Your body and all that was "made"( formed) concerning you I liken to a clay pot. Your pot was made, you were not. Science can actually pin point the moment a form (the pot) began to take shape that was later named a name. From that moment on, your pot developed and grew. The endless genetic strands you carry would take more than 1000 volumes of 1000 pages each to write out are part of your unique pot. Your eye color and height and skin color are all biological and part of your pot. Being male or female is part of your pot. Science is even discovering a great deal more of your behavior and thoughts come from your genetics.....Your pot. Your pot is truly is amazing.
Then everything (besides genetics) that shapes the mind and body is also part of your pot. How your parents related to you and how you perceived them all becomes part of your pot...all influences it. Your pot holds residual effects of all your experiences.
The pot develops neropathways, habits, skills and attributes. The pot learns, likes, dislikes, has fears and desires. The pot is important. In some ways are poys are so similiar that we can say what is normal for a pot to feel as it develops. That is all part of being in a pot. Learning and developing throughout the stages of a human life to be competent, productive, creative and joyful has significant value. We have seen a huge revolution is learning to love the pot..."I'm OK, your OK"...and we all know intuitively that feeling positive about our pots feels better than not. But the real truth is that while the pot is important to us in this time space reality....it is NOT who we are.
You know you have a body. You can see it, feel it, smell it and taste it. You have known this almost since birth...certainly by two years old. So you identified your "I ness" with your body and your name. First "me"...then "I" is Johnny. That is my name and in your psyche you identify that name with who you are. Then just as your hands are "mine", you are given things and told that they are yours...which you translate as "mine" (part of who I am) Very young children do not grasp the difference between owning something and it being part of who they are (and rarely have it explained to them) so it is normal to think of things as who they are.or at least part of who we are. In fact, we can easily see today those who are so pleased with the expensive status symbol because it causes them to feel "more", and strengthens their self identity as one who is smart, successful, powerful, rich....(whatever) even as adults.
Our self identity continues to expand in childhood and on into adolescence past how old we are, what we own (toys we have), where our mommie is, what pets we have and move on to our personal characteristics. We see ( or perceive) ourselves as warm or friendly, as a talker, a thinker, analytical, light hearted, stable, disorganized...........desirable or undesirable. If you stop right now you can easily name several characteristics about who you perceive yourself to be, you would say it something like, " I am generally a light hearted person", or "I am a person who likes deep discussions, that is who I am". These are really descriptions of your pot....not you. We think our interests or skills are who we are. I love basket ball, I play basketball...I am a professional basketball player, that is now who I am . This last stage moves to roles. I am a mom, a wife...an American, a husband, a boss,...a traitor...a nerd...a jock...a grandmother...a hero..and we identify ourselves with our roles. This can become crucial to us in our lifetimes.
Then, of course, there are all the conflicts with what we perceive is being asked of us (what our culture, history or family expects and even ourselves ) and who we perceive ourselves to be. I keep saying "perceive ourselves to be" because that is all it is ... a perception. But in the Dream is it termed and thought of as who I am.
We may have periods in our lives when we are aware we are suffering distress because we don't know who we are anymore. Something has become outdated, been lost, left us, or our own actions have so conflicted with the perception of who we are that we suffer confusion.
Confusion can be a very good thing....it can mean that an old perception, construct (dream or story) is being dissembled and we don't know yet what is coming up in it's place. Then perhaps we go to a slightly higher dimension of thought ( or drop down further into our ourselves) to search out who we are....perhaps we study the meanings, ancient systems, of our names, the numbers associated with our birth, what those who have studied the stars say about us, many mystic ideas. We begin to look at the archetypes. We see how they are common to mankind and how we are connected to energies much bigger and emcompassing than we previously thought. Just as we can see the development of the body and what goes with it, in our emotions and thoughts, we can see how the development of the personaility or soul has many common elements in it. This is very helpful to shift us when we are "stuck".
Since a pot is a form and it can be destroyed, lost, broken or damaged. It can die. So the predominant emotion of the pot is fear. It can be "no more". So all it's life the pot wants "more"..either to enhance itself in its own eyes or just to avoid being still, out of time. It needs to be bigger, better, achieve more because it is not able to look at itself and say "I am perfect and needn't do a thing"...it is only the spirit that can say such a thing.
The stillness where one discovers the depth within is threatening to the mind of the pot. It will perceive it as "boring" or "useless" or "not working for me" or just "later"..."not now"...anything .........It is normal that the pot does all this. It is the way of the mind of the pot...or pot thinking...
We do need to know and understand our own clay pot. We need to be aware of what is working in us, of our history, of our natural tendencies. We need to accept them and forgive them, appreciate and be amused by them.... and relate to them with wisdom. The greatest difficulty comes when we think, believe and act upon the idea (false tho it is) that our pot is who (at the most fundamental level) we are.
We are spirit...an energy that is simultaneously inside of us and outside of us. It is us and also greater than us. This is a paradox greater than thought than encompass. You cannot be defined. Well, the pot mind does not like this at all and will if at all possible reject this idea. (mostly because it spells the end of the ego dominated mind ) By ego I mean Eckhardt's definition of ego..."the mind based substitute for your divine self". Try now to imagine...thinking of who you are and saying..".I cannot be defined".." I am not this or that"..... I just "am".
Either you felt a little awkward saying this or you had just a flash of a sudden no space or time...of the "is ness" of this moment. You are like God, you exist outside of time. Your pot however exists in time, it had a beginning and will have an end. And even though you so love your specialness or the specialness of those who are special to you...the parts that are of the pot's make-up, the time space personality, those also will end with the pot. Even at the graveside, "From dust we came and to dust we return" is not really accurate. Our pot came from dust and our pot returns to dust just as everything that has a form in this time space reality will do...all of it. It will pass....in 10 years or 70 years or 250 years...it will pass.
You will not.
You had no beginning and have no end. You are actually life itself. You are such a apart of life that you and Life are one...you and Love are one....You and God are one....You and Atman are one....You and the Self are one....
It is however, common to hear people say that they can tell a difference between where they are inside and where the divine is and that there is a difference. What they are actually saying is that their perception of themselves is different from the divine. They go in their being to a mind construct of their pot and identify that as who they are.(usually out of habit) And is usually held in place with rather intense emotions. It isn't who they are. They will know this to be so eventually, we all will, now or when the pot dies.... You will experience the oneness with all this is. Only the ego's mind is fearful of being all one. Because it fears if it loses its separateness, it will lose its specialness. It wants its independence so it can be special. But the opposite is true, when you let go of your specialness, you begin to feel, to experience your oneness. That is when you begin to accept the truth of who you are.
You are never in conflict.
You are invulnerable.
You are full of ....overflowing..... in Love..so much so that ....you are Love.
When you love, there is never any sacrifice because you cannot lose who you are.
When you share..... give...... you increase. You (the Divine in your pot) are connecting with the divine in the other and expansion occurs. (The Kingdom of Heaven is among...between you)
You are never afraid.
There is no separateness. When you connect, you are actually are experiencing yourself! When you feel whole, you are experiencing who you are.
