Struck by Reality
A Journey of Awakening
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This journey required a shift in my paradigm about life. I learned to trust that life is for me, throughout the process. At this point in my life, I felt like I had no other choice. I’d been beaten down, and the old model just hadn’t worked for me. I was willing to try something different. Even if it didn’t work, I knew that I could exercise my option to free myself of all the “shoulds” that I had so dearly attached myself to up until this point in my life. I had chosen to be present and mindful, with life in front of me, and to let go of any desires and expectations in my life. I had decided to just be. Practicing this over the next year would help me to decide which truth worked best for me. The key to the process was that I would be writing about the journey as it occurred and, therefore, living in the moment. The name of this book—Struck by Reality—unfolded as part of the process of being with life as it unfolded. I believe that the spiritual pioneers leading us to the next level of spiritual growth on planet earth will gently guide us back on a journey within ourselves, with the understanding that all that we need to know and learn first comes from within. I believe that the model we will follow will be experiential in nature—you can see what I did and try it. Maybe it will help you on your path. Do as I do, not do as I say. Awake I woke up to a state of constant joy. And I know that this will never leave me. Nor will it be tarnished by any outside judgment of me. I got my wish to be fully present and awake. Sometimes, we must hit rock bottom. And when we think we’re at the lowest point, get knocked down even harder, in order to see and understand deeply that our true nature is when we have chosen to exist in a state of joy in the present moment. I now know with 100 percent certainty that I can let go of any thoughts that hold me prisoner to life. —Karen Maharaj, self-reflection, December 20, 2018
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About the Book
This book does not contain instructions on how to achieve your spiritual goals nor does it provide “how to” guidelines for your personal growth. This book was born in my heart on 12/31/2017 while driving to a New Year’s Eve ceremony at my local Mindfulness Center. My heart opened-up as I became clear that I am beginning my personal journey of awakening to the reality of life as it is in front of me. The only other details I knew at that time was that I needed to write about my awakening in the present moment to reflect on life as it occurred. The significance of writing about life as it unfolded, is my personal experiment to determine which truth is sustainable for me. The one in my mind, that has been fueled by traditions, belief systems, norms and societal expectations or the reality in front of me.
About the Author
Karen Maharaj was born in Trinidad and has a lifelong passion for deeper spiritual understanding. She attained her Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and worked in Healthcare Information Technology over the past 25 years. Karen goes on a journey and documents how she transforms over a 2 year period. Her writing changes from being a mental process to an expression of what she is experiencing. She really learns to be with the reality in front of her but only because she knows that she must practice in order to accomplish her goal of being with life as it is. After working diligently on being mindful, she is struck by lightning on the beach. Forced to be mindful because there is no moment more important than now. From then on, Karen really appreciates being in the moment. She faces death head-on as she musters up the strength to crawl over to her friend James, in an attempt to save his life. However, James does not survive. Karen searches for answers and attempts to make sense out of the fact that she is alive while her friend James who was also struck by lightning and standing next to her, has died.