By Laura Gregory

I am sure you have seen or knew men and women that have serious medical conditions that demand medical care and you may even feel bad for them. There’s also other types of conditions that tend to be less serious and the people who suffer from these different issues usually do so in silence. The issue is that in many cases this can impact their day to day lives and yet they may feel there is no one to turn to in getting any help. An example of this is if you are having difficulties getting to sleep and in this article we will look at some of the causes of this and how you can make adjustments to help yourself.

Although this may not seem all that important you must recognize that lack of sleep could actually be a symptom of another medical issue you have without even knowing it. It could of course actually be just something in your home that may be making it difficult to get to sleep. For instance, do you make certain your room is well aired and that your bed mattress and also pillows are right for you. Some people have found that by simply upgrading their beds can really help them get to sleep faster and help them to sleep more soundly.

The next area to check out is your general fitness level to ascertain if some physical exercise can help with your sleeping patterns. If you’re overweight, generally you may find it much harder to get comfortable at night and if your breathing is weak this will also impact on how you feel in bed. By adding a little bit of exercise and possibly losing a little weight you may realize that you are able to sleep better. By just taking walks through out the day you will notice that not only do you feel much better but you may also notice that getting to sleep and sleeping during the night time is also a lot easier.

In thinking about your general level of health it’s also wise to look at making changes to your diet. For anyone who is eating lots of processed unhealthy foods this will lay heavy on the stomach and also disturb you when attempting to sleep. If you can, introduce more organic and fresh produce into your diet you can see if this tends to make a difference for you. Something else entirely that has helped many people is to have a banana before bed, as bananas contain melatonin which is in fact a sleep aid. If you are a big coffee drinker, you will need to make some changes because the level of caffeine you are consuming could be keeping you awake. Try herbal as well as fruit drinks as an alternative particularly shortly before bedtime.

A few of you may know already, but stress can be a significant problem when it comes to your sleeping habits, you ought to get rid of your stress before you go to bed. If you find yourself anxious a lot you might have a bit of an anxiety issue that has to be dealt with. You might need to try some meditation methods to help you to relieve your stress and anxiety before you go to bed. The mind is a very powerful tool and if you believe that you won’t be capable of getting to sleep you may be convincing your mind of that at that is what is keeping you awake. There are several types of sleep therapies like sound and aromatherapy which may be able to relax you enough to get to sleep.

Simply using a couple of these strategies listed above may have you sleeping through out the night.

Want to find out more about snoring home remedies, then visit Dr. Laura Gregory’s site and how to choose the best snoring cures for your needs.

Good grooming is an essential element of everyone’s every day affairs as it practically makes anyone look presentable day and night. For men and women who work, looking good is all the more important since showing a thoroughly clean stylish and sharp appearance not only helps make one seem refined, but it additionally increases the odds of career based achievements. Good grooming also helps you to have more self-confidence, and it will make people think more highly of you.

There are some essential items that have to be done frequently for you to be able to look nice. If you look visually pleasing, it is likely that you will likewise feel wonderful inside. You will as well as perform better in your work and maintain a better social life. Knowing that, here are some important grooming tips to guarantee that you’ll look presentable in the viewpoint of the people around you.

An essential grooming tip involves maintaining your hygiene in every possible way and also following a stringent beauty routine which needs to be carried out regularly. A great shower gel that is made up of a floral scent could be used regularly. You may also spray on a flowery cologne or even use a fragrant deodorant. To smell good could be the very first step to being well-groomed. It likewise helps to evince a good aura about you wherever you go.

You also must make sure that you use a high quality shampoo & conditioner for your hair. One that you buy ought to be right for the condition of the hair that you have. For instance, if you have oily hair, you ought to get a shampoo that will help balance the unnecessary oil formation. On the other hand, for those who have a dry scalp with rough edges, you should switch to a shampoo that has an intense moisturizing system. In the same way, for all those with longer locks, keeping them brushed is essential. Also, permed hair can really be unattractive, thus, combing it properly as well as using hair taming creams is highly advised.

Another factor which forms a significant part of good grooming is flossing your teeth, brushing your teeth using a fluoride toothpaste, and gargling with a mouth wash regualarly. If possible, you should also try to do these or at least to have breath mints after every meal during the day. This not only assists in maintaining healthy teeth and gums, but also assures refreshing breath. Doing these will help to completely clean your mouth and to eliminate nasty cavities.

Trimming or filing the finger nails at regular intervals as well as changing your clothes and towels and sheets are also an important part of grooming tips. You need to make certain you wear freshly laundered and pressed clothes daily in order to present a sharp and crisp look. Lastly, your clothes must be suitable for the place that you’re wearing them to. Wearing the proper attire does not only help to make you look attractive, but it will likewise make you feel self-assured about yourself.

Michael D is an author, business promoter, and social media promoter. In addition to running TryBPO, a company in the Philippines, he is primarily focused on back-end SEO and Operational support to medium sized businesses. He also creates niche sites about diverse subjects like best volumizing shampoo and tepe interdental brushes.

Getting a room specified for that frequently forgotten moment put aside for meditation could be great. It will give you the liberty of some private, private time for a little quiet reflection that is usually a challenge with this frequently hurried and active lifestyle.

A area for meditation does not necessarily have to be a room. Needless to say, in case you have the room to spare, that will be excellent; if not, a quiet nook will do just as nicely. In organizing and creating your meditation area, you have to take into account that it has to reflect your requirements. In your practice of meditation, you will tackle your feelings, morals, passions, and ambitions, at times even the release of one’s worries and fearfulness. It’ll be described as a space committed to re-energizing and renewing your spirit. An area both for your physical and spiritual wellness.

Your meditation space may be situated anywhere in your home. It can be inside, on the porch, or inside your back garden; any place that is good to peaceful contemplation is ideal. Make it simple and clear of clutter. In case you intend on putting or utilizing tools of expression or other meditative aids there are lots of you are able to use that range starting from the easy to the much more sophisticated like crystal singing bowls, candles, a little sand garden, an altar, or representations with the four elements: fire, air, water, and earth.

You can set up even the most basic meditation area in your own bedroom. Make sure the place is clean and clear of any unneeded objects. You can actually maintain a little cupboard or a simple bench to store a meditation device or two-as you only have a place, opt for probably the most powerful equipment, those that quickly make a stimulating influence on you or your meditative routine-like a singing bowl or bells. Crystal singing bowls are well known for their vitality clearing attributes. Their clear, genuine tones and the vibrations they release are much searched for by many meditation experts.

In creating your meditation place, big or small, indoors or outdoors, the calming yet energizing tone of crystal singing bowls can certainly make for any really comforting addition.

by Mercedes Aspland

This article is part of a series giving information about herbs and their medicinal properties. We are going to look at lemon balm in this article. You will find out what this herb is, how you can use it and the conditions that could be helped by lemon balm.

What is Lemon Balm?

Lemon Balm is a plant that is native to the Mediterranean however it is also cultivated in North America. The herb is a perennial that is related to the mint family but has a citrus scent. It is a bright and bushy plant that was used over 2000 years ago by the Greeks for medicinal purposes. The plant was introduced as a garden herb to Britain by the Romans. The plant is a bush that grows to 2 feet or 60 cm in height and has heart shaped leaves with square stems. The plant blooms between June and October and has either white or golden coloured flowers. When the leaves are crushed they give off a strong lemon smell.

How to use Lemon Balm

Although the plant can be used for medicinal reasons it can also be used in food. The leaves can be great in a salad or they can be used in sauces for a variety of different meals. The flowers can also be used for medicinal purposes.

One of the best things to do with the plant is to make a tea in a similar way as you would with mint. You can also combine it with other herbs when making a tea and it can work really well with things like nettle, peppermint and chamomile.

Making a tea with lemon balm is very simple and involves combining the leaves with boiling water. You should leave it to infuse for about 10 minutes and then drink. You might want to strain it before drinking to remove the leaves. A tea made from lemon balm is very refreshing and relaxing and can be quite an enjoyable drink.

Uses of Lemon Balm

Lemon balm is very soothing and so it can help to reduce tension and also to relieve mild depression. Drinking lemon balm tea can help to improve digestion, increase a feeling of relaxation, ease muscle spasms and to reduce fevers. In addition the properties of lemon balm mean that it can be helpful with allergies.

The plant is thought to be significant at calming the mind and is used in aromatherapy for that. This means it could be useful for stress, anxiety, tension headaches, PMS and menstrual cramps. It is also thought to be helpful in cases of hyperthyroid activity, palpitations of the heart, and bringing about a restful sleep.

The herb can also be used externally to ease insect bites and stings, sooth cold sores and treat wounds. It can also be very helpful as an insect repellent due to its strong smell.

Side Effects and Precautions

Lemon balm has been used for thousands of years and is very safe however pregnant women and those that suffer from hypothyroidism should consult their doctor before taking a lemon balm remedy. If you are going to harvest your own herb than you should be careful as it attracts a lot of bees.

In terms of side effects, it has been known t o depress the nervous system and people with glaucoma should not take it as it can increase the pressure in the eye. In terms of interactions, you should reduce the dose of lemon balm when taking it with other herbs and should not take it with prescription sedatives or alcohol. It is also thought to interfere with thyroid hormones. If you have any concerns you should consult your doctor for more information.

This article has been supplied by alternative therapies directory. You can also find more information on our Herbal Medicine page.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Mercedes Aspland

This article is part of a series giving information about herbs and their medicinal properties. We are going to look at Korean ginseng in this article. You will find out what this herb is, how you can use it and the conditions that could be helped by Korean ginseng.

What is Korean Ginseng?

Korean ginseng is often also known as Chinese ginseng and is probably one of the most widely used and acclaimed herbs available. It comes in a couple of varieties and you will often hear them referred to as white or red ginseng. The plant grows on moist shaded mountainsides in Korea, China and Russia and is a perennial herb. It has dark green leaves and red berries and can grow to a height of 2 ft (60cm) or more. The root is the part that is used for medicinal purposes and is very slender and some even say if has similarities to the human body in appearance.

How to use Korean Ginseng

You can get Korean ginseng from your health food store in a variety of different ways. Depending on where you look you will be able to find it as whole root, powder, liquid extracts and teas. You may also be able to get powder capsules as well and you should take them as indicated on the packet. Many herbal teas that you find in your local supermarket will also contain ginseng. If you are going to take the herb it is recommended that for each week taken you should have a few days away from the herb.

If you would like to make a tea you can do this will the whole root. You should slice it up using about 1 to 5 grams and cover with water. Bring to the boil and allow to boil for 10 minutes of more, then strain and flavour with honey to taste. Many experts say that you should not use metal pots as that can affect the antioxidant properties of the herb.

Uses of Korean Ginseng

Korean ginseng is a widely used herb and has a large number of benefits. As a result a lot of research has been carried out on it to determine the medical benefits. It is thought that Korean ginseng can help a person to deal with stress and bring themselves back into balance. It is often used as a herb for general health and many Chinese herbalists will recommend it for the weak or elderly. It has also been associated with memory improvement and so could be very useful for people suffering from dementia. It is also a great tonic for those who suffer from exhaustion or chronic illness.

Some studies have also shown that it has anti-fatigue abilities and so can be very useful for people who are suffering from things like chronic fatigue syndrome. In addition studies on animals have shown that it can help lower blood sugar by facilitating the release of insulin which could make it useful for diabetics. Other studies have shown that it has anticancer properties and also that it can be useful for people suffering from AIDS. In addition it is thought to help with cholesterol reduction as well as impotence.

Side Effects and Precautions

There are a number of different types of ginseng so it is important to do your research and get the one that is best for you. Korean ginseng is not recommended for people suffering from ulcers, high blood pressure, tension headaches, nervousness, mental imbalance, inflammation, fever and symptoms associated with high levels of stress. It is also not recommended for pregnant or lactating women as well as women of child bearing age. It is better for the elderly and weak and often not given to young people.

The side effects are usually mild but some people can suffer from overstimulation, irritability, nervousness, and insomnia. If you take too much ginseng or do not have a break it can cause things like headaches, insomnia, seeing spots, dizziness, shortage of breath and gastrointestinal discomfort. Long term use can cause menstrual abnormalities and breast tenderness in some women.

In terms of interactions you should seek medical advice it you are using hormonal drugs before taking ginseng. In addition as it is a stimulant you should not take ginseng with caffeine as this can cause over stimulation.

This article has been supplied by alternative therapies directory. You can also find more information on our Herbal Medicine page.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Mercedes Aspland

This article is part of a series giving information about herbs and their medicinal properties. We are going to look at burdock root in this article. You will find out what this herb is, how you can use it and the conditions that could be helped by burdock root.

What is Burdock Root?

Burdock root is a biennial herb that is native to both Europe and Asia and is also grown in North America. There are about 10 different varieties and is a common wild herb. It has prickly seeds that are called Cocklebur. In the first year of growth it has very large leaves that lie flat on the ground and can be confused with Rhubarb. It is important not to make this mistake as Rhubarb leaves are poisonous and so you must take great care. In the second year it sends up large stems and can grow up to 5 feet in height. It flowers in the summer and the flowers are pink, purple or white. The flowers will ripen into prickly balls at the end of the stems that can be as big as one inch in diameter.

How to use Burdock Root

Burdock is uses in the first year of its life and if you are going to use the leaves it is best to do when they are fresh as dried leaves can be bitter. There are a number of different ways you can use the herb and we have put some possibilities below.

Tea – the best way to make a tea is to combine about 1 teaspoon of the herb with a cup of cold water. You should then bring it to the boil and simmer for about 20 minutes; it is then good to drink. You should try not to drink more than 3 cups per day.

Culinary – you can use the burdock root in your cooking and it is quite mild and sweet. If you peel it and slice it you can add it to soups and salads. The leaves of the young plant can be a great food additive as well.

Poultice – you can make this by using the leaves. If you simmer the leaves for about five minutes, squeeze out and cool until it is warm. You can then apply the leaves to the skin and hold in place with some gauze.

Uses of Burdock Root

Traditionally burdock has been used as a blood purifier and can promote perspiration and help release toxins from the body. When using it externally it can help significantly with skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. In addition burdock could also provide relief for chronic arthritis and gout as well as helping to regulate blood sugar levels. The plant is thought to stimulate the digestive system and to help with bile production and protection of the liver.

It is a herb that dates back to medieval times and then was used for more serious conditions like syphilis and leprosy. Ancient use has also seen it as a remedy for hair loss, dog bits, headaches and to speed up the healing of burns. In 2002 some Asian scientists reported that it can help counter the damaging effects of alcohol on the liver.

Side Effects and Precautions

Burdock is not recommended for pregnant women as it is thought it can act as a uterine stimulant. In terms of side effects some people have had skin reactions to the herb. In addition if you take large doses of burdock root it can cause the potassium levels in to body to drop too low so caution should be taken.

It has been shown that burdock can interact with diabetes medication and so you should check with your doctor before taking burdock. It is also thought that burdock can intensify the effects of diuretics and lithium. In addition burdock can affect the absorption of iron and other mineral in the diet. If you have any deficiencies it is a good idea to consult with your doctor before taking burdock.
This article has been supplied by alternative therapies directory. You can also find more information on our Herbal Medicine page.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Mercedes Aspland

This article is part of a series giving information about herbs and their medicinal properties. We are going to look at yarrow in this article. You will find out what this herb is, how you can use it and the conditions that could be helped by yarrow.

What is Yarrow?

Yarrow is a perennial that grows naturally throughout both Europe and North America. There are a large number of different varieties that are thought to have fern like foliage. The plant has a single long stem that grows to a height of between 25 and 50 cm (10 to 20 inches). The stems can be rough and slightly hairy. The leaves can be feather like and can grow quite large in size, up to 15 cm (6 inches). The plant usually flowers from June until October and the flowers appear in flat top clusters that appear at the top of the stems. The colours vary between rose, lilac and creamy white.

How to use Yarrow

If you are looking to use yarrow for a remedy then you should pick the plant when it is in flower and in fact the leaves, stem and flowers can be used in remedies. In order to use the plant you can cut the leaves off and lay them out in order to dry. You can then hang the stems and flowers upside down to dry out and once dry remove the flowers for storage.

There are a variety of different remedies you can create using the herb, for example you can make a tea out of the leaves. The best way to do this is to place the leaves in a cup or glass and to then cover with boiling water. You should then allow the mixture to infuse for around 10 minutes, stirring on a regular basis. You can then strain the mixture and drink. You should limit your intake to 3 cups per day.

You can also use the fresh herb to make a tincture. The best way to do this is to combine about 115g (4 oz) with about 500 ml (1 pint) of brandy, gin or vodka. You should then place this in a sealed container for about 2 weeks and shake it a few times a day. After the two week period you should then strain the mixture and it can be used by placing about 10 drops in a glass water a couple of times per day.

Uses of Yarrow

Yarrow has been studied by scientists and they have found over a hundred active ingredients suggesting there could be a large number of benefits associated with this herb. The plant can be used both externally and internally making it very useful indeed.

For external purposes the herb is thought to be very beneficial at treating wounds and stopping bleeding. For example it is thought that place a leave inside the nostril could help to stop a nose bleed. It is also thought that applying an infusion of the plant onto the skin can help to heal rashes, haemorrhoids and skin ulcers. It can also be very helpful for cuts and abrasions. Some people even believe that using a product containing yarrow on your hair could help to prevent baldness.