Of course, when the ego hears these things it dismiss them as too etheral or it wants them for itself, it imitates them....Its idea is to suck itself up, puff out its chest and push forward and push thru.... ......alas... it cannot achieve its goal.. In spirit means and goal are the same. The ego is using the body to do it because it makes it feel "more" perhaps even more spiritual. The way to truth is to drop down, ...let the thrashing arms down, forgive, open up...heart and soul..the entire self and be still. The ego never can do this successfully because it has too much fear that at some point it will "lose itself" or be hurt or die. So we kindly, set it aside and do this without its participation.
We begin to come home and hear ourselves resonating back to us. We make and remake mind constructs allowing ourselves to come closer and closer (in our perception) to the divine.....If we continue, if we really want to know....we will begin to discover our own true nature and come to peace with who we are.
There is A Dream we call the world and it has constructed everything on the ego's mind based realities.We live in that reality. Imagine you were transported to another planet and given a suit that when you put it on you looked liked the species of this planet. You would in time want to communicate with them, to trade, to survive and then to thrive there. You would adapt and would adopt it all. That doesn't change who you are....even if you forgot who you are. Even if they came with you and have forgotten who they are. That still doesn't change who you are(or who they are for that matter).
Everything about the pot (all pots individually and collectively) changes over time. They must. They can be beautiful to look at, appropriate or not...they can achieve and diminish. However, they can never diminish who they really are or who you really are. Dressing our pots, trimming them down, learning new skills, mastering new achievements......making them look as we perceive we want them to look can be fun and engaging. Giving the characteristics that were made into your pot an opportunity to be released in this time space reality is very rewarding. In fact, I can admire your pot and you can admire mine!
But still...the great quest of this time space reality is not to make the best pots we can. It is to wake up from the dream that pots and all forms are all there is. It is to continue to evolve and chose to visit a higher level of consciousness. A place where "we know that we know"....where peace dwells and love resides. Where joy beyond measure and circumstance awaits. Where the pot is continually filled. Where the pot is energized and fullfilled in ways it never can be listening only to itself.
As our ego's mind is still.... we realize...most often without any words at all...we realize we have "Come Home"....... that we belong here because it is who we are.
Breathe........Smile.....
Breathe.....
breathe again.....and think on these things
selah
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Sunday, December 25, 2011
In Love there is no fear
Love is your core, that is who you are, it is so incredible.
This Love overcomes the world, just by Being. The world could never be without it. This Love is beautiful, powerful, whole and is a peace that cannot be lost. It may be obscured but never lost. You cannot in your illusions do anything ever to lose it.
For some of you it may seem difficult to say these things things about yourself ..... it may be easier for you to begin with, "this love is within me" rather than "is me". In time, you will be able to say it with conviction. Because it IS you...it is the truth of who you are. God is not a Being, a person, an entity.....God is outside of that kind of definition. And so are you. The "REAL" you...the eternal, outside of time you, the you that has no beginning and no end.... cannot be perceived by the five senses.....not the deeper, divine you. The "you" that exists just as God does.
We are love and there is no place for fear in your divine self. When Love is present, fear cannot be. In order for fear to operate you must be believing you are not your divine self, you are believing you are less than you are. You are believing you are just a body...a separate being.
This is natural. We start when very young, identifying ourselves as a separate being, with arms and legs and a name and then possessions, genitals and families and pets. And then as our brain develops we move on to characteristics like, "I am friendly ,"or "I am shy" and then on to abilities and then to schools, grades, colleges, clubs, societies, neighborhoods, achievements. Roles play a very large part in the self identity we are making. I am a mom or a dad or a pawn or a rebel, or a vamp or a Don Juan, or a nurse, or a powerful businessman.(put in whatever roles you like) In time, all roles shift and depart. Even our temperaments, or stars or numbers or archetypes do not reveal our divine nature.
Throughout this development fear plays varying parts in our lives, but always present in some fashion. The lack of these things or the abundance of them largely dictates how we feel about ourselves. We have, with the help of all those around us, our families, schools, communities and culture, identified who we are and then decided how we feel about that person. This is entirely of the ego's making.
The ego makes the substitute self in the place of our divine self. In the east, the substitute self is called the "self" and the divine is called the "Self". Of course, this could happen no other way. We start very young and as we mature we learn and change in our thinking. And then over time, as we age and age some more, things shift and all of the things we identified with begin to fall away until we identify with who we "were" and hopefully somewhere along the way, we have laid down this substitute self...somewhere.... we felt....
.........we experienced................. divine love................
.......an internal expansion
..................... a peace that passes understanding....
.................... a joy unimaginable .
..................and we know that there is something more..........more than this reality. A moment out of time...
And all fear is gone....it just is not there...it cannot exist where there are no illusions....in your divine self.
Fear exists only in the small self only in The Dream.
All the things we might reach for, want to experience, achieve, accomplish, master or own....while they can make a big difference in our experience in the time space reality, they still are not nearly as important as knowing this pearl of great price. There is nothing that can compare. With this awareness, you can enjoy what you desire but you are no longer driven. The real you does not need to achieve, accomplish or win. You have already all you need. You are already perfect.
Once you experience the power, the love, the beauty that is God (and you )...nothing else compares. In that place, there is no struggle. Faith is truly a "rest".
When we are not receiving that deeper stream, focusing at that level of consciousness, we are lost in the Dream. In the Dream there is so much suffering and discomfort. Much of that suffering is unnecessary. Even when there is no suffering, we carry a level of agitation, of restlessness...like the noise of a air conditioner in the background. We don't notice it until it stops and then we feel relieved. It has become such a normal part of our existence that we don't realize it is there. When we experience fear then we do know that things have gotten out of hand and we have begun believing something less about ourselves.
It is true, that we each do the best we can at the moment with what we have and hopefully we "come home" often. We hear our true nature , we recognize ourselves at the deepest level and "We know, that we know"..........We remember what we have forgotten about ourselves, about one another and about this time, space reality. Somewhere deep inside, without understanding, we know.
We don't have to perfect anything, or accomplish anything to "come home", we can do it in a moment....just one moment. Say the words," I am Love. perfect, whole, complete Love and in me there is no place for fear. This Love that is me (or in me) has overcome the world." It will have an effect on you...right away you will be able to tell exactly where you are. Whenever you speak the truth of you who are, it ill always effect you.
Can we let go of our our desire to win, to be special, to be separate...can we shift our awareness to the stream of consciousness that brings us home? Home to peace, grace and ultimate power? Then from that place live the life we came to live, freely, lovingly and in great peace.? Yes, moment by moment.
Fear has no place in you. You do not have to allow it to flow thru you or work in you. It must have your agreement to do so....you must believe you are only the smaller self, the one that can lose everything and be lost.
When divinity...fullness of grace....Love...pours through you...it changes you. It makes you realize that it alone will quench the thirst you have and with it you will thirst no more. The rapture that is there every description pales beside.
You are so beautiful...so beautiful.....all fear falls away in your light....there isn't even a struggle....even at the thought of a struggle...you throw your head back and laugh outright.... and then a smile and
think on this.......say again, "I am Love, perfect, whole, complete Love and in me there is no p;ace for fear. This Love that is me ( or in me) has overcome the world........breathe and smile......
....selah
This Love overcomes the world, just by Being. The world could never be without it. This Love is beautiful, powerful, whole and is a peace that cannot be lost. It may be obscured but never lost. You cannot in your illusions do anything ever to lose it.
