LOVE AND APPRECIATION

    Think about it, we all want to be loved and appreciated; yet most of us go around treating others as if they were little more than objects decorate the landscape of our lives. We take others for granted, we don't say thank you and we don't tell others that we appreciate them for their good work or loving efforts. How can we expect others to love and appreciate us, when we seldom show them the same kindness and respect? So many people these days complain that life has become so very impersonal; yet they themselves do nothing to try and change that dynamic in their daily lives. In every effort to change something for the better, someone always has to make the first move. Someone has to take a stand and do the right thing before the wrong thing can be corrected. What would happen, if each of us did one thing today to show another person that we care for and appreciate them. What would happen if that person responded in kind? The funny thing about good feelings, is that we always want more of them once we encounter them. We've all had the experience where someone did something wonderful for us or made us feel special in some way. And then we turned around and did the same for them to show our love and appreciation in return. What would happen, if each of us lived our lives that way? One individual may not be able to change the entire world and make it a more loving place. But we can change our personal world by treating our friends, family and coworkers in a more loving way. Let's stop treating others like shadows that have no emotion; or like random servants whom we expect to do things for us, while we do nothing in return. Let's begin to treat one another like human beings who have feelings and desire to be loved just like we do. By doing this, we can all obtain that which we desire most; and that is love and appreciation.

 

THE REPTILIANS

    We've heard a lot over the years about the reptilians; those nefarious lizard people that encircle our planet in their spaceships, live in underground cities and are shapeshifters who are everywhere, even in our own government. Numerous books have been written on this subject, and a Google search can yield a plethora of websites and videos about the topic. But is there any credence to this modern mythos? I have researched the topic for a number of years, and have watched more videos than I care to remember. And I can honestly say, that I have found no substantial evidence to support the frightening claims of the reptilian proponents. I've watched the videos of former United States presidents, supposedly shape shifting and sporting the dark eyes of a serpent. I have viewed the conspiracy theories that tell us that the symbol of the serpent is everywhere, and that the reptilians are ready to take over the planet. But none of it is anything more than the stretching of facts, seeing things that are not there and a healthy dose of paranoia. The individuals who see the threat of the reptilians everywhere, seem to be the same folks who look at NASA imagery of our neighboring planets and see an alien structure or an extraterrestrial in every rock formation. I'm not saying that there is not life out there, somewhere. The universe is a big and mysterious place. But the whole reptilian frenzy seems to be nothing more than a new bad guy on the scene for everyone to worry about. The problem is, this bad guy doesn't seem to exist. Sure, we have plenty of eyewitness accounts from people who say that they either saw, or were abducted by the reptilians. But that is hardly scientific proof that they're actually among us. If they live underground, in the earth, in elaborate subterranean cities; why have we not discover them? After all, there are supposedly maps and some kind of photos of their tunnels somewhere. But yet, no serious archaeologist has looked into this? Any argument can sound good at the time it is being presented. But then when we ask the hard and logical questions, we often find out that they're only decorated words that may not hold much substance. And it is my honest opinion, after much research into the subject; that is exactly what the reptilians are.

EASTER, NO MATTER YOUR RELIGION

    This Sunday, March 27th, will be Easter Sunday. Many will celebrate this special day, and yet many others will not. But if we really think about the message of this day, we will see that it applies to us all! In metaphysics, the Bible is taken in a more metaphorical way; hence the stories that it contains refer to the higher, spiritual being within each of us. There is a part of us all that is spirit, and is connected to the Divine; and that part of us is what the Christ represents. This spiritual part of us is sometimes buried beneath the cares and illusions of this materiel world; hence it is, encased within a tomb. But we can strengthen that part of us through meditation, daily reflection and listening to its still small voice within. It will then, over time, get stronger and begin to dominate our thinking; it has then, risen from the tomb and is liberated with new life! At that point, we are led more by our higher selves and are no longer so encumbered by the trappings of the lower energies of the material world. So no matter what your religion or spiritual path, begin to let your higher/spiritual self rise from the tomb this Easter season... that is something that pertains to us all!

