Spirituality and Big Questions

Tags

exploration, perspective, questions, spirituality

One frequent bonus of working at a national aerospace agency is that one gets to meet their fair share of ‘space travelers’. On completion of their missions, they visit the center, share their wonderful stories, photos and anecdotes from their travels. One purpose of their visits to the center is to thank the workforce for contributions to the completion of their successful mission. A related purpose is to provide inspiration to scientists and engineers, young and old, to continue their work in the support of space exploration and related missions.

I have been fortunate to meet my fair share of astronauts over the years. I rarely let an opportunity go by to meet one, get an autographed photo, or even get a photo taken with them if possible. To merely be in the same rarefied air with them and listen to their enthusiasm for humanity, the earth, and for exploration, often fuels me up with enthusiasm for my work.

Needless to say, when the opportunity came to meet lunar explorer and moonwalking astronaut Harrison Schmitt, I didn’t hesitate to sign up. I thought it was going to be similar to my past experiences with meeting astronauts, but I was “oh so wrong”. There was a unique energy about Dr Schmitt of Apollo17, the last Apollo mission flown by NASA in 1972, almost fifty years ago. He literally had the energetic “new baby” like bounce and the “overflowing child-like joy” that both my wife and I clearly felt.

I marveled at the fact that he was so full of enthusiasm, four decades and more after the tremendous feat of Apollo’s final twelve day lunar mission. It made me ask several questions. When I get to his age of 84, what events will I remember from ten or twenty or thirty or forty or even fifty years ago which will fill me with child-like Joy? What am I working on today, which will make a difference for future generations (of life explorers) in future decades? What can I do today, individually and as part of a team and community, which will inspire the future in some big or even small way? How am I making good use of my creative energy on a daily basis to advance humanity’s future?

Yes. Some of these questions may seem “big-picture” like — even grandiose. And yet, they were inspired within me by being in the presence of one of four remaining humans who have walked another celestial body. I share the ‘big questions’ with you in the spirit that some of the inspiration of Dr Schmitt — a geologist turned jet-pilot turned astronaut who just “happened to walk on the moon” — also rubs off on you.  I am not sure of the answers, but my hope is that these questions will cause us to pause in the midst of our daily challenges, some small and some seemingly big.

In our  search of the answers to our own big questions, we can re-frame our vision of the world. With new perspective  and new vision, we can rise above the urgent and focus on the truly important . With new vision, we can then ask some big questions related to spirituality. How do we know that a ‘greater power’, It, exists? If It does exist, what is its nature? Do we have ‘personal experience’ of It, or is it a belief that was given us? How do we allow It to influence or effect our lives, or do we?

Kumud

P.S. What are some ‘big questions’ that you often ask your own self? Share them with us in our weekly gathering in #SpiritChat on twitter, Sunday Nov 17 at 9amET / 7:30pm India. I will bring some questions, along with tea and cookies. We may even ask the big question – tea or coffee? Namaste – @AjmaniK

Astronaut Harrison Schmitt speaks about his adventures, asks some big questions, shares his photos from Apollo 17

Our Spiritual Quest

Tags

quest, questions, spiritchat, spirituality

What is a quest? The literal meaning is a long or arduous search for something…. The adjectives long and arduous make the idea of undertaking a ‘quest’ a bit intimidating and a lot of work, don’t they? However, as with all endeavours, the reward or payoff at the end of the journey is what motivates a lot of us to take the initiative to begin, and to persist through the challenges that we face along the way.

According to Wikipedia, a ‘quest’ is

a journey towards a goal, serves as a plot device and (frequently) as a symbol. Quests appear in the folklore of every nation and many cultures. In literature, the objects of quests require great exertion on the part of the hero, and the overcoming of many obstacles, typically including much travel. The aspect of travel also allows the storyteller to showcase exotic locations and cultures.

Some of the common threads among the ‘quests’ taken by heroes (think of Homer’s Odyssey or King Arthur and the ‘Holy Grail’) are singleness of purpose, extensive wandering and suffering, and in some cases, eventual success. One spiritual parallel of such ‘quests’ as described in literature and mythology is the inner quest for self-knowledge, self-improvement, and perhaps, eventual self-enlightenment. The path or paths taken by many of us in our inner spiritual quest(s) are as varied as the individuals themselves – but the goals are perhaps very similar.

The seekers or questers are often familiar with the inner voice that starts out as barely a whisper, and then grows louder with each passing moment of increased awareness. The seeker’s quest may use practices like mindfulness, silence, stillness, meditation, service to others and communion with nature as tools for overcoming the challenges and distractions on the arduous journey. The seeker’s quest may draw strength from other seekers whom they meet along the way, who are facing challenges similar to their own. The mere exchange with each other, of the stories of their struggles in their quest, can fuel their journey forward to the next milestone. Sometimes, the seekers may even travel together for a while, in the form of a dynamic community whose members support each other simply because they know intuitively that they have a shared purpose.

The further we travel in our personal spiritual quest, the more we become acquainted with the value in practicing virtues like patience, courage, selflessness, equality, equanimity, oneness, and more. Every so often, we may be fortunate to find ourselves in the company of those heroes who have completed their personal spiritual quest, and returned to share their spiritual treasures with those who are earnestly seeking to travel their own path. The light and love of such questers can help us, if we open our hearts and minds, and learn from their wisdom. Gautama Buddha was one such example of a quester who shared his love and light freely with those who chose to receive. Can you think of someone who has helped you in your quest in a similar way? Were you ever in a situation during your quest when you felt like giving up, but some serendipity connected you with one or more questers who helped you to continue? What is the greatest challenge that you have faced on your quest so far – have you overcome it, or are you still working to overcome it? Is it necessary for every quest to have an ending, and a triumphant return ‘home’?

I hope that one or more of the above questions help you to pause and reflect on your spiritual quest so far. If you would like to meet some unique questers, and learn about their quests, join us in #SpiritChat on Sunday, April 26th at 9am ET. We will discuss some of these questions, and more, as we spend an hour or so together, moving forward on our individual quests.

Namaste,

Kumud

Ready? Q1. Reflect on the phrase ~ a (spiritual) quest. What does/would your quest look like? #SpiritChat
 
Q2. Is 'being on a quest' important for us to 'grow' in our spiritual life? Why or why not? #SpiritChat

Q3. My quest/path/goal(s) may differ from yours. So, how can I assist you? Or can I? #SpiritChat

Q4. If you believe you are on a spiritual quest, do you have a goal? Or is it more a 'wandering'? #SpiritChat

Q5. All these questions that we seem to ask. Are they relevant to our spiritual quest? Why or why not? #SpiritChat

Q6. What is the greatest challenge you have faced on your quest so far - have you overcome it, or are overcoming?  #SpiritChat
 
Q7. How is our quest affected by the victories and defeats of others on similar quest(s)? #SpiritChat

Q8. In your opinion, what are some worthy quests? Are there any unworthy ones? #SpiritChat

Q9. Share some life/work milestones that reflect your work, your quest... #SpiritChat

Q10. How may we best tell our (life and love) stories to best inspire fellow questers...  #SpiritChat