A long time ago yarrow root in whiskey has been used as an anaesthetic as well as being used to stop internal bleeding. It is thought to be a digestive tonic and to promote the flow of bile. It is also thought to be a great remedy for people suffering from flu, colds or a fever as it can help to bring on sweating. This is also thought to be useful in the early stages of measles or chickenpox. It can also be helpful for toothache, migraines, high blood pressure and removing blood clots.

Side Effects and Precautions

The herb may build up in the system and so people should avoid using large doses for long periods of time. In addition pregnant or breastfeeding women should avoid the herb. In terms of side effects the herb may causes skin rashes or photosensitivity after ingestion. The herb is not known to interact with any medications but if you have any concerns you should talk to your doctor.

This article has been supplied by alternative therapies directory. You can also find more information on our Herbal Medicine page.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

By Maggie Tay

Tiredness can simply be a result of the way we live our lives. The way we eat, sleep, work, exercise and spend our free time can affect our ability to cope with life’s demands.

Feeling tired may be normal after a long tiring day whether as a student, working executive or homemaker. However, there are people who continued to feel tired on weekends and even during the holidays just as me. It will become a problem if it interferes with your daily lives. I often regretted not spending a fun weekend or holiday with my loved ones or friends rather than sleeping it away.

I wish that I could sustain my energy level throughout the day so that I can do things that I love and spend quality time with my loved ones and friends. I was tired of always feeling tired. I had been seeking for solutions till I chanced upon the End Tiredness Program. I found out that there are ways to overcome tiredness and it does not involve stimulants or more sleep. Most importantly, it covers everything that I want to know about tiredness.

The End Tiredness Program is a pdf book created by Peter Novak and Tina Hagen to help people like us to get rid of tiredness. Peter used to have constant tiredness like many of us. He had tried various methods to overcome tiredness but they did not work. He decided to search for the solution himself as nobody could help him. He bought a pile of books, searched the internet, read through stacks of articles and scientific studies. The breakthrough came when he met Tina Hagen, a counselor who works mostly with police officers and fire fighters. She had closely followed all the scientific studies regarding tiredness and fatigue.

Peter and Tina combined their knowledge and developed the End Tiredness Program, an easy-to-follow program that everyone can use to overcome tiredness. They conducted a study to test the effectiveness of the End Tiredness Program with a sample of 53 volunteers who reported having troubles with tiredness. They achieved positive results. In just two weeks, 98% of the volunteers reported an increase in their energy levels and 90% stated that they have no troubles getting up in the morning. After a month, 96% of the volunteers reported that they no longer have any problems with tiredness.

The End Tiredness Program focuses on the importance of determining the cause of your tiredness and to treat the condition. It has greatly helped me to wake up feeling refreshed each day. I was also better able to concentrate on my daily tasks which meant increased productivity. I am looking forward to spending more quality time with my family, boyfriend and friends.

If you think that your lifestyle habits could be responsible for your tiredness and you are determined to take steps to overcome tiredness, you will benefit from the End Tiredness Program. I would think that most of us do not like to feel tired all the time regardless of our busy lifestyle. We would feel great if we have energy for extra activities that we would enjoy.

Maggie Tay is the original author of this article.

Please visit http://peakofhealth.blogspot.com/ for advice on health issues and the simple things you can do to improve it.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Maggie_Tay

Developing creative ways of thinking as people, impacts how that is communicated in us, and around us. Creativity enriches beauty, and inspires more stages of creativity that touch others as well as enrich our lives.

Here are some ways to inspire that creative thinker within you. Gain ability and experience as much as you can to anything that stirs inspiration for you. Mastering something doesn’t call for any particular age. Learning to develop a mindset of creativity, is possible via looking at life with an eye towards expressing it every chance one can.

Expand your knowledge to the highest degree, so to appreciate the advantages of an artistic way of living. Focus on resourceful tasks, such as trying your hand at great low-priced special gifts you can make or other various creative suggestions. Of course, these are only small examples at the vast array one can apply themselves to a creative process.

Generate a regimen of artistic activity everyday, mainly because these actions will be the principal source associated with developing that part of you. It also takes the disipline of carving out some time for this to happen. You may find that by engaging in consistant, creative activities has a relaxing and rejuvinating affect upon you.

Creative recreation may be illustrating, digital photography, composing and or many other venues. Writing is still one of our key methods associated with conversation, well as a great approach to voice ourselves. Producing a storybook with your kid is an enjoyable way to encourage them to try writing as well.

A person can additionally be part of a foreign language club, anywhere you tend to be presented the prospect to hear, speak, read and create the basics associated a given foreign lanuage. Consider joining a Toast Masters club which enhances the art of speech.

Exercise drawing or sketching for a few minutes. Consider enrolling in a class if you’ve never worked with this type of art medium. Many community colleges or craft stores can be resources to finding these types of classes locally. Plus, you’ll be enriched by meeting a new group of people.

Photography is also a pleasurable hobby. Get a DSLR camera and begin acquiring photographs madly. This form of photography has many avenues that lend themselves to creative photo taking. Learn Photoshop, the options of what can be done through digital art is endless!

Examine fresh thoughts everyday. Lookup a new area in your locality and get started meeting fresh associates. Share your recommendations with them. Supply your solutions to them. Be confident while chatting with visitors. Never feel hesitation while speaking together with someone. Usually inspiration and creativity are contagious between people, both ways. Nuture those creative friendships.

Embrace the different, be willing to receive that inspiration approach that perhaps you had not thought of before. Broaden your definition of what creativity means. Imagine things ‘out of the box’. Don’t contain yourself to only one group of people. These recommendations can aid to broaden your resourceful inspirations. If you act on these steps daily, you will be living a fuller lifestyle full of new, and intriguing activities.

Negative, positive and neutral forces are essential for the normal functioning of the universe. This is apparent atomically. An atom needs three aspects: a neutron (neutral), a proton (positive), and an electron (negative). Without equal parts of these elements the atom is unbalanced. It is unstable and will seek another atom with which to combine.

The same is true in nature. Fires tear apart the landscapes of forests. Many trees are killed and plant life is destroyed. This is necessary for rich soil to form and new growth to occur. The burned out areas sprout smaller plants, which feed the wildlife and regenerate the soil.

Throughout these events the sun shines and the air exists around the area; everything else is essential to the process while remaining neutral to it, in a sense. Those that interfere and extinguish the fires are destroying nature’s big plan to suit their own small plans for the area. Objective thinking has now enabled people to understand that what seems right is not always so, in the same way that fires are essential to natural management of forests and scrubland.

In order to see the neutral perspective, you must consider everything else. Seeing everything else is a big part of intuitive healing. For example, a mother and daughter might argue about whether or not the daughter may go out on a date. There are negative and positive sides saying, “Yes, I can,” and “No, you can’t.” This argument could continue for hours, days, and even years. However, there are many other alternatives. Everything else still exists outside of this argument.

A salesperson is calling on a restaurant in Florence. There are people talking outside the house. A car accident is occurring in Spain. None of this seems relevant to the argument, but it is essential. Without all of these other aspects of life, the argument could not occur. Nothing in life (including communication and thought) can occur without the influence of everything else around it.

If the mother and daughter let go of the “yes and no” of the situation and remain objective, another solution might occur. A party invitation might appear where the daughter can go with the date, but be with others. Or perhaps the couple might go to an event where the parents are also in attendance. There are many alternatives to all situations. It’s impossible to see them when you identify solely with the positive or the negative side of a situation. Objective thought enables clarity of purpose.

Let’s look how the negative, positive and neutral affect us at work. You may be an executive wondering if you should buy a certain product. You’ve been informed of the benefits of the product and are considering it, but aren’t sure if it’s the right one for you. Yes you should, or no you shouldn’t. Will it cost too much? No. Will it save money? Yes.

Step back from the situation by focusing on anything not related to it. Remove yourself from the outcome and look at the situation objectively. Perhaps there’s another solution beyond this one. Perhaps doing more research will help you to firm up your decision . Effective salespeople create an objective environment for their clients. Playing golf is a way to meet clients in a neutral setting without the pressure of business decisions. In this space, decisions are subtly made without even discussing the issue in question. The communication is developed in an objective environment without the negatives and positives becoming individually important. As you are able to step back and see all perspectives, decisions will come naturally from a place of neutrality. You’ll get the full picture and can then act accordingly.

When you find yourself locked in a debate or unable to make a decision, step back and identify with a more objective aspect of reality. Remove your awareness from the outcome and center yourself in your head. Let go of the result and identify with the rest of the world. Listen to a bird singing, or notice the sun shining on a car. Do or think anything that is unrelated to the issue at hand. Notice the shift in energy and then pursue your activity from this perspective. You’ll notice that your body relaxes more, your mind is freed up to evaluate more accurately, and you’ll be feeling happier and more content.

A neutral stance is also essential when you’re helping others. Let’s say that you’re talking to someone who is unhappy. If you identify with the positive or negative aspect of the conversation, you’ll get stuck in it and become enmeshed with the other person’s energy.

For example, take a situation where a woman loses her husband to cancer. This is a very sad situation. She may be crying and telling you how lonely and distraught she is, and if you allow yourself to identify with her you too will become lonely and distraught. Then you’re both stuck in this same situation. There is no hope of seeing the light when you’re both wallowing in this negative space.

Objective though is your only hope, and when used it can become a very powerful tool… I’m not saying that you won’t feel for the woman. You might feel a great deal of compassion or love for her, which is not possible when you’re stuck feeling her loneliness and unhappiness.

If you compassionately listen to her from a place of neutrality or objectivity without becoming enmeshed in her negative energy, then you will give her hope. She will unconsciously connect with this place within you that is not sinking into despair. This will be a lifeboat that she can focus on consciously or unconsciously, and eventually her sadness may give way to peace.

In the same way, you can lose a sale by being too positive about the product. Trying too hard to show all of the positive aspects of a product (identifying with the positive energy) might create the opposite effect; the other person could back away. By remaining objective, you can talk to the person about what he needs. You can talk about other things, as well.

You can tell him about the product in an objective manner, stressing its positive aspects but not identifying with the outcome. If you remove yourself from identifying with whether or not you make the sale, you’ll give the client the space to make the decision. From an objective viewpoint you’ll be able to see what he really needs and what his concerns are. You’ll be able to ask questions that help you get this information from him. If you then give him the information he needs to know, and if the timing is right and the product is beneficial to him, he will buy the product.

As an intuitive coach, I instruct my clients that when you exist in a place of neutrality, you’re able to see all of life in a relaxed and easy manner. You won’t get caught up in whether or not something happens. You won’t worry about the outcome of events. You’ll exist in a place of awareness where you know that everything is moving as it should, and that everything will unfold in time. You will be able to view the world objectively, with no agenda of your own.

You’ll feel safe because you won’t be attached to a negative or positive outcome. Your happiness will not depend upon events and how they play out. Instead you will exist in a place of pure bliss, which knows no outcomes—only present time. It is from this place that you’ll be able to create great miracles in your life through objective thought.

A good intuitive coach will tell you, seeking inner peace is best done during a quiet time to yourself. Sometimes vocabulary is not enough, and inner peach can achieve much more than words. We have words for almost everything. We think that the more finely tuned the language, the better the communication; but this is not necessarily true. There are times to be quiet—times when the message of silence is the most effective communication. 

These quiet moments need not mean that we must keep our mouths shut in a difficult situation. That is merely stifling emotion. Instead, I’m pointing to a place of peace within, a quiet time where we can find personal tranquility when surrounded by chaos – and from this place we can tap into a higher level of understanding and communicate more effectively and realize intuitive healing. More information about this place is given below, and also how to work from it.

Some people act like warriors when they’re upset about something. In some cases we are told we should let others know what we think – even if the information is unpleasant. We often feel justified in telling others what is on our minds because we feel that we have the right to speak, and the ability to change the world and others in it. We face the world with a verbal sword, but a lance is often not the proper tool for communication.

There is another way to face the world—one where we are in our power and grace, and are able to stand strong amid all the chaos and negativity. We all have the ability to go “within” to a place of deep awareness. By seeking inner peace we reach a haven of understanding and peace from within that can radiate through us and to others. When we get in touch with this place of peace we are equipped to handle the world on a different level. We know what to say that is effective and when to say it. Seeking inner peace is difficult when others around us are screaming or acting in a seemingly inappropriate manner, particularly if we personally rely solely on our verbal communication skills. Mere verbal skills don’t prepare us for the stress we feel at work, for instance. Perhaps we are responsible for a project and teammates are late for their deadlines. We have to talk to them, but how? Or maybe our boss or coworker treats us unfairly and we feel the need to respond. What’s the best way to do this?

When these situations or others like them arise, there is a tendency to become very stressed and agitated. Communication becomes difficult when we try to express ourselves or avoid expressing our frustration. Remaining quiet and peaceful seems impossible. Peace and quiet seems illusive when dealing with antagonistic people or difficult situations. You cannot find a quiet time during periods of extreme anger or antagonism on the part of others.

We feel ourselves igniting when someone tailgates us or honks while we are driving. We look around us and see anger, inefficiency and laziness—or so it seems. How can we maintain a peaceful existence in this world of craziness? We can’t if we merely attempt to adjust our demeanor to the outside world. The peace must radiate from within. When you find a place of peace, it radiates out from within, and from there you can create peace around you. Seeking inner peace need not require silence around you.

Can you remember when you were a child playing on a swing or in the water—a time when you were totally free in the moment? There was no thought of stress or any intention to create peace in the world. You were simply happy to be playing; happy to feel the wind on your face or the water on your body. The movement of the swing or the water carried you, and you relaxed in the flow of the motion. Others around you felt this joy and were affected by it.

Being in a state of internal peace feels similar to this; you do not resist the wind and the waves—the mean coworker or the honking driver. You go with the flow, moving with it and enjoying the ride of life. Instead of feeling anger, you may remain objective, neutral, and quiet. Your joy is undisturbed and radiates to others around you who are affected by it. This feeling of peace and joy from within is infectious.

This all sounds wonderful and inspiring, but you might question how to get to this place and remain there; how to find this internal quiet time. You must take time to be quiet in order to find this place. The world is full of distractions and chaos, joy and thunder. It’s difficult to center and focus on the peace within when you’re caught up in it.

Seeking inner peace requires you to create some time to find it and feel it. Find a place where you can have quite time. You have to go there every day, and remember who and what you are. Sit and find a place of tranquility that is you—the place of peace and quiet amid the storm. While sitting quietly, allow your mind to wander, but do not follow the thoughts. Notice the tension and stress, but do not get attached to it.

It might take time and practice to ignore the mind and the distractions of the world, but once you find it, you enter the true Garden of Eden. Here is where the truth lies. It is a place of peace and tranquility that has no limits of time and space. You exist in this place as a non-dimensional entity that is not affected by the chaos of the world. When you find this place, sit with it; be quiet. Let this place be your quiet time every day for at least 15 minutes. Allow the peace to grow and empower you.

During stressful or confusing times you might need to spend more time sitting quietly, seeking inner peace. When you sit in this place of knowing and tranquility, you create time in the world. You relax and the parts of you that are unproductive begin to unravel. You are more able to cope effectively with chaos when you return to your activities because you are grounded and centered in this place within. You become more productive in the world and get more done in less time.

You will notice that when you attempt to tell others about this feeling, you are no longer in it. It turns into dust as you become enmeshed in the mind’s process of describing it. The peace within is lost when you attempt to share it verbally with others. This type of peace cannot be shared through words or intention. It is present when you feel it, and it is felt by others at that time. When you reside in this place, you begin to help others with your presence. It is not something that you intend to do; it is simply a result of who you are.

Whenever you talk to someone who is angry, remain in your quiet place of peace and quiet. By doing this you will radiate a calming energy toward that person. You might change the energy of the situation by allowing the other person to pick up on your peaceful demeanor. Again, you are not attempting to change the situation or the other person. You are merely remaining within the shelter and state of grace known as inner peace.

From this place you will find that you are often quiet. You realize the ineffectiveness of speech at this time and are able to disengage from the chaos around you. Or, you may speak from this place of quiet and the words will be tremendously effective. Inner peace is quiet. Except for an occasional laugh, it needs nothing but to be as it is. Peace is not an active process of change. It supports a feeling of tranquility and knowing that all is as it should be. From here you are in touch with the part of the universe that vibrates at that level of awareness. You see the chaos around you objectively and are not as affected by it, and you won’t feel the responsibility to change it. When seeking inner peace you create the space for peace to happen. When you are vibrating with the awareness of peace and tranquility, you are in a state of grace that blesses everything around you.

As an intuitive coach and a spiritual life coach, I run across the topic of dealing with negative people very often. In fact, it is a major issue with many of my clients who come to me for life counseling services. Dealing with negative people is not easy, and I admit that I don’t like it when people are angry or are depressed around me. It’s particularly difficult when someone is negative towards me. In the past I have tried several techniques to deal with this situation, including running away from the negative person. However, while that succeeds in getting me away from the negativity it is not a viable solution because if I take that approach with every negative person it can leave me very alone.

I quickly learned that defending myself doesn’t work when dealing with difficult people. I read a saying on a sugar packet once that pretty much sums up why. It said, “Don’t defend yourself. Your friends don’t need to hear it and your enemies won’t believe you anyway.” That pretty much nails it.

