Experiencing True Baptism and Grace by Jon Shore
Imagine that you are, right this moment, surrounded by and filled with a self-aware, infinite, immortal Sea of Consciousness. Consciousness that is unchanging and unaffected by anything that occurs in your life or physical reality. Infinite Consciousness that is the Source of all Creation and all Life, including the life you call yours. Some of the attributes of this Infinite Sea of Consciousness include Infinite Peace, Infinite Bliss, Infinite Power, Infinite Wisdom and Knowing and Infinite Creativity.
No matter where you are or what you are doing you are always and in all ways immersed in this Infinite Sea of Consciousness. There is no place that Infinite Consciousness is not.
To experience this Infinite Sea of Consciousness, this Source of all Creation, this Infinite Peace, we must be very still and silent. We must stay in and pay attention to the here and now moment without any judgment, control, desires, agenda or pre-conceived beliefs. We must be an empty or blank vessel.
When we ‘achieve’ this state of emptiness we can then begin to tangibly experience the Infinite Sea of Consciousness and It’s attributes. Once we begin to experience the Infinite Sea of Consciousness we must become aware of our immersion in it, then let go into It, surrender to It and then dissolve into It until there is nothing left of our sense of individuality. You are no longer a vessel but you are Consciousness ItSelf. This is true Baptism.
When we finally surrender and then dissolve everything we had imagined we were into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness we realize that we are now, have always been and will always be untouched, pristine, pure and unaffected Awareness. This is the true state of Grace.
I will post some practices you can do to experience this at the end of this article.
The Mythologies of Baptism and Grace
Various religions offer different ceremonies and practices for baptism. They usually involve using water or another liquid. These represent the Infinite Sea of Consciousness. Baptism may also include immersion in water which also signifies our total immersion in the Infinite Sea of Consciousness. The purpose of religious baptism ranges from cleansing, purification or initiation into a religious tradition.
Grace is a term used in many religions and is usually attributed to the blessings of a deity and includes general forgiveness for previous actions or sins as well as a feeling of being forgiven and loved.
Of course, these are human interpretations of that which is impossible for the human mind to comprehend. True Baptism and Grace must be experienced to gain even a semblance of understanding. Both experiences require absolute and complete surrender and dissolution into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness until there is nothing left.
When we let go of and dissolve the false idea of a ‘me’ separate from Infinite Consciousness, (original sin), we then experience this state of pureness, innocence, perfection, all rightness, peace, love and expansiveness. This is true Grace and it is ‘achieved’ by surrender and dissolution into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness, true Baptism.
For the human mind it seems far easier to accept the religious interpretations of baptism and grace. But for the real and true experiences of Baptism and Grace we must go beyond what the human mind can understand or conceive.
The process of true Baptism, surrendering and dissolving into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness, can be frightening at first. The fear of losing your identity, personality, history and life can feel like an insurmountable wall. It can feel like a huge risk. But, I can assure you, from experience, that if you do not succumb to the fear and if you surrender and dissolve into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness, that you will be fine. You will lose nothing real and life will be far more amazing than you ever dreamed.
The Tangible Experience of Living in a State of Grace
The results of living in a state of Grace are many. Life flows beautifully and perfectly. The unfolding of life and creation appear as a never ending series of synchronistic events, like a brick road where all the bricks fall into place perfectly before we arrive. Life is less stressful. Life is fulfilling and we feel as if life has purpose. Self – harm, destruction and sabotage to not occur. Poor self-esteem, depression, anxiety, do not exist in a state of Grace. We experience transcendent Peace, Bliss, Comfort, Safety, Strength, Understanding, Compassion, Love and Wisdom. We see and experience solutions where there previously seemed to be none. We experience creative inspiration and the answers to our questions. We are able to see the path forward where, previously, there was only fog.
How to Experience true Baptism and Grace
The practices for experiencing true Baptism are actually quite simple. They are not easy but they are simple. They do require consistent practice and commitment though.
The first practice to learn is to relax deeply and to be still. There are many meditation techniques that can help you achieve this. I have created a number of them as guided meditations. Here is a short list of those you can work with:
There are others at those websites that you can explore if you feel inspired to do so.
Here is a short practice for learning to dissolve into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness.
Then, here is a meditation/contemplation practice for experiencing surrender and dissolution of the ego, the me….
And a contemplation on true Baptism and Grace
To experience this state of Grace on daily basis requires practice. The practice becomes much easier as time goes on and, eventually, becomes automatic. There are millions of distractions in daily life all vying for your attention and reactions. Therefore it takes practice not to be distracted. The rewards make the practice well worth the time and energy devoted to this.
Remember though. No matter how much or for how long you have been distracted the moment you come Home; surrender and dissolve into the Infinite Sea of Consciousness, all previous distractions and reactions dissolve and Grace is again experienced where it always has been and always will be. You are still the Pure, Perfect, Pristine and Unaffected One. This is Home.
This is who and what you truly are and always have been.
©2024, Jon Shore
All Rights Reserved
To reprint or repost this article contact Jon at reachout@lifesanswers.org