When we reach a certain point in our lives many of us begin to look at spirituality. We turn inwards and become existentialists to some extent. Some of us obviously more than others. As we continue on this path we delve into the power of mindfulness and total awareness. When we start considering who we are, why we’re here, how we got here and where we’re going we consider the possibility of a creator. Are we just made of matter or did we come from a higher source? Are we headed somewhere after this plane? Do our souls really live forever? There is so much to ponder. So many different ideas, theories and philosophies that we can really get lost in someone else’s translation of it all.What I’ve discovered through my own soul journey and desire to evolve is that the learning never ceases. The more we read and the more we discover the hungrier we become. The more we allow ourselves to open to so many incredible insights about our existentialism the greater the humility. The deeper we go the more aware we become of our smallness and how much more there is to discover about our selves and life. It is obviously a personal journey for each and every one of us that will take us down our own paths of self-discovery. The beauty of the self-discovery is that it really is so very special, intimate and unique for each and every one of us. No two will have the same realization to the same extent or same depth.We all are beings yearning to evolve, but at our own pace. There is the notion of young souls and old souls. For those of us who believe in reincarnation that is very much a prevalent train of thought. There is this fantastical idea of some of us having only lived a few times thus far while others are wrapping up their karma to evolve out of the physical plane completely to never experience a physical reality ever again. I do believe in karma and do believe in reincarnation wholeheartedly. I believe that each and every one of us is working on our own life lessons and until we understand that on a deeper level we continue repeating the lessons. When we are met with a challenge, once the initial shock is over, we must meet it head on and gain a depth of understanding so we can learn and move past this lesson. I call it “Life School.” That’s what I honestly believe we are all experiencing here in the physical realm. We are in school and it’s the School of Life. We have lessons. We don’t get to move on to the next class until we learn, understand wholeheartedly, pass the test and then and only then do we get to move to the next class, or level or grade. While some of us maybe in college, even grad school, some of us are stuck in grade school, not by any fault of our own, but just needing still to learn the simple lessons in life. Something as simple as lying is a life lesson that we may have to be taught over and over again, even having to live many lives to learn this one lesson. Nonetheless we will learn it and move on to the next. There is the lesson of love and heartache. There is the lesson of attachment and letting go. There are are so many lessons and so much suffering in the physical that a notion of one life is just inconceivable in my belief. We are all working on different lessons for a reason. Life is not equal and “fair.” This is not a level playing field. Only when we begin to conceive of a concept of multiple lives does life take on a greater meaning. The Creator, God is much to great for it to be so easy to sit in His/Her glory. We must work at it over a long series of lessons and lifetimes before we can even perceive the idea of salvation. There is too much karma and too many people in despair, and too many lessons for it to be so easy in my belief.Sufism is a powerful tool for higher awareness and consciousness in the regard that it elevates your consciousness. Sufism is a principle that allows elevation with the understanding that everything is Divine. We are all Divine and the Divine is working through each and every one of us. We are surrounded by the Divine. Whereas in a lot of philosophies about the Divine we look outwards, but in Sufism we understand the oneness of everything and everyone, the Divine included. The need to look outside of yourself is there, but the Sufi understands that God, Creator, Omniscience is everywhere, even within us. God is not an exterior force, but so Omnipresent that it is an internal force working within us. When we take on this intimate relationship with God knowing the Creator is not just all around us and in everything we see, but Creator or the Beloved is working through us we raise our consciousness. We become more responsible to ourselves and those around us. We have a greater sense of awareness of the power of Ominpresence and Higher Conciousness. This is how Sufism raises our consciousness. It is through total awareness that we elevate our frequency and connectedness to the universe and every thing in it. We are all One.For more on Sufism.Poems by Rumi click here.See a list of incredible Sufi Saints.May we all abound in our eternal Oneness.