Another ineffective technique that I’ve tried is to attempt to make the other person “happy.” Like many of you, I like to please others. It’s a natural tendency and also a learned one. But, as you’ve probably noticed, it rarely works with difficult people. Ask yourself, have you succeeded in handling difficult people effectively by trying to make them happy? Probably not, so why are you still trying?

I’ve come to the understanding that it is not my job to make others happy. In fact, not only isn’t it my job, it’s impossible. First I would have to completely understand everything about the other person (an impossible task). Then I would have to take on the role of fixing that person (presumptuous at best), assuming, of course, that I knew it was time for this person to change. Then I would need to use the right technique to make the person happy and “fix” her.

Not only does this not work, but people often get angry or put off when I try to fix them or “make them happy.” The truth is, I am often trying to “fix” the situation and problem, to heal over the event, so that I and everyone else will be happy. The effort is counterproductive, and rather than making negative people positive, or at least neutral, I generally end up annoying them making the situation worse.

My goal in dealing with negative people or someone who is nasty or otherwise emotionally challenged is to remain objective and not take the negativity personally. I like to feel compassion, respect the other person and know that he or she will do what’s right for themselves. Sometimes this is easier in theory than it is in practice. Here are a few techniques I’ve learned to help deal with situations where I feel I’m in the line of fire or in jeopardy of falling into an emotional well. Give them a try and they may help you:

1. First and foremost choose to be happy. Ask yourself now, “Do I want to be happy?” Do you really want to be happy or not? If you don’t then you are in luck – you won’t be. It’s that simple. If you do want to be happy, make happiness your prime objective. If you need support in this objective, take note that you are more effective and your life is more worthwhile when you are happy.

If the person you’re with is unhappy, then you can chose to be happy or you can allow their sadness and anger to pull you into a similar form of anger and depression. Then you will be just like them, unhappy, less effective and less worthwhile – less useful to the person you are with.

2. You are the master of your emotions. Learn to notice your emotions and not let them take over. Stress still exits. Others still wig out. But you don’t have to retreat into withdrawal or sadness. You can choose to watch the other person objectively and honor your decision to be happy. Each stressful situation then becomes an opportunity to practice being happy in the face of adversity. Adversity is not a personal affront.

3. Attempt to show concern for the other person. Show concern, but avoid taking responsibility for her problem. For example, don’t say, “You seem upset. Have I said something to upset you?” You’re not responsible for how another person responds to life – not even to you. A better response might be, “Is there something I can do to help? I understand this must be difficult for you.” Don’t talk about yourself and don’t make it about you. Let them have their negative moment.

4. Notice your heart. Pay attention to your own emotions and focus on protecting yourself yet maintaining an open heart. Closing your heart will cause you pain because you will feel you are being negative and not doing your best to help.

Instead of trying to fix the other person try to understand her. Don’t make the discussion about you, even if a finger is being pointed at you. Remember, a person who’s angry or sad has an issue with you. It’s that person’s issue, not yours. Don’t take responsibility for it. Try to understand where the other person is coming from but don’t take it personally. Pretend she’s talking about everyone she encounters. She probably has an issue with others as well.

Understanding and practicing the above techniques can help you to remain objective when dealing with difficult people. Remember: the prime objective is happiness – for both you and the other person. Intend to stay happy yourself, no matter what obstacles are put in your path.

Throughout history, most successful people have agreed that setting goals and objectives has been a major strategy for success in life. These people have also known that if you really want to achieve your goals, you need to write them down.

Sounds easy, doesn’t it? But, if it’s so easy, why don’t more people write down their goals and then achieve them?

I truly believe that not fully understanding the difference between goals and objectives to begin with is part of the problem. So yes, it is very important to write down goals and objectives. But, before you do that, let’s make sure that you first understand the difference between the two terms before working on any specific plan of action.

While goals are important, objectives are equally important. Therefore, before setting goals and objectives, let’s clarify the difference between the two terms here.

When you are setting a goal, you are drawing up the broad picture of what it is you want to achieve. When you are setting an objective, you are planning a measurable action that moves you forward in the direction of your goal.

For example, your goal may be to become a writer. One of your objectives may be to submit an article to a magazine by October 1st.

In this example, the goal to become a writer is rather broad, whereas the objective of submitting an article was tangible and measurable. After all, the aspiring writer either did submit an article or did not.

And that means only one of two things: The person did make progress toward achieving the goal, or did not make progress.

Here is one popular method to help differentiate between goals and objectives. The word “goal” contains the word “go.” And, “go” is a verb. You “go” right, left, or straight through the traffic light. You can “go” to the store. So, when we talk about setting and achieving goals, we talk about going or moving in a desirable direction.

The word “objective” contains the word “object.” An “object” is a thing. It is tangible. You can see and touch an object. You can measure or weigh an object. Therefore, when we talk about setting objectives, we talk about a specific action step that helps us move in the direction of our goals.

Here are two more examples illustrating the difference between setting and achieving goals and objectives.

Goal: To get a pilot’s license. Objective: Sign up for flight lessons by August 31.

Goal: To earn $500 extra each month. Objective: Apply at 5 stores at the mall by Saturday.

As you may have already determined from these examples, there are likely to be many objectives that you can write to help you achieve your goals.

Once you have determined your “big picture” vision (your goal), and have come up with a number of measureable action steps to move you forward (your objectives), you are far more likely to actually make progress.

That’s because now you have some solid steps planned that you can act on. And as you complete each objective, you can cross it off your list, an activity that will also feel very good.

It is a good idea to spend some time every week reviewing your goals and objectives as part of your strategy for success in life. However, now that you understand the nuances of setting goals and objectives, don’t feel that they are unchangeable or rigid.

Take the time on a regular basis to review and note your progress, then make adjustments in your goals or objectives as you see fit. You may soon find that you can achieve your goals sooner than you thought you could.

Talking with friends of mine always gives me higher perspectives on my intuitive coaching services. The human interaction as well as analysis of conversation topics both seem to make me be a better intuitive coach. That’s why I wanted to share the topic of conversation topics with you.

As an intuitive coach, I often alert people to the fact that of the many conversation topics you may think about, one surely must be ‘what do you want from a friend?’ I visited with a friend last week in Miami Beach. Each day began with an hour to two-hour walk on the boardwalk along the beach. The waves lapped against the sand nearby, the temperature was warm (hot to Northerners), a breeze usually blew, and occasionally we were sprinkled with a quick moving shower. These long walks made for lengthy and deep conversations, where we discussed the ways of the world and issues in our lives.

Our conversation topics were many and varied, but often we spoke about our perceptions of life, or issues we were working out, in work, life and relationships and what do we want in our friends? I noticed that there are three common ways that people respond to another’s concerns, particularly our friends. We sometimes give advice on what the other person should do. It could be as simple as one of us saying, “I’ve had a problem with blisters,” and the other launching into all the blister avoiding techniques she knows.

Another way to answer a friend’s concern is to tell her how we handled a similar issue in the past. In an attempt to be subtle, the advice might start out as, “This is how I handled that type of situation. In the past I . . .” Then the person with the problem is subject to an often lengthy story, which is often distracting and rarely relates to the issue at hand. If we’re incredulous and/or inconsiderate, we might question the other’s behavior: “Why do you continue to act that way? Couldn’t you see that coming?” This challenging approach obviously does little to comfort friends and often alienates them, as well.

When we relate to each other that way our conversations become circuitous. They don’t go anywhere. The conversation resembles a tennis match where each person bounces a remark off of the other, and the same conversation topics keep coming up. We may think we’re solving the problems of the world and ourselves. Instead, we are merely throwing ourselves at each other and dancing in circles around the same issues. Nothing is accomplished.

It was during one of our walks that I declared to my friend: “I’ve decided that I no longer want unsolicited advice from others. I don’t need someone to tell me how he or she handles a problem when I bring mine up. I don’t want to be fixed by someone else. I appreciate that others care about me and want to help. But, any effort to fix another person is bound to fail. We don’t know what others need and hearing about how we handle situations is often irrelevant to someone else, if not distracting. I appreciate your concern and interest, and know you want to help. However, I know I can come up with my own answers.”

My friend immediately asked, “So what do you want from a friend, anyway? How can you carry on a conversation?” I thought deeply about this and came up with the following answer, which will also become a model for how I treat others. Here is what I want from a friend and also hope to receive hope to receive from my family:

1. I want someone to listen to me with compassion, objectivity, neutrality and respect. Just let me talk and hear what I say. Don’t judge me or analyze my story. Listen to me so that I can hear myself talk and more fully understand what’s happening in my life. When I hear myself talk, I more easily come up with objective answers. I see my story mirrored in the listener and gain insight.

2. Support me. Tell me that you respect me, honor me and have faith that I will come up with the right answer. Love is the greatest healer. Open your heart to me, stand by me and be my open-minded friend.

3. Ask questions, if you can, that help me to think about the situation in a new way. Don’t lead me to an answer that you’ve presumed, but clarify what I’m saying so that I can also clarify. For example, you can ask what I’ve done in the past that worked. Or, what have I tried? Ask questions with curiosity and interest, keeping in mind that I will answer my own questions and solve my own problems.

The conversation with my friend also allowed me to think about other ways of conversing. We often talk about others and ourselves. Gossip is a predominant topic of many conversations. How can we entertain ourselves if we’re not trying to fix the each other or others we know? Here are a few suggestions for interesting conversation topics:

1. What do you want from a friend: perhaps you could ask them to tell you about any unusual experiences they have had. Start it off with a question, such as “What is the most exciting thing you’ve ever done?” Or, “What do you fear most?”

2. Discuss interesting events that you’ve read or heard about. These don’t have to be depressing world events or criminal situations. For example try, “Did you know that the polar ice cap is now smaller than it’s ever been in recorded history?” Or, “Isn’t it amazing that hummingbirds fly 5000 miles across the ocean twice a year? I wonder if they do it backwards.”

3. Describe what you see. Look around you and notice your environment. For example, “Did you see the cute shoes on that little kid nearby?” How about noticing the patterns in the clouds? When did you last notice them? I remember walking out of a bookstore one evening and the sky was completely covered by tiny little clouds. The sun was setting and they each were reflecting shades for pink, orange, yellow and purple. I’d never seen such a phenomenon, and stood staring at them for around 15 minutes. In that time many people went in and out of the busy bookstore, and no one looked up to notice the spectacular light show above them. Look around you and talk about what you see and experience in the present.

I’d love to hear your suggestions about other conversation topics. Email me with ideas and I’ll post them in the next newsletter.

Remember, you are your own wise man or wise woman. Only you know what’s true for yourself. Find your own truth. Then find some dear friends to listen and support you as you journey . . . and love and support them. We are here for each other as objective and compassionate eyes and ears and hearts.

What do you want from your friends? An open ear that listens, and advice only when you ask for it.

Stress occurs whenever we feel that too much is being asked of us and we have no control over the situation, such as tackling a complex project with tight deadlines just as your colleague goes on vacation, or possibly juggling a dental appointment with the school Nativity play and the Christmas food shop all in the same afternoon. But what about the stress we all put ourselves under every day? Why, when we are in control do we still make excuses not to do something that we actually DO want to do?

Why do we stress our already stressful lives with such self sabotage?

Perhaps the biggest stressor in the developed world today is time pressure. We never seem to have enough time. And yet we all seem to make time to watch our favorite soaps on the TV, or go to a ball game or daydream listening to the songs we just downloaded. So maybe using lack of time as an excuse is simply a way of talking ourselves out of something we actually did not want to do in the first place. Or maybe there is another issue.

Whilst you MAY have a valid reason for not doing something right NOW, there is no reason to suppose we will not have time at some point in the future. More often than not, our excuses are just negative self talk rooted in some other deep insecurity. And it is this insecurity which causes us everyday stress. Maybe you have poor self esteem and do not truly believe you are worthy of success? Whatever the reason, constant negative self talk can drag us into a downward spiral of inactivity and under achievement. We start to believe in our own excuses, accepting them as true. They can make us miss opportunities and may even make us lead smaller lives than we really want to.

If you find yourself making excuses for why you are not doing something you actually DO want to do, then you are using negative self talk to increase your own stress levels. Stop excuses from destroying your life. If you would rather live life to the max, laugh lots and meet challenges with excited anticipation, then look inside yourself and figure out why you are using negative self talk – and address this issue. Counseling, self hypnosis and positive affirmations can all help with this, which makes these all very good stress relief techniques . But YOU have to do them

When repeated often enough, self talk becomes real. So make sure your self talk is positive. Do not let your excuses hold you hostage. Use positive affirmations to help change your mindset and you will become empowered, achieve more and feel less stressed.

As an intuitive coach, I often pull from my life experiences to help others. Intuitive healing is a process, and in that process, you can learn a lot about compromising yourself by compensating for errors.

To exemplify that, the other day I watched a softball coach teaching a young girl how to bat. One after another he placed balls onto a stand and had her hit them into a net. He gave her instruction and then did it again.

She was pretty good, but had a tendency to hit to the right. She was standing correctly, but I thought, “If she moves just a step to her right, she’d get behind the ball and hit it correctly.” Then it occurred to me that she wouldn’t be hitting correctly. She’d be hitting the ball where it needed to go, but her stance would be off and she’d be compensating for bad form. Instead the coach showed her how to reach further around the ball so that she’d hit it correctly.

This observation caused me to think, “How often do I compensate for errors in myself, my surroundings, or life instead of correcting the error?” My father used to preach ad infinitum, “If you’re going to do it, do it right.” I hated hearing that. So often I wanted to cheat. But, it never works out.

For example, it was easy to put a wooden match into the hole in my door jamb and replace the screw. I didn’t want to go downstairs and get the wood putty, let it dry, and then screw the jamb in later. I wanted to do it right then. I compensated. Of course, the knob never really worked quite right, and 6 months later the screw was loose and I had to complete the whole task again. Compensating for errors never works – you compromise yourself by not correcting the fault properly.

Another example happened when I noticed some fungus growing in my townhouse grass. It was easier at the time to not make a fuss about it to the Association Board. I didn’t want to take the time or look like a complainer. I could justify my noncommittal position by saying,” I pay Association dues and I’d rather not have to get involved with this.”

A couple months later most of the grass had been killed by the fungus and the Association had to have it dug up and reseeded. Maybe I would have seemed like a complainer at the time, or not. In any case, through compensatory negligence the fungus destroyed the lawn. Once again, compensating for errors. . .

It’s also tempting to compensate on personal growth issues. I was upset with something my husband had done last week. I didn’t want to discuss it with him, because I thought he would get angry. Rather than face the situation, I was tempted to leave the house and spend the day by myself. I realized that this would be hurting us and depriving us of time together, so I told him in the best way I could about my feelings. And using our communication skills (which we’ve painstakingly worked on) we were able to work through the issue. We also came to a stronger mutual understanding of not only the issue, but of each other.

Rather than compromising myself by compensating for errors on my or his part, I resolved the problem properly. Compensating – hedging because it feels better at the time – never works. It may seem like the easy way out, but it never is. My Dad was correct. If you’re going to do it, do it right. Appropriate action is always the way to go – and is even easiest in the long run.

Next, my Dad’s lesson on putting things away… OK, I’ll spare you that one for now.

Do you want to know how to gain confidence? You might notice how it impacts your social life, if your self confidence is a little low. Those who have a low level of self confidence are often concerned about how they seem to others. They don’t want to be judged by their friends and family. They remain in their comfort zones to avoid the risk of being rejected. They avoid talking to new people which often leads to isolation.

It may be comforting to know that many people who appear to be confident often are not. They have been told to pretend they are confident. They have been told to plaster a smile on their face. Guess what? To an extent, it works. Smiling does make someone appear to have self confidence. It makes them appear more likeable and approachable. Watch out though because smiling too much can make you look insincere and insincere. The best way to get others to smile at you is to smile at them first.

Happily it is simple to see how to gain confidence. Anyone who has self confidence will realistically look at their strengths and weaknesses. They will be able to relax with the uncertainty of a circumstance. They understand that things do always go how you want. Unless they face this challenge, they will not reach their goals and dreams. People don’t reach their goals because they lack ability. It is the lack of self confidence to even get started.

One way to gain confidence is to begin to take action. Each time you take a step towards your goals, you improve your level of skill and ability. Break the goal down into a step that is small enough for you to comfortably take. You will learn by doing and this is what makes you confident. Take a few moments to reflect on all the things that went right, later on. Don’t think about all the things that did or could have gone wrong. Focus instead on the positive.

Before you take action you may want to rehearse mentally. Close your eyes and think about a situation in which you want to begin to feel confident. Begin to focus on what might go right. Picture yourself feeling and acting confidently and decisively. When you take your focus off of what might go wrong things are more likely to go the way you want it to.

Studies show that self hypnosis is an powerful tool used to improve self confidence. Simple positive suggestions can essentially shift your level of confidence when done in a relaxed state of hypnosis. It’s easy to do and has long lasting results. It’s just a matter of replacing negative thought patterns in your subconscious mind with positive ideas. You may not even be aware of these negative thoughts. It’s the little voice inside that tells you that you can’t do it. That you are wrong. Hypnosis helps to change thoughts and increase your self confidence.

In order to enjoy success in life, we need self confidence. It gives the ability to face life’s challenges with calmness and courage. The desire to improve self confidence is a commitment to personal growth. Are you ready to find out how to gain confidence?

When you improve self confidence you increase your probability of winning in everything you do. Someone who is self confident will walk, talk even smile in a sure footed way. It is so important for you to have self confidence. It shows that you trust in your own abilities. The level of sureness depends on a number of things including life experiences and relationships.

