There are no “accidents”
Look closely. Anyone who has engaged in sustained creative activity, irrespective of medium and expression, has encountered a multitude of “happy accidents,” positive outcomes that occur spontaneously, without intention or planning. Here, a dragonfly happened to be in the frame when I was photographing the sun and clouds.
Somewhere in my early sixties I’d experienced so many happy “accidents” that their frequency, impossibility and accumulation opened my awareness to the fact that these could not be accidents. And it’s not just a matter of the “prepared mind.” As time went by, my suspicion grew that these were the result of guidance. Eventually, the evidence became so clear, so unmistakable, that I’m confident that this is so. I can feel when it’s happening. And when these incidences occur, gratitude prompts me to say a silent “Thank you!” to the Universe.
We say we were “inspired” when we produce something that felt beyond our capability. Artists have been crediting their “muses” for centuries, and scientists cite their “aha!” or “eureka” moments” as inspiration coming from dreams or psychological preparedness punctuated by a period of rest or distraction. From time to time, we all experience moments like these. Whatever name we give the source— “spirit guides,” “angels,” “Universe”—I’m convinced that we are actually, all of us, continuously receiving guidance from another dimension.
Deepak Chopra identifies three universal realities—the material domain that we experience with the senses, the quantum domain which is not available to the senses yet is fundamental to the material world and the virtual which is the domain of spirit, the ground of all being, the “field” within which certain discarnate entities can operate as our guides and teachers. In his book, How to Know God: The Soul’s Journey into the Mystery of Mysteries Dr. Chopra writes—
It is my belief that the brain is the last stop downriver, the endpoint of impulses that begin on the virtual level, flow through the quantum level, and wind up as flashes of electricity along the trunks and branches of our neurons. When you remember anything, you move from world to world, maintaining the illusion that you are still here among familiar sights and sounds.
I continue to experience an awareness—as I think everyone has—of distinct guides and teachers in various circumstances, particularly when it comes to problem solving, creative activity and expressions of wisdom. When we speak of “accessing our inner wisdom,” I think we’re in a state of being receptive, in the flow, open to guidance from that virtual realm.
As part of this dynamic I’ve also observed that happy incidences (and synchronicities), small or grand in scale, have the effect of consolations, their appearance evoking an approval of an activity or the appropriateness of a thought that occurred just before or during the event. Whenever that happens I direct my attention to what I was doing or thinking, and take it as an indication that in that moment, I was aligned with my reason for being here.
In The Seat of the Soul, Gary Zukav’s bestselling book, he advises us to—
Think of what you are doing as entering into partnership with Divine Intelligence, a partnership in which you begin to share your concerns with the understanding that there is an Intelligence receptive to what you are saying that helps you create within your own environment of matter and energy the most effective dynamics to bring you into wholeness. You do not need to think that you are creating alone, but rather that you are guided strongly in ways to help co-create in the most effective way for your healing and for the fulfillment of your contract.
The “contract” he’s referring to is one made by the soul prior to incarnation. In another part of the book his recommendation is to—
Take your hands off the steering wheel. Be able to say to the Universe, “Thy will be done,” and to know it within your intentions… The final piece of reaching for authentic power is releasing your own (intentions) to a higher form of wisdom.
It is not my intention in these blogs to persuade or promote any philosophy, idea or practice, rather it’s to demonstrate and encourage the use of images in evoking contemplations along the lines of appreciation and gratitude. So, when a dragonfly made an appearance at the precise moment I clicked the shutter (1/1200’s of a second) I take it as a co-creative incident, a consolation that tells me I was at the right place at the right time doing the right thing with respect to my soul’s purpose. Interestingly, a little research turned up the information that, in every part of the world, Dragonfly’s symbolize “change in the perspective of self-realization.”
In this regard, I appreciate that I am not, as Gary Zukav says, “creating alone.” It’s a realization that provides enormous comfort because I can relax and let go of any anxiety about what to do or think in all the areas of my life. I can “take my hands off the steering wheel” and assume a posture of aligning and allowing rather than trying to figure things out, make something happen or take control. Indeed: “Hey Universe! Thy will be done.”
Full disclosure: While I am the specifier and organizer of these postings and photographs—the bringer of form, their contemplator and appreciator—I believe that any wisdom they contain comes from the virtual domain.
In a universe that’s an intelligent system with a divine creative force supporting it, there simply can be no accidents. As tough as it is to acknowledge, you had to go through what you went through in order to get to where you are today, and the evidence is that you did.
Wayne Dyer, American self-help author and a motivational speaker
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Contemplative Photography 
This is an incredible reflection. I frequently have read about and tried to consider where our inner wisdom comes from and this explanation not only makes sense but is also a comfort. It’s a helpful reminder that as a creator or expressor, we aren’t doing it alone. I wonder if I release some of my anxiety around outcomes, if I might have more happy incidences? Worth trying. Thank you!
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