By Rabbi Daniel Cohen
A story is told about a farmer who misplaced a valuable watch somewhere in his barn. He asked everyone to search up and down to find his precious heirloom. Unfortunately, despite hours spent looking for the timepiece, it was nowhere to be found. Later in the day, a young boy announced to the farmer with great joy that he had found the watch. Astonished, the farmer asked the boy how he was able to find it even though so many others had searched high and low without finding it. The boy responded, “Well, once the barn was quiet, I put my head to the ground and heard the watch ticking.” We may only hear our inner voice when we turn off the outside world.
“I have spent many days stringing and unstringing my instrument while the song I came to sing
remains unsung.”
~Rabindranath Tagore
We live in a world bombarded by noise. Wherever we go, we’re confronted by sounds and sights vying for our attention. Drivers are often distracted, and it’s not uncommon to be interrupted during dinner by our personal devices. Sitting in front of our computers, we have trouble staying focused. We experience a jolt of joy when we receive texts and when our posts are liked on Instagram and Facebook. We run from place to place, seemingly accomplishing more but in reality thinking less.
“The human race is a monotonous affair. Most people spend the greatest part of their time working in order
to live, and what little freedom remains so fills them
with fear that they seek out any and every means
to be rid of it.”
~ Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther
How do we forge the sacred space to realize our innermost dreams?
The secret is seizing meditative moments. The concept emerges from the belief that we each possess within us an inner voice, compass, and guide that reflects a higher power and purpose. I know it may sound strange, but each of us is born with this inner voice. It’s implanted from conception. It’s a divine homing device that yearns to unleash light, love, and impact in the world. It’s the “still, small voice” that is strong and resonant, calling on us to pursue what is right and purposeful in our lives. The voice reminds us of who we are and who we are destined to be.
From personal experience, I know this reality to be true. I’ve heard it, and you likely have, too, in various moments in your life. When have you heard it?
We all know deep down that life has a purpose. We want to make a difference in the time we are here. The following scenario speaks to the universality of this quest and searches within all of us. The voice is there.
Imagine the ecstasy of being alive moments after being in mortal danger. Imagine the experience of being drawn under the waves in the ocean until almost losing consciousness and then breaking the surface and gasping a lifesaving breath of air. At that moment, you possess a super consciousness of being alive. In that instant, you are fully cognizant that your life is in balance.
Some might call it God or a holy spark inside; some might say it’s our consciousness. Regardless, the voice declares that we are born into this world for a mission. In the broadest terms, we’re here to serve the Almighty. Life possesses a purpose. You’re not a random collection of molecules. You experience joy, guilt, love, sadness, hope, and the boundless and ever-flowing yearning to leave this world a better place for having lived in it. When we recognize this voice, this fire inside, and it animates our daily lives, we soar. When we experience it, we know it to be true. In the words of theologian and author Frederick Buechner, “The place God calls you to be is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”
Every moment in which we do not cling to a higher power, we’re not complete. We’re all charged with infusing the physical and temporal with eternity and holiness. In these moments and in this awareness, we’re truly alive! The amount of time we remember our purpose in life is the amount of time we’re living life at the highest level. As Eleanor Roosevelt shared, “The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for a newer and richer experience.”
When we experience every day without an awareness of our purpose, we’re deadened to life. It becomes a semblance of death. We need to revive ourselves every day and every hour. When we perform a good deed, we should remember that the goal isn’t simply the performance but the ignition of our inner pilot light. Each person possesses a spark of the divine—the soul—that compels our quest for meaning and significance. The more we align our thoughts and actions with nourishing this life, the more alive we will feel.
Mindlessness without mission is like a body without a soul. It’s no wonder the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard wrote, “Boredom is the root of all evil.” When we’re not living in an awareness of the moment, life becomes a blur, and we meander aimlessly through it. But each new day is a day for a revival of the dead. Every day our souls can sing. We can lead a life on a higher frequency.You may be wondering: Do I have a voice inside of me that will arise to ignite my quest for meaning in life? The answer is a resounding “Yes!” Every human being, regardless of our faith tradition, possesses an innate homing device for holiness. We are divinely designed for spiritual greatness. Deep down, we all know this is true. For this reason, in the crisis situations in our lives, when the shell of numbness to our inner fire is broken, we’re able to hear it; we feel it, and we yearn to live by it.
