Enchantment Part 3

October 15, 2026

Enchantment is part of the essential soul quality of Sacred Joy.

Our three centers of intelligence—the heart, mind, and body—not only help us solve problems; they also store vital information. Much of this information is necessary for navigating life. Yet some of it goes beyond the logistical, the practical, or physical survival. It is inspirational and life-giving. Indeed, the heart, mind, and body carry the life force itself—the force placed within us at our creation.

Our three centers also carry essential qualities of the soul. This is why those who choose the spiritual life are bidden to recover as much knowledge of the soul as we can—to embody it, live from it, reach higher consciousness, and heal our wounds. George I. Gurdjieff called this process “self-remembering.” Jesus spoke of it as entering the Kingdom of God.

Yet other information is stored in the heart, mind, and body as pent-up energy arising from past trauma and painful memories. This energy may be made of guilt, shame, or flashbacks of our woundings. It may also produce physical and emotional symptoms. This accumulation of suffering is sometimes called “the pain-body.”

The pain-body can magnify our suffering until it unconsciously becomes part of our self-proclaimed identity. Those of us who identify with our pain may constantly refer to: My disease. My divorce. My failure. My firing. My neuropathy. My aging. My arthritis. My diabetes. My depression. My lack. My terrible neighbors. My disability. My surgeries. My disenfranchisement. We do not merely experience these things; we claim them as our own.

Though these are things that happen to us, they are not who we are. They do not define us—unless we let them. Yet many of us invite our trials, losses, our abandonments, and physical symptoms to describe and define us. It is as if they are the only things on our radar. Because we focus on them so intensely, we begin to believe that we are them.

What have we lost sight of? What have we forgotten about ourselves that is our truest identity? What has become more powerful to us than our soul? 

Remember, our inherent life force is greater than the debilitating things that happen to us because this life force is made of the strongest power in the universe—the power of love, the fuel of our soul. By keeping a clear channel open to love, we prevent it from becoming obscured. We need not allow the negative to define who we are. We need not let the pain-body take over. We are not our problems; we are our beautiful soul. 

The body is the first center of intelligence to store both trauma and its opposites—love and joy. It continues to do this throughout our lives. A profound difference exists between living from the pain-body and allowing love to fuel the soul and strengthen the life force. Those who refuse to be defined by the pain-body are much more able to draw upon love and joy.

The ability to be enchanted is also the ability to keep one’s frame of reference centered in the soul. To feel enchantment is to experience joy and love—the most powerful alternatives to dissolution, negativity, trauma, and the pain-body.

Not only present experiences of enchantment, but also memories of past enchantments and joys can counteract negativity and prevent us from identifying ourselves with our wounds. Among the most powerful memories and experiences are the visual, olfactory, tactile, auditory, and bodily memories of those who lovingly helped bring us into being. A familiar fragrance, the sound of a voice, a tender touch, or the memory of being held can also return us to the love that formed our deeper selves.

Recently, I spoke with someone who recovered cherished memories of a grandparent who had been instrumental in bringing them into being. Describing what happened when these profound memories arose, the person said, “I was enraptured. “I believe this is one of the gifts of enchantment: it reminds us in inexplicable ways, that we are more than what has wounded us. It restores our awareness of the love and joy that have also shaped us. It helps us remember who we truly are and the enchanted place from which we come.

Spiritual Practice

Write down your own thoughts about enchantment. Then begin constructing your personal theology of joy.

Inquiry

How powerful are your memories of those who lovingly brought you into being?

Prayer

Dear God, As I nurture my spirit and practice self-remembering, help me awaken to Your Kingdom within and among us. Restore my capacity for enchantment, and remind me that love—not pain—is the deepest truth of who I am.

Amen