Bible Parables S3E9: The Parable Of The Lost Coin

The parable of the lost coin The flow of the session is that we first start with reading of the parable,

Then we go into a line-by-line interpretation of the parable trying to understand what meaning it has in our lives.

After that we go into a guided meditation based on the same parable and then we close the session looking at what actions we can take in our daily lives based on the parable.

Today's parable the parable of the lost coin from Luke 15 8 to 10 and the parable goes or what woman having 10 silver coins if she loses one coin does not light a lamp sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it and when she has found it she calls her friends and neighbors together saying rejoice with me for i have found the peace which i lost likewise i say to you there is joy in the presence of the angels of god over one sinner who repents and that's the parable of the lost coin if we look at a very traditional interpretation of the parable the woman can be said to represent god the lost coin can be said to represent the sinner who has strayed or is disconnected from god the silver coin equivalent to a day's wages at that time and also possibly part of a woman's dowdy this also has a lot of emotional importance and losing the coin would be a very significant loss so the woman responds with urgency and care sweeping the house lighting the lamp searching very diligently traditionally we would interpret this as god values every single person no one is insignificant to him and even if one person goes missing god goes to great lengths to seek and serve them so now we go into a line by line interpretation and this interpretation is more more from a mystical point of view a spiritual point of view a practical point of view with a bit of psychology thrown in and the parable starts or what woman having 10 silver coins if she loses one coin and this line it sets the stage for that experience of inner fragmentation so we are talking of inner fragmentation here the woman symbolizes your soul the woman symbolizes your your inner self the 10 coins the 10 coins represent aspects of your wholeness joy self-trust intuition peace compassion creativity confidence boundaries clarity connection the 10 coins to lose one coin out of these 10 is to feel like something meaningful has gone missing to feel like something has gone off when we are not feeling joyful a life kind of goes out of balance when we are not feeling at peace i mean yes that that speaks for itself when our confidence levels are low when we don't have boundaries any one of these even one of these aspects of our wholeness if it is missing or it is lacking we are able to sense that something is off in our life it's like you wake up feeling anxious and you can't explain why you lost the coin of peace you keep saying yes to things you don't want to do you've lost the coin of boundaries you haven't made art in months you've lost the coin of creativity the parable asks the question are you paying attention to the parts of you that go missing or are you ignoring the subtle sense that something is off and the parable goes on does not light a lamp and that is that is the continuation of the first sentence does not light a lamp lighting a lamp when do we light a lamp we light a lamp when it's dark okay nowadays we light a lamp for ambience but traditionally we would have lit a lamp because it's dark and we need to see in mystical terms in spiritual terms lighting a lamp is an act of conscious attention giving conscious attention lighting the lamp it's bringing light to shadow bringing light to the shadow choosing to investigate what's going on instead of numbing instead of distracting instead of blaming lighting the lamp is that sacred act of turning inward with curiosity and compassion in our daily life if you're regularly practicing journaling you're journaling you journal for 10 minutes and then you realize that your anxiety is rooted in the fear of disappointing others or you sit to meditate and you feel like there's a tightness in the chest and you realize that it's a clue that you're carrying unspoken resentment or you're talking to a friend and you say something is off in me can i say it out loud so lighting the lamp lighting the lamp means i will not live in unconsciousness today i will become aware of what i feel and why i feel it that is lighting the lamp and the sentence goes on sweep the house so in this in this one sentence itself there are so many things happening there are the 10 silver coins there's losing the coin there's lighting the lamp now they're sweeping the house so sweeping the house sweeping it's the word itself denotes that there is an action taking place sweeping this is not a passive act sweeping the house devoted inner work clearing the clutter of outdated stories emotional residue mental noise sweeping the house means creating space for what is essential to emerge in our daily lives sweeping the house could look like unfollowing accounts on social media that subtly make you feel that you're not enough or that or those accounts which do not align to your values sweeping the house could look like letting go of the idea that your productivity defines your worth sweeping the house could also look like reworking your morning routine to allow 10 minutes of stillness instead of rushing so to sweep the house is simply to ask what has gotten in the way of