A lack of self confidence is somewhat common. Most folks are completely confident in one situation and are much less so in another. For example, someone may be confident in social situations with friends but be nervous on a date. Someone else may be confident in an office meeting around the conference table but will get jittery when presenting in front of the very same group. We continuously find a challenge in unfamiliar circumstances that we are not sure we can handle.

When you begin to believe in your abilities you will improve self confidence.

A common strategy to become more self assured it to just begin to act as if you already are. Even if you are not feeling confident, put a smile on your face, walk with your head high and project a voice of authority. Many people who are insecure, step into their fear and act as if they are not. The difficulty here is that the feeling may not be a long-lasting one.

Another way is to risk doing things you have never tried before. The challenge of trying something new increases self confidence with each new experience. Each time you step into your fear, and do it anyway, you gain a little bit of confidence. The difficulty with this is that it can be difficult to look at your fear by yourself.

Many of our greatest leaders have been able to accomplish what they did because they believed strongly that they could. Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re right. It all comes down to your basic beliefs and what you say to yourself. Yes, self-talk.

A lot of of the factors affecting self confidence are outside your control. There is one thing that you can control and that is the way you talk to yourself. You must become aware of it first. You will likely find that a lot of it is mostly negative once you start to pay attention. Begin to make a conscious effort to turn those comments around so that they reflect a more positive view. For example, if you find yourself saying things like “I’m so incompetent” you can reframe it to say instead “I’m learning something new.”

Hypnosis has been helping people who want to improve self confidence for a long time. When all else fails, it is a good alternative. Studies prove that self hypnosis is an good tool used to increase that feeling of self confidence. Not only is hypnosis easy it is also effective with long lasting results. The simple suggestions used in hypnosis will improve your self talk. It can make you feel unstoppable instead of fearful.

It is important to know how hypnosis works in its’ role in improving self confidence. It is as easy as getting into a comfortable and deeply relaxed state of mind where your subconscious mind allows and accepts suggestions. This is when you can replace all of those negative thoughts with positive ones that support you to build confidence. It isn’t about doing things you wouldn’t ordinarily do. It’s about accepting suggestions that you want to incorporate into your life.

A lack of self confidence is a huge challenge to overcome in your life. It can hold you back in so many areas so that you never reach your full potential. There are quite a few things you can consciously do to improve self confidence. How will you get started?

An important life skill is figuring out how to be more confident. Self confidence is the principal factor in being unstoppable in your endeavors. When you come across as confident, folks will rely on you and your abilities more. Whether or not it is deserved, we equate confidence with competence.

Most people are not confident in every single area of their life. Depending on the circumstances, most people will feel a different degree of confidence. Someone with a low self confidence may rely on his social position or career status for a sense of self worth. The lack of self confidence often returns when the job changes or the social status shifts.

Lack of self confidence can happen as a result of a disapproving parent and their harsh comments. For that matter, those types of comments often come from other authority figures such as a teacher or other family member. Critical comments from others often turn into your own inner critic as you begin to tell yourself the same things. You begin to tell yourself that you are never smart enough or good enough. These thoughts usually occur when you are in an unfamiliar situation. You find yourself the most concerned when you are uncertain about what might happen. You get that feeling of anxiety and ‘fight or flight’ kicks in.

You can begin to build self confidence by not letting these thoughts and feelings to take over. Hypnosis is a proven strategy to help you do that.

In a relaxed state of hypnosis, your subconscious mind will listen to and accept positive ideas so that you can start to change the way you talk to yourself. These changes in the way you think will lead to changes in the actions you begin to take. Other people around you start to observe the changes and are drawn to you because they enjoy being around positive people with a ‘can do’ attitude. A different technique might be to use visualization during self hypnosis. You can consider how you will look and feel when you are self confident in a certain situation.

It may seem like sleeping but a hypnotic trance is very different. You are very aware of things going on around you. You may have seen a stage show and worry that you may do things you wouldn’t normally do. That is not the case. Stage show participants are there to have some fun and are usually a bit extroverted to begin with. Hypnosis can be thought of as learning and a hypnotist as a teacher or guide. It makes sense then to realize that you can learn how to gain confidence when that is your intention.

Simple, optimistic thoughts can be imprinted on the subconscious mind when you are in a relaxed and focused state. You’ll replace the negative self-talk with positive thought patterns that support you to improve confidence.

Hypnosis will supercharge your confidence with long lasting results. When will you make time to give it a try?

One of the most important life skills you can have is learning how to be confident. It’s the main component to success. Showing a high level of self confidence is crucial when negotiating a better deal, driving a car, interviewing for a promotion or any other occasion you are in communication with other people. Nearly all folks will discover that they lack confidence in particular situations but in others they are actually very self assured. You might be confident about your ability to lead an office meeting but fear giving the same presentation to a bigger audience.

Many people lack self confidence because they worry about how others might think of them. Parents or other authority figures may have given them harsh criticism as a child.

You may think that once you have lost your self confidence that it will be very difficult to gain it back. This is not true. Confidence is the belief in your own abilities. Figure out what things you are skilled at. You may be overlooking something so ask your friends and family what they think you are good at. Everyone is good at something. Even if you are lacking confidence right now, there has been a time in your life when you felt it. If you made mistakes in the past, you will not be able to change them, but you can understand and learn from it. When you do, you can make changes in your thoughts and actions for the future. It may take some time to regain your self confidence but you will be happier with yourself and your abilities.

Don’t allow feelings of uncertainty to take over. Replace those thoughts with positive ones. Here’s an exercise to help. Write down three things that went well for you during the day. Then write down three things that could have been better. You will be focusing on the positve side of things when you write down things that went well. You are recognizing that you were successful in that situation, even showing confidence. When you make note of things that could have been better, you are acknowledging that there are things to rehearse or learn so that you can get better. It is not the same as using the word failure. Looking at it this way gives you more control of the situation than saying something was a failure.

Sometimes you need some more help to get over the bad experiences that are still causing you to be less self confident. An useful tool in building confidence is self hypnosis. It’s easy and proven to be quite effective in the long term. Self hypnosis will build confidence by replacing your negative thoughts with positive ones. This is done with the use of hypnotic suggestion. When you are in a deeply relaxed state of hypnosis, your subsconscious mind will more easily accept these suggestions. Your conscious critical mind stops criticizing while it is relaxed. When you say to yourself “I am confident” your mind accepts it instead of rejecting it.

Hypnosis never makes you do something you would not normally do. Self hypnosis will make it easy for you to accept the supportive beliefs so that you will become more self confident. It shows you how to be confident through a process of deep relaxation. When you possess the greatest life skill of all, self confidence, you’ll be unstoppable.

The purpose of graphics and images is usually to get across a message that may be either far too tough or perhaps not as valuable if done so by means of words and phrases.  Artwork, drawing, three dimensional design and even photography happen to be at the forefront of depicting what’s inside of the artist’s imagination from nearly as far back as the historical past travels itself.

Today, experts agree that it is not enough only to employ one of the strategies previously mentioned; which explains why designers are inclined to make use of combinations. Designers tend to give attention to broad happenings, those that that impact themselves and local communities, as well as stuff that affects the whole world. Naturally, when you talk about things that have an impact on the world in general, the thing that one thinks of initially is almost always climatic change. With the global warming effect follows the worldwide energy disaster and this is exactly what artists take on for an initiative to describe the significance of energy saving to those who’re less informed. Its for these reasons the recognition and demand for energy preserving posters is escalating.

And so, that brings us to the point of energy conserving posters, which is to convey a particular reality regarding the effect of the global energy turmoil. An illustration of this this is something which is in fact quite popular; and that is to show an endangered species or another living creature undertaking a “environmentally friendly” action to save itself. This is what can make energy saving posters so essential.

Environmentally friendly posters tend to be aimed at showing the value, demand, as well as the rewards for the entire world of performing some very simple and basic things throughout the house, at the office, and even in school. They do this by adding short, to the point and intelligent slogans which boost the influence that the actual poster has on the person, to ensure that he or she gains inspiration to act towards preserving energy.

Energy saving posters are only a single method of carrying out exactly what environmentalists as well as scientists are attempting to do – get us to save energy which ever place we can! This is why the posters are generally aimed at reminding us all to focus on preserving energy, and also to carry out energy saving tasks to the greatest of our potential. So, utilize energy saving posters and spread the message of preserving energy!

Wayne Dyer is an internationally renowned author and speaker in the field of self-help.

And even though not everyone is a fan of his self-help and spiritual teachings it is hard to fault some of the inspirational quotes that are attributed to him.

So I thought I’d take a close look at three Wayne Dyer quotes – three famous inspirational life quotes – and share my understanding of what the quotes mean to me and my life, and thus what they may also mean to you and yours.

The following Wayne Dyer inspirational quotes are related, and reflect the true power of what changing your attitude can have on your life.

Let’s begin…

WAYNE DYER FAMOUS INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE #1

“Did you ever notice how difficult it is to argue with someone who is not obsessed with being right?”

It’s funny, really, because I’ve never, ever, thought of myself as being obsessed with being right – with being righteous! Ugh, who wants to be righteous! How boring and tedious to have to be right all the time.

I bet you’re in agreement with me, too. (Am I right?)

The fact is, though, when I remember back to my ‘argumentative days’ (in my 20s) I was often criticised for ‘having to be right’ all the time. Of course I rejected these criticisms. They were false – wrong! – and I never wanted to be right all the time. Ever.

Except I can never, actually remember any time when I was happy being wrong either.

Being “wrong”, if you try to think about it, is actually unthinkable, it really is.

You literally cannot think that you might be wrong, that your world-view needs changing. Your whole life is constructed about being right. (How could it not be!)

So when you look at Wayne Dyer’s quotation, now, you see that, really, it is incredibly difficult to argue with someone who *isn’t* attached to being right, it really is. And the main reason for this is that you’re arguing with no less than someone’s identify of themselves.

Conversely, when you’re not wrapped up in defending yourself, I guess the truth has a much better chance of shining through too.

WAYNE DYER INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE #2

“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

Ah, this is a much simpler situation to comprehend I think, but it stems from inhabiting a different viewpoint, as in the case of the first Wayne Dyer quote.

The beauty of this quotation is that it reveals a fundamental truth of how our lives – how *my* life – is experienced, namely: the observer of life (let’s call that person me, for example) is far from being an impartial recorder of events; instead, I am actually an interpreter of events only.

So the ‘reality’ of life is that ‘what happens’ is ‘what happens’.

And our trouble lies in the fact that we mistake ‘what we *think* of what happens’ as ‘what happens’.

And that’s where Wayne Dyers inspirational quote becomes so powerful, so transformational.

We can change what we think about what happens any time we choose. And when we do…

WAYNE DYER INSPIRATIONAL LIFE QUOTE #3

“Everything you are against weakens you. Everything you are for empowers you.”

Hmm, this makes me think of the word ‘flow’, and in particular of the tree swaying in the wind. Imagine if that tree was AGAINST swaying, do you think it would weaken at some point, maybe even break? But when the tree is FOR flowing with the wind, it will survive even the wildest of blasts.

So we must go with the flow, even if we are ‘forced’ to go in directions we’d rather not. Embrace change, embrace ‘what is now’, and see where it takes us.

Resistance really is futile, really is weakening.

And the opposite of weakening is… empowering.

As you begin to explore and discover past lives, you’ll begin to realize more about what motivates you today. The use of self hypnosis will make it easier to remember a past life.

You may have a blurry recollection of some incident from the past that keeps nagging at you. Once you take some time to explore, you’ll learn more about yourself than you can ever conceive of.

There are many people interested in exploring their past lives using self hypnosis on their own or possibly using an audio recording. Some are just interested to find out what life may have been like. They wonder if they were someone famous or perhaps a hero. I don’t want to disillusion them but most people were just ordinary people living normal lives. Just like today the average person can live a life full of purpose that is extraordinary to them but that may seem ordinary to the outsider.

Most who want to discover past lives have a clear purpose, which is the best way to start.

When you begin with a definite goal in mind for remembering past lives you’ll get better results. By goal, I mean that you should first figure out what is happening in your present life that you want to change.

Trust is a widespread concern, or actually I should say the absence of trust.

Frank began to explore his past lives because he had concerns with trusting those people who are closest to him. He had every reason to trust his family and yet he still felt insecure. A past lives regression revealed the reason why.

He had been a young girl who was taken by her mother as she left her father. The girl never knew her mother’s reason and did not comprehend why she was being secretive, never giving a straight answer.

Revisiting that moment in time allowed Frank to learn the truth. The father had been a gambler and a heavy drinker. The mother had taken the girl away in order to protect her and kept the truth to herself.

So how does this help?

By digging into the past to encounter events related to your present problem, you can get a larger perspective. You can uncover the wisdom inherent in the situation and apply it to your life today.

Do you have any past life memories? Have you taken the time to discover past lives and the memories they hold? Once you do, you’ll unlock the keys to the present.

Being a “Negative Nancy” is easy to do after watching an hour or two of news channels on TV these days. While our cities have an abundance of positive things to announce, the scales are inevitably tipped out of balance into the direction of unpleasant events. News media can be more commonly found reporting on the local break-ins, abductions, sex scandals and physical abuses than other more positive happenings. While a small percentage of journalists might devote their attention to charitable giving, reunited families and selfless altruistic acts, this type of story is in desperate need of publicity.

The reason I’m trying to point out the obvious is because I believe that it’s valuable to take a moment and understand that we have a choice in what information we invite into our mind and soul each day. It’s often critical to know some tough-to-hear news, so we can have an informed awareness of the condition of our community, nation and world. However, I encourage you to carefully select the amount of negativity you allow yourself to be exposed to. Why? Because you are what you see (and hear, eat, watch, etc). What goes in, comes out. If you watch gut wrenchingly horrific news story, you will probably begin to live with increased fear. When turning off the tube after a few politician-smearing commercials, you’ll probably harbor some resentment and bitterness.

It’s clinically proven – our brains are more stirred up by negativity than by positivity. According to psychology studies, “due to the brain’s ‘negativity bias’; it is simply built with a greater sensitivity to unpleasant news. The bias is so automatic that it can be detected at the earliest stage of the brain’s information processing” (http://www.biopsychiatry.com/depression/negbias.html). Insults stay with us for years, while compliments might last only a few days.

The study explains these effects on relationships, “Numerous researchers have found that there is an ideal balance between negativity and positivity in the atmosphere between partners. There seems to be some kind of thermostat operating in healthy marriages that almost automatically regulates the balance between positive and negative… Because of the disproportionate weight of the negative {bias}, balance does not mean a 50-50 equilibrium. Researchers have carefully charted the amount of time couples spend fighting vs. interacting positively. And they have found that a very specific ratio exists between the amount of positivity and negativity required to make married life satisfying to both partners. That magic ratio is five to one.” You should offer your loved ones a minimum of five supportive comments for every single criticism. Maybe more! Single folks, make sure spend significantly greater amounts of time watching and listening to media that makes you laugh than the media that makes you worry.

Whether you’re in a relationship or single, you would benefit from the practice of guarding your heart and mind. What goes in does come out, and to protect your daily perspective and mood from negative stimuli, be careful to balance the amount of negative news you allow yourself to absorb with a healthier – and heavier – amount of positive news. With an “intake” of positivity that outweighs the negativity, you will more likely lean towards a happier and more confident belief system in your own life. Instead of noticing all the difficulties you face in life, you will be more prone to delight in the even the most simple of blessings – like getting a front row parking spot, finding a fiver in your jeans pocket or receiving a phone call from a favorite friend. Positive in means positive out!

Curious about colours? Have you ever taken a colour personality test? Nowadays schools, corporations and colleges are giving more importance than ever before to colour tests. These tests claim that they reflect a current state of your emotions as well as future predictions, and can be used to help career choices for example. Some dating sites also use them to match couples.

Additionally psychologists agree that colours can have different influences on different people, however some say that the colour tests deliver generalised meanings.

Colour tests are considered to have started with Max Lûscher back in the 1940s, coming from the premise that different colours influence our emotions differently. Then for the purpose of the tests he reversed the logic, so that it was that different colours represent different behaviours. The colour test gives choices of colour preferences which then reflect our handling of our emotions and the world around us.

Results of the Lûscher Colour Test for the Author:
Appreciative and sensitive, but you do not wish for great responsibility, particularly in relationships. You desire to be viewed as fascinating and charming by others, thereby exerting some control over them. You have a tendency to view own wishes, dreams and desires as reality.

You always want to be involved and are committed to whatever you are involved with. You have no problem in showing people your feelings. You usually behave naturally which is opposite to people who like the colour grey.

Comments:
There is a certain amount of truth here, but there are a couple of statements that are not true at all, or else I am in denial about them…. However for such a quick test it is interesting to see what comes back.

Then would you believe it is the same person (me) taking another colour personality test, this time it shows the top 10 personality features.