For some of you it may seem difficult to say these things things about yourself ..... it may be easier for you to begin with, "this love is within me" rather than "is me". In time, you will be able to say it with conviction. Because it IS you...it is the truth of who you are. God is not a Being, a person, an entity.....God is outside of that kind of definition. And so are you. The "REAL" you...the eternal, outside of time you, the you that has no beginning and no end.... cannot be perceived by the five senses.....not the deeper, divine you. The "you" that exists just as God does.
We are love and there is no place for fear in your divine self. When Love is present, fear cannot be. In order for fear to operate you must be believing you are not your divine self, you are believing you are less than you are. You are believing you are just a body...a separate being.
This is natural. We start when very young, identifying ourselves as a separate being, with arms and legs and a name and then possessions, genitals and families and pets. And then as our brain develops we move on to characteristics like, "I am friendly ,"or "I am shy" and then on to abilities and then to schools, grades, colleges, clubs, societies, neighborhoods, achievements. Roles play a very large part in the self identity we are making. I am a mom or a dad or a pawn or a rebel, or a vamp or a Don Juan, or a nurse, or a powerful businessman.(put in whatever roles you like) In time, all roles shift and depart. Even our temperaments, or stars or numbers or archetypes do not reveal our divine nature.
Throughout this development fear plays varying parts in our lives, but always present in some fashion. The lack of these things or the abundance of them largely dictates how we feel about ourselves. We have, with the help of all those around us, our families, schools, communities and culture, identified who we are and then decided how we feel about that person. This is entirely of the ego's making.
The ego makes the substitute self in the place of our divine self. In the east, the substitute self is called the "self" and the divine is called the "Self". Of course, this could happen no other way. We start very young and as we mature we learn and change in our thinking. And then over time, as we age and age some more, things shift and all of the things we identified with begin to fall away until we identify with who we "were" and hopefully somewhere along the way, we have laid down this substitute self...somewhere.... we felt....
.........we experienced................. divine love................
.......an internal expansion
..................... a peace that passes understanding....
.................... a joy unimaginable .
..................and we know that there is something more..........more than this reality. A moment out of time...
And all fear is gone....it just is not there...it cannot exist where there are no illusions....in your divine self.
Fear exists only in the small self only in The Dream.
All the things we might reach for, want to experience, achieve, accomplish, master or own....while they can make a big difference in our experience in the time space reality, they still are not nearly as important as knowing this pearl of great price. There is nothing that can compare. With this awareness, you can enjoy what you desire but you are no longer driven. The real you does not need to achieve, accomplish or win. You have already all you need. You are already perfect.
Once you experience the power, the love, the beauty that is God (and you )...nothing else compares. In that place, there is no struggle. Faith is truly a "rest".
When we are not receiving that deeper stream, focusing at that level of consciousness, we are lost in the Dream. In the Dream there is so much suffering and discomfort. Much of that suffering is unnecessary. Even when there is no suffering, we carry a level of agitation, of restlessness...like the noise of a air conditioner in the background. We don't notice it until it stops and then we feel relieved. It has become such a normal part of our existence that we don't realize it is there. When we experience fear then we do know that things have gotten out of hand and we have begun believing something less about ourselves.
It is true, that we each do the best we can at the moment with what we have and hopefully we "come home" often. We hear our true nature , we recognize ourselves at the deepest level and "We know, that we know"..........We remember what we have forgotten about ourselves, about one another and about this time, space reality. Somewhere deep inside, without understanding, we know.
We don't have to perfect anything, or accomplish anything to "come home", we can do it in a moment....just one moment. Say the words," I am Love. perfect, whole, complete Love and in me there is no place for fear. This Love that is me (or in me) has overcome the world." It will have an effect on you...right away you will be able to tell exactly where you are. Whenever you speak the truth of you who are, it ill always effect you.
Can we let go of our our desire to win, to be special, to be separate...can we shift our awareness to the stream of consciousness that brings us home? Home to peace, grace and ultimate power? Then from that place live the life we came to live, freely, lovingly and in great peace.? Yes, moment by moment.
Fear has no place in you. You do not have to allow it to flow thru you or work in you. It must have your agreement to do so....you must believe you are only the smaller self, the one that can lose everything and be lost.
When divinity...fullness of grace....Love...pours through you...it changes you. It makes you realize that it alone will quench the thirst you have and with it you will thirst no more. The rapture that is there every description pales beside.
You are so beautiful...so beautiful.....all fear falls away in your light....there isn't even a struggle....even at the thought of a struggle...you throw your head back and laugh outright.... and then a smile and
think on this.......say again, "I am Love, perfect, whole, complete Love and in me there is no p;ace for fear. This Love that is me ( or in me) has overcome the world........breathe and smile......
....selah
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Santa and all that goes with the season......for sure!!
The quandary of Santa and other holiday thoughts:
Is Santa real? Of course, Santa is real. Is God real? Is the spirit real? Is love real? Remember the ego , the mind based substitute for your divine self, thinks only in bodily terms. So, the question may mean,"Is there a flesh and blood man going to come down your chimney tonite?" I hope not! But that in no way detracts from all the pleasures of the season, including Santa...all of them. ( Santas, that is) Santa shows us the spirit of giving. So we do, we give gifts to each other and to our children. Santa works through us all, no matter our faith or mental constructs. Love knows no limitations.
All the Santas we see around Christmas time remind us to be kind and to care for others, to think about those who are less fortunate than ourselves in this time space reality.
There once was a man, a long time ago, who brought presents to children in a poor village far away from here. His name was St Nicolas. People thought that it was wonderful! It moved them. So to remind everyone what a good idea it is to give many stories grew up around Santa.
Some stories are sweet and some silly, Some are about his reindeer and toy shop and elves...but really if you look, inside each one is the dropping of the desire to fight, to protect oneself, to get what you want over others...to instead, forgive, to open up and to love someone else. To give and to share, to be kind and to forgive. To believe in Santa, is to believe is one's capacity to give.. To believe in the spirit of goodness. To believe you always have enough to be generous with others. Those stories could not be any truer! Those are the best stories!
People actually try to see the brighter side, to express caring and remembrances at this time of the year. In fact, we often hear it said that it would be wonderful if people could keep that same attitude all year long. So if you feel jammed up with all the extras you feel you must do, or you are momentarily forgetting your abundance and are feeling you haven't enough of value to share, remember the Little Drummer Boy.give a gift of the love you are.....
Think of...
................. the Grinch's "heart full of unwashed socks" ....his perspective is about what he doesn't have. And then his "heart grew two sizes that day!". It only takes a moment to "come home" and open up your vast treasure of Love within. Cindi Lou Who and all the others in Whoville knew while the toys and decorations were fun, they were not really Christmas, not really. All of Whoville forgave him and joined together because "Christmas was in their hearts".....as along as "they had hands to hold".
Or.........
..........Ebenezer Scrooge who said "Bah! Humbug! "to the idea of Christmas. Christmas meant just too much inconvenience to his schedule and to what was important to him. He didn't like the gift giving or cheerful attitudes, or solicitation for the poor.......until in just one night he saw different perspectives on his life, past, present and future and, Bam! "What day is it? "What, today?" "Today is Christmas Day! The spirits did it all in one night!"..He was so grateful to be alive and wanted enthusiastically to make a difference in the lives of those connected to him. He found joy unimaginable.
