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The Good

There are times when we approach life confidently. When we feel strong, supported and anchored in our direction. Our interior dialog is positive, we are mindful, gentle and nurturing to our inner being, and as a result of this perspective and how we are viewing life we feel energized and on track…like everything is going our way.

From this space when we look out over our lives thinking of how far we’ve come and all of the progress that we’ve made we’re filled with a deep sense of accomplishment and often end up in the space where everything seems right with the world.

The Bad

At other times, we feel quite the opposite. It’s like the universe has a wrecking ball aimed at our lives and everything we touch just turns to shit. Nothing we do, goes as planned and life seems completely beyond our control.

These are the times when we feel stuck, like we’ve fallen down the hill we were climbing and we’re now at the bottom sitting in the mire of all the garbage we dropped down, never to be seen again along with everything else we thought we were leaving behind.

Our inner dialog is a little different here as we will often attempt to motivate ourselves out of this mess in a manner that resembles, flogging a tired horse.

So what’s the best approach when we are stuck in the middle of our old patterns and self-deceptions? Is it possible to remember to nurture ourselves, when we’ve fallen flat on our faces and are eating a mouthful of dirt???

It’s Only Dirt

Well, I think that lies in how you view the dirt.

Determining the View

Let’s take a look at falling into the mire from the Four Levels of Consciousness:

If I’m in the Life is Happening To Me level of consciousness, my first reaction will be to find someone or something to blame for my fall.

If I let go of blame and enter the Life is Happening By Me level of consciousness, I’d be more inclined to think…I can get myself up and I would proceed to dust off and move on…after all, I’m in control.

If I give up control and enter the Life is Happening Through Me level of consciousness, I might look at what happened and wonder what it has to teach me about how I’m approaching my life…I might query and ponder the timing of my fall, the position I fell into and distill learnings from the experience of falling…it would be all about understanding the positive purpose of falling and allowing that purpose to carry me forward.

Now if I give up separation and I enter the Life is Happening As Me level of consciousness, I would see the dirt and myself as one. From this perspective, I would see the fall as my own creation and an expression of the highest good manifesting in my life.

In the above scenarios, the act of falling into the dirt never changes, it remains an impartial fact…such as saying, I fell to the ground. I fell to the ground has no meaning in and of itself, the consciousness (to me, by me, through me, as me) having the experience (falling) creates meaning (good or bad) of the ground (the landing spot).

Bottom-Line

No one, no thing, no experience…can give the events of your life meaning, but you.

One Person’s Mire is Another Person’s Spa Treatment: A New Definition for Dirt

The first thing I’d like you to do is go back into your recent memories of reading this post and recall the images that speaking of falling down in the mire conjured up for you…was it anything like this?

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My friend Christine often says:

When you plant a seed, the first thing that comes up isn’t the perfectly formed sprout. The first thing that comes up is dirt.

In other words, when you embark on a new path, the resistance comes up first so you can push through it and get stronger in that process.

Love the Mire

Loving the mire is all about using the act of falling in our lives as a signal to recharge, and the dirt that comes up as a result of planting something new to nurture, heal and begin a gentle self-care routine that enables us to grow stronger while we push through life’s challenges.

It’s a signal that you’re moving…afterall if you weren’t making any changes, there’d be no place to fall from

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© Copyright 2007 The Now Watch

There once was a girl who sensed she had some hugely important reason for coming to this world and being in this life.

She loved to write poetry and stories and eventually interpreted the meaning of that sense of a big reason as a call to become the next Stephen King or J.R.R. Tolkien. So she wrote and she wrote. She wrote dozens of stories, poems and even a novel; submitting her work to various magazines and publishing houses.

She found a watch in Writer’s Digest magazine that had a caricature of Tolkien on the front, large and cartoon-ish and she put that watch out in front of herself saying, when I finally publish a story I will buy that watch and it will be my outer symbol of success.

She received dozens of very nice and often encouraging rejection letters and the situation which she had created in her head to achieve her symbolized success never came about. In fact, too hurt to continue with it, she got away from writing altogether for a time.