1. Comfortableness – Free from stress or conducive to mental ease; having or affording peace of mind.

2. Nurturer – To help grow or develop; cultivate: nurture a student’s talent.

3. Extroverted – Marked by interest in and behavior directed toward others or the environment.

4. Unrestrained – Free of constraint; spontaneous and natural.

5. Dependable – consistent in performance or behavior.

6. Intimacy – very close in friendship or affection

7. Playful – Full of fun and high spirits; frolicsome or sportive.

8. Being Loved – a deep, tender, ineffable feeling of affection and solicitude.

9. Gentle – Considerate or kindly in disposition; amiable and tender.

10. Desirability – Worth having or seeking, as by being useful, advantageous, or pleasing.

Career Colour Test
Then I did another colour test which gives top career choices according to a test of 66 colour combinations, of which you prefer. What is interesting is these results were very close to the mark for me. The top two choices are spot on as I am fascinated with human social behaviour and with the second choice being English Language, here I am writing. The third choice is of interest as in my family there are a lot of lawyers, so when I was younger I considered following into law in some shape or form.

1. SOCIOLOGY – The study of human social behaviour

2. ENGLISH LANGUAGE

3. CRIMINAL JUSTICE / CRIMINOLOGY

From my experiments I believe the second personality test is more thorough.

How To Take The Test For The Most Accurate Results
When taking these tests do not think at all, make the choices quickly and without letting thoughts get in the way. These colour choices are not to be thought of in terms of decoration or clothes, purely as to which one of the various sets of two colours you prefer at that moment in time.

Like any psychological test you will have your own reaction as to how true it feels for you, but as many of us don’t have the time and/or inclination to reflect on our strengths and weaknesses, the test can be a good opportunity to remind us of some of these. When reminded we can build on strengths and in the case of the career choice we may feel more confident about decisions we need to make.

Another interesting fact about colours is that people who prefer certain colours are more likely to go into a deeper experience of hypnosis. This is connected with having a good imagination, in other words these are the people that others may refer to as colourful characters!

Your own study of a past life might be inspired from paying attention to others past lives stories.

Many countries accept reincarnation as a fact. In those countries it is common to find people with such a remembrance. Most others believe that the mind is has been emptied of all past life memories and that is why people cannot remember. You may not recall all the details but you may frequently get a quick look into the past, one that you might think is deja vu. It might seem like a blurry memory of something that has happened before.

A memory could be triggered by anything. It might be an event, sounds, colors or shapes in your current life. As a result, you might want to learn more about these momentary glimpses into the past or you may want to learn more about yourself. Whatever your reason, you can successfully investigate your own past lives using self hypnosis. Allow these past life memories inspire you to open up to your own journey of healing through past life regression.

These are just a few of the many past lives stories that illustrate the point.

Susan had a troubling sensitivity around her neck and didn’t know why. There was no apparent reason for it. Through past life hypnosis, she learned that she had been labeled as a witch in Salem during a witch hunt. They positioned a rope around her neck and hung her. This gave her clarity about why her neck was so touchy. Her neck sensitivity lessened right away with this new awareness.

Bill was feeling a general sense of loss with no apparent reason. One of his past life memories included living in India. One day he was getting ready to hunt elephants. He was attacked and eaten by a tiger. Becoming aware of his first sense of feeling loss enabled him to let go of these feelings in his present life.

Paige had married young and by the time she was forty, she had already been divorced twice. Each time her husband had cheated on her and so she left. A past life regression led her to find out that she had been a man once… one who had been a gambler and cheated on his wife. Being aware of this pattern helped her to break it and now she is happily married to a man that treats her well.

The importance of these past lives stories is that it gives you the capacity to recognize where your problem stemmed from. Once you do, you can let go of it. You don’t need to put up with it any more.

Past life hypnosis is a safe means of natural healing. Self hypnosis can be used safely though it can be difficult to do yourself because you may find that you just drift off to sleep.

If you are all set to try it yourself, here’s how. First, you’ll want to prepare for success. Dim the lights, play some quiet music and make sure there are no disruptions. Next, when you feel that you are in a fully relaxed trance, ask yourself to remember the earliest point in time that you can. Finally, take a look at what you are dressed in. What type of shoes are on your feet? Are you male or female? How old do you feel? Recognize that you will only know the things that the person you were was familiar with.

During self hypnosis your thoughts may wander off a little bit, but don’t be concerned. It’s natural. Just softly bring it back into focus. You may want to do this with a friend for a little extra support and to help you with the process.

What is past life hypnosis like? Many people claim to be famous people but few were actually King Tut or Cleopatra. Most likely you will find that your life was not thrilling or spectacular. In all probability you were leading a common life of the times.

Past life hypnosis and trance feels like a breathtaking state of relaxation. The memory of past lives experience is relived in dramatic detail. You can often see it, feel it, hear it; sometimes even taste or smell it.

Steer yourself to the Akashic Records of past lives to increase your perspective and understanding. This is known as the place that holds all memories of every action of every person that has ever lived. It will hold your memories as well.

After the past life regression, take a few minutes to mull over the experience. What lessons have you learned? What new and better choices can you now make?

The idea of reincarnation has been around for a long time. In more recent times, Edgar Cayce became an supporter of 0reincarnation. Popular actress, Shirley MacLaine wrote several books about it. Recently, Dr. Brian Weiss has brought the idea of past life regression mainstream with his popular appearances on The Oprah show.

Can you prove that your past life really existed? No, it cannot be proven that we have lived before and we will likely never be able to prove it. In the end, it doesn’t really matter. All that matters is that it helps you to get to the bottom of personal issues so that you begin to make better choices in the present. Past live hypnosis allows you to do that.

Taking the time to experience a past lives regression can be done on your own but does take some practice. And it’s well worth the effort. Chance are that you have already noticed glimpses of your past life memories. It can be as simple as having a reaction to certain words or situations that trigger feelings. You might also have a feeling of having an immediate connection with someone.

Do you think you might have been a famous person? Chance are that you weren’t. What you will more likely find is that you’ll revisit the moments in time that are full of strong emotions that have had an impact on your life. The everyday, ordinary activities are usually left behind.

Your present life is enhance by learning from your past life.  This is when you can begin to move forward.  In a past lives regression you return to the past, learn the important lessons and move forward leaving the painful emotions behind.  By revisiting the source of your problem you’ll be able to resolve it once and for all.

The first time you try a past lives regression you may not be successful, but you will with some practice.  Decide what current challenge you want to work on. Just like with meditation, self hypnosis takes practice.  At first, you may open the door just a bit. Most of the time a past life is accessed by visualizing door or portal through which one must pass.  It’s a separation of two worlds.

When you do discover past lives, you might be tempted to prove it to be true.  More than likely, even though your past life experience feels real, you will never be able to prove it.  It may leave you questioning whether or not it was just a dream.

It does not matter if you can prove whether it is real or not.  You may not have remembered it exactly the way it happened and that does not matter either.  If you think about it, you probably don’t remember an event from last week exactly the way it happened.  Our memories usually distort the facts.  Have you noticed that two people will have very different recollections of the same event.

The power in past lives regression is that you are able to heal wounds from the past so that you can feel better today.  Past lives regression is well worth the effort.

Money troubles? Forget about talking to your banker or financial advisor. More and more people are running to their psychics to see what is happening “behind the scenes” and to learn how the spirit world can help bring money blessings.

Throughout history, civilizations over the world have relied on their religion and faith in spiritual and mystical powers to achieve help with life’s problems. Even before modern medicine came on the scene, most health problems and illnesses were traditionally addressed by applying a dose of spirituality, religion, witchcraft, voodoo, astrology, or psychic power. Back then, you simply could not get through the week without help and guidance from the “unseen” world. Of course, that was long before we became enlightened by the miracles and wonders of modern science.

In the modern world where mainstream religions are often shrugged off or mocked, it is easy for us to laugh at those believe in new age powers of the paranormal, occult, psychic or magical remedies. We see them as misguided kooks or blind followers of today’s counter-culture. But humans today resemble our ancestors in our search for truth, meaning, and solutions to life’s problems. Many of us have experienced being broke, saddled by bills, credit card debt, and feeling hopeless that we can ever get out from under. We know there must be a solution out there when the banks and our friends turn their backs on us. So we look for “help from above” to solve our financial troubles.

When asked, most people who go to psychics and purchase prosperity or money spells will tell you that they really do work.

But did that money spell really make help struggling secretary win the lottery or get a job promotion? The skeptics and unbelievers will point to coincidence, insisting there must be some sort of logical explanation, or attribute results to a case of “mind over matter.” But those who faithfully believe in psychic powers or live by the position or stars and planets think otherwise – there must be a higher power with a helping hand involved.

My perspective is probably different from yours, as I am a professional psychic and paranormal expert. In my studies of spirituality, psychic phenomena and spell casting cases going back thousands of years, I believe there is much more to this than meets the eye. Mainstream religions all seem to accept and profess the power of prayer as a method of receiving blessings from God. Recently, medical professionals now recognize that a patient’s faith and religious beliefs can play a significant role in improving health and quality of life. Many doctors admit that there is a benefit from holistic and alternative medicines. If this is true, why can’t a person’s financial health and wealth be improved by faith in psychic assistance and money spells?

There will always be a stigma of going to a fortune teller, psychic or spell caster that prevents the mainstream from accepting their virtues and value. Let’s come to our senses and stop fooling ourselves. This is all just a money-making scam. It is as fake as the wrestling matches on television, right? Well, don’t be too quick to agree.

You would be surprised at the numbers of people who seek (and claim to receive) help with their money matters thanks to a caring spell caster or psychic. These are individuals from all countries, states, professions, income levels and religious backgrounds. I have clients who are prominent politicians, teachers, doctors, and even scientists. They are believers of paranormal help for all of life’s problems, and nobody can change their minds. They will tell you how much their lives have been improved and enriched, and the unbelievers are the foolish one who don’t know what they are missing.

Can a financial spell bring unexpected money blessings to someone in need? Are these spells for real? Can they actually make things happen that people can’t do on my own? I believe that a spell that has a good track record of doing what it is supposed to do has got to be real. The results speak for themself. People by nature will always doubt, ridicule, and be afraid of what they don’t understand; while the open-minded are willing to take the leap of faith to become blessed. Those who refuse to open their eyes, minds to the possibilities of magic spells and psychic help will never know what they are missing, but will be the first to call you ignorant for asking for help from a higher source. Perhaps it is the unbelievers who ignorant for not even trying. I encourage everyone I meet to remain open-minded, because what you see in this world is not always what you get.

© 2007 KPS Services.

About the Author: Katerina Gaurente is a long-time paranormal specialist, proprietor of KPS Services, and eBay’s #1 psychic since 1999. On http://free-love-spells.net/ she offers money spells and love spells to clients worldwide.

Whether it’s a jar candle designed to fragrance the room or chosen for a specific ritual purpose, one of the important parts of candle magick is “charging” the candle. Simply put, when a candle is charged it is filled with energy designed for a specific purpose. The energy comes from ourselves and the universe. It’s freely available and anyone, of any faith, can charge a candle. If you’re not comfortable with the thought of rituals or magic you can think of it as a prayer.

The most basic way to charge a candle is to hold it in your hands and think about the purpose you wish the candle to serve. If you’re burning it for healing, for example, then imagine the person getting better and becoming healthy once more. For prosperity, think about you living the live you want, free of worries and stress from money. The important part is to be positive about your goal and to imagine it happening.

If you want to go farther in charging a candle, then there are additional steps that can be taken. Anointing the candle with oils helps to imbue it with the properties of the essential oils. In addition, you can add nuances to the magical meaning of the candle. Adding planetary or zodiac oils to the candle can bring those elements (such as Capricorn for money or Mercury for communication) to your candle magic.

Some people inscribe runes or symbols on the candle. Continuing with the prosperity spell, a simple dollar sign is easy to carve and expresses in concrete terms what the candle magic will be for. Names, numbers, even small pictures can be created with a minimum of effort on the candle.

With the simplest form of candle magic, the candle is dressed (or anointed) with oils, a symbol carved on it, charged with energy and then burned. This ritual can take only a few moments to several days depending on the steps involved and the preferred timing of them.

Of course, when it comes to candle magic, and charging a candle, following the basic steps is good, but the best thing you can do to have a properly charged candle is to choose the correct candle. The size and type of candle doesn’t matter for ritual purposes. Some people prefer jar or container candles. Tapers, mini candles, tea lights, or votives all work well. The two factors in choosing a correct candle are the scent and the color.

When it comes to scent, an unscented candle, ready to be anointed or left “as is” may be your best choice. Otherwise, with the wide variety of scents available choose the one that’s closest to your ritual’s purpose. If working on a prosperity spell you may wish to choose scents that make you feel rich and luxurious. Spells for love naturally call for floral fragrances.

And the color of the candle plays a role too. Green is the color of prosperity. Blues evoke healing, and pinks and reds are for love or passion. While there are plenty of tables out there that talk about the correspondences of various colors, the bottom line is that you’re the one charging the candle and doing the ritual. You get to choose which works best for you and what feels right. The color and the scent of the candle are fully under your control.

In the end, it isn’t the way the candle smells or what kind of wax it’s made out of that creates the magic. It’s you. To charge a candle means putting your will into it and that will helps to form an outcome. The magic is within. The candle is merely a tool. Charging the candle gives it direction. Nothing more and nothing less. Your spell, prayer, ritual, or whatever you wish to call it, really works the magic. However it sure doesn’t hurt to have a full set of tools at your disposal and charging a candle doesn’t take much time or energy. Just a little thought.

Mary Caelsto is a pagan author of fiction and non-fiction. You can visit her website at http://www.marycaelsto.com/. She runs Jupiter Gardens, LLC a store devoted to providing products and services that nurture your inner worlds. Learn more about the Jupiter Gardens family at http://www.jupitergardens.com/

by John Culbertson

Alexandra has been dating a man named Robert for two months. At first, everything was great between the two of them. He was romantic, kind, gentle, and easy to get along with. Additionally, he had a natural leadership quality about him which really drew Alexandra in. Now, though, things aren’t so great. Alexandra feels that Robert has become very controlling. Additionally, he always seems so depressed and negative every time she ends up around him. Alexandra wants Robert to either leave her alone or, minimally, be in a better mood when the two are around each other. Additionally, Alexandra would like to end their relationship, but she wants to do so as peacefully as possible. The question is, what can Alexandra do to help this manifest in her life?

The previous is but one of many examples of time periods in our lives where we find ourselves desiring to keep negative people away from us or, even better, work to help them help themselves.

Here is a simple and safe candle spell ritual a person can do to help protect from negativity generated by other people. Though simple, this is still a powerful spell. As with all magick, it’s important that one is in the right frame of mind prior to working with it. The easiest way to get into the proper state of mind is to mediate or relax without interruptions for five to ten minutes before beginning this spell.

You’ll need a white candle, some aluminum foil, and a knife.

Step One: Begin by carving into the white candle the name of the person whom you want to defend against. As you carve, make sure you place your intent into the candle by focusing your mind on the idea that this person will have no further effect on you.

Step Two: Wrap the candle in the aluminum foil, shiny side facing in. This puts a protective shield around the person. The aluminum foil will reflect whatever energy the person puts out right back toward them. This is a white magick approach to protection as the person still has free will to decide if they want to put out positive or negative energy.

Step Three: Hold the candle in your right hand and send white light through the top of your crown center (head) down through your arms and into the candle. As you do this, visualize the person not being able to come around you when they are in a negative mood.

Step Four: Put the wrapped candle into the freezer and leave it. Do not remove it until you’re ready to break the spell. This action “freezes” the person with the protective shield reflecting their own energy back to and around them.

This is a great spell for beginners. Not only will the person putting out negative energy be zapped by their own negativity, but when they choose to give off positive energy they will be zapped with that as well. Done properly, this spell can actually serve as a means of training another person to have only positive thoughts when within your presence.

Alexandra tried this spell and she found she didn’t have to deal with negative and controlling Robert any longer. This enabled her to breakup as peacefully as possible and move forward with her life. Other people have used this spell to keep annoying relatives away from weddings, birthday parties, etc. Still, there are other people that have used this spell to bring added protection from those whom they feel are a danger to themselves or others.

by Adam Eason

Words are just a part of our lives aren’t they? Why do we need to think about them? When I teach people self-hypnosis, the language they use in self-hypnosis sessions is very important. What’s more, the kind of language used in self-hypnosis can be used outside of formal self-hypnosis too, to enhance your communication with yourself at all times.

The words that you use in and out of self-hypnosis carry a lot of connotation and a lot of deeper meanings for you as they do for everyone. What one word means to one person can mean something completely different to another.

Think about an occasion in your life that was a wonderful occasion; maybe a happy birthday, the birth of a child, a wedding or a celebration, maybe a time when you achieved something, when you succeeded or maybe a time when you felt the full force of joy or love. Really think about that experience. Remember what you saw, remember and think about the sounds that you heard and think about how you know and how you knew you felt so good then. Whereabouts in your body were those good feelings? Now, as you really think about that memory and immerse yourself in it, think about the words that you would use to describe that experience.

These are the words that are going to elicit the most powerful response from within you when you use them in self-hypnosis sessions and when you communicate with yourself at any time.

Have a think about these questions; what words make you feel good? Which words give you good feelings? Make a list of the words that appeal to you. You can use a thesaurus to help.

Ask yourself; how would I like to feel? Here are some good words you may like to use in your self-hypnosis or just to frequent the internal workings of your mind with: Healthy, Peace, Balance, Harmony, Relaxed, Confident, Good, Happy, Powerful, Joyful, Calm, Unison, Assured, Vibrant, Loving, Progressive, Better, Beautiful.

All a bit obvious, I know you get the idea. It is really important though that you do actually use words that have a good meaning to you and make you feel good within your self-hypnosis or just your internal dialogue.

