Every day is the first day of the year, says Andrew Cohen
New beginnings are the source of renewal, fresh starts and second chances. New beginnings are moments that are free from the burden of the karma of past failures. New beginnings give us all a chance to experience once again our lost innocence and the heartfelt, passionate conviction that all things are possible. New beginnings give us the unique opportunity to once again trust unconditionally the creative mystery that is animating the entire universe. This liberates our heavily burdened hearts from the self-limiting chains of fear, doubt and hesitation.
New beginnings can be found both in time and beyond time. In time, they are experienced when we move to a new location, start a new job, begin a new relationship or go on a new adventure. But when we pursue the spiritual process in earnest and begin the inner meditative journey, we discover, to our surprise, that beyond time there abides the liberating freedom of a different kind of new beginning. An eternally new, ever infinite renewal in the form of timeless, formless, beginningless and endless Being. We find ourselves suddenly basking in the transcendental freedom of what the Buddha called the Unborn, Ramana Maharshi called the Self, and Meister Eckhart called the God within.
New beginnings in time offer us opportunities for our bodies, minds and personalities to grow and evolve. New beginnings beyond time awaken us again and again to eternity — where we can abide in a state of infinite renewal at the level of the soul.
The first is about relative change within time. The latter is about an Absolute leap into another dimension beyond time.
When we awaken to enlightened awareness in a way that is deep and profound, we find ourselves grounded in the knowledge that from an absolute vantage point, every moment is a new beginning, radiating with the presence of eternity. Once made, this life changing discovery becomes our north star and our guiding light through the highs and lows, the endless ups and downs and challenges of relative reality.
Indeed, we now live in a constant state of paradox between the absolute and relative truths of manifest and unmanifest existence.
This means that no matter what our bodies, minds and personalities may be experiencing in time-bound, relative reality, in absolute reality, at the level of the soul, every day is our birthday, every day is Christmas and every day is the first day of the New Year. ■
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