By the fact that everything about her existence is perfectly ordered, Mother Nature is “choice-less.” What does being “without choice” mean in this context? All creatures – from the smallest to the largest – from gnat, to gorilla, all the way to the humpback whale, must serve nature as she demands. Their individual lives exist to serve and to sustain a living planetary matrix greater than themselves.

One of the gifts of being human is that our individual potential far exceeds the boundaries of our animal body, which like all natural creations must serve the general laws it's been created to obey. We have the possibility of knowing, consciously, the existence of another order of "body" that is “in, but not of” our physical form. For example, consider the oak tree; it is “in” the acorn, yet its body is timeless relative to the seed from out of which it comes.

To see the truth of this principle in the life of a simple seed and tree as an earthly, or lower expression of higher laws, is more than just promising; it is spiritually empowering. This exact same law holds true when it comes to the nature of our own consciousness. Within our present level of being – think of it as a seed relative to the tree that will rise from out of it – dwells a timeless level of our selves that isn’t subject to the laws of the natural world. This higher level of self, much like the life of a tree as compared to its seed, is relatively immortal. And as such, it is created to serve another order of existence.
This extraordinary possibility, of being “born again” – of achieving Nirvana, or Moksha – is seeded into us from the beginning; yet, no seed is the flowering it promises unless it's cultivated and nourished. And this is precisely where the inner work of the willing aspirant must be brought into play. Spiritual rebirth is not evolutionary, even though the Cosmos themselves move and perfect themselves to assist as a midwife. The second birth is realized through an act of free will; it is voluntary, not mandatory.
In order to nurture our awakening, we must first see the need to let go of those parts of us that we sense no longer serve us. This new kind of self-awareness is the interior “seed state” needed to outgrow and transcend our former level of self. But these seeds of higher self-knowledge must, in turn, become new actions if they are to give birth to something immortal. Consider the four separate instructions that follow as a single seed and the course of action needed for the flowering of a whole new you. Let them guide you to an incorruptible consciousness that is as timeless as the greater Good from out of which it comes.

1. Remember yourself: be as present as possible within yourself – to yourself – at all times.
2. Receive and accept whatever is revealed as the gift that it is: there is no such thing as a bad fact for those who seek spiritual freedom.
3. Release yourself: refuse to judge, justify, blame, or console yourself.
4. Endure yourself: never forget the following: There are two kinds of suffering. One is born of not wanting to see, or be, what life reveals about your present nature. This is useless, unconscious suffering; it serves only to reincarnate a level of self that always rejects unwanted revelations about itself. The other kind of suffering is the conscious sacrifice of this nature. It is our agreement to let go of who and what we have been in order to make way for the birth of a new and timeless order of being.

Key Lesson: Spiritually speaking, all relationships serve one purpose: self-knowledge. Self-knowledge serves one purpose: awakening to the truth of oneself. Awakening to the truth of oneself serves one purpose: dying to oneself. Dying to oneself serves one purpose: rebirth. And rebirth is…the purpose and fulfillment of all relationships.
Excerpted from The Secret of Your Immortal Self, by Guy Finley, Llewellyn Worldwide, 2015.

Author's Bio: 

Guy Finley is the best-selling author of more than 40 books and audio albums on self-realization. He is the founder and director of Life of Learning Foundation, a nonprofit center for self-study located in southern Oregon where he gives talks four times each week. For more information and to download Guy’s free 60-minute MP3 “Five Simple Steps to Make Yourself Fearless,” visit http://www.GuyFinley.org/kit