Being A Seeker

Seekers, Believers, and the Return to the Tao

By The Nature Within

This one may have a few rolling of the eyes - but this arose after watching a short Sadhguru clip and my daughter speaking about touchy subjects on New Age and Religion on a recent podcast., which I try to steer far away from.

Although the podcast was so beautifully communicated, my views and Practice looks a bit different - I am definitely a “Seeker.”

There’s a quiet but powerful difference between those who believe and those who seek.

Sadhguru describes it simply: a believer looks to an outside authority, while a seeker looks within.

That single distinction can change the entire direction of a person’s spiritual path.

Belief gives us rules, structure, and guidance. Seeking gives us discovery, honesty, and truth. Both have purpose — but they are not the same.

The Believer and the Seeker

A believer looks outward for answers:

to a priest, a tradition, a book, a doctrine, a parent, a healer, or a system.

Belief often forms in times of pain or chaos, because structure gives us something solid to hold onto when life feels unsteady.

A seeker, however, is someone who steps onto a (spiritual) path without demanding certainty.

Seekers are guided by curiosity, truth, experience, and inner authority. They live in the questions, not the answers.

Seeking isn’t about gathering information. It’s about becoming whole.

For many spiritual traditions, becoming a seeker is the point.

It’s not a race to be healed or demanding the Truth…it’s about the process of an egoless journey.

The Tao Te Ching and the Rise of Authority

Lao Tzu captures this beautifully in Tao Te Ching, Chapter 18:

When the great Tao is forgotten,

Kindness and morality arise.

When wisdom and intelligence appear,

Great pretenses begin.

When there is no harmony in the family,

Filial piety and devotion arise.

When the country is in chaos,

Patriotism is born.

Lao Tzu is pointing to something deeply human:

When we lose our inner connection,

we reach for structure. It’s just part of the human design.

When we forget our own wisdom,

we need rules.

When life becomes chaotic,

we cling to authority.

It is not that morality or religion is “bad” by any stretch of the imagination. Again, not a subject that I choose to openly debate. To each their own.

The purpose here is to connect tothe deeper truths that often are forgotten.

Belief fills the space where inner alignment has slipped away.

Tao, or any other type of seeking, is the practice of returning to it.

Oneness.

Why We Keep Coming Back to Practices

A frequently asked question:

If seeking is an inner journey, then why do we continuously return to prayer, cards, crystals, workshops, or training?

Because seeking isn’t a single moment of awakening.

It’s a cycle.

A spiral.

A remembering and forgetting.

We return to these practices because:

• The mind forgets

• The body tightens

• The heart closes

• The ego rises

• The old wounds surface

The tools don’t give us truth — they help us access it.

But for some, the tools become another form of authority, another thing to rely on instead of trusting themselves. The tools can also often send you wayward on a journey of power and influence most of us are not fully equipped to handle with ultimate responsibility and respect.

This is where discernment becomes essential.

Suffering Creates the Need for Structure

Most rigid belief systems are born from suffering — both individually and collectively.

Pain drives us to control.

Control drives us to strict rules.

And strict rules give us a sense of safety.

That’s why people lost in grief, trauma, chaos, or uncertainty often cling tightly to doctrines, dogma, or organizations.

Not because they are weak — but because the structure holds them steady.

But suffering has another side:

It can open us.

It can soften us.

It can return us to the truth that life cannot be controlled, and that certainty is an illusion.

Whatever we must suffer, let it be in service of our own awakening — not in service of someone else’s expectations.

Belief Has Purpose — But It Isn’t the Destination

Belief creates structure for those who don’t yet have the tools to walk the open path.

For many, religion is a lifeline.

It gives direction, morality, and community.

But belief becomes harmful when:

• It suppresses individuality

• It uses fear, guilt, or shame

• It discourages questioning

• It silences experience

• It demands conformity

True faith requires openness, humility, surrender, and trust.

If judgment, criticism, or control are present, faith cannot grow.

The Seeker’s Journey

A seeker walks a different kind of road — one defined by:

• Truth

• Purpose

• Service

• Discernment

• Surrender

• Experience

Seeking is not a neat, linear path. It has U-turns, detours, crises, revelations, and quiet stretches.

It can feel like losing everything you thought you knew.

This is why some people turn back to more rigid, structured beliefs — it feels safer.

There is nothing wrong with this. It simply means the soul is not yet ready to walk without external rails.

But for the seeker who keeps going, the path reveals itself in layers.

The Ego, the Heart, and the Conversations We Have

Rigid belief often brings ego with it:

the urge to preach, convince, judge, or correct.

The sense that one has the “right” view.

The seeker, however, learns to listen.

To hold space.

To experience without projecting.

To remain open.

This openness is the signature of genuine spiritual maturity.

No matter what brought you here, no matter what pain you’ve endured or what beliefs you’ve held — all of it has shaped your path toward truth.

That is the real nature of the quest.

Returning to the Tao

Returning to the Tao is not about rejecting religion or abandoning guidance.

It’s about reconnecting to:

• Your inner authority

• Your own intuition

• Your lived experience

• Your personal relationship with the divine

When the great Way is remembered,

we don’t need rigid rules to keep us moral.

We don’t need external authority to tell us what is true.

We don’t need fear to keep us aligned.

We move with life instead of against it.

It’s a constant practice. It’s a discipline.

Where To Go From Here:

Whether you walk the path of belief, the path of seeking, or something in between — it is all part of your becoming.

You are not meant to walk someone else’s path.

You are meant to walk your own.

The Tao waits for you.

Truth waits for you.

Your life waits for you.

The only requirement is your willingness to return — again and again — to the quiet knowing within.