We often bypass the wisdom others share with us, forget what we read in that one book, and put off until later what we heard on that podcast. So many of us save spirituality for later. Once we have more time to dedicate, once life has settled down a bit, once we set up our altar. We can put off diving deep into spirituality for years (decades even!) if we let ourselves. Which is a massive disservice to ourselves. Spiritual teachings offer us wisdom that can shift the way we experience life, the way we engage with others, the way we view disappointment, and so much more. But we can’t adopt those practices and mindsets unless we put the time into learning them.
We rounded up seven of the most beneficial spiritual teachings we know and put them all in one place so you have a resource to read through, every day if you want, as you root these teachings into your mind and life.
- The root of suffering is attachment. In our lives, we’re all going to experience loss and change – it’s one thing we can absolutely count on. With loss and change being inevitable, it’s the act of becoming attached to anything or anyone that causes the torment and suffering we feel when we lose that thing or person. When they leave our lives and we hold onto them based on attachment, we suffer, in so many cases we suffer tremendously, versus practicing the (learned) art of letting go. The art of letting go allows us acceptance, gratitude for our time with that thing or place or person, and the ability to recognize that in letting go, we are freeing ourselves to move forward into life.
- People who challenge us are our teachers in life. Ahh, people: you can’t live with them, you can’t live without them. People can be an amazing source of joy and also a relentless source of challenge. When we realize those people who challenge us are here to change us, we can accept our relationships with them in a more willing way. No one who brings difficulty to your life will leave you unchanged, they are teachers teaching us lessons to improve ourselves and our lives. If we pay attention to the lessons they bring to us, they leave us changed for the better.
- Everything we need is already inside of us. The true, authentic version of you that has the power to create your reality, already lies inside of you. We seek validation from external people, joy in external things, and wonder in external places – when the root of all these things is deep inside of you. No amount of power from an outside source will even touch the amount of power you hold within to shift and design your life.
- God, the Universe, Spirit, your choice. So many of us hesitate to dive deep spiritually because of one reason and one reason only: who are we praying/chanting/talking to? Here’s the wild reality: anyone you choose. The beautiful thing about spirituality is that you, truly, can reach to whoever or whatever feels comfortable to you when you set out to connect to a higher power. Mind-blowing, right? Whoever or whatever it is that’s out there, doesn’t care what you call it. It only cares that you connect, lean in, and gain benefit from the trusting, comforting support it can provide you. Many people even use terms like God and Spirit interchangeably, knowing that the label isn’t important, the intention is. Choose what makes you comfortable, or, try on a few different terms until you find one that feels good to you!
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Meditation isn’t as serious as you think it is. Anything can be meditative if you let it. There’s women who say washing the dirty dishes is meditative for them, and you know why? It’s because they can be in the moment, focusing on how the hot water feels on their hands, rather than thinking about their to-do list or that deadline. We often visualize meditation as sitting effortlessly still on a cushion, uninterrupted, while our thoughts fade away and we find a quiet, clear space to exist in. And this goes on for, what? 20 minutes? An hour?
Here’s the good news: you can take a few meditative moments in your morning shower. You can sit in bed at night before you put your head on the pillow and be still for as little as one or two minutes. You can sit on a park bench during your lunch break with your eyes closed and listen to the birds and feel the sun on your skin. Meditation is meant to connect you with your higher power and relax your body and mind. There are tons of ways to do this. Don’t let the vision of what the “perfect” meditation session is supposed to look like keep you from doing what feels good for you.
- We have the ability to create and manifest our reality. What if you knew, with absolute certainty, that your thoughts create your reality? Would you make an effort to change your thoughts? We have the power to send energy out into the universe with our thoughts, and this energy seeks what it is we think about and desire to bring back to us. Of course there are things bigger than us that we don’t have control over, but most people would be astounded by the things they do have control over. Change your thoughts, change your life.
- This too shall pass. Life is a constant state of flow. The joy you feel, the pain you feel, they will both be replaced and then reoccur as life goes on. This is one we love to remember when things are challenging, it brings us comfort knowing what we’re going through has an eventual end, no matter what it is. The true power in this teaching is accepting it as a whole, meaning also accepting the part that when you’re experiencing joy, when things are amazing, that too, will pass. Understanding this gives us the ability to truly see life as the constant balance that it is, the yin and the yang, the up and the down. Once we can see life this way, very little can rattle us. We accept that no matter what is happening now, something will balance it in the future.
When it comes to spirituality, the beauty of it is that the teachings are simple but profound. Even if you only pick one or two of these and work on them for several months before exploring others, we know you’ll feel some shifts and peace in your life that may have felt elusive up until now. Start where you are and grow from there.
We can’t wait to hear how these teachings impact your life! Share with us on Instagram at @SmudgeWellness, we can help recommend tools and stones to take the teachings even further and support you in your journey!