Now, I am going to add a couple of words here for you to think about. Think about the words “more and more” and “increasingly.” These words are going to be important to create growth, power and fluidity in your mind. Let me explain how.

Consider the sentence “as a result of achieving my ideal weight I am happy.” This is a nice way to remind yourself that achieving this particular goal (whatever it might be for you) you are happy. Great. However, we can make that more powerful by changing a rather static “happy” to “more and more happy.” I don’t know about you, but I would never want to think that I ever reached the pinnacle of happiness and could not go any further.

“Happy” is static. In order to supercharge your programmes and the way you utilise language in and out of self-hypnosis, you can mobilise the words and get them moving onwards and upwards for you. You can change “Happy” to “Happier and happier” or “more and more happy” or “increasingly happy” or “progressively more happy” or “more and more appropriately happy.“ Use whatever feels right for you, just use other words to develop and power it up.

Words to avoid: Some of these words may seem fine and feel fine to use for you. I am just giving you ideas and considerations when using these words in and out of self-hypnosis.

When communicating with yourself, my recommendation is that you consider avoiding the following words and types of words; Words that elicit bad feelings. Words that are ambiguous. Words that are limiting, restrictive or disempower you. Words that you are uncomfortable with.

When communicating with yourself, ask yourself these questions: Is there another phrase or word that is better? Is there a word or phrase I find more pleasing? Is there a way in which you can put your energy and power into this suggestion in a better way?

So, firstly, I want to point out some words that can elicit bad feelings: Try, can’t, won’t, don’t, should, shouldn’t, must, mustn’t, jealousy, temper, no, lose, will, sad, difficult, but. I want to point out a couple of these words in particular.

The word “try” sends a shudder down my back. I use this word in therapy often to ensure that people won’t do what I am asking them, for example I might say “try to resist the urge to relax.”

When you are trying to do something, you are not doing it. You build in failure by using the word try. So just remove it from your internal communication.

You will have heard that expression “if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.” Yuck. Awful stuff. It really should read “if at first you don’t succeed, try and try, and try and try and try and try and try… etc, etc.” You want to do the things you want to do, you want to achieve the things you want to achieve; you don’t want to try and do them or try and achieve them.

The word “Will” is another one to avoid if you can. Will is not actually happening, it is something you will do rather than actually are doing. It never occurs. You know, you can put almost any sentence together with the word will in and simply remove that word to make it more progressive and positive for your self-hypnosis requirements. Have go at doing that. (I realise that there is likely to be at least one wiseguy who now uses the word as in “last will and testament” yes, very clever. I have not heard that one before.) Here are a couple of examples; “As a result of stopping smoking I will be healthier.” Now becomes; “As a result of stopping smoking I am healthier.” “I will successfully achieve my goals” is transformed into “I successfully achieve my goals.” Here we have just removed it to make it more progressive. You see, it is those finer distinctions that I refer to often that can really make a difference to the way you use language, and you may as well really use it more and more powerfully while you are in the state of self-hypnosis.

Lots of people tell me that they want to “Lose” weight. I always tell them that no one loses when they come to see me. Think about what else you lose in life. Generally, it is things that you would rather have kept like your keys or your wallet. You generally lose things that you want to find again. Lose has many negative connotations. Instead of losing weight, reframe it with the words “achieving and maintaining the size, shape and weight that pleases me.” This is much more progressive.

Finally for this section, I want to mention the word “But.” This word can often be seen to be negating what has come before it; I would really like to come out tonight, but I have to wash my hair. Of course I really love you, but I need to pursue my career. I had a great time, but that guy sitting next to me was rude.

This might not always be the case for you; however, it is for you to be aware of when addressing your own unconscious mind in and out of self-hypnosis.

Secondly, I recommend that you really do avoid using words that are putdowns. They don’t really have a place in self-hypnosis or your mind at all. Avoid the following words and words like them:

Untidy, Dirty, Smelly, Ugly, Stupid, Lazy, Hopeless, Disliked, Unkempt, Smelly, Idiot, Embarrass, Ridiculous. I know you know lots more. I don’t really like even having to write these in this article. Your internal dialogue and self-hypnosis sessions are better without these words.

This next set of words is for you to keep aware of and avoid if you feel they limit you or your programme in any way. I am referring to words that are absolutes. These are words that have no flexibility, that are final. For example: Always, totally, closed, never, finish, impossible, definitely, completely, death, cancelled. You may for example, state in a self-hypnosis session or tell yourself that you never smoke again. Which is fine and good for some people. However, you may have one too many glasses of sherry at Christmas and have a sneaky puff on your friend’s cigar. Now this does not make you a regular smoker again, however, it has negated the sentiments that you told yourself. It has made yourinternal communication to yourself less credible to you because you wrote that you would never smoke again and you just did, albeit only one puff, by writing that you would never do it, you leave no flexibility and you leave no room for interpretation of particular circumstances that may arise.

That may be fine with some, just bear it in mind. I mentioned the subject earlier within the guidelines for writing programmes and that is the notion of ambiguity. With self-hypnosis and when communicating with yourself in your own mind in other ways, it is best to avoid words that are ambiguous. Words such as; Maybe, Desire, Growth, Positive, Negative, Normal, Whole.

You might well use the expression that your desire to stop smoking is increasing. Again, this sounds fine on the surface. However, do you want your desire to stop smoking to increase or your actual ability to stop smoking to increase? If you only increased your desire to stop smoking, it might become a very frustrating experience. Also, you might want to consider referring to your personal growth increasing. It could be referring to something growing on your body somewhere!

Think about the word normal. Who is to say what that is? Do you know specifically what you mean when you refer to anything as being normal? If you are going to use the word normal, I would recommend that you define what that means to you also, be specific about it or just substitute it for the word usual if you can.

Finally, on the topic of words, I would like to point out to you the use of the “Able.” It is one thing being able to do something; it is another to actually do it. If you are going to increase your ability with something, then also ensure you do it.

I realise that this article has offered up many considerations so far with self-hypnosis use of language and internal dialogue. These are just that; considerations.

You can allow yourself to find the right solutions and methods for you. As you get more and more used to being in self-hypnosis or just communicating with yourself more prgressively and discovering the kind of suggestions and words that have the most powerful effect for you, then you can fine tune your use of them.

Adam Eason’s best selling book “The Secrets of Self-Hypnosis: Harnessing the Power of Your Unconscious Mind” can be found at amazon or any good online book store.

About the Author: To receive Adam’s amazing bi-monthly newsletter, packed with modern, innovative, psychological tips, techniques and information visit http://www.adam-eason.com You’ll also receive a free instantly downloadable hypnosis session to enjoy at home.

By: Russell Atkins

Astral projection is actually the way by which a person separates his astral being or his inner soul from his physical being and travels to higher astral planes. Therefore we can say that astral projection is a phenomenon where you can break the physical barriers and float away from the body and watch yourself and the surroundings from another realm of consciousness altogether.

Since it is an experience of a life time, many practitioners, especially beginners have a lot of questions regarding the same. Thus, in case of astral projection how to questions are many. Starting from – in astral projection how to astral travel, or later on, in astral projection how to undergo past life regression, questions are numerous and varied.

The first and foremost question is how to astral project? The most important factor is that meditation should be made a part and parcel of your life in order to gain control on your energy and the sub conscious mind since you need to keep your mind wakeful and conscious while letting your body sleep. It is basically a 4 step process of relaxation, concentration, energy channelizing and actual projecting.

Start by lying down and concentrating on each body part, clenching it and releasing it alternatively. Relax your whole body and let yourself sink in a trance without falling asleep. Keep your mind focused by basic meditational practice or try to concentrate on an object at the back of your head. Thereafter, become conscious about the energy flowing in your entire body and concentrate on channelizing it towards your palms. Thereafter visualize yourself floating or moving out from your body. Focus on this vision strongly and channelize all your energies on to it for experiencing this out of body experience.

While enquiring about astral projection how to float around or travel after you have left your physical body is a question that is asked often. You must remember that astral projection has taken place, people generally move around through the routes they are familiar with. It might be the room he or she stays. It might be the locality he or she lives in. But what one should do is not just to walk around but ‘think’ one’s way around and let the thought process take him or her where the desire lies. You have to think positive and you will reach the destination for sure.

In astral projection how do you see or how clear your vision is, is probably the next most common question.. The vision during astral projection is very clear, similar to what we experience in the real world. Now, in higher astral planes the vision is much clearer than in the lower planes where the vision is dull and dark.

Regarding the different queries of astral projection how to get in touch is also a frequently asked question. Is it possible to meet other astral bodies such as ghosts? If so, can they be contacted? Well, in astral projections, nobody is in their physical form, all are in their spirit form or ghosts. It is impossible to come in contact with those in their physical bodies, like your friends and family since both of you are in different vibrations altogether. But it is possible to contact other astral bodies. The mode is telepathic, so there is no need for languages.

Last but not the least, the ways of undergoing pat life regression is also a FAQ, usually by the experienced lot in this act. It has been heard of that people have traveled to their past during such astral projection. The main trick lies in verbal affirmations. You have to constantly speak to yourself about traveling to your past and see what you were for experiencing the same. All of it depends on the amount of control you posses over your sub-conscious self.

Author Resource:-> Look at the exciting world of astral projection and obe’s with the popular http://www.astralprojectiontravel.com website. Discover the secret outer body experience. This is astral projection for beginners when you visit here and get twenty nine audios and ebooks FREE.

By: Jenny Lin

There are endless symbols used in Feng Shui that have been proven for centuries to enhance wealth, money, fortune and prosperity luck. The top ten most popular symbols, in no particular order are:

Wealth Ship – Many believed that a wealth ship laden with treasure placed pointing inwards to symbolize the ship returning home triumphant from its various conquests had helped them multiply their inflow of cash and created abundance in wealth for them.

Wealth Pot – The practice of keeping Wealth pots, vases, jars, bowls or plates in homes to enhance wealth luck has been secretly performed by the rich since ancient China. A Wealth Pot symbolizes never-ending good fortune and wealth. The Wealth Pot is excellent for those seeking to attract windfalls luck and solidify their fortune through investment and business.

Wealth Inviting Crystal Trees – A crystal tree, usually looks like a bonsai made up of resin trunk and twisted copper wire branches tied with crystal chips and empowered with gold coins tied to its branches is used to ensure everlasting wealth and money luck. Place a crystal gem tree in the office, shops, work desk, near cash registers and important areas in your business premises to bring in more sales and achieve more monetary gains and successes.

Wealth God – The God of Wealth, or ‘Chai Sen Yeh’ is one of the most popular symbols of wealth, prosperity and fortune. He’s extremely popular in the Chinese community so much so that elaborate rituals are performed during the Chinese lunar new year to welcome the God of Wealth into the household thereby bringing in lots of good fortune and magnifying windfall and speculative luck in life for the year to come.

Money Frog – The Money Frog, also known as the three legged toad or “Chan Chu” in Chinese is probably the most auspicious symbol of money-making. This mythical creature is said to appear every full moon near homes that will receive good news of increased wealth or monetary gain. The Money Frog is used for attracting wealth and abundance and can often be seen near cash registers, receptions, managers’ desk and offices in Oriental countries.

Pi Yao or Pi Xie – The Pi Yao is a mystical creature that is a particularly powerful and auspicious creature of good fortune adored by many. It is said to have a voracious appetite for precious stones and jewels that is infinite. The interesting part is that the Pi Yao does not have an anus, which means things only go in but never come out, signifying money rolling in without spilling out a dime.

Citrine – For centuries, citrine has been a special gem believed to be the most powerful generator of wealth! Also commonly known as the “merchant stone”, Citrine brings excellent business luck, attracts abundance, fortune and wealth. Citrine is recognized by Feng Shui masters as the most potent wealth enhancer for the Period 8 (2004 to 2024).

Gold Ingots – Gold Ingots are called “Yuen Bao” in Chinese. They were used as a currency by high officials and emperors in ancient China and today, in Feng Shui terms, they are regarded as the symbol of wealth and fortune. Gold ingots are extremely auspicious and are essential ingredients for wealth vases and wealth ships.

Dragon – In Chinese culture and in Feng Shui, the dragon is the most auspicious and magnificent, mightiest and most sacred of all creatures. Through generations, the dragon has been the ultimate symbol of power, abundance, good luck and honor. The Dragon is said to create the precious cosmic Chi or known as the ‘Sheng Chi’ which brings loads of good fortunes into our homes and workplaces.

Arowana – Because of its close resemblance of the oriental dragon – with its two ‘whiskers’, scales and the way it glides through the water, the Arowana is also commonly known as the golden dragon fish by the Chinese. The Chinese character for fish, ‘yu’ means abundance and coupled with the dragon being the ultimate good luck symbol, the Arowana is hence a very powerful Feng Shui enhancer associated with wealth, luck, strength and power.

About the Author

Jenny Lin is the author of Feng Shui Products for a Better Life, an online Feng Shui Store of over 2000 Feng Shui enhancers, remedies and cures.

(ArticlesBase SC #375784)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Top Ten Feng Shui Wealth Enhancers

by kuanyinspirit

Continuing from our last session together, Lena agreed upon a “chakra countdown”: the process of evaluating the condition of one’s energy centers. So instead of the standard ten to zero hypnotic countdown, we traveled from Lena’s crown chakra to her solar plexus. Noting the color and vibrancy of each chakra, Lena also practiced expanding and contracting each “chakra wheel”, experimenting and becoming familiar with her corresponding comfort level for each energy center.

(It is interesting to note how some can remain too open while others can be too closed in their heart and solar plexus chakras during daily interactions. Evaluating one’s chakra comfort level is one way to decipher whether one is too psychically or emotionally open or closed. In fact, Kuan Yin has mentioned, in earlier chapters, the possibility for “being too open”—that improper chakra alignment is potentially emotionally and even physically damaging. Too vulnerable in one’s heart chakra! Too shielded in one’s solar plexus! Scanning one’s energy centers from head to toe, one might very well discover any number of misalignments. It becomes a very pragmatic decision, indeed, for each to determine and practice achieving personal chakra comfort levels.)

When eventually reaching her heart chakra, Lena noticed beautiful white billowy clouds against a picture perfect blue sky. Moving on, she found herself immersed in some profound healing process within her solar plexus area, experiencing and exploring layers of damaged tissue. Somewhere during this entire process she became aware of Kuan Yin’s presence:

“Yes, she’s here with me, now. I’ve been away from her for a while so I didn’t know if she would be here. However, she’s like vroom, right in front of me and really present: really real. Kuan Yin’s form is middle age, wrapped in white. She’s standing near me and holding a smoky quartz crystal. I don’t recall what smoky quartz stands for. All I know is she doesn’t doubt me.”

“Don’t doubt your intuition or take in other’s opinion of you. Don’t feel bad or analyze the situation too much. Just trust yourself,” informs Kuan Yin.

“Kuan Yin is standing up for me, protecting me,” Lena’s voice drifts off.

“I just want you to get what you deserve. Even if it is just one little thing,” consoles Kuan Yin.

“I got off course for awhile. I followed what friends and others wanted me to do instead of listening to my inner guidance,” explains Lena. “Kuan Yin is just saying that valuing other’s opinions and interpretations can dilute the magic.”

“Let the magic happen. It is always there. Abundance and love are always there. Believe in the highest good,” proclaims Kuan Yin. “There is a higher essence to everything. The realm you’re in has a heaviness that mutes energy. You can penetrate through it, no matter how dark and heavy. Sometimes it has nothing to do with karma. Just don’t forget to keep it open. Don’t get too bogged down. Don’t limit the brightness. Reach through the dark energy and grab it. You might see the smoke coming out of the chimney and you’ll even see the smoky sky. You need to reach through the smoke and bring the light to you. Remember the possibilities of something greater than is right here. Be willing to go to the lightness,” states Kuan Yin. “Don’t feed off what is not right in the world.”

“The diamond is what Kuan Yin wants to give to me. It is for personal reasons,” Lena says.

“Prosperity can happen at any time,” assures Kuan Yin. “I want to give you everything that you need. Focus on that symbol (the diamond) of prosperity. Taking that first step is what you need. Hope too, say and believe that more and more you can have all the possibilities. It is your mantra. I want you both to believe and be open to receiving. Maybe you can imagine a crystal in the place of a real diamond. Focus upon it and breathe in what it represents (it’s energy) to those areas of the body that need healing. Practice the meditation of seeing me holding and giving you this huge, chunky diamond. Remember (from our previous session) this diamond doesn’t just represent material wealth. Its myriad facets also represent consciousness, love and all other forms of abundance. Practice receiving it,” instructs Kuan Yin. “Here, it’s yours. Just take it.”

“OK Kuan Yin, I accept it,” replies Lena.

“Remember when accepting this gift, you’re equal to everyone else, you’re no different. At the same time you’re equal to everyone else, you need to know you’re also special, unique. Everyone has his or her own uniqueness while also being equal to the next person. Just please accept the diamond. I’ve been trying to give it to you for years. Of course, there were different circumstances, different needs. I always have tried to give you this.”

“I’m experiencing this really large, strong and grounded embodied image of Kuan Yin,” exclaims Lena, speaking intently from her trance.

“I wonder if during this short interlude, whether it would be ok to ask a question about counterparts, our mirror selves in our dreams,” I interject. (This seemed like an opportune time as Kuan Yin had just suggested a specific form of chakra work. Indeed, counterparts and chakras are closely related.)

