Lifestyle / I Need A Spiritual Maintenance Plan And Other Lessons Oprah Taught Me From Her “Your Path Made Clear” Tour

I Need A Spiritual Maintenance Plan And Other Lessons Oprah Taught Me From Her “Your Path Made Clear” Tour

Lifestyle Jul 17, 2019

by Rachna Sethi

From the importance of helping yourself first, to having a spiritual maintenance plan, Oprah and her inspirational public speaking tour, “Your Path Made Clear, Discovering Your Life’s Direction and Purpose” was filled with life altering gems that I didn’t know I needed.

Oprah (In Case You Needed A Reminder)

If you need a quick refresher, here are some Oprah stats. Best-selling author, educator and philanthropist Oprah Gail Winfrey was born in 1954 and grew up in rural Mississippi. She moved to Chicago by way of Baltimore to host her own hugely popular and successful television chat show The Oprah Winfrey Show (from 1986 – 2011). Ready for change but not retirement, the same year her show ended Oprah launched her own television network called OWN.

Why Should We Listen To (And Learn From) Oprah?

Why not? Overcoming a difficult upbringing plagued by poverty and sexual abuse, Oprah is a one of the best (if not the best) examples of the power of a person to fulfill their dreams despite challenging life circumstances.

With tons of accolades under her belt including being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2013) and being named by Life magazine as the most influential woman of her generation, Oprah is the first African American Women Billionaire and a generous philanthropist raising both awareness and millions of dollars for charity over the years.

There’s no denying the impact Oprah has made on the world so when the opportunity arose to attend to hear her live on her You Path Made Clear Tour (Discovering your Life’s Direction and Purpose) we sped to the opportunity (literally sped on a fast-track train from Toronto to Montreal the day of). After hearing Oprah share thought-provoking, emotional, personal on stage for 2-hours, we left in awe, feeling inspired, spiritually grounded and smarter.

The Lessons Oprah Taught Me From Her Path Made Clear Tour

Trust your inner wisdom.

We all have a voice that speaks to us; some refer to it as our gut instinct, others as our soul, heart, God, etc. whatever you call it, listen to it. Despite growing up with the societal and familial expectations that she would face a similar destiny to the women in her lineage (poor, subservient, working as maids) that are also found in South Asian cultures, Oprah did not succumb to cultural norms or pressures. From a young age, Oprah’s inner wisdom told her that her life could be different, and she bravely listened to it breaking tons of societal barriers along her way.

It can be easier to help others than yourself.

It’s important to practice what you teach but that doesn’t make it easy. In sharing her raw and vulnerable journey healing from sexual abuse she fell victim to by her family members, Oprah opens about how even after spending years helping other victims, she was struggling to help herself. In the emotional story she shares on the empowering moment when the light bulb finally went off that the abuse was not her fault and she did not have to continue to take her family’s attitude towards her abusers. Oprah’s heartbreaking story is like what many victims of sexual abuse may face when fear and/or societal stigma on rape (still present in some South Asian communities) leads them into silence or shame. Oprah reminds us that it’s a common human experience to be able to help others and not ourselves. Through her experience Oprah reminds us to create space for our own healing, prioritize self-care and be patient with ourselves because healing takes time. We must collectively as a world-wide community work to educate each other on sexual abuse and help empower victims.

Lessons Oprah Taught Me From Her "Your Path Made Clear" Tour — **Lessons Oprah Taught Me From Her “Your Path Made Clear” Tour: We must come together to raise awareness and protect children around the world.** Photo Credit: www.thebetterindia.com

Your partner should help you shine, not shrink you.

When discussing loving relationships, Oprah shares her experience with her partner of over 30 years Stedman Graham and how one of the keys to their success as a couple has been supporting each other. It’s no doubt that being with a woman as strong, famous, insightful and impactful as Oprah could be intimidating to most, but Oprah stresses the importance of not allowing any fear from anyone shrink you or dim your light. Your partner should support your rise and help you get to heights higher than you could have even imagined.

Surround yourself with support; friends can be family.

In a perfect world, everyone would have a stable, loving family they could be best friends with, but the world isn’t perfect. The beautiful thing about that imperfection is it creates the desire and space for us to connect with people outside of our bloodline. Throughout the talk, Oprah gives reference and respect to her best friend of almost 40 years CBS News Chief Anchor Gayle King and reminds us that friends can be the family we choose so it’s important to choose wisely. It’s just as important our friends (like our partner) do not compete with us but instead help lift us higher.

We need a spiritual maintenance plan.

Each tour, Oprah invites another thought-provoking leader on stage with her for spiritually charged conversation (examples include Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle, etc.). On the day we attended (June 16^th 2019), Oprah was joined by Iyanla Vanzant and both women discussed the importance of having a spiritual maintenance plan. Life will give us unexpected challenges beyond our control, but we can choose how we react and respond to them. To help us prepare for the unexpected, it’s important to have awareness and consistently practice things that soothe our soul (for example the Ancient Indian practice of meditation, breathing exercises, walks in nature, etc.). Identify what activities help you maintain a connection with yourself.

Couldn’t Or Can’t Make It To See Oprah Live?

No need to worry because there’s lots of ways to learn Oprah’s wisdom!

From reading Oprah’s book The Path Made Clear to watching her SuperSoul Sunday interviews or SuperSoul Conversations (accessible on OWN network and/or some can be found on YouTube as well) there’s a huge library of Oprah’s work at our fingertips.

Another way to soak up her knowledge and work on your meditation practice is joining one of the great, free 21-Day Meditation Challenges hosted by Oprah and Deepak Chopra. Each session includes wisdom on the topic selected from both Oprah and Deepak for the first 5-10 minutes of each session. The greatest news is that our favourite challenge from the past called Miraculous Relationships re-started on July 15^th, 2019 and you can still join for free by clicking here.

Main Image Photo Credit: www.cjoy.com

Rachna Sethi

Author

Rachna (@thesassyspiritual) is a graduate of the Applied Mindfulness Meditation program from the University of Toronto, a certified Educator with two bachelor degrees and a diploma in Art Therapy. She's dedicated to living with a compassionate approach. Committed to helping people integrate Mindfuln...

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I Need A Spiritual Maintenance Plan And Other Lessons Oprah Taught Me From Her “Your Path Made Clear” Tour

by Rachna Sethi

Rachna Sethi

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