"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right-doing, there is a field. I will meet you there." Rumi
One of the biggest obstacles to creating the life you truly want is not being able to let go of the past.
You may not even be consciously hanging onto the past. It could be a hurt or a negative belief that happened when you were a child and is now so deeply ingrained you don't know it's there. Until something triggers it and then it rises up to sabotage you.
Learning to forgive is one of the most freeing experiences you can have in life.
Recognizing and accepting that what other people may have said to you, done to you, or done to others that you have witnessed is part of the life lessons everyone faces. That doesn't mean you don't feel hurt or pain or anger over the event or situation. It simply means you need to recognize the situation as it is and find a way to let those feelings go, or they - the feelings - will keep you from living the life you truly want and deserve.
It isn't always easy but then sometimes the most rewarding tasks are the ones that require the most persistence and determination to accomplish.
Now, here's another fact to think about: For most of us, it is easier to forgive someone else than to forgive ourselves.
Either way, you need to practice forgiveness for people, events and hurts that have touched your life and left an emotional imprint. If you don't learn to forgive, and you hang onto the emotions, they will continue to affect your life in so many different ways - in physical ailments (also known as "body syndromes"), in holding you back from succeeding, in depression, even in serious or terminal illness.
Here are two ways to learn to forgive. There are other ways but these are simple to learn and easy to incorporate into a daily practice.
(1) Ho'oponopono as explained by Dr. Joe Vitale and Dr. Hew Len.
Ho'oponopono is the Hawaiian practice of reconciliation and forgiveness for everything that happens in your life. Dr. Len believes that you are responsible for everything that happens in your life so you must forgive yourself in order to clear out the negativity and fear that you are projecting out into the world, which then becomes the experiences you have in the world. In other words, everything you see - whether it's a first-hand experience or something on the news - is a direct projection from inside of you. To change what you see around you, you must first change yourself. More importantly, you must learn to love and forgive yourself.
Here's how: Simply repeat "I love you. I'm sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you."
"The idea of Ho’oponopono is to work directly with The Divinity, saying to The Divinity incessantly: “I Love You; I am sorry; Please forgive me for whatever is going on in me that I perceive this in a certain way; Thank You.”, and then allow The Divinity to make the corrections, which is to transmute the garbage (memories) in my subconscious mind back to Zero, and then out of that Zero (void), Divinity can come forth." Source: Zero Limits by Dr Joe Vitale and Dr IhaleakalaHew Len
Forgiveness is not about someone else. Forgiveness is about you; it sets you free.
(2) Use the power of blessing as explained by Gregg Braden
In his book, "Secrets of the Lost Mode of Prayer," Gregg Braden offers this process for blessing the people, events and situations that have in any way caused you pain. This includes blessing yourself for things you have done or believed about yourself that have caused you to feel anger, hurt, pain, betrayal or any other negative emotion that you hold within you.
It is a three-step process and each step is important for the release so don't skip any.
First, state: "I bless (and here place the name or names of those who have been hurt, including you if you are the one who has been hurt)
Next, state: "I bless (here place the names of who or what has caused the hurt; be as specific as possible)
Then, state: "I bless me in the witnessing."
As Braden further explains, "Although the reason for our hurt still exists, what has happened is that we've changed the way we feel about our hurt. This is the power of our blessing."
We create our world based on our feelings. When we change how we feel, we change our world.
Again, forgiveness is not about overlooking or dismissing negative behavior. It is about understanding that such things occur, and rather than letting these painful events fester within and ruin our lives, we can let the emotions go and look at life from a perspective of love.
Practice the art of forgiving every day and watch how your world will change.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
What is abundance?
There seems to be some confusion as to what is abundance. In our current social environment, it would seem to be money.
I am constantly getting emails from strangers telling me how I can make a "six figure income" on the Internet using their same methods. Or, my personal favorite, the frequent email offer to "earn $7200 a month working from home." I'll admit I was curious. So instead of simply deleting the emails, I read a couple of them. I found that the "six figure income" offer in both emails was exactly the same - exact same sales pitch, exact same copy on the sales letter, exact same screen shot of the income adding up in the account - it was just from two different people (supposedly). Interesting. The price for learning the secret to unlocking these riches was different as well. Perhaps "Paul's" secrets were better. But what kept jumping out at me was the focus on money.
