Verses 13–14: “Enter by the narrow gate. The gate is wide that leads to perdition, there is plenty of room on the road, and many go that way; but the gate that leads to life is small and the road is narrow, and those who find it are few.”
“Be bold, be true, be real, be you!” Perhaps, the meaning of the “narrow gate” is reflected in this statement. The narrow gate is narrow because only you fit through it! To walk the path of incarnating the Divine Spirit that flows through you is a path only you can walk. No one else can “go that way.” They must go their way.
Webster’s Dictionary defines perdition as “utter destruction.” From the perspective of analytical psychology, we suffer when we live according to learned and assumed guidelines and roles rather than listening to the guidance of our Self/God Within.
For each of us our psyche/soul has a direction or gradient that our life force will naturally follow if not blocked. The job of our ego/self to embody and live the realities of our Self/God Within.
Why does our libido/life force get blocked and sometimes seem “utterly destroyed”? Our ego/self mediates between the Self/God Within and the outer world and collective consciousness. Collective consciousness includes the beliefs, attitudes, and ways of expressing held by our families, schools, churches, communities, states, nations, etc.
To have the basic needs of safety, including emotional safety, and love and belonging met, the ego/self may censor or block the natural flow of our life force to conform to collective consciousness. We find “plenty of room on the road, [as] many go that way.” The populous road is the way of the collective that does not allow for the unique and valuable expressions of the Divine that only we embody.
As we mature psychologically and spiritually, the ego/self has the choice of which “gate” to enter and chooses by intention and attention. That means we must face our fears, our past wounds, and our longing for love and belonging to facilitate the free flow of our Inner Divine Spirit and find life in the fullest sense of the word!
By building a conscious relationship to our inner workings and the unconscious, we can discern who we really are and connect to our life force to live accordingly.
Inner Reflection
Where are you entering the world through the narrow gate of who you are? Where are you walking the path of many? Compassionately see and meet the blocks that stop you from living. Ask your Inner Divine Spirit for courage and healing to fully embody you. Hold the intention to “Be bold, be true, be real, be you!”