BE A LAMP UNTO YOURSELF

“Therefore, be ye lamps unto yourselves, be a refuge to yourselves." - Buddha

    The world will not always be your friend, and even the people closest to you will let you down at times. You may do one hundred favors for one hundred people, and yet they will not do just one for you. You might do one thousand things well, but be ridiculed harshly for the one thing you failed to do. There is a never ending list of scenarios that make the best of us want to crawl under a rock sometimes and forget about humanity as a whole. The remedy to this, is to take the Buddha's advice and be a lamp unto yourself, be a refuge to yourself. You are the only person who will never let you down. You are the only person who truly knows what makes you happy. To put too much stock in what other people think, or say or expect from you will be like living the life of a pinball; always bouncing from pillar to pillar and falling into holes. You can only do your best where other people are concerned, but sometimes your best will not be good enough for them. But if it is good enough for you, and you have put your all into a task and are proud of yourself, you should be satisfied with that. This does not mean that you should be a selfish individual, not caring how other people feel. It is just that you could hand some folks $1 million in gold, and they would still find fault or complain about something. The idea is, that you handed someone $1 million in gold; perhaps you didn't have to, but you did. Be happy that you helped someone, even if they seem ungrateful or complain that the $1 million dollars you gave them was not a million and one. Or perhaps there are times when someone wants two hours of your time, but you can only give one. They may complain and scowl at you; but you gave that hour in your already hectic day. Do for others as you would want them to do for you. By doing, you'll be a lamp unto yourself and no one will be able to extinguish your light. Within yourself is the piece that you seek, it is not "out there" somewhere. And other people cannot give it to you by their actions or approval. Do your best, give what you can, be proud of yourself and nourish your own soul. Do what makes you happy, do the things that give your life meaning and don't worry so much about the negative words and opinions of others. It's what's in your own heart that shines the

light upon your path.

MENTAL HEALING

 
    Mental healing is a very effective way to help our bodies repair themselves, fight disease and eliminate pain. A very simple and easy technique that I was taught early in my spiritual practice was as follows: sit or lie down in a comfortable place and close your eyes. Take a deep breath, and as you exhale, mentally say the word relax. Allow all the muscles in your body to go loose and limp. Once your body is feeling relaxed, take another deep breath and as you exhale, mentally say the word relax. This time let yourself experience mental relaxation. Feel at peace with yourself and the entire universe, distance yourself from worldly cares and just let yourself be at ease. Take a third deep breath, and as you exhale, mentally say the word relax. On this third exhalation just allow yourself to settle deeper into the feeling of peaceful relaxation.

    Once you are in a relaxed state of mind, mentally project yourself to a sacred space that is all your own. This place can be anywhere in or out of this world. Make it just the way you want it to be. Take some time to explore your sacred place, and noticed some of the details around you. As you do this, your mind will drift deeper down into the Alpha state. After about 3 to 5 minutes of exploration, begin to do your healing work. You can channel energy to yourself, bring in any great healer or physician. Or you may have healing remedies all your own in this secret place. You may have something like a special vacuum, that pulls pain at of the body. You may have a crystal that sends healing light into your body and helps it to heal. Use your imagination to create whatever healing experience you want in your sacred place. Once the healing work is done, and you're feeling satisfied with the experience; simply tell yourself that you're going to leave your sacred place for now and then count up from 1 to 6 and slowly open your eyes. This technique is very simple, but it has worked wonderfully for me over the years. I hope that it will be as generous to you as a has been to me.

 

HEALING WITH ENERGY

    Anybody can work with healing energy. It is not as difficult as some may believe, and you do not need any formal training. One of the first techniques that I learned in energy healing, was to imagine a funnel of pure white energy coming down from the cosmos and entering my body through the top of my head. Once this healing energy had filled my entire body, I could direct it and concentrate it to any part of my physical body that needed healing. I could also direct that energy to someone else in need. It didn't matter whether the person was right in front of me, or on the other side of the globe, I could send them healing energy and they would receive it. This form of energy healing can be used for physical ailments, but also for mental or spiritual ailments as well. It is an easy technique that is very effective and I still use it in my personal practice. You can also channel this energy into the future, to surround a certain event or place with a powerful, peaceful, loving and healing light. You might be surprised at how many times this practice made a chaotic work environment more peaceful for me, just by sending energy to the place and people every night. You don't have to be a spiritual master to work with healing energy, all it takes is the desire and a little bit of practice. I am confident that this technique will work for you as soon as you begin to use it, just as it did for me.