Years later she unconsciously picked it up again, issuing press releases and writing bio’s for others. Her writing was effective and was able to convey something deeper even within a factual format.

One day she looked back and realized that while her attention was diverted toward using her gift to promote the voice of others, she had become “published” in many magazines, newspapers and journals across the country and that yes…she was even a paid writer.

However, she still didn’t feel like she knew her own voice…so she started focusing her writing into herself, using it as the scalpel of her focused attention, performing surgery on her outer layers, effectively tearing into her own flesh down to the level of her soul…finding out who she is, what she’s really made of and uncovering the source of the voice within her.

After about a year of fully concentrating on writing for self-discovery, she was invited by Albert Foong the Urban Monk, to participate in a writing project about compassion. The prize of The Now Watch was allotted to the judges’ favorite submissions and her entry was one of six to receive the watch.

A smile comes from so deep within her that she wonders at the source of it and at the way spirit moves to validate us on our paths.

You see, she was born with a gift (as are we all), a key to that would reveal a purpose or way of being in this world.

However it is the nature of the door to swing both ways in accordance with attachment, judgment and intent, so this gift when used in the service of the ego was a source of great pain and when used for a higher purpose altogether; a pathway of unimaginable joy that has the power to take her deeper and deeper into the center of her being.

A note from the author:

My most heartfelt gratitude and appreciation flows forward to the three monks; Albert, Kenton and Wade; for their project and the process of participating in it, brought to full circle, this great learning and at the same time has gifted me with a reminder of the tremendous value of presence within the only time that really exists…the now.

Spirit certainly has a way of getting our attention, using symbolism and a communication system that is customized for us alone while at the same time sending messages for others…like the great spiritual teachers that through conversation with one student also speak to everyone witnessing…touching each in a profoundly personal way through a singular event, I believe the Spread the Love Now! project to be one such event

Namaste

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Today, I am happy to reveal to you the new site, which is the embodiment of my current direction in life. This is a marriage between spirit and experience and a commitment to reflection and self-discovery.

I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive. ~ Joseph Campbell

Encouraging the Experience of Being Alive Through:

Passion. Making a passionate connection with life motivates us toward discovery. It is the power of attraction and when we follow it…doors will open where we would not have thought there would be doors; and where there wouldn’t be a door for anyone else.

Courage. Every journey contains opportunities to learn about ourselves through our interactions with challenges. Contrary to popular belief there are no “bad” or “wrong” parts of ourselves. Our dungeons, dark places and shadows are pathways to treasures beyond our imagination. It is through our abyss and in the places where we stumble…that we find them.

Creativity. When we let go of the life plans, limiting beliefs and patterns of behavior that ultimately don’t serve us, we can be open and receptive to our life’s possibilities. We can match our heartbeat with the beat of the universe and our nature with Nature. Out of this wellspring of creativity comes forth our true existence…a conscious interaction between ourselves and the rest of creation.

Making the Journey Inward.. is about discovering that we are the hero of our own lives and learning what we’re made of. Transformation is a commitment toward experiencing ourselves in a new and profound way so that we may understand that within us is contained all that we could ever want to be.

My Mission is… to assist and support people in connecting with the source of their passions which lay down the rhythms for which their hearts beat, that is in turn the drumbeat of the tune to which their transcendent spirits dance and the experience that creates the world.

Come Join Me in the Dance…

Comment on this post by 9am PST Sunday morning and earn the chance to win a free coaching session!!!

The winner will be randomly drawn and announced on the blog Sunday evening ~ I look forward to having a session with one of you very soon!

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Have you ever chased passion to the threshold of sanity? Followed your soul to the dungeons gate or experienced a delirium so sweet that it defies verbal expression? Have you ever fought your way through unimaginable fear only to find that contained within it was the heart of your dreams?

Would you believe me if I told you that the real terror lies in discovering your destiny…in accepting your birthright and the enormous power that goes along with it?

There comes a time when we manifest our days from the content of our dreams…only to find ourselves no longer sleeping. Our chests heave with lungs full of breath and a budding new awareness begins to occupy every cell of our bodies. Suddenly we know who we are…we are awake, alive, conscious!

