Inner Guidance (13 page)

choked with fear. Far to my left, a dark fin moved directly toward me.

Adrenalin flooded my whole body, triggered by the basic instinct to fight or flee in the face of life-threatening danger.

Flight was not an option. I stopped swimming instantly. Stretching out my body, making it look as lean and long as I could, I attempted to float on the surface.

I wanted to appear to be an inanimate object, just a 99

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bobbing mass on the ocean. I turned my head very slowly to the right, away from the approaching fin, so I’d be unable to watch the shark advancing toward me. I had nowhere to go, nothing to do except hold very, very still, stretched out like a log, with my arms tucked in by my sides.

But my heart would surely give me away. It was nearly pounding out of my chest, beating so rapidly, so hard, I could barely breathe. I closed my eyes and tried desperately to keep my mind from dwelling on the horror of being eaten by a shark.

I
t was Christmas vacation from school, and I was glad to be home to visit my mother and celebrate the holiday. Hilton Head Island is located off the coast of South Carolina. Natural pine forests bring shade to this environmentally protected island, and the oak trees are fringed with delicate, hanging Spanish moss. The crowning glory of this picturesque scene is a twelve-mile stretch of beautiful wide, sandy beaches.

On Christmas morning, Mom and I celebrated and opened gifts. Then I went to the beach alone and walked on the warm sands along the water’s edge. It was a cool day, so although many people were walking and jogging on the beach, no one was swimming.

There were no lifeguards or caution flags. I longed just to dive into the ocean and swim. I would surrender to the ocean and be soothed by its vast strength. Always a strong swimmer, my family had once nicknamed me Fish
because I taught myself to swim at the age of two.

But I stayed on the beach that morning, hesitant to face the chilly water. Around noon, though, I could resist no more, and I took the plunge, splashing my way into the deeper ocean waves, swimming hard and fast, Inner Guidance_CH 06-10.p65

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feeling completely exhilarated.

I swam and swam, surrounded by the dark blue waters, until I rolled over on my back, exhausted and happy. Looking skyward, I took in the beauty of the mansion-sized clouds, then rolled over to look and see where I was relative to the shoreline.

Wow! I was so far from shore that the people walking the beach were suddenly very far away. How had I come out so far? It must have been a strong current that I failed to notice. With the force of a strong current, my every stroke had apparently taken me farther and farther into the ocean—much farther than my own efforts ever could.

Rip tides can drag you out to sea, where some people eventually drown if they struggle against them, trying to swim straight back to shore. The way to survive is to swim with it and gently edge out of it, until you swim parallel to the coastline and escape the seaward current.

Only then can you swim back to land. I knew this; I’d grown up near the ocean.

The only other rule I learned as a child swimming these waters was Don’t swim where the fishing boats are, since sharks trail them looking for easy food. Because it was Christmas day, there were no fishing boats around. Yet, I was out where the fishing boats would have been, and I could only hope the sharks wouldn’t come looking for a meal.

Trying not to panic, I told myself that surely someone would notice me struggling to make my way back.

Despite the distance from shore, I found some comfort in this possibility. I began swimming toward the coastline, prepared to rest when I needed a break. With so many people walking on the beach, I trusted that some sort of rescue mission would ensue if I couldn’t make it on my own.

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Then I saw the shark.

“

S
tay calm, stay calm!” I commanded my body.

In that heart-stopping moment, driven by an all-encompassing terror, I searched inwardly for what to do.

I knew it was time for a serious talk with God. Quickly!

I needed the hand of God to reach out of the sky and pluck me from this ocean.

Dear God, please
. . .

Yes, we beseech God in times of trouble, and sometimes it is at those moments that we receive our greatest lessons and blessings.

Suddenly, inner guidance came. All my practice over the years of listening to the Divine came through. Although I was new to the teachings of Eckankar, I knew what to do. I would call upon the Mahanta, the Inner Master, for guidance and protection.

I had read in
ECKANKAR—The Key to Secret Worlds
that calling on this magnificent inner presence would bring the assistance of the Mahanta, the greatest spiritual guide in the heavenly realms. But could the Mahanta really escort me out of this life-threatening moment? Deliver me from a shark?

Being rescued is not always God’s will, certainly.

But if it was in this case, I wanted to use all that I knew to assist me. As the shark approached, I called out to the Mahanta again and again. Fine time for a test, but I had no choice.

Having delivered my plea, I stretched out like a log bobbing in the ocean. And though my heart was still racing outrageously, I experienced an immediate sense of emotional relief. A moment of absolute surrender passed through me like a gentle wave.

I felt almost invisible in the water. No longer gripped Inner Guidance_CH 06-10.p65

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by the paralyzing fear, I faced death with calmness, floating in one eternal moment of peace.

Suddenly, I was hit hard from underneath.

The impact was powerful, and my body jolted up out of the water and shot forward like a bullet. Was this an attack? The force of the blow was bone-jarring, yet I felt no pain.

And then the most amazing thing happened. For the briefest moment, I was suspended in the air, above the water. Then I felt my body falling back into the ocean.

I was hit again.

I didn’t understand what was happening, and my heart continued to pound wildly, yet still I felt no pain.

I felt the strange hitting sensation slam against me a third time. Then a powerful, smooth, sleek body approached from my right side, and suddenly rose up underneath me, lifting me right out of the water!

I was rapidly moving across the surface of the ocean, speeding toward the shore.

