One Woman's Story and a Love Like No Other: A Journey to Enlightenment

by Cate Moran

Overview

As human beings, we invariably do anything and everything but spend time with the self. We are lost in thought as we get distracted with all the flurry of daily living and earning our keep, believing it to be our purpose. As we look around us we see what appears to be a neverending cycle of conflict and turmoil. We have tried in countless ways to resolve these issues, but to no avail. We don't need more analysis or knowledge. The only thing that will save us is more wisdom. Wisdom is not something that can be acquired through book knowledge alone, but rather it is experienced from a place of inner stillness.

In One Woman's Story and a Love Like No Other, author Cate Moran shares how one can gain that inner stillness, unlocking the door to greater awareness. She helps you look at your life in a new way so you may realize your full potential.

The memoir narrates Cate's story of her love of wisdom and her search to find true love. She tells how she combed the globe only to find the man of her dreams when she least expected it. Then, through a series experiences, she shares how she gained a greater understanding of love. One Woman's Story and a Love Like No Other explains how Cate lives simply and prefers to observe events as they unfold about her, helping her understand the meaning of life and to discover more of who she is from her life's journey. It is through these experiences that a very different self emerges.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452530079
Publisher:	Balboa Press
Publication date:	08/18/2015
Pages:	196
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.45(d)

Read an Excerpt

One Woman's Story and a Love Like No Other

A Journey to Enlightenment

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By Cate Moran

Balboa Press

Copyright © 2015 Cate Moran
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4525-3007-9

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CHAPTER 1

A not so extraordinary beginning ...

In many ways I have lived an ordinary life filled with mundane happenings. There's really not much to say, save that it was a comfortable and secure upbringing. I wanted for nothing in material possessions, though we were not rich by worldly standards. Nor did I aspire to climb to lofty heights, either academically or in the corporate arena in which I found myself. In fact, it would be truthful to say, I really didn't know what it was that I wanted to do in life, and without a purpose I just fell into a vocation of convenience.

My family influenced my earlier years. I was born an only child, with no cousins near my age. By nature I was more inwardly focused right from the start. My mother told me that as a toddler I had an imaginary friend called Tom. According to her, Tom was very real to me; any time we went to the cinema, or I was given some special treat, I insisted on Tom having whatever it was too.

As an adult this often puzzled me, as I had no recall of Tom. Was I seeing a spirit child? Or was it something else? Finally I found my answer through reading. Apparently it is not uncommon for a child who is raised without the companionship of other children to have an imaginary friend. The Self is the imaginary friend and it is the child's dialogue between the ego mind and the Self. Thankfully, that's one mystery solved!

So it was that I mixed with adults, and in many ways I was older than those of a similar age in years. I greatly respected those who were my senior, and learned much from their stories and gentle ways, but as with all families, I also learned from their not so appealing ways.

I have never been one for partying. And truth be known, I am quite content to be at home – probably more the homely type. Keeping very much to myself, I prefer to stand back and observe, never one to stand out in the crowd, just quiet and unassuming.

There is another side to me of course, one of creativity, fun and laughter. I do love to be in and around nature, and find it is so inspiring. I derive enormous pleasure from just looking at the simplest of things, like a dew drop glistening in the sunlight, and seeing its colors reflect their own unique but transitory beauty. I am also drawn to places of natural beauty, and can stand for hours just looking on in wonder and awe at nature's rich and vast tapestry. Feeling the earth's energy beneath my feet and wondering, 'Who is watching me?'

Do you remember that classical statue where the naked man is sitting on a rock, with his arm resting on one knee and his head supported by his hand, whilst he is deep in thought? Well, that's me, but in a female form, pondering the imponderable until the answer comes. In fact some of my best insights have come this way. I like nothing better than to sit and contemplate the meaning of life. There is little point in arguing about what is right or wrong, it just simply is.