“Yes, you’re entirely correct about the counterparts. Hypnosis is a really powerful tool for healing and understanding one’s counterparts. Your specialties, Hope, include hypnosis and understanding the chakras and counterparts of self. Another way of understanding counterparts (besides dream and chakra counterparts) are personas and emotions coming from the different organs of the body. For any person, a certain organ can be the source of nightmares. Each person, of course is unique. A person might mention they’ve experienced a nightmare. The nightmare may be trying to inform the person a certain organ needs particular nutrients, elements.“ As we’ve discussed the chakras also need particular nutrients, elements. Certain emotions also “live” in the chakras. Limiting emotions can block off certain areas of the body. An individual, then, can utilize this approach (hypnosis and dream analysis) as a possible preventive medicine—warding off illness in certain prone areas of the body. I wish someone would do sound tuning of the chakras. Sound comes first in the universe. We’re all made of sound.”

Kuan Yin then described a computerized device that could measure and adjust the sound vibration for each chakra. She also mentioned that my youngest son, who is an engineer, might want to explore creating such a device.

“It would be like having one’s hearing checked. Only one would be working with the energy centers, the chakras. Individuals could get more in touch with their own pulses and their relationship with sound. It would feel really good and could possibly be used for pain management. There will be (in the coming years) a proportionally larger group of the elderly in your society. People will live longer. However, they will have many misalignments in the chakras. Sound therapy could be very soothing as well as help an individual to adjust, to be ready to move on to the next life.”

During a later session, Lena’s discussion with Kuan Yin once again turned to the importance of the chakras:

“Yes. I’m here in the bamboo garden. Kuan Yin is very illuminated. Her garment is so bright, so filled with light. She’s holding a musical instrument. I think it is a lute. Completely focused upon tuning this instrument—trying to get the sound just right, she does not speak,” murmurs Lena.

“Sit down, Lena, and see what I’m doing,” instructs Kuan Yin. “Once this instrument is correctly tuned and kept tuned, any amount of chaos won’t matter, won’t effect it.”

“Of course,” maintains Lena, “this is Kuan Yin’s metaphor for keeping the body, chakras well-tuned. She’s telling me this is a continuation of her message (in chapter twenty two) concerning the effects of sound and vibrations upon physicality. She is also saying that the power of sound (and pulse) is why music is so calming and comforting.”

“We’ve been meeting like this for some months now. I’ve taken you on these journeys and you know you can return (to normal waking existence) any time you wish.

“However, I want you to take the diamond, receive all that it stands for. Maybe you can hold a large crystal and imagine it as the diamond. When you place this imaginary diamond on your solar plexus, visualize its potency and value—the highest and safest feelings going into your stomach.”

“Kuan Yin is giving me a burgundy or red colored tulip with fringed petals. It is so beautiful,” exclaims Lena.

“I want you to bring that light into your body. Practice that,” instructs Kuan Yin.

“I’m suddenly seeing myself laying in a thick layer of an oil-like substance,” describes Lena. “It is similar to the oil that rises to the top layer of a boiling pot of soup. Above this thick and heavy atmosphere are astonishingly vivid colors of bright light.”

“Push it aside. It is like the Biblical “parting of the waters”,” Kuan Yin instructs.

“Only this is parting of dense consciousness. It’s the only way to keep you in balance during the difficult times. You know,” Kuan Yin concedes, “harder times might be coming. There may be a lot of chaos. People are going to have to (more than ever) rely upon spiritual practice. The only way to remain strong is to pray for others. Don’t get too depleted.”

“I’m seeing endless light, endless possibilities,” exclaims Lena. It is an infinite light that goes on forever. It’s amazing. It is so much more powerful than any darkness humans create. Kuan Yin is reminding me that she (telepathically) sent me an article on Chinese medicine when I was in the herb store. She wants us (and anyone who reads this manuscript) to stay alert to the things she sends or puts in the path for us. Now she is giving me and all of her readers some general advice:”

“Pay attention to information that is written down, heard or seen. The best thing you can do is to write it down when you comprehend those things (gifts) I’ve sent to you. One reason you might not take to heart or practice these techniques (that I’ve presented to you) so ardently is that you don’t believe that you are valuable. Another is that you don’t have enough faith. It’s all about faith,” emphasizes Kuan Yin.

“Kuan Yin is showing me what looks like a spiral tunnel (where my navel really is). Together, we’re going around and around, trying to relax the walls of the tunnel. Now we’re going even deeper into my stomach. Kuan Yin is in some deep layer, working on healing and relaxing the tissue. I see a tiny, tiny black pellet, like a tiny seed deep in the tunnel. What is it? What is it made of? Kuan Yin is placing her form way deep in the seed. This particular form of her is a beautiful, intricately carved and relaxed Kuan Yin.

“For some reason, right now, something about soldiers is coming up. I’m seeing medals of Honor with white and blue ribbons. I wanted to go to the vigil to honor the fallen soldiers,” weeps Lena, still deep in trance.

(This week marked the third anniversary of 9/11 and several local events were being held to honor the fallen. Lena’s anguish concerning these tragic national events had clearly affected her at a profound depth.)

“I’m so sorry. I have feelings of awful sadness, powerlessness about the deaths of the soldiers and the people who were in the Twin Towers at the time of bombings.

“Kuan Yin is standing in front of them. She is saying the soldiers do not want to be remembered as a burden. They’re souls want to be appreciated without any accompanying judgment.

“I want to send them love. I feel so much sorrow,” Lena suddenly breaks down, crying while still in trance.

“All the soldiers’ desire is a simple acknowledgement that they died,” responds Kuan Yin. “It is the same for the souls who died in the Twin Towers. Their greatest sadness is the anger and hate that abounds,” Lena asserts. “They are all just standing there and saying; ‘Why isn’t everyone talking about the life we had that was very good?’”

“I see all of them together like a huge sweeping cloud. Now, I’m seeing beautiful blue colors, billowy clouds and hearing the souls say, ‘Look at us. Look at how powerful we were! Remember our images. We want to be remembered for all the good things. Everyone is focused upon revenge, anger. It’s the worst thing you can do for those who’ve passed over. Just remember us in our beauty and our love.’ I’m remembering a dream I had right after 9/11 about the explosion. It was so deep, so real. Coming from the explosion were all the glorious things that had been a part of these people’s lives: beauty, love, giving and creativity. Kuan Yin is watching all of this as if the entire drama were playing on a TV or movie screen. Neutral, constant, non-effected, she’s just there. However, her non-judgment doesn’t mean she’s heartless or doesn’t care.”

“Lena, the only way to really utilize your human experience is to practice some kind of meditation or visualization. It does work. People really need it. It’s the only way to get through the difficult times.”

“I’ve known about all this for a long time, about the benefits of meditation and visualization,” confesses Lena. “However, Kuan Yin is reminding me again. She’s saying how this kind of practice puts us in the “Kuan Yin spirit”.

“You’re the watcher. Instead of judging, you just see. Whether meditating upon her form or bringing light into the chakras, all these techniques will help us in our life.

“Kuan Yin is telling me (and you, Hope) that it is a really powerful thing to do a meditation which involves surrounding a person with light. It’s also powerful to explore hypnosis and chakra alignment techniques. Letting go (of former beliefs and impressions) and seeing what can be learned about yourself and others helps with compassion.

“Of course it’s beneficial for the one who is meditating. Too, the individual (meditated upon) will feel the good intentions and that you want the highest good for him.”
(During the following passage a group of school age children were laughing and yelling, playing soccer just outside the window in the field right across the street.)

“Children are so open. They see things in a way our eyes have become dulled to. There hearts too are so open. Kuan Yin is explaining how to work with the chakras. She’s showing me how I can place my hand on my children’s hearts when they’re resting or sleeping and how this kind of “intended touch”, balancing the chakras, helps to make them strong.”

“The trauma of everyday living causes the chakras to get shoved around, disconnected. When resting, one can benefit from light touches to the heart, stomach and head, connecting the chakras to one another and also from the inside out. Life is so intense. It can scatter one’s energy. Healing works best (at least with children) to have the energy go from inside out rather than outside in as “conventional wisdom” dictates,” elucidates Kuan Yin.

“Kuan Yin thinks I did well raising my oldest daughter Lydia, that her chakras are quite connected. That is why she is so functional. Kuan Yin is mentioning how other adolescents are so torn, imbalanced, either “stuck” in their stomachs or lower chakras. I wonder if such imbalances are the cause of chronic eating and other eating disorders.”

“When there is so much pain in the heart it naturally migrates to the stomach,” responds Kuan Yin, compassionately. “The pain goes to the stomach because the navel, and all that it represents; maternal comfort and nurturing, is there. In fact, this pain is stored in the stomach until the issues causing the pain are finally resolved…Certain body types correlate with certain emotional issues,” responds Kuan Yin. “For instance, those who are over weight crave nurturing and motherly love. While all need nurturing, those who are obese may have a greater karmic need and, in some cases, may have lost their mother in a past life. Over-eating and binging and purging is an attempt by the individual to replace the nurturance of the umbilical cord. For some, it may be that they were not nursed long enough or at all. For others they were separated from their mothers too soon. The mother was not necessarily at fault. Instead, the circumstances surrounding the child’s upbringing did not meet the nurturing needs of that particular individual. In this world, the mothering element is not valued enough. Perhaps, if motherly love were more valued by your society, there would be less obesity…When individuals don’t place the mother as important for society, there will always be, as a result, a disproportionate amount of obesity and stomach problems. Here, I want to stress that the stomach, not the heart, is the center of our beings. Some might contend because love and emotions spring from the heart, it is the heart that directs (is at the center of) our lives. However, it is the stomach which defines our energy field and our identity—everything. Think of those societies, tribes, where a large stomach denotes wealth and power. It is no accident. You identify yourselves through your stomachs. However, because of how your culture holds motherhood in low esteem your culture is out of balance…The “stomach area of life” is extremely sensitive to trauma,” Kuan Yin asserts. “It is, in fact, where one “holds” despair.”

The Living Word of Kuan Yin Click here to go to the webpage.

by Rachel Goodwin

In 2006, a year after I had some deeply spiritual experiences working with earth vortexes in Hawai’i, I was guided to start an ‘earth healing’ group.  The images I was given was to continue with the work being done by lightworkers of ‘cleansing’ the planet, and clearing the pollution of earths subtle bodies.  This was to prepare the matrix for carrying higher energies, to assist the process of ascension of the earth and humanity.

As the group started, each month we would work with clearing specific energies within ourselves, often related to abundance and then to assisting with clearing specific places and towns.  Initially we were working with elemental energies, and called on Pele, the fiery Hawai’ian goddess of the Volcano, who I had powerfully connected to during my sacred journey to the Big Island, Pele’s current home.  After a few months, another presence began making herself felt, and this presence came forward as the ascended lady master Sarah.  This involved much soul searching for me, as I had not been previously aware Sarah’s life, and felt concerned that I was my imagination was holding reign.  As time went on, and Sarah began to reveal the teachings she had come to give, and I was supported by my spiritual circle, I began to realise that the teachings that were being given were giving us profound experiences and providing us with a new way of living.

One of the most profound was our discovery of the Hrit Padma chakra.

That particular month I was guided to write a journey work for the group where the focus of conscious awareness was placed in the different spheres, for example, focusing on the physical body then the mental body then the emotional body then the higher self and so on.  This was so that we could become more aware, as a daily practice of where our consciousness was residing.

As part of the journey work I was inspired to write taking our awareness up to the highest heavens, to the highest possible vibrations of our higher, our original selves, and then bringing that focus of attention into the centre of ourselves, in our physical bodies, and coming right now into the moment, into the now.

When I had been working with these practices during the week as I prepared for the group, I had noticed a physical sensation like an energy, just underneath my heart chakra but above the solar plexus, but although I had been aware of it, I had no idea what it was, and so gave it no significance, as to maybe a possible clearing going on.

When we held the group that month, and the group experienced the journeywork of being at the centre of themselves, the feedback after the group was very interesting.  Several people noticed what I had also experienced, was that the focus of attention, ‘out there’ at the highest heavens, felt the same as being ‘at the centre’.  This we thought sounded all very quantum physics, because we had an inner knowing that ‘out there’ and ‘in here’ was although placed at two different locations, one and the same.

The next revelation from the feedback was that two other members of the group said they experienced a sensation when they came into the centre of themselves, just underneath the heart chakra but above the solar plexus.  I was really excited at this point as I hadn’t mentioned my own experience to the group, thinking it was not anything of importance, but was still not the wiser for it.  So at the end of the group, when I did the channelling that month, the group asked this question,

We sensed within ourselves this core place of ‘now’, of our being, just below the heart, do you have any more information, is it a new energy centre?

“At the centre of your being, is the place where all things are, and also is the place where nothing is.  It is the place where your very being is, and also is the place where your unbeing is; and is yet the space where you are connected to everything, in this one central spark of your being.  It is like the centre of the universe, constantly creating and recreating, destroying and ending and beginning all over again in each moment.  When you bring yourself into the now, into the moment, this is where you are, each time, coming into that …….single particle where the universe is destroyed and then born again, and in that moment is all of the potential for all things.

This is a great mystery, and one that connects you up with your divinity, and also to your physical manifestation here on earth.  It is the place where your very spark of being exists, in between heaven and earth, because where heaven and earth join, there is a fusion.  But that spark, that divinity is the fusion, and energetically it exists within your bodies in the place the heaven and the earth energies are in fusion.  From this place, you can energetically create all things, all potential is there, in this place.  You have access to all that you need here, from heaven and from earth, fused together, as one.”

That night after the group, I had a nagging thought which wouldn’t leave me alone, and I started to reference this new information by looking through my books to see if I could find anything out.  Up until the early hours of the morning, I discovered references to the Hrit Padma, a chakra point between the solar plexus and the heart centre, described as being two fingersbreadths beneath the heart centre.  I didn’t get too much sleep that night as I was too excited by what I found.  I investigated it further online to find further references, and found this chakra point described as the seat of the soul, and references to Narayana, who is described in the Upanishads as the Divine being as it was before it separated into Brahma, Vishnu & Shiva.  I also found references stating that in the majority of humanity, this chakra point is blocked, which helps to explain why our societies are living very much from their ‘egos’, and we have the problems current in the world today.

After months of working with the energy here, through chanting and energy exercises, I have come to realise that clearing the energy to the Hrit Padma is a path to enlightenment.  If the energy pathway at the Hrit Padma is a clear channel then we are one with our Higher, our Original Selves.  I believe that the New Age of Aquarius would be greatly assisted in coming closer to us as we would wish it to, if we worked more with this energy centre as a collective.

These teachings of the Hrit Padma, which have been around for a long time, are now becoming more and more significant, and are available to all. Ascension for not just the masters, but for all of us, is our birthright, for we are the Divine made manifest………

Rachel Goodwin is a channel & energy healer working with the ascended masters, angelic & elemental kingdoms, & is a qualified hypnotherapist & nurse.

© Rachel Goodwin 2008

You are free to copy, distribute and display the material presented here, as long as you give the author credit, & do not alter the work in any way without permission from the copyright holder.

Rachel Goodwin is a channel & energy healer working with the ascended masters, angelic & elemental kingdoms, & is a qualified hypnotherapist & nurse.

To receive Rachel’s monthly ‘New Earth’ newsletter email subscribe to info@sarayei.com
or you can join the New Earth group at
http://groups.google.co.uk/group/the_new_earth
for further info on the hrit padma, see the related article of Lady Sarah’s channelled, ‘the centre of yourSelves’

by John Culbertson

Within the metaphysical world we have a term that is called chakra. This is a term which was borrowed from the eastern part of the world (mainly India, but also parts of Asia). This word, which is Sanskrit, means spinning wheel. Thus, a chakra is a spinning wheel of energy located within the human body.

Each chakra is responsible for various human functions. These energy centers direct the energies of life and channel them into different areas. When a chakra becomes dirty or blocked, those energies have a harder time working. Ultimately, this will lead to disease and illness.

Likewise, when we experience certain problems in our life, they do affect certain chakras and can have the result of blocking or closing them.

This article takes a brief look at the seven main chakras that most people within the new age and metaphysical world need to be familiar with.

ROOT CENTER
The root center is located at the base of the spine with the entrance point for the energy being the vagina for a woman and the perineum for a man. Its color, in the physical world, is red. It is associated with the survival instinct. The fight or flight reflex is connected to this center as is our sexual desires when they are pure passion and animalistic in nature.

The root center helps to ground our energy into the physical world and is primarily responsible for us being alive. A closed root center can, and often times does, equate to death here in the physical world.

When we have emotional issues in our lives that deal with our need to survive, this center is likely blocked.

A blocked root center can cause problems to the prostate and uterus, kidneys, bladder, and bowels. Also the lower backbone and nerves can be affected.

Any type of physical exercise will help to clear and keep this center open and functioning. Additionally, dancing, yoga, massages, camping, gardening, and Tai Chi also help to clear and keep this center open and functioning.

An exercise for opening this center involves taking a martial arts horse stance and doing pelvic thrusts.

SACRAL CENTER
The sacral center is located about 2 inches below the belly button. Its physical world color is orange. It is associated with sex and sexuality from a loving perspective. It deals with creativity and gut level intuition. It also has to do with the pleasure principal, our general well being, and our abundance in our life. It sometimes is associated with communication, but this would be from a pleasure perspective as opposed to a persuasive/information oriented perspective.