Now, there is nothing wrong with money. I love money. Not for its sake alone but for what it enables me to do. And that's the key.
Money alone is not abundance. Money is a tool. Real abundance doesn't require money at all. Real abundance comes from living a joyous and fulfilled life. There are a lot of rich people who are not living abundant lives. They may have millions in the bank but they are living empty, meaningless and painful lives. Check the daily gossip columns if you don't believe me.
Understanding abundance and putting it to work right now is one of the vital elements in creating the life you want to live.
Here's why.
Your subconscious mind doesn't know the difference between what's real and what's imagined. It responds to your emotions. If you feel poor, if you believe you are living in a world of scarcity, your subconscious mind will work to keep you poor and living in scarcity. If you believe abundance is directly tied to your checking account balance and your balance is in the red, you'll be focused on a feeling of lack. And your very powerful subconscious mind will work hard to maintain you in a place of lack.
Remember: Energy flows where attention goes.
So how do you change your feelings to ones of abundance when the news, advertising and maybe even your family and friends are all talking about economic "hard times," dwindling resources and a lack of jobs?
Try one or all of these:
(1) This one comes from the movie, "The Secret." Get yourself a "gratitude rock." If not a rock, then some other item that you decide will be your trigger for putting your focus on all the wonderful things you already have in your life. In hypnotherapy terms, this item will become your "anchor" to switch your thoughts from habitually thinking about what you don't have to the new thoughts you want to make a habit. Carry your anchor with you. Every time you touch it or see it, stop and mentally list all the wonderful things you already have in your life. Again, and I will repeat this over and over, this is a process so at first you may feel as though you're really reaching for things. Just keep at it. You'll find that with a little time you are truly feeling grateful for a number of wonderful things that already exist in your life - right here and right now. How about good friends? Or a loving pet? Or a favorite book? They are all part of the abundance and richness of life.
(2) This one comes from prosperity master Edwene Gaines. Buy something that you can afford that will make you feel rich. When Edwene Gaines had no money and was working toward manifesting a trip to Mexico City, she bought olives with almonds in them because she believed that they were the type of thing that rich people ate. She, therefore, felt rich when she ate them. And she did manifest the money to pay for the trip to Mexico City. I have an antique amber ring that I wear when I want to feel rich. It's not really an expensive piece of jewelry. It is, however, quite ostentatious and it puts me into a feeling of being abundant when I wear it. It's my power ring and I know I can make good things happen when I'm wearing it - no matter what my checkbook might say at the time.
(3) This one comes from Oprah. Keep a gratitude journal. Writing down all the things for which you are grateful sends a very powerful message to your subconscious mind and to the higher intelligence from which all abundance flows. Make it a habit. Every night before you go to bed, write down at least five things for which you are grateful from the day. If you set an intention to make it five new things each night, you will start focusing on noticing new things for which to be grateful. As you do, you will find that you are surrounded by abundance. Your list doesn't have to be about big things that happened that day. Even small things, such as seeing a hummingbird outside your window, are worthy of your gratitude. Be grateful for everything.
One final point: If you followed the instructions on how to set an intention from my earlier post, Setting a clear intention, you will have described your life as you want it to be. You will have written down all the elements of that life, not just money in the bank. As I said earlier, money is a tool. When you think rich and think abundantly, you're subconscious mind has no choice but to make it happen. You will be inspired. You will suddenly see opportunities you may have missed before. Your life will grow even richer in all areas, including your finances.
Joseph Campbell said, "Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls."
Find the bliss in your life right now and those doors will start opening.
Oh, and if you start to focus solely on money or the lack thereof, and think that having more money is going to make you happy, I have four words for you: Lindsay Lohan Michael Jackson
I am constantly getting emails from strangers telling me how I can make a "six figure income" on the Internet using their same methods. Or, my personal favorite, the frequent email offer to "earn $7200 a month working from home." I'll admit I was curious. So instead of simply deleting the emails, I read a couple of them. I found that the "six figure income" offer in both emails was exactly the same - exact same sales pitch, exact same copy on the sales letter, exact same screen shot of the income adding up in the account - it was just from two different people (supposedly). Interesting. The price for learning the secret to unlocking these riches was different as well. Perhaps "Paul's" secrets were better. But what kept jumping out at me was the focus on money.