Discovering Your Power: The Hero’s Journey

Joseph Campbell described the purpose of life as undertaking the Hero’s Journey. This frame can be looked at in the large overall scheme of one’s life as well as the myriad smaller versions that happen every time we cross a threshold and move toward something spiritually new.

The pattern is separation - initiation - return; this requires a leaving of what is familiar into the unknown, a challenge or trial to face and overcome and a return that carries with it new information, a new social role and a new way of being in the world.

I was very familiar with this frame as a child…I resonated with it and just knew that I would be the kid to go on the big adventure. I would be the one who was lured by the unicorn to meet the dragon, receive the guidance of the old wizard and face the ultimate challenge for the sake of the greater good. My world as a child was full of mythical creatures and magical things, some of which looked normal by day and frightening by night.

I knew there were dark and scary things out there. I had come face to face with many of them at an early age…at that time the best I could do was survive.

But underneath the challenges of the world, there was a love that I could sense, a belonging and what seemed like a whole other secret dimension somewhere under the surface. It was a place that constantly changed like the shifting sand on the shore. I learned that I could sense it, feel it, see it and utterly experience it…like the ocean breeze, wild, free and available.

It was here I learned to go to escape pain…and to chase every passion driven adventure I’ve taken in life. The roads passion led me down were like a maze…the love I sensed was the prize at the end.

When I stepped out toward living on purpose (the separation portion of the journey)…I was to discover the beast hidden in the labyrinth was my wounded relationship with pleasure and that becoming whole would be my challenge.

The Challenge

I believe in transformation. I believe in unlimited resources. I believe that anything is possible.

However, I never applied this knowledge to the monsters of my childhood, somehow the idea that they could ever be transformed into anything beyond acceptance just hadn’t occurred to me. I had forgiven and had healed enough to allow a certain level of functionality but that was as far as I went.

That all changed one day when my husband asked me why it was I never told him how to pleasure me, why I never wanted anything from him in that way. My answer was I didn’t know…but I understood how unfair it was to him to always be in the position of receiving and never be able to give, so I decided in that moment that I was not going to live that way any longer.

Immediately dropping down inside of myself I asked, “Why don’t you know?” The response came quickly as I saw a part of myself floating away…to a safe place. This was the me who has a voice in the realms of physical pleasure and passion, the part that inhabits me when I feel and makes decisions about what is felt and what is denied…moving herself away from the body was an act of protection that had become a habit whether or not it was necessary.

It was the way she learned to use her voice…and to remain in control. It was clear to me as I stared into my husband’s eyes that it was time to learn something new, that this behavior no longer served me. Something inside stirred and awakened with the knowledge of a better way…

Beautiful Monsters: Choosing the Set for Your Story

What is painful? What is wrong? What is pleasurable? What is enjoyable?

All of these things are perceptions…categories, information and a storage system within the mind.

What happens if you put a memory in a different category? If you paint it a different color? Give it a new soundtrack? Or change who you are in that memory?

The memory shifts from something tragic, painful, hideous or difficult to something that’s o.k., enjoyable, powerful or even beautiful.

Monsters must have the proper set up in the story to remain monsters…and ugly must be made a space to remain ugly.

Let go of that space, change the story and the memory will transform. The monsters will cease to be scary…in fact, they may have a message for you, a vital piece of information, of learning that you will be grateful to receive.

Memories are changeable. The scene can be recreated, the actors can be assigned new roles, the emotional responses can be altered as well as the filters the mind uses to experience them.

Any memory can be transformed into something empowering…all it takes is an adventurer who is willing to undertake the journey, to become the hero and to accept the gift upon the return and an experienced guide.

Tower Rescue: The Return

Like the fairy tale princess, the part of me that was locked in the tower was given a ladder, in the form of my chakras, through which to re-enter the world.

When I started living on purpose I became aware of my life’s connection to passion. Working on opening up my first chakra to increase that connection is what my spirit was prompting me to do and ultimately it was what led me out on the call to adventure and to facing the challenge.

Now that I am back there is more of me to inhabit the world. It climbs down through my chakras on a river of energy created by passion and pleasure into this realm..the experience of which is a beautiful reflection of my soul.