And so begins the real story: I love life and everything about it. Whilst others have sought to learn how to earn a living, I have rather sought to learn how to live. There is far more to living than just earning your keep; have you ever wondered, 'Who am I?' And in fact, can you ever really know who 'I' is? Welcome to the world of endless possibilities; the more you look the more you will find.

So, how did this inner search all begin; what life experiences have I had along the way that have made me who I am today? One might wonder. As I have time now, I will share with you some of my experiences. Some are simple enough, some are truly remarkable, whilst others are beyond words.

Everything in life has meaning, no matter how insignificant it may first appear. There are no happen chances; all life experiences teach us more about who we truly are – at least that is what I have observed over time.

Now you know something about me, and what makes me tick, so let's dive into the deep and recall some of these experiences. Of course, there have been highs and lows along the journey, but what is life without some diversity and color, and through it you can observe how love plays out its merry dance.

Like all young women, I sought to find my knight in shining armor – a man who would love and take care of me, honor and respect me, be my companion throughout this life. As well as being a devoted and passionate lover, he would make my life complete, or so I thought. And what woman wouldn't want such a man?

All my young life I had sought to find this elusive man, and yet despite feeling deep within that such a person existed, I had little success in finding him. For years I searched, and even combed the globe in a bid to find this man. For some strange reason, the harder I looked the less I found. Certainly there were men in my earlier life, though for some unaccountable reason those I was attracted to mysteriously fell by the wayside. And there were those who professed to love me, and indeed some did ask me to marry to them. Whilst I had grown fond of them, I knew deep down that I was not in love with them, and yet, what is love? I pondered.

In many ways it appeared that those I wanted I could not have and those who wanted me, I didn't want. This was an unbelievable position to find oneself in. All I really wanted was to find the right man, settle down and to be happy. I also knew that if I had married one of these admiring gentlemen I would be trapped in a loveless marriage – the loveless side being mine, of course, and the very idea of that was repugnant to me.

At the same time I just couldn't quite comprehend what was happening here, why I couldn't find him. To add fuel to the fire, people would tell me, 'Don't worry, you are attractive. You will find someone.' In some ways being attractive can have its down side – you attract, that's true enough, but what do you attract? Generally unwanted attention, and then those who are on the borderline are the ones John West rejected! Meanwhile, where were the eligible young men? All the good ones appeared to have been taken, or that is how it seemed to me.

These were frustrating years, perhaps more so because I was living in an age of freely available contraception. Yours truly had been grilled into believing that a young woman does not freely give herself to just any man. However, in this age of sexual freedom my values appeared to be a thing of the past, and in fact some men even questioned whether I was having them on. Why was I subjecting myself to this added torment, I wondered. Why couldn't I be like everyone else and just freely express love?

I remember reading women's magazines of the day that seemed to be describing every which way to have sex and how to please your man. Of course I was naturally curious, and wondered what I was missing out on. Then I reflected further: there was a part of me that feared intimacy. I was terrified of finding myself pregnant, unwed and alone. My mind painted a vivid picture of the shame and desperation; so much so that I could even feel the thoughts of wanting to commit suicide. Was this some past life haunting me, or was this hidden conditioning instilled into me as a young teenager? Whichever way it is viewed, the fear for me at the time was very real.

So, what then does a young unwed woman do? You may well ask. Given the outward frustrations of finding a suitable man, I did what I have always done: turned inwards and found comfort from within, following my passion for the getting of wisdom. I was an avid reader – not of fiction, but fact – and to be precise, my interest lay firmly in the spiritual. From an early age I had reflected upon God; I was always drawn to the All Highest, the Father. Having been brought up in a Christian family, I knew and was familiar with the stories of Jesus, but to me the formless Father was my divinity. I couldn't fathom what the Holy Spirit was, back then; it all seemed to be shrouded in mystery, somehow.

