Where Does the Spiritual Path Lead?

"This is the pathless path. Where the journey leads is to the deepest truth in you.
​It is really just returning to where you were initially before you got lost."
~ Ram Dass

This week’s quote is another one of those sayings that sounds very wise until you realize that it leaves you with more questions than answers. How can a path be pathless? What is the deepest truth in you? And, where were you initially before you got lost?  

Let’s start with the pathless path. Ram Dass begins by reminding us that the spiritual path is a metaphor. He would tell you that, to reach your spiritual goals, you don’t actually need to go up a winding path to the top of a mountain- you don’t need to go anywhere at all because the only place you can ever be is right here. Also, the only time there can ever be is right now. If enlightenment does happen in your lifetime, the place where you will be is here- and the time will be now.   
 
The next question is, what is the deepest truth in you? Of course, only you can answer that. For some, the deepest truth is that they are love. Other’s may discover a deep well of compassion for the suffering of all beings. There is also the realization that you are it- that there is no fundamental difference between you and the universe that you exist in. The purpose of the spiritual journey is to discover your deepest truth, whatever that may be.   
 
Finally, where were you before you got lost? According to Ram Dass, the real reason you are here on earth is to awaken from the illusion of separateness. Before you were born, while you were still in the womb, all was one. There was no sense of self and no idea about other. There were no thoughts of “I” or any notion that you were something separate from your environment. In fact, there were no thoughts at all, just the bliss of pure consciousness. You were born with this unity consciousness but, as you grew up and developed your ego, you become convinced that you are separate from others and from this world. So, where were you before you got lost? The short answer is, you were home.