A Divine Gift To Ourselves:

 

Gardening For Inner Peace

 

Sometimes it's crucial to take an hour or so out of the day to do something that's a blessing to ourselves - something relaxing, soothing & peaceful - giving ourselves a special spiritual gift.  "Relaxedly" poking around in a garden can be just the perfect stress relieving activity that gets us back in touch with our hearts and all that we truly value.  Then later when we're caring for our family; interacting with others; or just being with ourselves; we find ourselves naturally being more peaceful, soft, sensitive, kind, gentle, patient, loving, and spiritually uplifted and intuitive to the needs of the moment.  So it's helpful to give ourselves permission to forget the hurries and worries of the day for awhile, and just be caught up in the peacefulness of the moment in our garden.

 

Gardening as a Source of Inner Peace, Joy & Contentment

 

It's amazing how peaceful and inwardly fulfilling gardening can be.  It can range from a simple natural way of relieving stress by relaxing and gently stretching tense muscles while getting back in touch with that quiet place within our hearts; to acquiring greater inner peace and spiritual connectedness by being in a peaceful, natural setting for a little while.  Either way, we need to be kind to ourselves while gardening and give ourselves permission to take many breaks to breathe in the fresh air; to feel the inner peace expanding within our hearts; and to pour forth our loving gratitude to our Mother-Father GOD; the angelic beings; the flowers; and all life; as well as to thank life for such a sweet, peaceful blessing as gardening.

 

"Keeping It Simple"

 

Basically, there are two kinds of gardens: flower gardens (sometimes called "ornamental" gardens) and vegetable gardens.  Vegetable gardens usually require a greater commitment of time, energy, and knowledge, (unless of course you're just growing a few tomato and zucchini plants).  Either way, don't feel that you need to start out in an elaborate way and create some kind of super oriental meditation garden or grow an incredible variety of vegetables.  It's usually better to start out with something simple and easy - just to get a feeling for gardening.  In fact, it can be as simple as a growing a few house plants inside or maybe starting with a tiny nook in our yard.

 

 

Statues

Sometimes it's nice to create a sacred feeling, focal point, or meditation spot, in the garden by placing a statue of a favorite spiritual figure in a special place.  Perhaps a statue of Blessed Mary, Quan Yin, Saint Francis, the Buddha, Jesus, Pan, an angel, or something else.  Or maybe you might want to spread some whimsical joy with a few statues of gnomes or fairies.  Whatever you do, it's probably a good idea to decide where you want to put the statue or statues before you start your garden, so you can plan that part of the garden around it.

 

Nature Spirits

 

The Japanese who follow Shintoism - the "Way of the Gods" - believe that all of nature is full of nature spirits or "Kami".  In the West, people might refer to some of the more spiritually exalted forms of these "nature" spirits as members of the Angelic Kingdom, while those that are less spiritually developed might be called "elementals".  Whatever one calls them, it can be helpful to make room for them within our gardens, as well as our hearts, by silently inviting them to be a part of our gardens and hearts.  Plus, we can ask them to help us to in-tune to the feeling of harmony and oneness with nature and all life.  And of course, it's a nice thing to thank them for the spiritual blessings and energy they pour forth so freely and lovingly.  The Ascended Masters tell us that, there are a number of our Arisen Sisters and Brothers who are especially fond of helping people with gardening and nature appreciation.  Some of these include Blessed Mary, Jesus, the Buddha, the Mahachohan, "Rose of Light", and the Master "Victory".  So if you feel so inclined, be sure to "call" to them, too, with grateful happiness.

 

Choose Angel Colors!

 

"Angel Colors" or "Ascended Master Colors" are colors that naturally spread happiness, contentment, and a gentle, uplifting spiritual feeling.  Especially helpful are various clear beautiful shades of pinks, lavenders, blues, turquoises, aquamarines, greens, yellows, peaches, and golds.  Bright happy colors, or soothing soft pastels, are usually the best, while avoiding drab, dull, muddy colors, or reddish colors.

 

Songbirds

 

Song birds love gardens and can be "invited" with water, bird feeders, bird baths, or plants that are especially attractive to birds.  Check with your local gardening supply store to find out what plants would be good in your area.

 

So, do you want to get started?

 

If you're a first time gardener, there are plenty of online gardening sites with tons of good advice, and of course your local gardening store is sure to be very helpful about what grows best in your area.  Just remember, that since creating a first time garden usually requires at least a little bit of planning, it's helpful to be sure to start our planning before the weather starts warming up.  That way we'll be ready when the warm, spring weather arrives and gardening stores start bustling with happy people examining trays of their favorite plant & flower starts.  And then, once we start, we've got the whole spring, summer and early fall to enjoy the gardening season and watch as our little plants grow, blossom & shine with their own soft, joyous inner light.

 

Watering

 

Don't forget that you usually need to water a garden every few days.  So if you don't have an automatic sprinkler system. Be sure to arrange for a neighbor or friend to water the garden for you when you go on vacation.

 

In Summary:

 

While gardening may not be for everyone, if we feel a soft, quiet beckoning within our hearts, we may want to try entering this peaceful, inwardly fulfilling world of gardening.

 

 

Copyright 2014 Bill Gaum, All Rights Reserved