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Have you ever considered speaking to your chakras and getting their meaning directly?

I’ve experimented with this before while experiencing symptoms, which wrote about it in my post “Gotta Question? Ask Your Body…” but this exercise is more about asking the chakras to explain how they currently function for you in your life.

One idea in particular set me in this direction of exploration after being coached around the development of my new website. During the session, I spoke of my mission and while I was speaking I had the growing sense that one of the chakra’s contained a direct connection to my life’s purpose, and that this chakra wanted to speak to me about it.

Though I didn’t know which it was, or perhaps if it was all of them in some way…I was driven to figure it out. I started with a chakra meditation and while I envisioned each color, I invited that chakra to speak, asked it what messages it held for me and simply waited for the response before moving onto the next.

The answers I received came complete with visual images and feelings. I have listed them below.

Please keep in mind that there are several color variations one can use while meditating with the chakras, so don’t be alarmed if the colors you use are not listed. Also, the eighth chakra is actually ultra-violet light (so you can’t see the color), its color is dependent on the individual and determined by the soul and their current stage of development.

Root Chakra (Color Red)
I was shown two separate images, one was of a very old tree with a complicated and deeply connected root system and the other was a ball of swirling energy. The words, I am creation and creativity, I am the source, the root through which nourishment comes entered my mind along with the feelings of intense support.

Sacral Chakra (Color Orange)
For this chakra the image of a very old compass and map came to mind (something similar to maps made in the 1700’s) along with the words, I am intuition, the compass by which you use the map…this was accompanied by a deep sense of guidance.

Solar Plexus Chakra (Color Yellow)
I entered this chakra and saw myself, reflected in a mirror. It then panned out to an image of me in relation to the world, I heard the words I am self-awareness and the mirror by which you see from without…while experiencing myself from the position of the observer.

Heart Chakra (Color Green)
This chakra presented itself in the shape of a heart, and I saw an image of a knight on a quest riding hard on his horse. The words I am passion, I am the beating heart and the force that drives the adventurer out to meet his destiny entered my mind along with the feelings of intense desire and love, of feeling ignited.

Throat Chakra (Color Blue)
I was shown our blue world from out in space for a moment before it zoomed into an image of my mouth and jawline speaking into a microphone. I heard the words, I am your voice in the world and the vehicle through which you deliver your contribution and felt energy go out before me like a wave, interacting, changing, impacting everything around me.

Brow Chakra (Color Purple)
I entered this chakra and was shown a funnel through which poured intense white light and out of which came images, sounds and feelings. The words, I am your communications system. I transport messages from Source came to me along with the sense of receiving information…like being told a story, learning something fascinating or experiencing some new understanding.

Crown Chakra (Color White)
For this chakra I was shown a tunnel, on one side was the light-filled world of energy and on the other our physical reality. I heard the words, I am your bridge between the spiritual and physical worlds while experiencing the feeling on intense connection.

Eighth Chakra (Silver & Gold)
This chakra appeared as an indescribable being of white light that words can not express, the closest I can come is to say that I experienced a visual representation of consciousness. This consciousness stated, I am the aspect of you that is Source and I hold your mission. The other chakras assist me in delivering it. The resonance and vibration of the voice, coursed and hummed it’s way through me until all I could sense or feel was the movement of its vibration…like a melody or song that defies the mind…but to which the body responds.

Mission & Purpose

Now that I know how the chakras are currently at work in my life I am experiencing a greater congruency with my mission on the planet. The alignment has taken place. It’s a movement outwards that starts with expanding this site into its role as ambassador for my life’s work…the purpose of which is nurturing the dreams of the soul, igniting passion and impacting the world by assisting people to bring out their biggest, best selves!

What information might your chakras have for you?

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Spiritual Bonding

The bond that develops with a spiritual teacher is a strong one. These light-holders of the universe mirror to us the light of our own consciousness, take us by the hand and show us the way through the thick overgrown forests of our egos and lead us toward feeling the spirit, that has been up till then, at best…a mental concept in our heads.