And of course............
....................... the man who, already had given SOO much to his family and community, sacrificed his own dreams...only to find himself in dire straights feeling very cheated and frightened. He learned that to just to be ALIVE, to be able to kiss the banisters top knob and be able to love that which only a few hours before he so disdained was such a joy. It didn't matter what actually happened...he was there alive in it, loving everyone and everything he saw. The idea he had "sacrificed" and failed disappeared when he saw the perspectives of other people and what he would have missed ...... everything changed for him. With his realization of how "Wonderful Life" was, the bell twinkled and another angel got his wings.
Even our hero...................
...................... Snoopy was shown this Christmas magic when the Red Baron having Snoopy in his sights, didn't fire and later toasted him with "Merry Christmas , my friend". The song goes on to tell us that they knew they would meet again in battle another day, but not this day, not Christmas Day. Many stories show us that beneath our conflict, our quests, our material world (things we ordinarily find VERY important) there is another deeper, richer life. And tho they have this, what seems like magic, for only one night, and then return to the world as they know it, they all remind us....it is there. They touched it, even briefly.... We really do have a "wonderful Life".....love does conquer all. This is not only a child's story but the eternal truth of all existence.
Think of........
.......... "Frosty the Snowman"...talk about frozen hearted....came to life...there is hope for us all!
Why did St Nicolas give those first presents? Because it was a way celebrate the birth of Jesus. We give to the God in each of us...namaste......rich and poor alike. Does it matter when he was actually born or if he born as it is written? Of course not. This is about the spirit.........this is about Love. Whether it is the quiet, gentle, peaceful love of a silent night or the jolly, laughing, joy of love of a visit from Santa. It is about Love all the same.
Giving Christmas cards...telling friends we are thinking of them and love them. What a wonderful idea!
The small self looks at only the physical. It can be motivated by what we are or we are not getting or doing....we can be put out by the push to celebrate...by the salvation army's bell ringing as we go into the store...but maybe, just maybe...we might think if it is SO difficult to think of others, to stop our own story, our fast pace and racing mind to give, to reach out to our families, friends and even strangers.....we might question what it is that we ARE doing that makes it feel so inconvenient. Wouldn't that be great?!
The true you...loves it all. You could pat every Santa on the back, and always have something to give and are grateful to be part of it all. You are so full of joy, it can spill over and eek out at any opportunity possible. If others don't see any joy, that's OK...down deep they have it in them too.......... it's not that you have to love in spite of yourself, it is that you are Love. It is your very nature. This just happens to be a season where everyone is being reminded that it does exist.
I know...it is so easy to get distracted from who you really are...and it all becomes about time, and momentarily believing the illusion of not having enough.......
........take a moment and smile....let time ...go.....and in the now of this moment, bless that man who cut in front of you in line....he has no idea how wonderful he really is....laugh with the sales clerk who is obviously floundering and dig out even two dimes to put in the bucket you pass.
You can smile and love your children even when they don't get the TRIPLE XXX new big deal or seem ungrateful.. They are, after all, children....Loosen up a little...
....this season you can actually laugh while you give......
....."Ho! Ho! Ho!....
......to all of you.............."from the one that has everything...........
Peace on earth...goodwill toward man"....
Breathe.......smile.........laugh...........selah
Is Santa real? Of course, Santa is real. Is God real? Is the spirit real? Is love real? Remember the ego , the mind based substitute for your divine self, thinks only in bodily terms. So, the question may mean,"Is there a flesh and blood man going to come down your chimney tonite?" I hope not! But that in no way detracts from all the pleasures of the season, including Santa...all of them. ( Santas, that is) Santa shows us the spirit of giving. So we do, we give gifts to each other and to our children. Santa works through us all, no matter our faith or mental constructs. Love knows no limitations.
All the Santas we see around Christmas time remind us to be kind and to care for others, to think about those who are less fortunate than ourselves in this time space reality.
There once was a man, a long time ago, who brought presents to children in a poor village far away from here. His name was St Nicolas. People thought that it was wonderful! It moved them. So to remind everyone what a good idea it is to give many stories grew up around Santa.
Some stories are sweet and some silly, Some are about his reindeer and toy shop and elves...but really if you look, inside each one is the dropping of the desire to fight, to protect oneself, to get what you want over others...to instead, forgive, to open up and to love someone else. To give and to share, to be kind and to forgive. To believe in Santa, is to believe is one's capacity to give.. To believe in the spirit of goodness. To believe you always have enough to be generous with others. Those stories could not be any truer! Those are the best stories!
People actually try to see the brighter side, to express caring and remembrances at this time of the year. In fact, we often hear it said that it would be wonderful if people could keep that same attitude all year long. So if you feel jammed up with all the extras you feel you must do, or you are momentarily forgetting your abundance and are feeling you haven't enough of value to share, remember the Little Drummer Boy.give a gift of the love you are.....
Think of...
................. the Grinch's "heart full of unwashed socks" ....his perspective is about what he doesn't have. And then his "heart grew two sizes that day!". It only takes a moment to "come home" and open up your vast treasure of Love within. Cindi Lou Who and all the others in Whoville knew while the toys and decorations were fun, they were not really Christmas, not really. All of Whoville forgave him and joined together because "Christmas was in their hearts".....as along as "they had hands to hold".
Or.........
..........Ebenezer Scrooge who said "Bah! Humbug! "to the idea of Christmas. Christmas meant just too much inconvenience to his schedule and to what was important to him. He didn't like the gift giving or cheerful attitudes, or solicitation for the poor.......until in just one night he saw different perspectives on his life, past, present and future and, Bam! "What day is it? "What, today?" "Today is Christmas Day! The spirits did it all in one night!"..He was so grateful to be alive and wanted enthusiastically to make a difference in the lives of those connected to him. He found joy unimaginable.
And of course............
....................... the man who, already had given SOO much to his family and community, sacrificed his own dreams...only to find himself in dire straights feeling very cheated and frightened. He learned that to just to be ALIVE, to be able to kiss the banisters top knob and be able to love that which only a few hours before he so disdained was such a joy. It didn't matter what actually happened...he was there alive in it, loving everyone and everything he saw. The idea he had "sacrificed" and failed disappeared when he saw the perspectives of other people and what he would have missed ...... everything changed for him. With his realization of how "Wonderful Life" was, the bell twinkled and another angel got his wings.
Even our hero...................
...................... Snoopy was shown this Christmas magic when the Red Baron having Snoopy in his sights, didn't fire and later toasted him with "Merry Christmas , my friend". The song goes on to tell us that they knew they would meet again in battle another day, but not this day, not Christmas Day. Many stories show us that beneath our conflict, our quests, our material world (things we ordinarily find VERY important) there is another deeper, richer life. And tho they have this, what seems like magic, for only one night, and then return to the world as they know it, they all remind us....it is there. They touched it, even briefly.... We really do have a "wonderful Life".....love does conquer all. This is not only a child's story but the eternal truth of all existence.
Think of........
.......... "Frosty the Snowman"...talk about frozen hearted....came to life...there is hope for us all!
Why did St Nicolas give those first presents? Because it was a way celebrate the birth of Jesus. We give to the God in each of us...namaste......rich and poor alike. Does it matter when he was actually born or if he born as it is written? Of course not. This is about the spirit.........this is about Love. Whether it is the quiet, gentle, peaceful love of a silent night or the jolly, laughing, joy of love of a visit from Santa. It is about Love all the same.
