Reflection Part 1
October 13, 2025
Reflection Part 1
Welcome to this week’s Daily Reflections on the subject of Reflection.
It isn't easy to enter spiritual reflection when we are inundated with the story of “Me.” It seems that throughout our waking lives, we are constantly hypnotized by the fascinating movie, "Me.”
But when our attention is wrapped up in that movie, we are not truly present. True presence puts us right here, right now. We are separated from another person or an activity by the movies in our mind or our endless mind chatter. Presence is like meditation; it is being in the fourth state of consciousness, a higher state of awareness. The first state is ordinary awareness, where we focus on our thoughts, most of which are about our story. The second state is the dream state during sleep. The third is deep, dreamless sleep.
Presence is the fourth state which is above thinking. It is the condition of conscious awareness without the constant mind chatter. In presence, we are no longer caught in judging, categorizing, or being self-absorbed. We are fully attentive, alert and receptive to whatever the moment brings. Presence is a waking, receptive, and meditative state. And in that state, we are not hypnotized with our self-made movie of “Me.”
When practiced in presence, spiritual reflection occurs in this fourth state. This kind of reflection is above thinking because it is becoming one with what is. It means suspending thought and opening to the memories and impressions that rise from our depths. In this state, the soul guides us in the divine flow.
Of course, thinking is so ingrained that it will invade even during fourth-state reflection. But if we notice its intrusion, we can gently interrupt it and return to non-thinking presence. Spiritual reflection remembers, sorts, and processes on the level of the soul—on the level of love, not the level of the ego and its story. It is a co-creative process with the Divine.
Spiritual practice: Sit quietly in a room, alone, and gently clear yourself of distractions. What arises? If it is a grocery list, let it pass, and then return to no thought. From this stillness, what comes? Does a person or a situation arise in your awareness? Allow the state of no thought to bring you sensations, images, and impressions. The things that arise from our depths are the subjects for contemplation and meditation.
Self-inquiry: What are some ways that thinking might hijack your spiritual reflection?
Prayer: Dear God, I honor my depths, the seat of my soul. Help me be receptive to the flow of Your presence within me. Amen.
