Everything is revealed when you are still and silent. When the layers of noise (both the audible and the inaudible mind chatter) are removed, one will catch a glimpse of what is real. What is left when there is nothing? No-thing. No-thing-ness. No material thing. What remains is the spiritual being.
Things are created in the material world and will eventually decay, but that which was never created and always was, can not be destroyed. That is who you are. Your physical being was created at conception, but the inner self is beyond mind and body and has always existed.
This inner self found a vehicle (your body-based consciousness) to reside in but for a short time. This inner self is the essence of who you are and where the answers reside as well. To get to that wellspring, one must eliminate all chatter and noise.
Although with dogged persistence, concentration and practice one could accomplish this silence on a busy thoroughfare, such an individual is rare indeed. For most of us, meditation is the only way to reach such silence. During meditation we are inspired; we are in-spirit.
When your bodily consciousness is extinguished at death, the inner self that lies beyond body and mind continues. It is infinite. You are infinite. Abide in that self through discipline and awareness. Cultivate that self through a nurturing meditation practice. Take your cues in this world from this ever present timeless self. What you’ll find is a wordless directive. Your life will take a path never imagined.
None of this can proceed while locked into repetitive self-defeating thoughts and anxieties. Get clear. Unearth the treasures within. As the moon reflects clearly on still waters, so shall your direction be in focus. When there is turmoil and restlessness, the image on the water shall be fractured and distorted. Like stilling the water, you must attempt to still your mind.
Self actualization can only occur when actuality is in the forefront. You may have become what others have expected or desired. Are you actually you? If not, stop pretending to be that which you are not. Pretending is magical for the child but becomes a tired practice for an adult. Just because the shoe fits, it does not mean you have to wear it!
While you exist in bodily form, it is never too late to practice present moment awareness. Everything vital will emerge from this stance. True growth can only proceed from the eternal now. Inner conflict will cease as battling thoughts no longer vie for your attention. All attention is placed on the here and now. I am here now. Let this be your mantra. Energy once spent manipulating and controlling, will now flow mightily. There is nothing to remember and much to forget.