Fortunately, I had been brought up in a spiritually liberal family who were open and not set in their spiritual practices, which of course gave me the freedom to explore a world of interesting and stimulating possibilities. From an early age I was keen to explore what it was that others believed, and happily attended the various Christian dominations' services – Catholic, Protestant and what my family called 'non-conformist'. I could see the underlying message was the same, only colored by the various doctrinal beliefs.

Then one day I happened to see a televised church service that greatly impressed me. The service was an ecumenical one. Priests and lay people from the world's various faiths were all invited to read from their holy scriptures. This is how it should be – a unity of faith – I remember thinking. After all, the great spiritual teachers of the world were all describing the same thing, but influenced by the custom and language of the day, as well as where they were geographically. The divisions that have arisen between the various religions of the world are man made, not of God. The truth is the truth, no matter what terminology is used to express it, and man's only true religion is love.

My reading had broadened to include the great spiritual teachers of the world. And I was also fascinated by psychic phenomena, which included clairvoyance, automatic writing, near-death experiences and out-of-body experiences, and so on. I seemed to be compelled to confirm the continuance of life after death, partly because as an only child with aging relatives, I knew one day I would have to face the inevitable being alone in the world. But another part of me was curious to explore the truth behind such phenomena. Subsequently I attended weekly psychic gatherings, where I discovered that I too could hear and see things from time to time, but it was very much in its infancy.

Nevertheless, I had confirmed, in my mind at least, that life does continue after death, which was a comforting thought. Whilst this was all very interesting, I sensed there was nothing new to be learned in this field of enquiry and yet I was still hungry to understand more about 'who I am' and the very purpose behind life. And so I turned my search back to reading sacred texts: teachings of the spiritual masters of the east; mythology of the east and of Druids; philosophies of the ancients, and so on, all in a bid to obtain a greater understanding of Truth. By now I was spurred on by the similarity of the stories and concepts. I could see the common threads emerging.

Whilst practising a meditation technique I had read about, one evening I had what I can only describe as a vision. I saw myself approaching a man sitting under a tree. He wore ancient- Greek-style clothing and I knew him as Paul. He smiled kindly upon me and handed me a large book. As I slowly opened it, he told me it was the Book of Knowledge and that I may have access to all it contained. With that the vision left, as I found myself sitting in silence and wondering what it meant. As with many such experiences, it just happened and there was an element of mystery about it, which with time revealed itself more fully. In spiritual terms time can mean weeks, months or even years, so be prepared to be patient, and hindsight is a wonderful thing.

This search for Truth led me to discover the wisdom of the ancient Vedic scriptures. Ironically, as a younger person I had rejected Hinduism out of ignorance, believing it to be a belief based on a pantheon of gods. However, I soon learnt otherwise. It is a very accommodating faith that at its heart lays the belief in one God, with the various gods and goddesses representing the different aspects or qualities of God, as well as illustrating a greater truth that the essence of Divinity is in all. Gradually, as you become familiar with the Sanskrit terms, the true beauty of Vedas speaks with such clarity and depth of understanding of the Divinity.

I eagerly devoured the wisdom of the Vedas, the Eternal Truths, which were visualized by sages who had received them in their enlightened awareness. The term 'Veda' refers to wisdom, discrimination and being. Hindus believe that the Vedas have no beginning; nor do they have an end. For them they are the very words of God. The Vedic texts are not just another belief system, but encompass a whole philosophy of living.

According to Indian philosophical thought, we perceive the concept of God in three stages of awareness, which is described in terms of Dualism, meaning seeing God as separate from the Self; Qualified Non-dualism, which is really another form of dualism, referring to the deep aspiration to see and experience God directly; and Non-dualism, where there is no separation, there is only God. The life of Jesus is said to be a good example of all three stages. Initially Jesus stated, 'I am the messenger of God' when he sought to spread the word of God; the second stage is when Jesus stated, 'I am the Son of God' when he displayed the virtues of God; and finally Jesus affirmed, 'I and my Father are one' in which Jesus had become one with God.