CYCLES AND SEASONS

    There is a thought in Buddhism and also in paganism, that all things have their season and cycle. If we apply this reasoning to every circumstance in our life it will surely help us to gain a new perspective. In our modern world, we often panic when change comes into our lives: If we should lose our job, a loved one passes away, or we find that we have to move to a new location. The occasions for change are many, and often we dread them more than welcoming them. And then there is the case of chronic worry of things that have not yet happened. For example, what if I lose my job? What if my husband or wife leaves me? What if I were to become ill or die. Whatever the case may be, if we apply the principle of seasons and cycles we can begin to trust in the course of nature in our lives. The seasons change, the cycles of the moon come and go. The many creatures and critters that thrive in the summer months, pass when the autumn approaches. But this does not stop them from living their lives and doing what nature has programmed them to do. And it should be so for all of us; we know that nothing will last forever. None of us will live forever, at least not in this world anyway. So why worry about loss and change? Why feel so defeated and sorrowful when people or things exit our lives. When the clouds come, we know the sun will shine again. When the winter snow covers the ground, we know that spring will eventually come. To every ending there is a new beginning. We should not fear these changing seasons in our lives, but rather trust in the cycle of nature. We do not know what lies over the next horizon. But we see, in the wisdom of the universe, that where there appears to be death, new Life emerges. Trust in this fact, and do not let the fear of change paralyze you or the cycle of time leave you in ruin.

FOLLOWING YOUR BLISS

    Follow your bliss, it is a statement that has almost become trite in our day. But it is one of the most important statements you will ever hear. It tells you to follow your path, pursue your happiness and construct your life in a way that brings you joy. Society has a way of casting us all in the same mold. There is what we are expected to do, there is what other people want us to do and there are those things that are outside the norm that everybody labels as pipe dreams. But how many people have followed there, "pipe dreams," and became famous musicians, actors and poets. All souls are not the same, and all minds do not think alike. What is it that drives you? What is it that you mention occasionally in conversation that starts with the words, "I always used to want to..." You can still pursue the dream, you can follow your bliss. Even if it is not realistic that you can make a career out of it at this stage in your life, I can still become a part of your life. You do not have to live in the status quo. You can rise above it and be something more than you ever thought you could. Don't let the words, follow your bliss, be just a redundant statement to your ears. Let it become something that you do and it will change your life.

FEAR OF SICKNESS AND DISEASE

    Each morning when I read the daily news, I see more and more articles on the topic of sickness and disease. Some of the headlines I have read over the last few days have said, "16 signs of an impending heart attack." "10 signs that you may be ready to experience a serious stroke." "19 signs that tell you that there is cancer growing in your body right now." The list goes on and on of fearful warnings about what dreaded infirmity maybe befall us next. And the serious warning signs are things that most people experience almost daily, such as: tired achy feet, fatigue, acne or gas. This is certainly a way to get people living in more fear and worry than they already have in their lives. On top of all this we have the numerous prescription drug ads we see on television. It would seem that we are being bombarded with images and threats of disease at every turn.

    As mental and spiritual beings, we have a choice to make about what we are seeing and reading in the news. All of the great spiritual leaders of the past have resonated with your message to come out from among the mass mindset of the world and be not like those in it. I myself do not believe that they were talking about every little thing in our existence being taboo as some religious leaders may teach. But rather, I believe they spoke of the mindset of greed, fear, violence, hatred and the like that permeate the world of mankind. There always seems to be the report of a tremendous disaster of one sort of another coming our way according to those in charge and the mass media. If we immerse ourselves in that hectic/fearful mindset, then we will become a part of that disaster. But we have a choice, we can step outside of it all. We can choose to live a life of peace and higher thinking. We can do what is right for us and not let the latest fads dictate what we eat, what we wear and how to think.

