On my walk today, I listened to a Hay House Radio Podcast titled “The End of Depression” by Matt Khan, and he had a very interesting take on depression:

Depression is no enemy.  ~ Matt Khan

Khan goes on to say that depression is the shedding of the ego, and one experiences depression when undergoing a huge soul transformation.  Certainly, I’ve had my own bouts of it. About five years ago, I was basically starting over after my only plan, an ill-thought-out one, went to pot. Every day I was thinking, “What am I going to do now? How am I gonna come out of this dead-end situation?” I would just lie down feeling defeated and stupid.

One day I had this experience of what I would call the spiritual eye peering at me. It was circular and a deep, dark blue color. It reminded me of a navy gemstone that I have that has these tiny reflections of light in it, almost like fine glitter. The eye had a sound and an energy to it. I didn’t know what it meant or what to do. I don’t know what else to call it either. My idea of the spiritual eye is the light that is seen within, and not outside of me, like I saw that day. I’d look directly at it, and it would vanish. I could only see it out of the corner of my eye, and it only happened twice. I was definitely startled out of my despair. And, in hindsight, a way was made where there was no way shortly after that experience. Things were hard, but better than they were. I still ended up going through depression, even after things turned around, and it took a couple of years to come out of it. Not that I felt transformed; but, I did have that comforting spiritual experience, so that’s why I found Khan’s message piqued my interest.

I’ve always thought of depression as a chemical imbalance. I figured mine came half from messing up my gut, which can take a toll on mental health, and half because of my circumstances.  I do think there are other unseen reasons at the root, such as deep-seated spiritual, mental, or emotional causes. Guruji (Paramahansa Yogananda) doesn’t specifically call out depression in his teachings other than to refer to it in general, like the depression era. He refers to “moods” or “mental states”– happiness, sorrow, indifference, peace, and true joy. He says:

Each type of mood has a specific cause, and it lies within your own mind. To remove a mood you must remove its cause. One should introspect each day in order to understand the nature of his mood, and how to correct it, if it is a harmful one. ~ from Man’s Eternal Quest

Guruji also prescribes creative thinking to overcome moods; while, Khan prescribes rest and self-care.  When I felt most depressed, I looked to supplements.  I so wanted to come out from under that pervasive dark cloud, and I did find a supplement that worked for me.  It was a quick, easy fix, but not a permanent one. Overcoming depression requires perserverance imo.

Every morning, remind yourself that you are God’s child, and that no matter what the difficulties, you have the power to overcome them. ~ Paramahansa Yogananda