Tapping into the power of intuition
The last higher mental faculty we will discuss is the mental faculty of Intuition. It is the final member of the ‘gifts’ that each one of us is endowed with. However, before I get into it I will start with a story – the story of how this series was birthed. One day, some months ago I purposed to call a friend who is closely linked with this publication. It was an exceptionally busy day for me, so much such that the idea of making the call was soon overtaken by many tasks, and by end of the day, I had not made the call. The following day I did make the call and in our discussion, my friend indicated that she had also purposed to call me at the same time the day before and had similarly been prevented from making the call. To cut a long story short I got to explain to her about intuition and she was fascinated and suggested I write an article about it in this publication. I then volunteered to do this series because Intuition was only one of six higher mental faculties and you, the readers, would benefit from reading about all six instead of simply one. So here we are today exploring the fascinating gift of Intuition.
It’s been referred to as the inner knowing, the still small voice that always speaks the truth. Here are a few quotes I like:
“Intuition will tell the thinking mind where to look next” Jonas Salk
“All human knowledge begins with intuitions, proceeds from thence to concepts, and ends with ideas” Immanuel Kant
“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift” Albert Einstein.
Your intuition is always speaking to you but it is hard to hear amidst the busyness of our lives. We are involved in numerous things daily such that we never get time to quiet our minds to listen to this precious faculty. Television, cellphones, social media, masses of information bombard us daily leaving us literally breathless and diving for cover under the sheets at the end of the day to escape. The secret is to create time to meditate, to quiet the mind. Through meditation, one gets the opportunity to empty the mind, listen, and hear the small still voice of intuition. I recommend you set aside a minimum of 10 minutes daily of quiet time to achieve deep, uninterrupted meditation. Twenty minutes is probably the best – I am currently achieving thirty minutes daily five days a week first thing in the morning. Working on improvements – always!
Like all good habits, it takes time, practice, and patience to perfect the art of meditation. Your mind will fight you against it. It’s difficult to quiet the mind that’s why it’s referred to as the jumping monkey because it’s jumping from one thought to the next. It’s estimated that the mind thinks between 60 000 to 80 000 thoughts a day. With so many thoughts flying through your mind, it’s clear that taking time to empty it is difficult, however, once you master the art, the results can be phenomenal.
How do you develop the art of listening to your intuition? First, you have to know and believe that you have the gift of intuition, stands to reason, right? From there begin to notice things that you would ordinarily dismiss, things like ‘I have a feeling about this or that, ‘I have a hunch about this or that. Notice these and write them down in a journal. Anytime your intuition tells you to do something, big or small, just jot it down. The idea is to tune in to the conversations your subconscious mind is trying to have with you. Each and everyday spirit is nudging you but at first, these messages are lost because you have not sharpened the art of ‘hearing’ them. With practice, however, the messages become louder and clearer.
The majority of people miss out on this phenomenal gift because they are brought up to want ‘proof’, evidence, for everything. They need to google it to believe it! Well, intuition is not a numbers game, it is about trust, it is about developing trust in this higher mental faculty. Your intuition needs to earn your trust before you can take advantage of it, give it a chance. Yes, begin relying on those ‘hunches’, ‘coincidences’, suspend your need to know why all the time, and start following your intuition. Developing this powerful mental faculty can transform your life in magnificent ways. Nurture it, refine it so that it becomes an efficient and effective tool for understanding, empowerment, and change.
Try this – when you get a feeling to phone someone, do so without question. When driving and you get a feeling to take another route that is not your normal route, do it without question. When you get a feeling to go somewhere or do something, do it without question. You see, intuition is a spiritual faculty, it is a spiritual gift but it does not explain, it simply points the way. Good things happen when you learn to listen to it and to obey it.
Your intuitive factor is a receiving receptacle in your conscious mind. It is working all the time, receiving messages from Infinite Intelligence. It’s always picking up answers to questions you are asking. How do I do this? How do I do that? What is the meaning of this or that? The answers are there. By listening to your intuition you have direct contact with the mind that knows everything, Infinite Intelligence.
Remember when we discussed the higher faculty of Imagination you wrote down the image of the life you really want to live? At the time you wrote down the image you didn’t need to know ‘how’. How would you achieve this life? What was important was having a clear picture of ‘what’ life you wanted to live. Now that you have the clarity you start leaning on the mind that is everywhere present. It will give you answers, it will guide you, it will provide you with the how. Yes, it may sound illogical because you are so used to proof and evidence but if you are patient and practice listening, in time you will be able to hear the small still voice very clearly and it will open a whole new world for you.
“I believe in intuitions and inspirations…I sometimes FEEL that I am right. I do not KNOW that I am” Albert Einstein.
The gift of Intuition is a fascinating one. Developing this powerful mental faculty can and will transform your life in magnificent ways.
Next week we conclude this series.