Giving Christmas cards...telling friends we are thinking of them and love them. What a wonderful idea!
The small self looks at only the physical. It can be motivated by what we are or we are not getting or doing....we can be put out by the push to celebrate...by the salvation army's bell ringing as we go into the store...but maybe, just maybe...we might think if it is SO difficult to think of others, to stop our own story, our fast pace and racing mind to give, to reach out to our families, friends and even strangers.....we might question what it is that we ARE doing that makes it feel so inconvenient. Wouldn't that be great?!
The true you...loves it all. You could pat every Santa on the back, and always have something to give and are grateful to be part of it all. You are so full of joy, it can spill over and eek out at any opportunity possible. If others don't see any joy, that's OK...down deep they have it in them too.......... it's not that you have to love in spite of yourself, it is that you are Love. It is your very nature. This just happens to be a season where everyone is being reminded that it does exist.
I know...it is so easy to get distracted from who you really are...and it all becomes about time, and momentarily believing the illusion of not having enough.......
........take a moment and smile....let time ...go.....and in the now of this moment, bless that man who cut in front of you in line....he has no idea how wonderful he really is....laugh with the sales clerk who is obviously floundering and dig out even two dimes to put in the bucket you pass.
You can smile and love your children even when they don't get the TRIPLE XXX new big deal or seem ungrateful.. They are, after all, children....Loosen up a little...
....this season you can actually laugh while you give......
....."Ho! Ho! Ho!....
......to all of you.............."from the one that has everything...........
Peace on earth...goodwill toward man"....
Breathe.......smile.........laugh...........selah
Your True Nature is Love
Your true nature is part of the universal mind. One mind...God's mind. You are divine. Your true nature is one with God..and is not separable. Your mind is connected to God's mind. Paradoxically you are a part of something that is infinitely greater than you and yet is you. This cannot be defined or explained. The words we use are only symbols. We add them up to create a concept. An idea...but please, remember, it is still something held in the mind.
The awareness of that unfathomable, indescribable essence, is just that...unfathomable. The source is greater than our minds can encompass. It encompasses us. The best we can do is to describe what Eckhardt Tolle calls "sign posts" toward the stream, the direction pointing toward the Source. What we truly know about God or the Atman is what has been made real to us. The sign says "Scenic view". The sign is not the view. It is left for each of us to go to the point where we experience the "scenic view " for ourselves. Most debates and religious quarrels are over the quality, accuracy and depth of the sign posts. Whether you argue for or against, it is an idea you are arguing about. God would never argue with you. God is an experience. Being in "the presence" of God is an experience...a beingness, one that changes our level of consciousness and peace is there waiting for us and within this space is joy unexplainable. There are no words here...no time...no beliefs...just the "isness "of Life and the beingness of the moment in perfect love and harmony.
There are many who would tell you the path to God and they have very differing opinions. One thing is sure, the source is total, One. The idea that "your God is false" demonstrates a total lack of understanding of God. These words come from the Dream. True they may be speaking about God, Spirit, but they are not accurate. "They know not what spirit they are of"....
Many of us have been raised in or been exposed to some religious ideas. Many have developed stumbling blocks in this area. I hear almost everyday people who actively connect "sacrifice" with their understanding of God. This is not God. It comes from trying to relate to God, explain God from within the Dream, at the level of the ego, the separate individuality.
One never loses anything by opening up to God. One gains immeasurably. Because your true nature is immense and expanding. How can you lose? To let go of the illusion and have reality rise up...this is sacrifice?
To come home to your true nature can be done in a moment. Just a moment. It doesn't take weeks or months...it is not something you achieve or master...you just "wake up" to the God within. You need not find God...God was never lost. You "wake up"...or "discover" or... experience... Your perception had become obscured. When you read these words and you are lifted. That is you inside responding to hearing the truth, your truth. You are actually listening to yourself.
When things outside you are what you perceive gives or creates joy for you, you are lost in the illusion, in the dream. You are believing that the cat , the flower, the person is the cause. The truth is that your own state of mind is the cause and determines what you see ( the effect). Your own level of consciousness, your own level of awareness, determines what you see coming back to you. Your level of consciousness determines your sight. What you are accessing in your mind is what is being reflected back to you in your "world".
You are part of a whole...connected to All That Is. I am whole.
I am perfect, whole and complete, lacking nothing. So are you. When I am thinking and feeling that I "need" or am "less" or inferior, have less, could lose, I have changed my level of consciousness and am now believing the Dream. Fear operates in the Dream about almost everything, Love, in real reality.
I am wonderful, created to live in joy as an extension of God.
It is never "over"...I have nothing I need to achieve, to master, to gain, to win, to accomplish, to prove, to get....my actions are an extension of the joy reaching out from me into the earth. It reaches to itself...to you.
I give because my fullness always wants to join with others for greater expansion. There is not one giver and one receiver. I am always simultaneously both.
I live, breathe and walk in unfolding grace.
I do not need to create or find joy, it is within me.
The peace of God, my peace, encompasses all.
All the physical things I see will pass away. What is happening today will become as a dream in time, just as last summer, or two Christmases ago seems now. It all is in time and God is timeless. It isn't that God has a past and a future. This universal beingness, the divine, exists outside of time. In the now...in this moment.
In this moment you can come home to yourself.... as you take your next breath, there is no past or future, not really. The past exists in the memory synapses of your brain and the future only in your imagination. "Now" is actually all there ever is.
I say. "Yes!" to this moment...to Life
Evil is only weakness disguised. Power over others is only weakness disguised. Real power lies within you and is present now. This beauty, this power, the Love has never left you, and will never leave you. It cannot leave itself. You are One.
One cannot kill one's weakness, or the weaknesses of another. We love until the illusion of the weakness is released. Release love for those who are momentarily stuck, trapped or lost in the Dream...
Love knows, nothing is ever needed but more love....
Imagine that...never being disappointed in someone else again...even yourself....such wonderous love......think on this.....smile and breathe......
...selah......
The awareness of that unfathomable, indescribable essence, is just that...unfathomable. The source is greater than our minds can encompass. It encompasses us. The best we can do is to describe what Eckhardt Tolle calls "sign posts" toward the stream, the direction pointing toward the Source. What we truly know about God or the Atman is what has been made real to us. The sign says "Scenic view". The sign is not the view. It is left for each of us to go to the point where we experience the "scenic view " for ourselves. Most debates and religious quarrels are over the quality, accuracy and depth of the sign posts. Whether you argue for or against, it is an idea you are arguing about. God would never argue with you. God is an experience. Being in "the presence" of God is an experience...a beingness, one that changes our level of consciousness and peace is there waiting for us and within this space is joy unexplainable. There are no words here...no time...no beliefs...just the "isness "of Life and the beingness of the moment in perfect love and harmony.
There are many who would tell you the path to God and they have very differing opinions. One thing is sure, the source is total, One. The idea that "your God is false" demonstrates a total lack of understanding of God. These words come from the Dream. True they may be speaking about God, Spirit, but they are not accurate. "They know not what spirit they are of"....