Depending on the individual's level of awareness, the Vedas provide for a varying understanding of reality. The Vedas also espouse the principle of equality in respect to everything and proclaim the concept of oneness, teaching man to face joy and sorrow with equanimity. The first part of Vedas are mainly concerned with the path of Action, and all the various branches of knowledge such as physics, chemistry, medicine and music. Their focus is concerned with the external world and therefore considered dualistic in its teaching.

However, at the end of the Vedas lie the Upanishads (meaning: the process of studying with steadfastness, as well as the attainment of the Ultimate Reality), which declare that the nature of the Absolute can only be understood via the path of Knowledge. In other words, only by going into the Self can you experience a state of consciousness that is beyond words. Hence the Upanishads are considered non-dualistic in their teachings. They are often described as the essence of all the Vedas and contain a higher wisdom. The teachings point to a practical means of attaining God realization.

It was in these eastern teachings that I first learned to distinguish between understanding that 'I' is one's perceived thoughts or ego mind, which is illusionary and not who you are, and that 'I' is the Self or witnessing presence that is the truth of who you are.

There was little doubt. At last I had found what I had been seeking – a clearly defined source of Truth, which resonated with me. And so began my life of quiet study of the Vedic wisdom and teachings long lost to man. As a result of my love of these teachings, I endeavor to live according to the five human values of Truth, Right Action, Non-violence, Peace and Love.

Truth is a state of oneness within the Self; it is where you find the inner peace and happiness that you are, for all other states are contrived and merely passing thoughts, not the essence of who you really are.

Right action is to act in alignment with your duty, to serve those around you who are in need. It also implies that your actions will be in accordance with a natural order, in other words your conduct will be in harmonious unison with all other beings.

Non-violence means exactly that, and it extends to your thoughts, words and actions. You are outwardly a reflection of your inner thoughts. If the thoughts are violent in nature, not only is it harmful to the individual's state of health, but also it invariably expresses itself into hurtful words and later into harmful actions. Therefore it is vital that we watch our thoughts, words and actions.

Peace comes from a state of mind that is not agitated or distracted by desires. The mind that is in either of these states will constantly replay its thought patterning over and over again, and if left unchecked will quietly send you mad. However, with patience and training the mind can be reined in, by reciting mantras and meditative practices.

Love is unconditional and asks for nothing in return. It is the culmination of all the other values. Love as thought is Truth, Love as action is Right conduct, Love as feeling is Peace and Love as understanding is Non-violence. It is the recognition there is no separation – all is one. Love is the Divinity itself.

As is the way on the spiritual journey, my faith has been tested, and my metal honed, so that I may stand strong in the light of Truth, knowing that I am not the body, but something far greater than mere words can say. This is not the end of the story, but merely the beginning.

Whilst living on the coast, our home faced the ocean. And as was my custom, one barmy evening I stood on the verandah admiring the beauty of the moment, as the moonlight reflected upon the ocean. Suddenly, it was as if the ocean had risen up and enveloped me in an ocean of love. I could feel its power unlike anything I can express in words. Never had I experienced anything quite like this before, so wondrous – Love, Bliss and Joy all wrapped up into one. As the wave of love subsided, the air was permeated with the scent of sweet jasmine flowers, and yet there were no such flowers to be found, either inside or outside, but the lingering presence of the Divinity.

(Continues...)

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Excerpted from One Woman's Story and a Love Like No Other by Cate Moran. Copyright © 2015 Cate Moran. Excerpted by permission of Balboa Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

Contents

Acknowledgements, ix,
Introduction, xi,
A not so extraordinary beginning, 1,
Time to travel, 12,
Living the dream, 27,
Seeing, is believing, 38,
Changing times, 49,
The transition, 64,
Picking up the pieces, 79,
Where to from here, 111,
A new beginning, 131,
True love, 152,
Glossary, 171,
References, 177,
About the Author, 183,