Now, there is nothing wrong with money. I love money. Not for its sake alone but for what it enables me to do. And that's the key.
Money alone is not abundance. Money is a tool. Real abundance doesn't require money at all. Real abundance comes from living a joyous and fulfilled life. There are a lot of rich people who are not living abundant lives. They may have millions in the bank but they are living empty, meaningless and painful lives. Check the daily gossip columns if you don't believe me.
Understanding abundance and putting it to work right now is one of the vital elements in creating the life you want to live.
Here's why.
Your subconscious mind doesn't know the difference between what's real and what's imagined. It responds to your emotions. If you feel poor, if you believe you are living in a world of scarcity, your subconscious mind will work to keep you poor and living in scarcity. If you believe abundance is directly tied to your checking account balance and your balance is in the red, you'll be focused on a feeling of lack. And your very powerful subconscious mind will work hard to maintain you in a place of lack.
Remember: Energy flows where attention goes.
So how do you change your feelings to ones of abundance when the news, advertising and maybe even your family and friends are all talking about economic "hard times," dwindling resources and a lack of jobs?
Try one or all of these:
(1) This one comes from the movie, "The Secret." Get yourself a "gratitude rock." If not a rock, then some other item that you decide will be your trigger for putting your focus on all the wonderful things you already have in your life. In hypnotherapy terms, this item will become your "anchor" to switch your thoughts from habitually thinking about what you don't have to the new thoughts you want to make a habit. Carry your anchor with you. Every time you touch it or see it, stop and mentally list all the wonderful things you already have in your life. Again, and I will repeat this over and over, this is a process so at first you may feel as though you're really reaching for things. Just keep at it. You'll find that with a little time you are truly feeling grateful for a number of wonderful things that already exist in your life - right here and right now. How about good friends? Or a loving pet? Or a favorite book? They are all part of the abundance and richness of life.
(2) This one comes from prosperity master Edwene Gaines. Buy something that you can afford that will make you feel rich. When Edwene Gaines had no money and was working toward manifesting a trip to Mexico City, she bought olives with almonds in them because she believed that they were the type of thing that rich people ate. She, therefore, felt rich when she ate them. And she did manifest the money to pay for the trip to Mexico City. I have an antique amber ring that I wear when I want to feel rich. It's not really an expensive piece of jewelry. It is, however, quite ostentatious and it puts me into a feeling of being abundant when I wear it. It's my power ring and I know I can make good things happen when I'm wearing it - no matter what my checkbook might say at the time.
(3) This one comes from Oprah. Keep a gratitude journal. Writing down all the things for which you are grateful sends a very powerful message to your subconscious mind and to the higher intelligence from which all abundance flows. Make it a habit. Every night before you go to bed, write down at least five things for which you are grateful from the day. If you set an intention to make it five new things each night, you will start focusing on noticing new things for which to be grateful. As you do, you will find that you are surrounded by abundance. Your list doesn't have to be about big things that happened that day. Even small things, such as seeing a hummingbird outside your window, are worthy of your gratitude. Be grateful for everything.
One final point: If you followed the instructions on how to set an intention from my earlier post, Setting a clear intention, you will have described your life as you want it to be. You will have written down all the elements of that life, not just money in the bank. As I said earlier, money is a tool. When you think rich and think abundantly, you're subconscious mind has no choice but to make it happen. You will be inspired. You will suddenly see opportunities you may have missed before. Your life will grow even richer in all areas, including your finances.
Joseph Campbell said, "Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls."
Find the bliss in your life right now and those doors will start opening.
Oh, and if you start to focus solely on money or the lack thereof, and think that having more money is going to make you happy, I have four words for you: Lindsay Lohan Michael Jackson
Monday, October 4, 2010
Be playful
Sometimes creating the life that you want can get very serious. It has happened to me. You aren't seeing the results you expected so you begin to wonder. . .
"Am I doing this right?" "Am I concentrating hard enough?" "Am I visualizing it right?" "Oh, no, I've been thinking I can't do this. Have I ruined it?" "Why isn't this working?"
Stop. Relax. This isn't a final exam with your whole future weighed in the balance. This isn't the big game with seconds to go and you've got the ball.
This is a joyous process with the emphasis on "joyous."