Many of us have been raised in or been exposed to some religious ideas. Many have developed stumbling blocks in this area. I hear almost everyday people who actively connect "sacrifice" with their understanding of God. This is not God. It comes from trying to relate to God, explain God from within the Dream, at the level of the ego, the separate individuality.
One never loses anything by opening up to God. One gains immeasurably. Because your true nature is immense and expanding. How can you lose? To let go of the illusion and have reality rise up...this is sacrifice?
To come home to your true nature can be done in a moment. Just a moment. It doesn't take weeks or months...it is not something you achieve or master...you just "wake up" to the God within. You need not find God...God was never lost. You "wake up"...or "discover" or... experience... Your perception had become obscured. When you read these words and you are lifted. That is you inside responding to hearing the truth, your truth. You are actually listening to yourself.
When things outside you are what you perceive gives or creates joy for you, you are lost in the illusion, in the dream. You are believing that the cat , the flower, the person is the cause. The truth is that your own state of mind is the cause and determines what you see ( the effect). Your own level of consciousness, your own level of awareness, determines what you see coming back to you. Your level of consciousness determines your sight. What you are accessing in your mind is what is being reflected back to you in your "world".
You are part of a whole...connected to All That Is. I am whole.
I am perfect, whole and complete, lacking nothing. So are you. When I am thinking and feeling that I "need" or am "less" or inferior, have less, could lose, I have changed my level of consciousness and am now believing the Dream. Fear operates in the Dream about almost everything, Love, in real reality.
I am wonderful, created to live in joy as an extension of God.
It is never "over"...I have nothing I need to achieve, to master, to gain, to win, to accomplish, to prove, to get....my actions are an extension of the joy reaching out from me into the earth. It reaches to itself...to you.
I give because my fullness always wants to join with others for greater expansion. There is not one giver and one receiver. I am always simultaneously both.
I live, breathe and walk in unfolding grace.
I do not need to create or find joy, it is within me.
The peace of God, my peace, encompasses all.
All the physical things I see will pass away. What is happening today will become as a dream in time, just as last summer, or two Christmases ago seems now. It all is in time and God is timeless. It isn't that God has a past and a future. This universal beingness, the divine, exists outside of time. In the now...in this moment.
In this moment you can come home to yourself.... as you take your next breath, there is no past or future, not really. The past exists in the memory synapses of your brain and the future only in your imagination. "Now" is actually all there ever is.
I say. "Yes!" to this moment...to Life
Evil is only weakness disguised. Power over others is only weakness disguised. Real power lies within you and is present now. This beauty, this power, the Love has never left you, and will never leave you. It cannot leave itself. You are One.
One cannot kill one's weakness, or the weaknesses of another. We love until the illusion of the weakness is released. Release love for those who are momentarily stuck, trapped or lost in the Dream...
Love knows, nothing is ever needed but more love....
Imagine that...never being disappointed in someone else again...even yourself....such wonderous love......think on this.....smile and breathe......
...selah......
Monday, December 5, 2011
Doubting your Value: Feeling the need to be "special".
In "The Dream", in our movie mind, we believe that we have value only if we are "special". That "specialness" may be in what we can do, in how we look, how we can win or out do others, or are better than others, faster, smarter, richer, more productive, more spiritual, more wealthy, more honest, more attractive.... whatever. In some cases, we believe that we have value because we have friends, that we are loved by others, or at least by one other person who believes us to be special and thereby confirming our desire.
While in our dreaming it is true that having an education, a well paying position, good health or friends can certainly make a difference in our life here, it still is not the paramount thing. In this time space reality...these things are important but still not nearly as important as experiencing our true value, our true Self. I do not mean to demean these quests, or minimize the effects having or not having can have on us and on the people close to us. Still, ultimately, all of it will pass...all of it..... but you....the deeper you...will not. Everything you see is temporary, it has form and by its very existence must pass back into the formlessness from which it came. It may only take a day or a year or 75 years or 175 years but it will again return back into the formlessness. All of the manifested returns to the unmanifested. You, the "real" you is formless....vast....timeless, powerful, loving and growing (expanding continually).
You are so extremely precious and vital. You are as wondrous as God...as the universe...as pure as the completely innocent...your generosity immeasurable...your wisdom unfathomable.......there is no one who is more vital than you are.
And no one who is any less vital either. In this world of comparison, of contrast, we see ourselves in relation to others. But in God, in Spirit, we don't. There is no comparison. We are One. We are as closely knit to the source as is the sap in the tree. We each are one with the source, with God. and with each other. Each as valuable as the other and not separable. Our minds cannot grasp this. Not really. We can however grasp the feeling within the words, " I am beautiful! I am pure! I am good and lovely and wonderful!"...and SO are you!"
You see, our loveliness is not in our "specialness." That exists only in the mind movie, the Dream. Because, our specialness must mean that we are different from each other.....separate from each other....and we are not....we are one...the same beauty, the same perfection. The perfection of Christ is our perfection.
The really hard thing for our finite minds to grasp is ...that description fits every one of us. The comparison I mentioned is ingrained in us, what one might consider a normal habit. But really the measuring we do....of ourselves, of each other...every conceivable comparison....our manner, our speech, our voices, our work, our appearance, our "gifts", our ways..... is really only illusion. Like smoke....not real. In this time space reality they do "make a difference" but ultimately they are not where real "Life" is.We can be carried away with our waking dream and can actually cause ourselves and others great suffering. Often the dream has parts that are shared by others and that convinces us of its reality.
We, born in separate bodies, believe in that separateness. We have forgotten what we once knew and we want to find what makes us "special" and thereby establish ourselves as valuable. (desirable) Every temptation is common to man. Every pain, every conflict, every fear is universal to all mankind. Your uniqueness comes in that you are part of One. You are the part that is operating in your body, mind, for this time...and I am operating in mine. The beauty of the One does not ever diminish but only grows and expands. To think you are limited by your body is as silly as thinking that the lamp defines the electricity that powers it. It is true, however, that one can use the body as a doorway....a portal so to speak....to a greater awareness of God... of Presence. The body responds to the thoughts of the mind...it doesn't "know"itself. The mind informs it. It isn't that we need to think certain thoughts.... as much as it is, that we need to be able to still the mind, the running commentary, the liking, the disliking, the struggle for power, the quest for desirability, the comparison.....and just "Be".
As I do to you, think of you, react to you...I am doing all of this to me as well. We are all one. I do not need to defend myself from myself....
I am vast....deep and unlimited. I am one with God, with the universe, with the spirit, with Atman. I am not bound by the substitute self the ego has made for me in my dream....I am divine....I am loved and am even love itself. I am very necessary...as are you....
...do not doubt who you are...do not be tempted into thinking you are less than you are....
You have a huge store house of peace within your being and joy waiting to bubble up.
Smile...breathe and bless this body you inhabit...feel it's aliveness ....
Breathe...smile....breathe....selah
While in our dreaming it is true that having an education, a well paying position, good health or friends can certainly make a difference in our life here, it still is not the paramount thing. In this time space reality...these things are important but still not nearly as important as experiencing our true value, our true Self. I do not mean to demean these quests, or minimize the effects having or not having can have on us and on the people close to us. Still, ultimately, all of it will pass...all of it..... but you....the deeper you...will not. Everything you see is temporary, it has form and by its very existence must pass back into the formlessness from which it came. It may only take a day or a year or 75 years or 175 years but it will again return back into the formlessness. All of the manifested returns to the unmanifested. You, the "real" you is formless....vast....timeless, powerful, loving and growing (expanding continually).
