“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

What is a blessing?

A standard dictionary definition would offer this: a blessing is “God’s favor and protection.” This a potentially a problematic concept for New Thought philosophy given that we do not teach the concept of God separate from the self. So if we are seeking God’s favor and protection, what does that mean? I think it means we can more deeply understand that blessing is an inside job of recognition. To recognize that we ARE God, we are always protected. We are always favored, but no more than anyone else. It becomes our life’s work then to pass the blessing on to others.

In this second part of the metaphysical understanding of the Sermon on the Mount, we will look at the concept of blessing as expressed in the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes are eight blessings.

First…

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” - Matthew 5:3

Let’s start with the concept of heaven. Heaven is not a place we are looking to get to after we die. Heaven is a state of mind. Conversely, so is hell. Which state of mind are we choosing to live in at any given time? To be poor in spirit is to be empty of pre-conceived notions and opinions. It is not unlike to the Buddhist concept of beginner’s mind. When we are free of the limitations of opinion, pride, ego, and preconceived notions we are more receptive to the Spiritual Truth. Living from the point of view of Spiritual Truth is living in the kingdom of heaven in the here and now.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” - Matthew 5:4

Have you ever experienced mourning? I can’t imagine there is anyone on this planet who has not had the experience of mourning at some point in their lives. What is it we mourn? Mourning is rooted in a feeling of loss. We often feel loss when there is an experience in our lives of suffering, making mistakes, or even a perception of failure in our lives. I imagine we’ve all heard it before, but the experience of mourning can lead to strength. We build up from the low points in our lives.

While we outwardly mourn, if we keep an eye to the inner Spirit we may find comfort. To surrender and let it go the infinite truth provides a magnificent good.

We are comforted when we align with the truth of our being.

Is it easy? Not always. It may get more difficult before we see the ease and grace of the situation. In it all, we are blessed when we know who we are. Lifting ourselves up (sometimes with the help and support of others) is the blessed comfort we seek.

You are blessed, just as you are, right here and right now.

More beatitudes to explore over the next couple days.