my connection to myself what thoughts what habits what behaviors are clouding my clarity and the same sentence goes on and search carefully until she finds it persistence this is the moment of spiritual persistence the soul is relentless in its desire to return to wholeness and the key word in this part of the sentence is the word carefully so it's not panic-driven searching it's the gentle the grounded pursuit of your true self showing up to exercise even though your body is spinning showing up for therapy even when it feels uncomfortable taking a solo walk regularly just to check in with yourself trying again after failure not out of pressure but because your inner voice is worth finding so searching carefully being persistent and this is about devotion to your own inner restoration trusting that your peace your creativity your clarity are not gone they are simply temporarily misplaced and you are in the process of finding it of sweeping the house of searching carefully for it and the parable goes on and when she has found it she calls her friends and I have found the peace which I lost celebration this is the joy of reunion with the self this is the joy we feel when we find ourself when we find or when you find your lost coin whether it's courage whether it's your voice whether it's your calm something inside celebrates and the natural outcome is that you want to share it you want to share it with others because the joy that comes from alignment is contagious it's connective sharing this joy could look like you finally setting a boundary and you feel empowered and you tell your best friend with pride I did it or you reconnect with the long forgotten passion like playing the piano or writing poetry or drawing or painting and you post a clip online and you tell your partner I remembered who I am or after a long burnout you feel restful for the first time after a long time and your energy it naturally uplifts those around you joy is sacred when joy returns to you let it be witnessed let it be shared and the parable goes on likewise I say to you there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents at its deepest level this line says every step toward your true self is cosmically meaningful every step towards your true self has cosmic significance repent repent is not seen as guilt repent is simply a turning repentance is a turning point a shift in direction you are shifting back toward truth you're shifting back toward love and when you do this when you make this change when you repent the divine within you rejoices because you have that experience of freedom of peace of love of joy some examples you break an old pattern of self-criticism and you speak kindly to yourself that's a soul victory you catch yourself about to react from fear but instead you pause you breathe that's sacred there is joy in that you remember that you are not broken but you're simply becoming becoming now that's a miracle and this sentence there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents this isn't about religion it's about remembering your inner radiance and trusting that you are never too far gone to the turn and that's the parable of the lost coin simply because you're living in awareness you realize that a coin is lost that something is missing so you make a conscious decision to search for that what is missing and how do you do that you do that by by sweeping by doing a mental sweep by clearing space so that you can find what you are looking for because once you clear the clutter you will possibly find what you are what you are looking for staring at you right in the face so what coin did you lose today or what coin is missing in your life today the different coins that we mentioned earlier the coins are joy self-trust intuition peace compassion creativity confidence boundaries clarity connection and these are simply some coins that came to my mind these are not all the coins there are many many more coins and to each person they will have certain coins that they are focusing on at the moment maybe for someone relationship might be a coin or for somebody else faith might be a coin or trust might be a coin so what coin have you lost today what coin is missing and did you realize that it is missing did you search for it did you find it we will now go into a guided reflective meditation the meditation is titled finding the lost coin within so get comfortable whether you are get comfortable sink into your seat sink into the bed let your shoulders droop if it's safe to do so and if you are comfortable doing so you can close your eyes if you are not comfortable closing your eyes simply lower your gaze toward the floor and feel the rhythm of your breath it's slow it's gentle it's steady inhale deeply and exhale slowly and let go of the outer world let go of the outer world let go of the outer world let go of the outer world and now imagine yourself in a quiet warm softly lit room a quiet warm softly lit room this is your inner sanctuary this is the sacred space of your soul it's filled with comfort it's filled with peace and imagine in this inner sanctuary you possess 10 silver coins each coin is radiant each coin is glowing with spiritual light each coin represents a divine truth or the an inner quality within you peace love joy confidence abundance intelligence creativity wisdom health compassion self-worth which of these do you feel most connected to right now and which