Ask Deepak: How to See the Miracles Around You

Q: I have been practicing meditation and visualization techniques for about two years now as I work on creating my authentic life. I have had really great success in tapping into what I want, narrowing my focus and creating goals for myself. I'm plugging away, taking things one day at a time, and am seeing many changes for the good. I have even experienced some small miracles along the way. I have noticed, just lately, multiple instances of synchronicity in my life. However, at times these events seem very inconsequential. I have taken note of these various instances because they are happening every day now, and more than once a day. My question is—what do I do with these kinds of events? Sometimes they are very obvious; for example, I might be trying to locate information, and suddenly I meet someone who knows the information, or I hear about a website or book that contains the information. Can you help me sort out the meaning of these events in my life?

— Sara R., Cary, North Carolina

Dear Sara,
Thank you for such a perceptive question and one that is especially close to my heart. Each individual event has no secret meaning. Your tiny miracles stand on their own, and as with most people, they are curious and even fascinating. What is important is your level of awareness. We speak of awareness as if it is simple, but in fact awareness is complex and fluid. Your degree of alertness fluctuates. Some days you are open, clear and receptive, and feel connected. Those are the times when higher consciousness reveals its potential. Other days, however, you are more closed, dull, conflicted and stressed, and feel disconnected. Then it's unlikely that high consciousness can reveal itself.

For most people, these fluctuations are simply a given. They speak of having good days and bad days, and that's the end of it. Which is why I believe there are three stages to opening your awareness:

• Notice the little miracles, synchronicity and unusual events.
  
  
• Value these anomalies for what they are—clues to a higher reality.
  
  
• Place significance on opening up even more.
  

If you keep these steps in mind, tiny, isolated events will start to form larger patterns. Think of how you respond to music. We all hear catchy tunes, but some people go further and think, "I really feel drawn to music." They value music as more than a passing moment of pleasure. So they take lessons and delve into how music works. The more they delve, the greater their ability grows. In the case of consciousness, there is no limit to your growth. Yet as with music, you can't let the small beginnings slip away. That's what the parable of the mustard seed teaches in the New Testament. Jesus points out that most seeds fall on stony ground, but a few land in the right place and grow from an invisible seed into a flourishing plant.

How can you become the fertile soil for the seed of consciousness? You must find ways to shift your allegiance from the outer world to the inner world. I can't detail every step on the spiritual path, but that is the essence, finding a way to absorb the realization that all these curious incidents are actually coming from you. Higher consciousness is seeking you out, asking you to pay attention. It is telling you that you are more than you suppose yourself to be. In reality, you are the wholeness of awareness, and the division between inner and outer has been completely artificial. Once you entertain this notion, you can begin to follow the clues being left for you all the time. These clues lead inward, which is where you must go to find your answers.

Love,
Deepak

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Deepak Chopra is the author of more than 50 books on health, success, relationships and spirituality, including his current best-seller, Reinventing the Body, Resurrecting the Soul, and The Ultimate Happiness Prescription, which are available now. You can listen to his show on Saturdays every week on SiriusXM Channels 102 and 155.

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