Developing Inner Life
Article By Siobhan Farrar
“Inner life is indispensable” – Jorge Angel Livraga Rizzi
In general scientists and philosophers agree that what we call ‘Life’ is characterized by movement, and ‘inner life’ is the same, except that the movement is of an inner or invisible nature. This includes the movements of the ‘stranger within’ whom we can recognize as a presence that has always accompanied us, and whom we might call our Inner Being. This being is without any age, gender or particular style and with no discernible features or qualifications except the knowledge and memory of ourself. This strange friend has the singular ability to be with us, to witness us in better and worse moments and, if we allow it, the ability to help us become who we truly are.
Traditions of East and West suggest through diverse symbols and stories that by developing inner life and getting to know our Inner Being we can learn to walk inward paths. These interesting paths lead us into the unknown where we curiously meet familiar realizations; eternal paths along which it might be possible to never really feel alone again and transformative paths which helps us to grow. We come to see that inner life is not something separate from ordinary-outer life but informs and guides it, so we can act based on something that is ours from within and not solely a reaction to changing circumstance.
Just as there are different planes and directions of movement in outer life, different planes and directions of movement exist in inner life and for the inner being. Our general psychological life, where thoughts and feelings come and go, and ruminate around without necessarily being resolved, could be referred to as our horizontal axis and movement. The everyday dimension of thought and feeling demonstrates inner life in its smaller dimension (like a bubble on the surface of the ocean). We can often mistake this for the sum of our inner life, but with the horizontal axis alone we remain at the surface and our reflections are typically superficial. What we want to discover is a vertical axis, a movement of height and depth, that can have a transformative effect on our life. The vertical plane has different laws to the horizontal plane: for example, imagine trying to glide above or dive beneath the ocean; we cannot use rowing skills to gain those perspectives. The vertical axis helps us to understand what is meant by the larger dimension of inner life, the plane and movement that philosophy helps us to seek.
Discovering the vertical axis with its movements of height and depth can be supported through the use of symbols, contemplation of nature, stories from myth and with exercises of imagination and concentration (to name a few). All help us to learn the language of the Inner Being (which is not English, French or any other!). The aim of learning this language is to comprehend the insights of the Inner Being, insights which come from our past and our future. One of the most helpful characteristics of discovering the vertical axis of inner life is that even when things are difficult, it is possible to approach and undertake them with a perspective that gives us a sense of calm. We seek this larger dimension not just for the sake of knowing something new but also for living in a more serene way with effectiveness and good humour towards others.
Inner life can help us feel more connected with those who are not necessarily present with us physically, but may be far away or even ‘on the other side of life’. Above all, through reflection, we can see our own reality and the reality of the world around us with greater clarity and so begin the work of improving ourselves and contributing to a better world.
We can all improve our inner life, learn to speak its language better and dialogue with our Inner Being. It requires good nourishment through the habits we form alongside the ideas and images we take to heart. Once we start to set it in motion, inner life indeed becomes indispensable and the practice of philosophy becomes the key to enter and support it, so we become stable in all directions, horizontal and also vertical to the depths and height of Life!
Image Credits: BY Marek Piwnicki | Pexels | CC BY PD
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BY Marek Piwnicki | Pexels | CC BY PD
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