessly and soullessly plodding on for years without conviction.
I’ve pretty clearly defined what I believe about the essential makeup of humanity, and that is at the root of everything, of all observable individual and corporate behaviors. That essence is the paradox of the Ego and Heart energies; one or the other innervates the mind-soul-body complex. That is a very individual matter — no program, no methodology. I share frameworks, things I have experienced, observed, read, and studied — formally and informally. I have lived it.
In the quote above, the “seed Perfection” is analogous to what I write of as Heart. In the midst of the “grossness and the slag” of humanity is the fallout of the mass of humanity that never awakens to the fulness of their core Self, Heart, that essence of eternal Sprit within them.
My philosophy of this spiritual aspect of life generates faith, immense faith that makes the journey’s highs and lows just part of the journey. It is a practical philosophy, and it fuels faith that yields a calm peace in my daily actions — most days!
Someone may ask how I know the difference between Ego and Heart working in the big decisions of life. Ego can produce Heart-like responses in the soul, but the depth will never be there. When I would enthusiastically and passionately engage in a job, course of study, relationship, or even hobby, if I ended up asking the same questions about who I was and what was the purpose of my life, then it was Ego.
These last years I have only built on and moved forward with my Purpose and Vision. My life has been significant and faith-filled through some tough times. Following Heart does not mean challenges are past, not at all. Challenges just are there, no matter what, but Heart-energy keeps me asking the right questions and listening for those answers and looking to my personal truth and magic to move forward.
I’ve mentioned a number of times about my concerns over social and political issues; those concepts are part of who I am in my total being. As with other areas of life, I see Ego and Heart operating in these arenas. These areas offer real opportunities to allow Ego to influence me. In the poem “Song of the Universal,” which I remembered as I spoke with my Heart about these ideas this morning, this conflict between a majority of people living as a society and following Ego versus a minority following Heart is hinted at.
Walt speaks of daily expressions of Ego-outcomes, and he says of “the Ideal” and “evil” that both are justified, meaning he understands the reasons for their existence, how they operate, and how judgment and condemnation on our part about anyone else’s life is not that material to our own existence. However, he says, “Only the good is universal,” that which emanates from Heart and undergirds all of the universe.
It’s partly a mystery, one he realizes not all will get: “O the blest eyes! the happy hearts! / That see — that know the guiding thread so fine, / Along the might labyrinth.” That “guiding thread” of love inhabiting heart and being is the essence of eternal Spirit. I have confidence and faith that I will realize my Purpose and Visions, but maybe not in the exact form I use to help me feel the right way, transmit the positive energy. Life, even a Heart-energized life, is a “mighty labyrinth.”
And this is long, but I will deal with it further tomorrow as I explore how Walt applies this to the social, cultural, and political scene of America.
Blessings!