It is natural to become deeply attached to your spiritual mentor, to trust their judgement and assessment over your own and to come to rely upon them for your spiritual connection. This is usually a necessity in the beginning when our connections with our own consciousness are deeply buried within our egos, when we can’t feel our own oneness with all of creation and when we can’t yet hear the voice of our own inner wisdom.

Through universal oneness…someone who is deeply conscious brings consciousness to those they are in close contact with. This is the burning log that can ignite the wood that is as of yet untouched by spiritual fire. But keep in mind that the purpose of this relationship is to get your own fire started. There will come a time when you will have to rely upon yourself or you will stunt your own growth. At this point your relationship with your spiritual teacher may not end but it will definitely change.

Moving from Student to Practitioner

The time to move on will present itself in your ability to handle your own issues. This will usually first happen in the circumstances when your teacher is not available for whatever reason and you are left with no choice but to work it out. When you become increasingly adept at this…your own readiness is presenting itself and it’s time to start seriously listening to the still small voice within and to seek it out before you approach your spiritual mentor.

When you do seek your own wisdom do you:

feel the same sense of relief that you experience with your teacher?
are you able to achieve the same level of connectedness?
find that things are working themselves out with little or no effort on your part aside of taking charge of your state of consciousness?
find that you need to talk to you mentor less and less?
find yourself capable of being motivated to explore spiritually on your own…independent of your spiritual teacher?

If you can answer yes to these questions then you may have to soon accept that it is time to move on.

Accepting the Change

It’s very possible that you can and will remain very close to your mentor…but also you may move in different directions. This can be a difficult transition to make due to the close bond you’ve developed but whether or not it is helpful to continue contact is a very personal decision; one that is made by both student and teacher.

Sometimes, each finds they need the space that opens up to continue their spiritual work; in which case they will have very little contact with one another. Other times they find that they can now mentor each other and develop a wonderful relationship in which they move fully into supporting each other’s spiritual growth.

However it goes…it is important to hold your mentor in your heart…flood them with your consciousness…and then let go. What arises out of this process will be exactly what you need to grow!

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Energy

Energy is the substance that lies beneath the surface of the material world, it is the ever fluid consciousness that animates the myriad forms of life. In our physical bodies this energy in the world is perceived through the filter of our brains. The level of energy we see and hear creates the physical reality of the world we live in. This established range was determined over years of evolution and is set at what most greatly promoted our survival as a species during the past 10,000 years…yet there is far more out there than what we have as of yet been able to perceive.

We can in fact learn to see, hear and think outside of this normal range. Many people do and many more are developing their abilities as we speak. The way I see it, our survival as a species now depends on pushing our abilities beyond the biological set point of our inherited survival range…which leads me to the evolving human brain, the nature of thoughts and how thoughts and energy correspond.

The Evolution of the Brain

Obviously our brains are wonderful tools that serve us very well in the physical plane on the practical levels of getting things done. But there is another function that has mostly gone by unnoticed even though it has been evolving right along side the physical brain’s accomplishments…the visual image side.

Why is it that we can create pictures in our minds? Or that faces are so immensely important to our development when it is maybe a sense of smell for other creatures?

The answer lies within our ability to see ourselves in relation to the world. We are capable of becoming conscious. This consciousness is the purpose of all developing life on the planet starting with the simplest life forms and ending so far with the only species that as of yet has this ability…the human being.

Human beings are capable of visualizing something and then creating it physically but this act that we often call art is merely a reflection of a ongoing process that is always in motion. We can visualize because we can create…we can create because we are aware of ourselves…and we are aware of ourselves to learn about who and what we truly are.

The Mind is a Tool Not an Identity

Thinking is vastly misunderstood. Many of us share a common perception about the nature of our minds…we think we are our thoughts. Thoughts are an automatic function of the human brain…the longer it is left unmonitored the more chaotic and unreliable the thinking becomes. Most of us buy into the false belief that we have no control over our own minds and that we are at the mercy of this automatic and often very reactive thought process but nothing could be further from the truth.

The Mind is Not Meant to Run Your Life…You Are

The mind is tool that is meant to be used consciously…it is not capable of managing your life, this is outside of the design of its purpose and would be the equivalent of setting the cruise control on your car and then going to sleep. It is a communication, storage and projection facility…designed to catch and filter information, display it for you and send messages to source. Source then translates these messages and they appear as manifestations in your physical reality.