do you feel you may have lost or you may have misplaced without judgment we are simply noticing we are simply observing observing now picture yourself holding these 10 coins but as you look down you realize one is missing a subtle emptiness a part of you has gone quiet what have you forgotten about yourself what soul quality have you lost touch with when was the last time you felt whole stay with these questions what have you forgotten about yourself what soul quality have you lost touch with when did you last feel whole let your subconscious gently reveal what feels lost perhaps it's your sense of worth or your trust in love or your creativity once vibrant is now silent name the lost coin silently in your heart now in the stillness of your inner sanctuary you reach for the lamp this lamp is your awareness your intention to the turn to your truth you light the lamp golden light spills across the room illuminating hidden corners soft shadows the quiet places of your soul you are now willing to see clearly you say inwardly i'm ready to find what i have forgotten i bring light to what was lost in darkness let the light move through your inner space and what do you see what do you feel as the light is moving through your inner space and now you gently begin to sweep the house clearing the clutter of old thoughts stale beliefs unhealed memories you sweep out the belief that you're not good enough you sweep out the story that you will always fail you sweep out the fear that you're alone you sweep out the heaviness of regret the heaviness of comparison you release each of these with your breath out and as you sweep as you sweep reflect what am i ready to let go of to make room for the lost coin to the turn what am i ready to let go of to make room for the lost coin to the turn feel yourself lighter freer more open you are preparing the space within for your truth to the turn and suddenly in the far corner of your sanctuary you spot a glimmer beneath the light there it is your lost coin perhaps it's the coin of joy of faith of inspiration of love of freedom you pick it up and you hold it to your heart feel its warmth feel its truth it never truly left you you simply forgot you simply forgot for a little while and now say inwardly this part of me is alive again i remember who i am i am whole i am restored breathe the sin let it integrate let it settle into your being and as you do this you feel your soul rejoicing your inner being throws a quiet celebration not the noise of fanfare but of peaceful knowing the woman in the parable calls her friends to the joys so now you call forth your inner allies love spirit intuition grace they gather with you they say welcome back you never left but now you remember feel this joy feel this joy of the union with the self the joy of coming home and now in the silence beyond thought you feel it a sense that the universe is shifting with you the parable says there is joy in the presence of the angels of god over one who repents in this moment you have turned from doubt to truth from fear to love feel the subtle echo feel the rejoicing of the infinite the alignment of the cosmos with your heart you are not alone in the remembering you are supported by this entire field of divine intelligence and let yourself gently return to your breath inhale exhale you are back in your body but something has changed a part of you once lost is now alive again you carry this coin this truth within you and as you move into your day or into your evening you say to yourself i walk in the fullness of my being i have found what was lost i am whole and may the light of awareness continue to illuminate your path may every part of you be remembered reclaimed and restored and may the joy of finding yourself ripple out and bless the world and when you are ready gently open your eyes parable of the lost coin and how can we take the message into our daily life and this can be summed up in one sentence what coin have you lost within yourself and are you willing to light the lamp sweep the house and search until you find it again that's about it it's reflecting on on that void what is the void you're feeling in your life and then are you willing because if you're not willing then you're not really going to do anything about it all change has to start with willingness are you willing to light the lamp are you willing to sweep the house are you willing to search until you find again and you've got to remember that when you start sweeping the house you're going to sweep up dirt so be prepared for that get comfortable with that and then diligently search persistence willingness and persistence and the closing blessing the joy of the turn so may you leave this space with a quiet knowing that nothing true within you is ever truly lost may the lamp of your awareness stay lit guiding you gently toward every part of yourself that longs to be remembered may you have the courage to sweep the inner spaces to clear away the old stories the silent doubts the hidden grief and when you find that shining peace of yourself be it peace purpose love or joy may you hold it with reverence and let it restore you may a soul rejoice in the simple miracle of finding yourself again and may heaven within and around you celebrate with you each time you return to who you truly are go in light go in peace go in wholeness you are home thank you everyone for being here today love light blessings namaste