The surface of the water broke in front of me, and I saw the heaven-sent rescuer on whose back I had just been carried. It was a beautiful dolphin, piercing the waves and jumping through the air in the inimitable way of these intelligent mammals. Just then another dolphin lifted me. Poised on the back of this second dolphin, I was again speeding through the water effortlessly. A third dolphin looked right at me as it dived to the left and submerged.

A school of dolphins had come to my rescue! They surrounded me, carrying me away from the shark!

It was beyond belief, yet I struggled to pay attention and stay aware. I wanted to remember every moment of it forever. I wanted to capture every detail of this thrilling experience as the dolphins took turns lifting me, turning me into a human hydroplane.

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As these graceful creatures swam from underneath me, each one would leap and splash ahead of the group, dancing a magnificent high-speed ballet. My movement through the water seemed surreal; it was part floating, part soaring, and part balancing act. Yet, I did nothing.

With total control of my body, the dolphins made all the necessary adjustments to keep me flying effortlessly through the water.

Quickly and smoothly, they brought me to the safety of chest-deep water near the beach. As I breathlessly turned to take in what was happening, I saw I was standing upright in the ocean, surrounded by an entire school of Atlantic bottlenose dolphins.

They continued to encircle me, spinning, diving, and smiling. Pirouetting on their tails, they performed their extraordinary dance. They were in no hurry to leave.

They called out in a wonderful, high-pitched language that spoke to my whole being. They were communicating all the joy and beauty of the moment in a graceful, gorgeous concert. Synchronistic flying, twirling, and leaping combined with a harmony of other-worldly voices!

“Dear God, thank you, thank you,” I cried as gratitude filled my whole being. “Thank you, Mahanta!”

Watching the dolphins, I felt this was truly their celebration for my safe return to shore. A job well done!

Surrounded by the entire group, I clapped with glee and cried out my praise and appreciation for both my rescue and their splendid performance. I spun round and round, talking to them out loud, thanking them all for this marvelous blessing.

Whatever they were communicating, the message was clearly of love and pure joy. Touched and in awe, I responded with euphoric cries in return, “I love you!

Thank you! Thank you. Yes! Yes! I love you too!”

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ward for several feet in a perfect farewell. I watched as they formed two lines and skipped and splashed their way out to sea in a thrilling, choreographed ballet.

“

D
o you work with dolphins?” an excited onlooker called out.

A crowd of people had gathered on the beach and waited to greet me, laughing and talking excitedly. They questioned me about the dolphins, wondering if I was a trainer who worked with them.

I laughed and shook my head. “No, I’ve never even seen the dolphins around this island before.” Tears of joy and relief glistened in my eyes. “I think they came to save me from the current. I was carried so far out into the ocean.”

That’s what I wanted to believe. There was no shark, I told myself, relieved. It was dolphins, dolphins all along.

An old man stepped out of the crowd at that moment. “Those dolphins saved your life,” he stated soberly.

“I saw that shark coming for you.” He nodded his head in solemn certainty. “It was coming right at you. Those dolphins knew you needed help, and they rescued you.”

T
he old man was right. Nodding affirmation, I admitted that I also knew it was true about the shark.

Were dolphins sent to my rescue?

I had followed my inner guidance and called out to God, asking for help from the Mahanta. I wasn’t sure how it all worked from a spiritual point of view, but my plea was heard. Of that I was certain.

It was clear that there was a power in the universe beyond anything I had ever conceived—a power that Inner Guidance_CH 06-10.p65

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could pull together all the forces of nature in a split second to change the course of events in our lives.

And today that awesome power had saved my life.

The experience left me with a strong sense of the interconnection of all life—and an awareness that God’s love, guidance, and protection are always with us. It does not matter how isolated we might feel; we are never alone.

After that experience, I was a changed person—as anyone might be. I took all that love and brought it back to my life, my career, and my relationships.

And I learned a depth of trust that permeated everything I did from that day forth.

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11

Breaking through

the Hard Human Shell:

Inner Guidance Brings a

New State of Awareness

Light and Sound, just like the rain and the
wind, come to everyone equally and alike. But
some people benefit more than others.

It’s up to you in your state of consciousness.

And your state of consciousness depends upon
whether or not you care enough to open yourself
to this inner guidance of Divine Spirit so that you
can have some of the experiences that are necessary to break through this hard human shell.

Unless you do, you cannot rise into the higher
states of awareness.

—Harold Klemp

How to Survive Spiritually in Our Times
15

I
was at a crossroads, and I did not even know it. It was such a simple thing, but the consequences were enormous.

Since I had begun my study of Eckankar, I had 107

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received monthly lessons called ECK discourses. I read one per month, reviewing and discussing it in a class called a Satsang. I really liked Satsang. In this sharing, my awareness and understanding became more refined.

I found new insights into my own life even as I sat and listened to others.

In Satsang, students of ECK find encouragement and regularly receive their own inner guidance, particularly into the meaning of the text as it relates to their own lives.

Or they might find answers to one or more of the issues they may be facing. In my own experience, the tangible presence of the Mahanta was with us in the class.

Participating in Satsang was often a highlight of the month. I looked forward to getting together with the class to study the truth and wisdom found in the discourses.

Yet, time was at such a premium in my life; I needed more of it. I was married and very busy at the university, working for five professors and expanding my own studies in education. Attending Satsang class was sometimes hard to work into my schedule, and it got to where I felt I could get by just reading the ECK books and studying on my own.