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This post is part of the Keys to Happiness Series. The keys to happiness are courage, generosity, connection, clarity, presence, non-attachment, and gratitude.

Be still and know.

Know that pure joy is here in this moment. Know that unconditional love is in this moment. Know that radiant health is in this moment. Know that abundance is in this moment. Know that peace is in this moment.

Spirit is present in this moment. Be still and know.

If you take the time to sit still and observe for a moment, you might find that right then and there even if you are experiencing hunger, or pain, or sorrow, Spirit is present. In the present, the Presence is there to enfold you in warmth and love and peace. You will experience happiness and joy.

But how do we stay in the moment as our lives continue to move? How can we stay in the moment when we need to cook dinner, or get ready for work, or stay at the bedside an ailing parent?

Maybe, we don’t.

Not in the conventional sense. Not in the sense of being calm and composed. Maybe we stay in the moment by fully experiencing the range of emotions. We can let them wash over us completely. The way to be present at those times might be to fully immerse ourselves in the activity.

Being present does not always mean that we are in this pious, pure place. It simply means that we know that Spirit is present now, that we are aware of our connection to All that is. We choose to abide in Spirit, to express It in all that we do. We choose to fully engage in cooking dinner, and getting ready for work. We commune in Spirit with our ailing parent. No words may be exchanged, but we communicate at the deepest level. The place of pure joy. We abide in the Presence.

In those moments, we are truly happy.

In Spirit,
Nneka

It began with the Islamic call to worship. A friend of a friend agreed to do the call after coming in from Europe the night before and knowing that he would head to Europe the next morning. It was followed by the choir’s rendition of the calm Kum Bah Yah. Then the entire audience joined them in John Lennon’s Imagine.

The experience continued with Buddhist chants by Tibetan monks, a Christian experience of contemplative prayer, Hindu chants, Vedic prayers, Native American music, and a Sufi remembrance. The audience sampled the many ways to connect with and deepen their experience of Spirit.

It was now time to practice being peace. Across the street, in a public park, 450 people sat in silence for 30 minutes. They were practicing any of the ways just expressed by the spiritual leaders and teachers, or one of their own, but they were all, in that half an hour, deepening their awareness of Spirit’s presence.

Two years ago, a friend of mine read an article that said that they tried this in one of the battle zones of Lebanon in the 80’s and the bombs stopped dropping in the village where one percent of the population engaged in a daily practice of meditation. They did not hold the idea of peace or “intend” to manifest peace. They just connected with the Divine.

My friend took up the challenge and thought, “What if one percent of our community, 15,000 people, engaged in this practice?” In the research, it was noted that not only did the bombs stop falling in that village in Lebanon, but the incidents of violent crime and fatal accidents went down.

Science is exploring the idea that two particles that are separated are still affected by the same by an outside influence even when they are far apart. Sociology explains that communities have impact beyond their bounds. In the global economy, the impact of code written in Indonesia is felt around the world. The message is clear across all disciplines: We are one.

When we think of brokering peace in the world, at best we think of delegations sitting in a room hashing out the complexities, at worst we think that it has to happen by the sword, or gun. Do you ever think that your meditation practice could bring about an idea so profound and, so far, evading? Do you ever think that you can bring about peace by using the Law of Attraction: bringing peace by being peace? When you practice meditation, sit with the intent of experiencing Spirit, do you feel at peace? Could it be that the peace that you experience, the peace that passes understanding, is felt by those around you when you walk out of your practice?

For about two and a half hours in downtown Raleigh this weekend, there were no egos, no treaties, no guns, just Spirit. It was the profound experience of being Spirit. I experienced peace.

In Spirit,
Nneka