In the first few days of 2018, I’ve been taking a good look at my Tikkun. I first became aware of the concept of Tikkun when I began my spiritual path of Kabbalah. While traveling in Australia many years ago, I experienced a life-altering sports injury that left me in chronic pain. No matter how many healing therapies I tried to ease the pain, it persisted. There did not seem to be any roadmap to a cure. It was only after I dug deep and began changing things that I didn’t like about myself, that I began to see positive changes in how I was feeling physically. It was during this auspicious time in my life that I was introduced to Kabbalah, Tikkun, and an alternative doctor who was able to help me further. The pain eventually subsided, and it opened up a whole new world for me.
It’s my belief that if we are here on earth, we all have work to do—self-work that is. Self-work can often go by the wayside because we are normally focused on “regular” work—our jobs and careers—and putting food on the table. The self-work that we have to do is often centered around our particular challenges in this lifetime. In Kabbalah, a key challenge is called a Tikkun, which literally means “correction”. It’s the idea that there are things that we need to change about ourselves in order to free ourselves and go to the next level. The more we work on ourselves and uncover our Tikkun, the closer we are to the light and the more fulfillment we will feel.
The core teaching around Tikkun is that each of us came into the world with something that we need to correct. When something is very painful and persistent in our lives, we can almost be sure that this is our Tikkun. While it may seem overwhelming at times, we are just as strong as our Tikkun! If we take the perspective that a Tikkun is actually a hidden gem that will lead us to greater liberation, we can stop resisting it and embrace it instead. We can treat it as a divine messenger whose purpose is to lead us to higher states of consciousness and freedom.
Uncovering our Tikkun can be like going on a treasure hunt. In which areas of life are we challenged? Where are we blocked or reactive? We may have a strong reaction around money, certain people, health, or relationships. Most of us have multiple areas to work on, and this is our Tikkun trying to get our attention and urging us to make course corrections.
For example, if we are a people pleaser and find it difficult to say no, this can be a Tikkun and needs to be corrected. If we are afraid to speak up and use our voice when we need to, this can be a Tikkun. When we fail to correct these aspects of ourselves which need improvement, they continue to come back to us as challenges in life—even bigger and harder than before until they are resolved.
Are there people in your life who do things that really annoy you? They are your mirror for self-improvement. Every time they do something to annoy you, you are actually seeing your Tikkun being revealed to you. If you spot it, you got it! It just may be a little concealed from you in the form of a different situation or circumstance and not so apparent. So next time you are quick to judge someone’s annoying behavior, ask yourself why are you so annoyed and uncomfortable. Ask yourself if it is possible that you do this same thing in some area of your life.
This week I invite you to look at the things that really annoy you and start uncovering your own Tikkun. This self-exploration can lead to discovering hidden gems that can ultimately be liberating. I am all for lightening up and believing that the Universe is truly on our side, and that each situation is offering us the opportunity to become an even better version of ourselves—a better man or woman.
What is your Tikkun? Share with me here.
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