You've been conditioned to be competitive. From the moment you arrive in this world, you're being tested, measured, compared and judged.
At what age did you learn to walk? Was it "early," "late" or "normal"? What grades did you get in school? Were you chosen for the softball team? Did you get a part in the school play? But more importantly, how did the people around you react to those situations, which would have determined how you ended up feeling about them?
Unfortunately, you may have ended up feeling inadequate in some way. Labels may have been attached to you that you adopted into your belief system. "I'm not good enough." "I have to try harder." "I have to practice more."
While it's true that there are certain skills you need to work hard at or practice a lot before you become proficient in them - learning to walk and talk are just two of those skills that require a lot of trial, error and practice in order to learn how to do them - the learning process doesn't have to be a chore, an unpleasant experience, something that makes your brain hurt just thinking about it.
Active creating doesn't have to be a chore, either. Nor should it make your brain hurt trying to get it right.
The first point is: Stop thinking in terms of right or wrong. You may not like your life the way it is now but it's not wrong. It just is. Yes, you may have to practice thinking in a new way. Thinking is a habit, after all. But there's nothing wrong with the way you've been thinking. You were using the information and skills you had been given. You did the best you could with the tools at hand. If you're not happy with the results, change the tools you used to create those results.
Second point: Have fun. Look for the humor when things don't happen in the way you expected or in the exact way you thought you were intending. Here's what I mean.
In my neighborhood, when people want to get rid of furniture, they put it out on the curb for pick up. I decided I needed a chest of drawers for a closet in order to organize my clothes better. I put the intention out "there" that I would find a chest of drawers out on the curb.
I have a dog so we take frequent walks around the neighborhood. The very next day I saw a chest of drawers out on the curb, exactly as I had intended. Unfortunately, it was too big for the space in my closet. So I simply said, "Thank you God but I want a smaller one."
A few days later there was another chest of drawers out on the curb for pick up. It was definitely smaller but two of the drawers were broken. I started laughing. Okay. "Thank you God but I want it to be in good condition, too."
Well, I can't tell you how many chests of drawers I saw out on the curb for pick up. I stopped counting after five. It seemed as though everyone was getting rid of chests of drawers. This went on for several weeks and I never did find the right chest of drawers out on the street. However, each time I saw a chest of drawers I started laughing. It became a game to see what would be out on the curb that day when I went for a walk with my dog. I was having fun watching how the Universe was manifesting chests of drawers for me in amazing ways. Some of them were truly ugly, in my opinion, and I delighted in those the most.
My point is that I turned it into a game. I didn't panic thinking I wasn't doing this right. I allowed myself to realize that the right chest of drawers would come to me in its own way. Right now, I was having a good time seeing the variety of manifestations I was producing.
By the way, I did get the perfect chest of drawers. It happened after I stopped trying to force the issue, accepted that the intention would be fulfilled, and allowed it to come in whatever way it would. It came through a friend who didn't know I was looking for a chest of drawers. She just decided she didn't need this one anymore. I happened to be standing in the room with her at the time. She turned to me and asked, "Could you use a chest of drawers?" I started laughing and quickly said, "Yes" with a silent thank you to God for sending me the perfect answer to my need.
If you start to take the process of active creating too seriously, start turning it into a test or a competition in which you have to excel, you'll defeat the purpose. You'll start working from a point of fear. You'll just get more fear.
Edwene Gaines is one of my favorite prosperity masters. She urges her students to first find the joy in everything, no matter what. She says to find the joy in even the most mundane of every day chores, including, "taking out the kitty litter." When you feel joyous and abundant even in the face of what might seem tedious and poor, you will be well on your way to attracting joyous abundance into your life.
Fun. Joy. Enthusiasm. Those are the real tools of active creating. The other "tools" are really rituals to get you to the place of fun, joy and enthusiasm.
One last note. Affirmations are one of the rituals you can use to help you change your way of thinking to change your life. I have turned mine into be-bop songs that I dance to around the house. They're a lot more fun that way.
So, be playful. Have fun. Enjoy the experience. And know that what you truly want will come when you let go of the fear and the pressure to get it right.
"Am I doing this right?" "Am I concentrating hard enough?" "Am I visualizing it right?" "Oh, no, I've been thinking I can't do this. Have I ruined it?" "Why isn't this working?"