You are so extremely precious and vital. You are as wondrous as God...as the universe...as pure as the completely innocent...your generosity immeasurable...your wisdom unfathomable.......there is no one who is more vital than you are.
And no one who is any less vital either. In this world of comparison, of contrast, we see ourselves in relation to others. But in God, in Spirit, we don't. There is no comparison. We are One. We are as closely knit to the source as is the sap in the tree. We each are one with the source, with God. and with each other. Each as valuable as the other and not separable. Our minds cannot grasp this. Not really. We can however grasp the feeling within the words, " I am beautiful! I am pure! I am good and lovely and wonderful!"...and SO are you!"
You see, our loveliness is not in our "specialness." That exists only in the mind movie, the Dream. Because, our specialness must mean that we are different from each other.....separate from each other....and we are not....we are one...the same beauty, the same perfection. The perfection of Christ is our perfection.
The really hard thing for our finite minds to grasp is ...that description fits every one of us. The comparison I mentioned is ingrained in us, what one might consider a normal habit. But really the measuring we do....of ourselves, of each other...every conceivable comparison....our manner, our speech, our voices, our work, our appearance, our "gifts", our ways..... is really only illusion. Like smoke....not real. In this time space reality they do "make a difference" but ultimately they are not where real "Life" is.We can be carried away with our waking dream and can actually cause ourselves and others great suffering. Often the dream has parts that are shared by others and that convinces us of its reality.
We, born in separate bodies, believe in that separateness. We have forgotten what we once knew and we want to find what makes us "special" and thereby establish ourselves as valuable. (desirable) Every temptation is common to man. Every pain, every conflict, every fear is universal to all mankind. Your uniqueness comes in that you are part of One. You are the part that is operating in your body, mind, for this time...and I am operating in mine. The beauty of the One does not ever diminish but only grows and expands. To think you are limited by your body is as silly as thinking that the lamp defines the electricity that powers it. It is true, however, that one can use the body as a doorway....a portal so to speak....to a greater awareness of God... of Presence. The body responds to the thoughts of the mind...it doesn't "know"itself. The mind informs it. It isn't that we need to think certain thoughts.... as much as it is, that we need to be able to still the mind, the running commentary, the liking, the disliking, the struggle for power, the quest for desirability, the comparison.....and just "Be".
As I do to you, think of you, react to you...I am doing all of this to me as well. We are all one. I do not need to defend myself from myself....
I am vast....deep and unlimited. I am one with God, with the universe, with the spirit, with Atman. I am not bound by the substitute self the ego has made for me in my dream....I am divine....I am loved and am even love itself. I am very necessary...as are you....
...do not doubt who you are...do not be tempted into thinking you are less than you are....
You have a huge store house of peace within your being and joy waiting to bubble up.
Smile...breathe and bless this body you inhabit...feel it's aliveness ....
Breathe...smile....breathe....selah
Monday, November 28, 2011
Gratitude Protects The Heart
In this fast paced world with so many decisions to make, deadlines to keep, people to contact, work to get done, places to go, thinking about the state of our heart may not be the foremost thing in our mind.
Learning to be aware of our internal state is paramount. We are responsible for our inner world and it determines almost completely, our outer world. When we don't heed it, often, we discover that, after the fact. When we run into the wall, we realize we have been so distracted by our mind movies or the outer situations that we have been unaware of what really matters. The traffic gets to us before we realize or the coffee spill or forgetting the right notebook and we discover that we are frustrated, unhappy or impatient. We find we are angry with someone or feeling negative.
Checking in with our inner selves is more important than the brushing our teeth in the morning. Would you consider going out without having done that? Habits can be a wonderful thing....
So what do we do? How do we tend to our inner world before we cruise on out there into our day? What can we do in the middle of this fast pace we are keeping, even if only for another month. We look for all the places we can be truly grateful. We express that gratitude...and that love, that energy covers our heart and prepares us for the day.. Yes, out loud. Yes, it is a kind of prayer for those who need to label and categorize for the sake of a study. It has been called the prayer of thanksgiving.
The reason we need to do it and do it often is that the feeling, that positive energy, washes our heart and protects it. We let the gratitude wash over us and when we need to, we call it back during the course of the day. This is not the "it could be worse" scenario. This is thinking about what we are grateful for......When we practice this often, we can find more things during the day to feel grateful for. Please understand, this is not thinking we are grateful or the "should be" grateful like we frequently hear grace being expressed for a meal "Make us truly thankful"...this is the feeling of gratitude.
Start with something small...let it grow within you. You like the day, the weather, but you don't REALLY care about it. Then start with appreciation. You can appreciate the weather and in time it can move into thanksgiving. I like it, I love it, I am grateful for it...YES!!!! (to its existence) (we are back to saying "Yes!" to life again from last month)
The feeling, the heart, is where the energy flows from, to and through. Gratitude is very powerful and can have a high energy charge. It doesn't work because it is a good thing to do or because it makes you sound any particular way or because you think you "should be" grateful...it is a real energy. Real energy that you are consciously generating...shifting your level of consciousness to what IS and expressing it out loud. This way it can easily build on itself and pretty soon you have the energy of the invincible, incredible, wondrous being that you are!
Whatever we are feeling , combined with our thinking...we begin to generate. So let's generate energy we actually would choose for ourselves...........
Let us be aware of our choices and make the ones we want to live with...........
So the next time you are thinking, "I've got to hurry, or start through your mental list...think, "What can I be grateful for...right now???
I am so grateful that I can always come home....I can always...in a moment, "Come Home" and there is joy and deep, deep peace waiting there for me. I am SOOOOOOO glad this is so for me....and I am also grateful that it is so for you as well.....
breathe.......smile........breathe.........selah
Learning to be aware of our internal state is paramount. We are responsible for our inner world and it determines almost completely, our outer world. When we don't heed it, often, we discover that, after the fact. When we run into the wall, we realize we have been so distracted by our mind movies or the outer situations that we have been unaware of what really matters. The traffic gets to us before we realize or the coffee spill or forgetting the right notebook and we discover that we are frustrated, unhappy or impatient. We find we are angry with someone or feeling negative.
Checking in with our inner selves is more important than the brushing our teeth in the morning. Would you consider going out without having done that? Habits can be a wonderful thing....
So what do we do? How do we tend to our inner world before we cruise on out there into our day? What can we do in the middle of this fast pace we are keeping, even if only for another month. We look for all the places we can be truly grateful. We express that gratitude...and that love, that energy covers our heart and prepares us for the day.. Yes, out loud. Yes, it is a kind of prayer for those who need to label and categorize for the sake of a study. It has been called the prayer of thanksgiving.
The reason we need to do it and do it often is that the feeling, that positive energy, washes our heart and protects it. We let the gratitude wash over us and when we need to, we call it back during the course of the day. This is not the "it could be worse" scenario. This is thinking about what we are grateful for......When we practice this often, we can find more things during the day to feel grateful for. Please understand, this is not thinking we are grateful or the "should be" grateful like we frequently hear grace being expressed for a meal "Make us truly thankful"...this is the feeling of gratitude.