Think of it like television reception. The mind is the station sending out the signal…the universe is the antennae or cable box that receives the signal and translates it into an image for your television (the metaphor we are using for your experience of reality).

Every thought is like a wave going out and emitting a frequency…each one is capable of manifesting physically. Obviously, the stronger the signal the more intense the focus…the more likely this is to happen. Think about which thoughts get the strongest emotional reaction, which ones you can’t seem to put down and you will have a good idea of what thoughts are currently the strongest and most likely to come and meet you in your life.

Visualization: Controlling the Signal

Visualization is one of the best tools we have for consciously sending signals out to the universe. Random thoughts and even thoughts of worry can not compare to the focused attention that visualization creates.

It works because you are consciously engaging your internal vision, your focused attention, your emotions and your thinking mind all in the same direction for a period of time. This creates an intensely clear, focused far reaching signal that is easy for the universe to respond to…allowing you to design your communications with the divine even if you have not yet gained control over your thoughts on a regular basis.

The brain makes no distinction between imagined and projected images and actual images from the events in your life. It does its job which is to filter, display and transmit regardless of the content. It is up to you to control the content and thereby control what comes into your experience.

Methods

I use a combination of methods in creating the content I want my mind use. Mantra’s (or repeated phrases) are wonderful for keeping it on track. Visualization is a key component as well which can include imagining as well as remembering. Feeling is the final peace that pulls it all together. If you can hear it, see it and feel it clearly than you are in control of the signal that is designing your life

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Two Bodies

I’d like to start with the concept of two bodies as expressed in Hinduism because I feel that it comes the closest to explaining what I have experienced through meditation. In Hinduism the two bodies are explained as the physical (outer) body and the subtle (inner) body. The subtle body is connected to both our physical bodies and our souls, this is the reason we grow spiritually when we move fully into the subtle body through the practice of meditation. The subtle body exists in the energy or astral side of the universe. The astral side is the spirit, the breath of the physical world…the unseen presence that is life. Your physical self is a extension of your energy self that encompasses both body and mind. When we have no conscious connection to the subtle body it is like living in a very realistic dream in which you are constantly plagued with the unsettling feeling that there is something more. Until we become aware of the astral side, we are seekers. We become finders when we consciously connect to the subtle body and develop a relationship with the energy side of life. Our physical reality occupies most of our attention simply because our awareness is under-developed but once we start to awaken…we become aware of all the movement and change that occurs in energy and how that energy manifests on the physical plane.

Breath After Breath

At the heart of meditation is breath; symbolic since primitive times of spirit it has remained a visible yet non-visible affirmation of life, being, soul and energy. Breath is deeply connected to our physical experience of the subtle body and is the magic doorway that we use in meditation to enter the astral plane. The focus required to execute controlled breathing deeply relaxes the body and mind. The basic meditation breath I use is a deep inhale through the nose for a count of four…a two count hold…and then a four count exhale through the mouth that empties the diaphragm. Some people vary this to a six count on the inhale and exhale but for me I find that it is too long and actually prevents me from achieving deep relaxation. Play with the count and depth until you find something that is comfortable. Remember that the purpose of the breathing is to renew your energy and to achieve a deep state of relaxation…the way you structure the breathing is less important than the result.

No Set Method

In meditation as in all things spiritual there is no set method. What works for someone else may not work for you…the spiritual journey is one that is a custom experience for each individual. So while there are basics…it is important to hear your own voice in this and try what feels right to you if you are not getting results. The main requirements are 1) trust 2) patience and 3) lots of practice.

Meditation: Entering the Zone

The qualities that meditation invokes are a lot like a phenomenon that people refer to as ‘being in the zone’. The zone is a kind of über state that often accompanies random acts of ability, standing out in the minds of those who experience it as possessing a quality that is normally absent. If you’ve ever had an experience like this…you know you want to repeat it. ‘The zone’ is what experts in any field aspire to but it is really a state of intense focus, coupled with absolute knowing and zero resistance…all things that can be learned through meditation.