    I believe it is the same with sickness and disease. If a worried, anxious mind makes the physical body more susceptible to all forms of sickness and disease. Then a quiet, peaceful mind promotes health, well-being; and there scientific data to support this claim. I sometimes wonder if the big pharmaceutical companies and medical industry does not use these worrisome articles and advertisements to make us more nervous in our daily lives. After all, if we are more stressed out than we already are, then we're more apt to become ill and will be in need of their services and products. But the good news is, that we do not have to participate in their campaign of illness and anxiety. We can come out from among them, and live our lives in a different way. We can leave all of that negative noise behind and live a happier, more peaceful and healthy life. Just because the rest of the world is in turmoil and focusing on terrible things, doesn't mean that you have to. It is your world, your mind and your health. Take responsibility for yourself and create it the way you want it to be. And a more peaceful mindset is the first and most important step in creating health and longevity.

 

THE ART OF NON ATTACHMENT

    It's difficult not to feel angry or heavy hearted when we see those around us making terrible mistakes in their lives. It is never easy when we see a friend or loved one change before our eyes, and become something other than the good person we always thought they were. It seems that for most of our lives, our states of mind and mood are dictated by the actions and words of others. But there is a way that we can safeguard ourselves against the negative impact of such circumstances. And that way is through non attachment. In Buddhism, we are taught to love others and be kind, but also not to be so concerned with what they are doing or the choices that they make. We are taught that our own life is the only one that we can truly change. We are told to focus on the moment, and be present. We are not to be so focused on the people around us that it pulls us out of our own inner peace and present moment. It takes some practice to develop this kind of mindset where we love others deeply, but are not affected by their actions or poor choices; but it can be done. You can become more of the observer of life, rather than a character who has a part to play in someone else's drama. To develop this kind of non attachment we must practice it moment by moment in our day. A good exercise is to imagine yourself as being transparent. The negative actions of others pass through you rather than find a place to lodge within your heart or mind. By doing this, overtime, you'll begin to realize that you are not being so dragged down by the things that other people do or do not do in your environment. But we also must remember, that non attachment is not having the mindset of just not caring what other people do. It is caring, and helping when and where we can. It is just not letting ourselves become emotionally wounded or burdened by the actions of others.

DEVELOPING PSYCHIC ABILITIES

    To experience flashes of psychic insight, and strong intuitions we must get our own opinions out of our way. Let your mind be a blank slate that is able to catch images and impulses that it might not otherwise be privy to. There is always more to a situation than meets the eye, but when our own thoughts about the circumstances are allowed free rein, we can often be mistaken about the deeper issues at hand. In order to see with the nonphysical eyes and hear with the nonphysical ears, we must learn to sense things on a deeper level. Clearing our thoughts and just allowing the impressions to come to us is the first and most vital step of developing psychic ability. A good rule of thumb to check and see if you are using your psychic senses is to ask yourself, "what do I think about this situation?" Then ask yourself, "what do I feel about this situation?" It is what you feel that is important here; that odd feeling or inner sense that is deeper and beneath the rational thought process. When you are tuned into that feeling... you are seeing, hearing and sensing with your psychic abilities.

SCIENTIFICALLY MINDED?

    Many people claim to be scientific in their thinking, yet some of them can be as hung up on their personal ideas as the most devout religious person. I have spoken to a number of very well educated people in my day who never heard of certain scientific discoveries or experiments that have been done in the laboratory. Some have said, "I've never heard of that, but if that is true, this changes everything. I will have to look that up." But then time goes by and they still have not looked it up. They're still adamant about a certain opinion that has been harpooned years ago. If we are going to truly be scientific individuals, we must have the presence of mind to look at both sides of the story. To read a favorite theory that strokes our ego and inflates our personal belief, and then ignore all evidence to the contrary, is not honest scientific research. Take for example, the topic of the near-death experience. Many still tout the belief that the NDE is nothing more than the symptoms of an oxygen deprived brain. They are completely unaware of the new research that has been done in this field that opens up many more questions on the subject than the old blanket theories can answer. Some say that science and religion are diametrically opposed to one another. Other say that they walk hand-in-hand. The truth is, sometimes they strangely agree, and many other times they do not. It is our job as individuals to do our own honest research. We cannot just settle on the opinions of a few or seek out the information that makes us feel good about our pet beliefs and perceptions. With the invention of the Internet and search engines like Google, anyone can have a plethora of scientific information at their fingertips in a matter of moments. It is up to each of us, to find that information and make his/her own decisions on the evidences given. And when we do this, it will not extinguish our faith and kill our spirituality. But rather it will broaden its horizons and make us even more open-minded as individuals.