Start with something small...let it grow within you. You like the day, the weather, but you don't REALLY care about it. Then start with appreciation. You can appreciate the weather and in time it can move into thanksgiving. I like it, I love it, I am grateful for it...YES!!!! (to its existence) (we are back to saying "Yes!" to life again from last month)
The feeling, the heart, is where the energy flows from, to and through. Gratitude is very powerful and can have a high energy charge. It doesn't work because it is a good thing to do or because it makes you sound any particular way or because you think you "should be" grateful...it is a real energy. Real energy that you are consciously generating...shifting your level of consciousness to what IS and expressing it out loud. This way it can easily build on itself and pretty soon you have the energy of the invincible, incredible, wondrous being that you are!
Whatever we are feeling , combined with our thinking...we begin to generate. So let's generate energy we actually would choose for ourselves...........
Let us be aware of our choices and make the ones we want to live with...........
So the next time you are thinking, "I've got to hurry, or start through your mental list...think, "What can I be grateful for...right now???
I am so grateful that I can always come home....I can always...in a moment, "Come Home" and there is joy and deep, deep peace waiting there for me. I am SOOOOOOO glad this is so for me....and I am also grateful that it is so for you as well.....
breathe.......smile........breathe.........selah
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Who you See Yourself As
It seems that most of our life is about finding out who we are or deciding who we are...of establishing who we are, of deciding who we want to be or don't want to be. From the time we are very young, we begin framing our "who we think we are", who we are afraid we might be and how we feel about all of those pieces.
After childhood, we then go through changes of roles, relationships and what they mean to us as to who we perceive we are. We hear about being the "victim" and being the "survivor". We want to be the hero or the winner. There are many roles and attitudes that can go with those roles.
So.......do we choose who we are? Are we conditioned by our families of origin and our childhood to think certain ways about who we are? And then can we change all that if we choose to?
What haopens when we feel we have been terribly misunderstood or misjudged? We feel they "they" have not really seen "who we are".
I think that with some thought you will see that almost all our development, our growth, centers around this idea of "who we are".
When I spoke of the streams of consiousness in the last piece, I was addressing part of this.
There is in truth, a reality of who we are. Each of us. And we didn't make it up or become it by some magical rite or background. It us not based on your family, your occupation, your roles, your desures or abiities, or your education. Who you really are is universal, eternal and needs no defense. You are not your thoughts.
You are not what you eat. :)
Your are not your behaviors.
You are not your victories or failures.
You are not your emotions.
You are not your apparent weaknesses or strenghts in this body and time space reality.
You are more....
look at the beauty of the leaves on a fall afternoon with the graceful swaying of the trees and be in that moment...As you are in the moment, you are being who you are...life, in this moment.
Now, many cannot accept this very easily so I will say like this, Who you are is more like your grandest version of yourself. You are like God...you are, in fact, God...but not all of God. " Home "that I speak of when I say," come home" is to that divine spark, the Christ within, the Atman or the Self as it is called in the East. It is paradoxically you and yet greater than you at the same time. You are beautiful...complete, whole, powerful, generous, full of joy and peace of mind. You are invincible. You are kind and full of love. You have no wants for the fullness of life is yours...is you.
I know, often, you do not feel this way. And when you do not, you have moved away from the perfect whole that is you. When you divide yourself like that, it is uncomfortable and then you suffer. When you are aligned with the truth you feel wonderful....our emotions can be a good guide as to where we are locating ourselves at any given moment.
Remember...the road back home is always forgiveness. It will not end there but it begins there. It is the bridge from where ever you have found yourself....who you have acted like you thought you were ... ....back to "Home Base"..............where you have always been and will always be perfect and whole and eternal. You have only been believing an illusion,
Freedom is found in forgiveness. The greater awarenss you can have of forgiveness daily, the greater your sense of personal freedom. Forgiveness releases the impact of the past (even just minutes before) and receives this moment fresh and new. Forgiveness opens our ability to live in the NOW.
You can argue with who you are.... the universe won't argue back, it will wait...until, if need be, to the time you leave your physical body behind...and then you will "know" it is true. The truth is the truth and the sooner we align ourselves with it...the greater our harmony in living life.
Just try thinking about it...try saying it...
I am beautiful. I am whole... I am perfect. I am forgiven, completely loved. I am able and strong, and generous. It is my nature to love without fear. And you know what....
so are you !!! "Beautiful and perfect too! We are the same, you and I!!
Selah.....smile and breathe.....
After childhood, we then go through changes of roles, relationships and what they mean to us as to who we perceive we are. We hear about being the "victim" and being the "survivor". We want to be the hero or the winner. There are many roles and attitudes that can go with those roles.
So.......do we choose who we are? Are we conditioned by our families of origin and our childhood to think certain ways about who we are? And then can we change all that if we choose to?
What haopens when we feel we have been terribly misunderstood or misjudged? We feel they "they" have not really seen "who we are".
I think that with some thought you will see that almost all our development, our growth, centers around this idea of "who we are".
When I spoke of the streams of consiousness in the last piece, I was addressing part of this.
There is in truth, a reality of who we are. Each of us. And we didn't make it up or become it by some magical rite or background. It us not based on your family, your occupation, your roles, your desures or abiities, or your education. Who you really are is universal, eternal and needs no defense. You are not your thoughts.
You are not what you eat. :)
Your are not your behaviors.
You are not your victories or failures.
You are not your emotions.
You are not your apparent weaknesses or strenghts in this body and time space reality.
You are more....
look at the beauty of the leaves on a fall afternoon with the graceful swaying of the trees and be in that moment...As you are in the moment, you are being who you are...life, in this moment.
Now, many cannot accept this very easily so I will say like this, Who you are is more like your grandest version of yourself. You are like God...you are, in fact, God...but not all of God. " Home "that I speak of when I say," come home" is to that divine spark, the Christ within, the Atman or the Self as it is called in the East. It is paradoxically you and yet greater than you at the same time. You are beautiful...complete, whole, powerful, generous, full of joy and peace of mind. You are invincible. You are kind and full of love. You have no wants for the fullness of life is yours...is you.
I know, often, you do not feel this way. And when you do not, you have moved away from the perfect whole that is you. When you divide yourself like that, it is uncomfortable and then you suffer. When you are aligned with the truth you feel wonderful....our emotions can be a good guide as to where we are locating ourselves at any given moment.
Remember...the road back home is always forgiveness. It will not end there but it begins there. It is the bridge from where ever you have found yourself....who you have acted like you thought you were ... ....back to "Home Base"..............where you have always been and will always be perfect and whole and eternal. You have only been believing an illusion,
Freedom is found in forgiveness. The greater awarenss you can have of forgiveness daily, the greater your sense of personal freedom. Forgiveness releases the impact of the past (even just minutes before) and receives this moment fresh and new. Forgiveness opens our ability to live in the NOW.
You can argue with who you are.... the universe won't argue back, it will wait...until, if need be, to the time you leave your physical body behind...and then you will "know" it is true. The truth is the truth and the sooner we align ourselves with it...the greater our harmony in living life.
Just try thinking about it...try saying it...
I am beautiful. I am whole... I am perfect. I am forgiven, completely loved. I am able and strong, and generous. It is my nature to love without fear. And you know what....
so are you !!! "Beautiful and perfect too! We are the same, you and I!!
Selah.....smile and breathe.....
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)