People on a spiritual path often struggle to reconcile the apparent contradiction between embracing wholeness and material abundance. Warnings about the spiritual risks inherent in the pursuit of abundance are present in most religious traditions. Christ told us it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven. In Buddhism and Hinduism, the monk’s path of renunciation is promoted as superior to the ways of the householder. Knowing that in the end, we can’t take it with us, why commit to abundance?
The answer is in the word. Abundance is derived from the Latin word abundare, which means “rising in waves.” The essence of abundance is the experience of the ocean of life rising in waves of love, energy, and enthusiasm. Connected to the infinite, unbounded field of spirit, the abundance of the universe becomes accessible to you.
The universe is the ultimate expression of something coming from nothing, and the essence of the creation story is the same whether you ascribe to Genesis, Vedic philosophy, or quantum cosmology. From the Vedic perspective, the infinite, eternal unmanifest has inherent creative potential. The universe as we know it is the expression of one exhalation of the Supreme Lord, Mahavishnu. When he inhales, the current cosmic manifestation will dissolve, until Mahavishnu’s next breath when he re-creates time and space.
From a modern scientific perspective, the universe is intrinsically abundant. The current estimate of stars in the universe is 10²¹, which is a one with twenty-one zeros after it: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. Scientists now suspect that all the known matter and energy is only about 4 percent of what exists. The other 96 percent of the cosmos is currently believed to consist of dark energy and dark matter. In addition to unfathomable quantities of energy and matter, the universe is abundant in mystery.
Mother Nature has revealed her prolific creative capacity since the first life forms emerged almost 3.8 billion years ago. The number of named plant and animal species on earth now exceeds 1.5 million, which is estimated to be less than 10 percent of the total that exists. We share this planet with 20,000 species of fish, nearly 10,000 species of birds, and a little more than 3,000 species of mammals.
Abundance is a state of consciousness in which you believe in your clear and unimpeded connection to the source of creativity. You are inherently confident that your needs will be met. Your inner value is independent of your outer possessions. You recognize that the universe is abundant, and that you are an expression of universe.
Commit to abundance consciousness. On a daily basis, before going to sleep, take an inventory of your life and allow your heart to fill with gratitude for the things, experiences, and people in your life. Even during those times when your life is not unfolding the way you would like it to, bring abundance into your awareness and you will notice a shift in your perspective. With this inner shift, you will observe a spontaneous clearing and abundance will flow.