In my next entry I will explain some of my approaches and insights regarding visualization and working with energy.

See you at the next installment…

PK

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Navel Gazing

The word meditation conjures up a lot of images…some pleasant, some amusing and some just plain wrong. In this article I will attempt to explain the art of meditation; the benefits of doing it and methods for accomplishing mental stillness but first lets talk a little about noise.

We live in a busy world in which our senses are constantly assaulted by activity. Our minds are a reflection of this world…constantly active, moving and circling. Unless you are a shark…this activity is exhausting and prevents you from truly attaining a peaceful state of being. So as much time as we spend in the world of busy and noise…it is beneficial to balance it by intentionally slowing down and creating still and silent spaces in our lives. Making this a priority…a way of life…teaches us a greater lesson.

Slowing Down to Create a New Reality

When we are in a hurry all the time we are stressed, tense, insecure, inefficient and often times ill. Don’t buy into the cultural mindset of hurry…be nice to yourself and start making time. Making time starts you down the path of one-pointed attention. Cultivating one-pointed attention heals a fragmented consciousness. When the mind is one-pointed it is secure, free from tension and capable of immense concentration…these traits are the mark of greatness in any field.

The Energy Side

Now that we have talked about the physical and mental side of meditation I would like to address the energy side. When we meditate, we let go of all the negative energy we have been carrying around inside of us and fill up on positive source energy. This is as vital and healing to our bodies as sleep. It relaxes the mind and the entire body…placing us in a state of rest and renewal. We climb deep into ourselves…connecting with the spark of the divine that is our real nature and the reason that we incarnated. Meditation cleanses our energy…it makes our vibration high enough to connect with our higher selves (our souls) and allows us to put all of the circumstances of our lives (our baggage) aside. You can not enter into a place of communion with the soul, unless you can strip yourself down to the core of what you are…meditation will get you there.

Choose a Place to Meditate

It is important to choose a particular place in your house in which to meditate…somewhere you won’t be disturbed and in which you feel safe. Make sure it is free of clutter and has few distractions…place only items that please you in this area. The energy you produce while meditating will linger in the spot in which you consistently meditate…this energy will make it easier for you to drop into meditation as you go along and in essence will eventually make this area of your home very sacred…a place that can give you peace from the moment you sit down. I try to include three items in the room with me when I meditate; a candle, a basin of water, and a plant. The candle provides a great focal point and the flame is a wonderful visual for energy. The water attracts and purifies any negative energy and the plant being a vibrant and living thing helps support the draw on source energy. (Don’t forget to empty the basin of water into the toilet after every session).

No Thought…is not the Place to Start

I’ll admit when I first started meditating I had a love-hate relationship with it…I hated the beginning of each session but loved how I felt at the end. I experienced a great deal of difficulty shutting down my mind because my focus was on how I couldn’t seem to make it stop. Focusing on experiencing no thought, ensnared me in a resistance pattern in which I spent the majority of my session attempting not to think. I failed to realize that meditation is a process of training your mind to focus and that I was going about it a bit backwards. Fortunately…even the early sessions in which I had so much difficulty, created a less active mental environment, so I left the sessions with a increased energy and a greater sense of peace.

Eventually I learned that a gentle approach is best and that if I judged my wandering mind it became more difficult to stay focused. I just accepted that my mind would wander…that it happens to everyone and was in no way any indication of my future spiritual success I started to separate my sense of self from my mind and began to view my thinking as kind of a nervous habit (like biting your nails) or an automatic function (like digestion). When I stopped taking thinking so seriously I developed a new relationship with it. Out of this relationship came an understanding of its functionality…and the insight that the mind is like a dog with a bone…if you give it something to chew on it will lie down and stay in one place for awhile…occupied.

This led to the practice of picking a thought or an image and allowing my mind to focus on whatever I had chosen. Words or phrases repeated are called mantras and images are called visualizations. I found that I experienced greater success when I gave my mind a few words or images to focus on and then gently brought it back to those words or that image if it strayed.

