Self-Understanding Part 3
September 24, 2025
Self-Understanding Part 3
Human beings need to be held. We were held in our mother’s womb and then in our parents’ arms. In the years to follow, we are held in the arms of friends, loved ones, and of our beloved. Yet there is another type of holding that humans need. It is the sense of being secure in our home, our community, our nation, and our world. The arms of this holding provide assurance that all is well.
According to Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, emotional and psychological security are a primary need, along with physical safety. But how do we receive that “emotional holding” at those times when everything comes crashing down?
Those of us who strive to live in consciousness also strive to live in awareness of the Ground of our Being. Yes, like a plant, tree, or flower, we too are rooted in that which supports us. On the biological level, we come from the clay in the ground, we are fed by the fruits of the ground, and we return to the ground from which we came. On the spiritual level, our souls come from spirit, are fed by spirit and return to spirit.
Being held by the spirit is to be comforted by a presence beyond ourselves. It is the sense that no trial is too great for us to traverse. It is the sense that we are never alone. I have a loved one who recently went through major surgery. As they were wheeled into the operating room, they were afraid, but suddenly a great calm came over them and from within, they heard the words, “I am with you.” They said that the voice was as real to them as any voice. They also felt a presence that they know in their heart to be the Divine. They remember this and it gives them a source of deep assurance every day.
In times when we forget that we are held and supported by spirit, we cling to what we can see and what our ego mind thinks will provide support. Then, as the Enneagram points out, we try to create support and holding through being right, being giving, being successful, being special, being wise, being loyal, being happy, being powerful, or by being “OK.”
Yet our true support comes from the soul who is forever tethered to the Divine.
Spiritual practice: Journal a list of reasons you feel assurance that you are held.
Self-inquiry: What holds you?
Prayer: Dear God, You are the ground of my being and I rest on the assurance that all is well, even when things do not appear as so. I rest on the assurance that all my needs are heard and that even during the heaviest trial, your presence is with me and I am not alone. Amen.