Stop. Relax. This isn't a final exam with your whole future weighed in the balance. This isn't the big game with seconds to go and you've got the ball.
This is a joyous process with the emphasis on "joyous."
You've been conditioned to be competitive. From the moment you arrive in this world, you're being tested, measured, compared and judged.
At what age did you learn to walk? Was it "early," "late" or "normal"? What grades did you get in school? Were you chosen for the softball team? Did you get a part in the school play? But more importantly, how did the people around you react to those situations, which would have determined how you ended up feeling about them?
Unfortunately, you may have ended up feeling inadequate in some way. Labels may have been attached to you that you adopted into your belief system. "I'm not good enough." "I have to try harder." "I have to practice more."
While it's true that there are certain skills you need to work hard at or practice a lot before you become proficient in them - learning to walk and talk are just two of those skills that require a lot of trial, error and practice in order to learn how to do them - the learning process doesn't have to be a chore, an unpleasant experience, something that makes your brain hurt just thinking about it.
Active creating doesn't have to be a chore, either. Nor should it make your brain hurt trying to get it right.
The first point is: Stop thinking in terms of right or wrong. You may not like your life the way it is now but it's not wrong. It just is. Yes, you may have to practice thinking in a new way. Thinking is a habit, after all. But there's nothing wrong with the way you've been thinking. You were using the information and skills you had been given. You did the best you could with the tools at hand. If you're not happy with the results, change the tools you used to create those results.
Second point: Have fun. Look for the humor when things don't happen in the way you expected or in the exact way you thought you were intending. Here's what I mean.
In my neighborhood, when people want to get rid of furniture, they put it out on the curb for pick up. I decided I needed a chest of drawers for a closet in order to organize my clothes better. I put the intention out "there" that I would find a chest of drawers out on the curb.
I have a dog so we take frequent walks around the neighborhood. The very next day I saw a chest of drawers out on the curb, exactly as I had intended. Unfortunately, it was too big for the space in my closet. So I simply said, "Thank you God but I want a smaller one."
A few days later there was another chest of drawers out on the curb for pick up. It was definitely smaller but two of the drawers were broken. I started laughing. Okay. "Thank you God but I want it to be in good condition, too."
Well, I can't tell you how many chests of drawers I saw out on the curb for pick up. I stopped counting after five. It seemed as though everyone was getting rid of chests of drawers. This went on for several weeks and I never did find the right chest of drawers out on the street. However, each time I saw a chest of drawers I started laughing. It became a game to see what would be out on the curb that day when I went for a walk with my dog. I was having fun watching how the Universe was manifesting chests of drawers for me in amazing ways. Some of them were truly ugly, in my opinion, and I delighted in those the most.
My point is that I turned it into a game. I didn't panic thinking I wasn't doing this right. I allowed myself to realize that the right chest of drawers would come to me in its own way. Right now, I was having a good time seeing the variety of manifestations I was producing.
By the way, I did get the perfect chest of drawers. It happened after I stopped trying to force the issue, accepted that the intention would be fulfilled, and allowed it to come in whatever way it would. It came through a friend who didn't know I was looking for a chest of drawers. She just decided she didn't need this one anymore. I happened to be standing in the room with her at the time. She turned to me and asked, "Could you use a chest of drawers?" I started laughing and quickly said, "Yes" with a silent thank you to God for sending me the perfect answer to my need.
If you start to take the process of active creating too seriously, start turning it into a test or a competition in which you have to excel, you'll defeat the purpose. You'll start working from a point of fear. You'll just get more fear.
Edwene Gaines is one of my favorite prosperity masters. She urges her students to first find the joy in everything, no matter what. She says to find the joy in even the most mundane of every day chores, including, "taking out the kitty litter." When you feel joyous and abundant even in the face of what might seem tedious and poor, you will be well on your way to attracting joyous abundance into your life.
Fun. Joy. Enthusiasm. Those are the real tools of active creating. The other "tools" are really rituals to get you to the place of fun, joy and enthusiasm.
One last note. Affirmations are one of the rituals you can use to help you change your way of thinking to change your life. I have turned mine into be-bop songs that I dance to around the house. They're a lot more fun that way.
So, be playful. Have fun. Enjoy the experience. And know that what you truly want will come when you let go of the fear and the pressure to get it right.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)