When I first started meditating my goal was to achieve a place of no thought. I didn’t actually get there until I shifted my goal toward simply staying in one place and enjoying the feeling of focused thought. Once I was proficient enough in that…the place of no thought came on its own with no strain or difficulty and with great surprise because I was no longer even thinking about it.

In my next entry I will go over the three major components of meditation (breathing, visualization & working with energy) with exercises, suggestions and insights.

Until then bright blessings and many happy returns…

PK

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A Reason to Be

This world is full of love that’s meant to flow…
We’ve only lost the vision of the souls we’re meant to be ~ PK

Creating a vision for your life provides a road map for the unfoldment of your soul and a reason to be here in this world. Whenever you have a decision to make…you pull out your vision and choose the path that is in alignment with your personal growth. If you don’t have a life vision it is very difficult to do this…you will spend most of your time feeling like you’re drifting and don’t have a purpose. Not having a purpose manifests as a dissatisfaction in life and an inability to line up your doing and living with anything meaningful. We all have the same purpose…we incarnate to enhance the unfoldment of our souls. This then is shaped by our individual experiences and passions into our personal growth path.

Step 1: Notice the Good

When you know that you are here so that your soul can unfold, you begin to view the world and the circumstances of your life a bit differently. Everything that you encounter whether you realize it or not is there to help you with this task…in other words…it’s all good. Noticing the good in life will help you to recognize opportunities, accept lessons and transitions, and move through the changes that are necessary for your growth.

So the first step is to start taking a serious look at all the wonderful things life has to offer. For this I suggest taking a tour of appreciation. A tour of appreciation will help you feel full instead of empty as you train your mind to notice what is already there…instead of what is lacking. To start, take a few conscious breaths. Conscious breathing is deep, slow and all of your attention is focused on it. Then look around you and notice anything that you take pleasure in. Maybe it’s your new flat screen computer monitor, a beautiful candle or piece of glass, a favorite book you notice on your bookshelf, a flowering plant, etc. Find something and put your focused attention on it. As you focus on it, feel your enjoyment rise to the surface…notice how much lighter and more at ease you feel. Continue this process with several items. Doing this several times a day…especially when you catch yourself noticing something wrong will help you develop an appreciation for the things in life that you typically don’t give much thought to. This creates a reflection of one of nature’s most beautiful meditations, the meditation of abundance, within you and makes space for the good that is your life and the soul you’re meant to be…to come forth.

Step 2: Meditate

Meditation is an absolutely necessary component for growth. Every gardener must clear a space for what they plant to grow. Meditation not only provides the path but at the same time readies the soil for your work. In meditation you learn to control your attention. Learning to focus your attention is absolutely vital for any energy work. Your spiritual side is the energy side…our physical and energy worlds are wrapped together like the strands of DNA. They are one…they coexist and what you do to one you do to the other. Learning to change things on the energy side to manifest change on the physical side opens a whole new approach to life. Meditation lays the ground work for all such change and focused attention allows us to consciously decide what we grow into our lives. In order to communicate and resonate with the soul that is here to unfold…we have to learn to meet them halfway…learn to meditate.

Step 3: Resonate

The dictionary definition that most suits how I use this word is to produce a response in somebody especially by reminding that person of something. This response of something familiar is created by your higher self (your soul) as a form of communication. Some people call this a calling…finding your passion or intuition. The truth is that this concept is really old, humans have been experiencing the feeling of being inexplicably drawn toward another person, activity or circumstance for thousands of years. If you are energy sensitive you receive these sorts of communications frequently but do not worry if you are not…it is a skill that is enhanced through meditation and spending time in the energy world. Myth expert Joseph Campbell advised people to follow their bliss believing that rapture, being and consciousness are linked. Resonance is an excellent way to measure how close you are to where your higher self wants you to be. When you really resonate with something…you feel an opening from deep within you…and it comes through as rapture, joy, empowerment and knowledge. Paying attention to and following how, when and where you resonate…will keep you on the growth path.

Step 4: Trust the Process

This is an expression that means life is a process of unfolding to your potential. When you trust the process, you know that all of your experience is working toward that unfoldment. This is an act of faith. Your faith is in the higher good….in the love that is available in this world. When we remember the souls were meant to be…this love flows.

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