Negative emotional reactions to any problems in life can cause this center to become blocked. This can result in illness connected to sexual organs and lower back as well as the pancreas, liver, and spleen.

Martial Arts, meditation, and sex with a loving partner can all help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning. Additionally painting, socializing, writing, and playing music/singing will help to clear, open, and keep it functioning.

An exercise for opening this center involves taking a martial arts horse stance and rotating your hips in a circle or doing belly dance figure eights.

SOLAR PLEXUS CENTER

The solar plexus center is located at the base of the sternum. Its physical world color is yellow. It deals with our mind, especially as it functions here in the physical world. Anything intellectual is connected to the solar plexus center as is most forms of communication from a mental perspective.

This center also deals with our self-esteem, self-worth, confidence, and personal power. Whenever we are submissive to others or even circumstances in our life, this center weakens. Likewise, not loving yourself or not being proud of the self can have the same effect.

This center and the heart center are usually so closely linked that they are considered tied together. When a person operates from the solar plexus level though, they tend to take things very personally.

Besides what has already been mentioned, emotional disappointment in love and interpersonal relationships can cause this center to become blocked. When blocked, illness can develop in the heart, stomach, liver, upper digestive tract, and lungs.

Anything intellectual in nature will help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning.

An exercise for opening this center involves jumping as high as you can.

HEART CENTER
The heart center is located in the center of the chest and the physical world color associated with it is green. This center allows a person to have the ability to be unconditionally caring and loving. This is not solar plexus, sacral, or root center love which many times are possessive in nature, rather it is a higher form of love where both the good and bad are equally embraced and accepted and is with total positive regard. It also allows a person to receive love in all forms and to feel joy, kinship, and peace.

This center usually becomes blocked when there is an overflow from a blocked solar plexus center. Any type of hate related emotions can also cause blockages to this center. Illness and injury related to a blocked heart center can develop in the heart, lungs, upper spine, and shoulders.

Playing with children or pets, being in the presence of beauty, and laughing will all help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning.

The psychic ability connected to this center is clairsentience, which means clear feeling.

An exercise for opening this center involves back bends.

THROAT CENTER
The throat center is located at the root of the tongue and has a physical world color of blue. It is the seat of our will and deals with our will power, manifestation ability, self-discipline, and control. An open throat center allows a person to have fortitude and to work through problems that would stop others. This center is also called the truth center, because in order to function properly we must be living our truth, in whatever form and belief that may be.

The center is most likely to become blocked when we hold back the things we really need to say and express or when we over express ourselves in a melodramatic way. A blocked throat center can cause illness or injury to the ears, throat, mouth, neck, and thyroids.

Chanting, drumming, journaling, saying no when we don’t want to do something, expressing our needs openly and honestly, and discharging anger in an appropriate manner all help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning properly. Additionally, speaking in front of crowds and sharing problems with trusted friends will also serve to help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning properly.

The psychic ability connected to this center is clairaudience, which means clear hearing. It is our psychic ability to hear auditory voices from guides, angels, spirit teachers, and deceased loved ones.

An exercise for opening this center would be to rotate the neck in a circle from left to right and then switching and going from right to left. Do this multiple times with the mouth open.

THIRD EYE/BROW CENTER
The third eye, also called the brow center, is located above the bridge of the nose and in between the two eye brows. The physical world color that we associate with this center is indigo. When open and operating with an opened crown center, we usually gain the ability of clairvoyance, which means clear seeing. This psychic ability is the one most people have heard of and it represents the pictures that a person sees with their third eye, not their physical eyes.

This center also is connected to wisdom, intuition, and imagination. This center, when balanced, makes use of the whole brain as opposed to one side or the other.

This center usually only becomes blocked when a person misuse their psychic abilities, especially clairvoyance, to pry where they aren’t suppose to. It can also become blocked when we try to manipulate others. A blocked third eye can result in illness and injury to head and eyes.

Visualizing the release of negativity in your life along with relaxing and having “child-like” fun can help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning. Additionally, reading spiritual based books, praying, meditation, and being thankful can also help to clear, open, and keep this center functioning.

An exercise for opening this center would be to rotate your eyes from left to right and then switching and going from right to left. Do this multiple times, but without causing eye strain.

CROWN CENTER
The crown center is located at the top of the head on the inside of it as opposed to the outside. The physical world color normally associated with this center is violet, but purple and white have also been used. It is represented many times by the thousand-pedal lotus opening up.

This center deals with spirituality and connecting to the divine in all forms. It is where our inspiration comes from and it brings insight into our daily lives when it is opened and functioning properly. The purpose of this center is to open us up to the beauty, that divine source, whatever we may think of it as.

This center can become blocked when a person is going through a spiritual crisis, has no spiritual base, or through an abundance of negative thinking. A blocked crown center can result in headaches and neck tension and a closed crown center could even lead to a brain tumor or other brain related illnesses.

Meditation for 15 to 20 minutes daily, inner reflections, prayers for the world and reading or listening to those works of great spiritual leaders like Christ and Buddha can all help to open, clear and keep this center functioning properly.

This center combines with the third eye center to help open us up to clairvoyance. It can also be related to a general “knowingness.”

An exercise for opening this center is to rub the top of your head in a clockwise direction.

Additionally, the proper function of ALL chakras can be aided by doing a chakra meditation/visualization.

His personal web site is located at: http://www.mysticjohnculbertson.com/

He enjoys teaching psychic development, numerology, tarot, and pretty much all aspects of the new age field. He is a ghost writer and sees clients on a regular basis at his store in Florida. He is also available for classes, speaking engagements, and private lessons.

by Bonnie Moss

“Every blade of grass has it’s own little angel saying, ‘grow, grow, grow “..Talmud

Angel.

A heavenly spirit assigned by God to watch over each of us during our lives. The doctrine of angels is part of the Church’s tradition. The role of the guardian angel is both to guide us to good thoughts, work and words, and to preserve us from evil. Psalm 91: 10-12…

Angels are emanations of God, just as sunbeams are to the sun. From the moment of birth, there is an angel waiting to take its place by our side. Do they hear our prayers? Do they feel what we feel?

Angels are around us. They surround us. If we learn to seek their assistance, gladly they will come to our aid. Angels are a link between our human realm and the divine. Angels do not belong to any particular religious belief. We can not see them, but we can feel the energy that pervades in their presence.

Angels are purely spiritual beings with no physical form. When they were created, God granted them free will, immortality and divine intelligence. Their task is to sustain the universe.

The angels are free from the restrictions of time and space. They can be anywhere at anytime because they are multi- dimensional. They are not constrained nor restrained by time and space. It is believed that angels travel faster than the speed of light.

Angels are trusted with the task of looking after the whole of creation; from the animal kingdom, the plants and minerals, the planets, the earth, the wind, and stars. To every living creature, there is an angelic presence.

Angels are fascinated with man’s ability to invent and to create equipment, machinery, gadgets and toys to meet man’s needs and also for pleasure.

When we open ourselves to the angelic realm, we open ourselves to deeper spirituality and inner development. Communication with angels encourages us to develop intuitively in order to be able to decode their message. Meditation helps us to navigate through the negative blocks that hinder our inner development and our peace of mind. Meditation helps us find the path to love and joy, which is the ultimate message the angels wish to give us.

In our cluttered and harried world, we need a moment of quiet and go deep within ourselves. This is the best time to connect with the angels. They inspire us to reach for a higher level of love, peace, harmony and align ourselves with the Divine. Angels can only help us if we ask them. This does not mean that they will deny us help in moments of great need. Think of a time when you did something without thinking that actually saved you. There was an angel by your side!

Angels bring us peace and comfort. When they reach out to us, we feel the divine within us. It is a reminder that our physical selves are sacred temples of the divinity we share with our Creator.

Rudolf Steiner, a German philosopher and scientist, had a deep love and understanding of angels. According to him, angels communicate with us through images, thus we need to develop our imagination and intuition to be able to decode angelic messages.

We need to acknowledge their presence around us. Angels help us to make better choices, so that our words, thoughts and actions are in alignment with our higher selves and best interest without compromise. Angels assist us to find our deeper selves and be able to express it through creative pursuits, help us feel the joys of love, enjoy the serenity that comes with inner peace.

With a calmer state of mind, problems are not as overwhelming. We can see through the maze with clarity. Life flows.

Angels are there for us when we feel alone. Angels are there when there is no one to reach out to. Call out to an angel who’ll be there to give comfort and solace.

At times when danger is imminent, an angel is there to warn us, to protect us and keep us safe. There is always an angel by our side.

About the Author: Bonnie Moss writes about spirituality, tools available to all to walk the path. Visit her website , a metaphysical site that offers information on tarot, crystals, aura, journalling and related topics. Her various inspirational articles are published on a variety of ezines. Visit her website:
http://goldencupcafe.tripod.com

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Michelle Beaudry

Questions About Your Life Path

You need to know whether you are following your right life path, that your decisions are in keeping with your best and highest good, and that the spirit guides that you feel around you are really real. You want to speak with them directly, see what they look like, find out their names, and ask a bucketful of heartfelt questions. With the help of a spiritual hypnotist, all this is easily done. Here are a few pointers to help you make it happen.

Your Guides Love You

Your guides nudge you from time to time, registering as intuition or deja vu. They are that gut feeling that lets you know to embrace a situation or run away. They are the so-called imaginary friends you had as a child who came to play with you when you needed to not feel so lonely. Now that you are an adult, the clarity of their communication can become cloudy when you are spinning with emotional duress. Sometimes when you need them the most, you may feel the least receptive to their help. Please understand that this phenomenon generates from the human side only. Your guides always desire to help you. When you are ready to open a crystal clear channel of communication, they are right there with bells on. They love you. That is their job.

From Angels to Zoo Animals

You may be pleased to know that angels prevail as spirit guides, and your odds of having several angels looking out for you is high indeed. Keep an open mind when meeting your spirit guides for the first time. In years of helping clients meet their guides through hypnosis, I have known spirit guides to appear as angels, pulsing lights, councils of twelve in white robes, two and four footed animals, alien life forms, and every description of human being imaginable, and so forth. Your guides may be a he, she, it, or they. Having a small group of several guides is common, yet you might have only one. No matter what visual form your guides take, they can and will readily communicate directly with you.

Your Options

You can visit a psychic reader and have her describe your guides to you, and she’ll be happy to deliver messages back and forth, since the reader, not you, experiences them directly. With hypnosis, you have direct communication. Or you can use methods that include years of meditation, near death experiences, and highly illegal non-prescription drugs. Do you have years at your disposal to learn meditation, or do you want answers now? Do you really want to tempt death? Do you trust hallucinogenic street drugs? I assure you, there is a better, safer option, and that is hypnosis. Follow instructions, and it can all be done in an hour or two.

Hypnosis 101

Not believing in hypnosis is like not believing in Tuesday or February. You already go into trance every time you watch a tv show that you like, or read a book that you like, or see a film that you like, or, well, you get the idea. You already go into trance when you sit down to read your email for 10 minutes, and suddenly an hour and a half has passed. You already go into trance when you fall in love or make love. It is like daydreaming to the tenth power. No one can make you go there, just as no one can make you like a movie. When you do like a movie, you naturally enter into a light state of hypnosis. The state deepens when you love that movie. But when you do not like that movie at all, it is exactly because it does not entrance you. Point being, you already love hypnosis, my friend. You spend good money on it. Seen your cable bill lately?

What Hypnosis Is Not

It is not what Hollywood has told you. Sadly, there has never been a single film or television show that accurately portrays how hypnosis actually works. No one controls you in hypnosis any more than they do when you daydream. Hypnosis is not sleep. You can hear all the sounds around you during trance, as you are neither unconscious nor asleep. Hypnosis can not make you murder anyone. Ask any mob boss or CIA agent, and you will hear how money and sex work much better as inducements to criminal behavior. Hypnosis is not mind control. Ask the armed forces if they use it to interrogate prisoners, and their answer will be no. They do not use it because they can not. No one can force you to do anything, legal or otherwise, in trance. And you can come out of trance at any time by simply choosing to do so.

What Hypnosis Is

Please understand that the feeling of being an individual is a necessary part of experiencing a human lifetime, and for that experience, we need a conscious mind as well as the spiritually connected subconscious mind. Your conscious mind filters out the interconnectedness of all energy in the universe expressly so you can have your human experience of being an individual. Hypnosis simply sets aside the conscious part of the mind, and accesses the far larger, more powerful subconscious. In other words, set aside the conscious mind with hypnosis, and its filter disengages. This opens up your senses to the spiritual world, and gives you direct access to your guides.

So Easy, You Do It with Your Eyes Closed

Hypnosis is easier to do than you think. And your guides are happy to talk to you. So what are you waiting for? Meet them today. Oh, and one last note, refrain from asking your guides about money. For some reason, the very idea of money only makes them laugh. Ask them why yourself, if you like. Ask them anything you like. Anything at all. See, they love you. That is their job.

Michelle Beaudry, board certified hypnotist near Orlando, Florida, takes clients in person and by phone from all over the world. Email info@beaudryhypnosis.com.

http://www.beaudryhypnosis.com

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Oscar Basurto Carbonell

Many persons have wondered if angels truly exist and which is their nature. We will try now, to understand this topic. The best known and evident foundation, of course, is that the angel is a messenger of God, who comes to fulfill an specific work; and who has the capacity and power to do it. We can say that many persons have experienced angelical interventions in their lives and that is the reason that we are going to understand somewhat what this means and also how is an angel, about his feelings, temperament and motivation.

The angel, by conviction, is an example of the most tender and careful love that God profess to his creatures. And that is the reason that the angel has an spiritual value, which is in turn, his strength. Every angel has a moral and ethical principle ingrained and he is full of wisdom, because he naturally knows what is the fear of God, and this does not mean fear, but the understanding of the consequences that come when separating from God. Thus, the angel has in himself the dynamic and he is in the fundamental principle of the will of God and how this will must be applied.

The angels live in the law of God but in its most perfect and purest manifestation. By example, every angel is the guardian of faith. And how is this? It is through the transmission of different devotions to the virtues of the spirit. This is transmitted through his spiritual power given by God and transmitted by him to hundreds of persons, who seek the real understanding of faith. Thus, he transmits an special grace to the sincere students and to the persons who practice the spiritual truth, who little by little, will enter the revelation of the spiritual mysteries.

By example: The person begins to discover an spiritual mystery by its components; such as: About faith: Mercy is necessarily represented in faith. Surrender is necessarily represented in faith. Devotion and spiritual study are represented in faith and they are strengthened in service and prayer. The angel is then, the tender and dedicated divine wisdom who gives orientation to the heart and warns about the dangers of temptation. The angel lives, of course, in a different reality than man’s reality; his time and space and the purpose of life are different than the ones of man. That is why, the angel possess patience and understanding but he never permits the error, he warns, points and condemns it, but certainly in a constructive way, that also permits man to have a consideration of his true spiritual state.

The angel is an spiritual companion for the spiritual devotee, not because he does the work for him but because by virtue of prayer, he plants sparkles of spiritual light in the heart and thought, that permits man, to improve his reflections, his heart and his service. Something very important and necessary to point out is that the angel contributes strength and spiritual happiness, when man is going through difficult and constructive processes, then, the angel knows how to give man that little impulse that permits the equilibrium, and man feels the advice in his heart. It is necessary to say that the divine messenger or angel, acts like the one who sows. And then is up to man, to care, protect and use that information as protection; in other words, the angel gives the example, shows the way and gives the warning, he tells man about his alternatives, which the person will begin to discover in his inner world.

The angel is a giver and benefactor, who pours spiritual jewels but very few can see this, not because they do not want to, but to see the work of the spirit, requires purity of heart. We find in the angel, loyalty, ethics, morality, compassion, wisdom, love and spiritual dignity. But, let’s point out that the angel is a different species than man; and we could think that the angel by not being held to the pressure and to the material existence or to its seduction.

We could say that the ethics of the angel is not as complex, because he is so pure that he is not subject to any temptation; but the angel does know the dynamics of the world. His natural habitat is the spiritual state, called heaven. The angel comes to earth to be of service to the spiritual will, who justly takes care of man in the form of warnings and inspirational science. The angel is present in the moments of the greatest consecration of Love, in the moments of fragility, even of pain, because he knows man, he loves him and he has the function of being a beacon of light in the life of the spiritual seeker.

Mr. Oscar Basurto Carbonell is a well known international lecturer, spiritual teacher and healer; poet and author of innumerable writings related to Self Knowledge, Healing, Art for Good Health, Meditation and Spiritual Science, are some of his topics. He is also an accomplished artist with great knowledge of the ancient science of techniques and designs of Sacred Geometry, Ancient Symbols and Healing Energy

Main website : Mystic Healing Art
www.mystichealingart.com
Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Tom T. Moore

If you are like most people, you consider your pets to be part of your family. You love them and receive much love in return, and you distress when they become ill or lost for even a short time. Below I’m going to give you some unique suggestions on lowering your stress level when events seem to be worrisome, or even in crises situations, with those lovable family members.

About thirteen years ago, in reading spiritual articles and books, I kept noticing the word “benevolent” used in stories about angels and their relationship to us. As this is not a commonly used word in the English language, it was quite noticeable to me. One day I read a suggestion to request benevolent outcomes for events in your life. I decided to try it out, and was amazed how PERFECTLY it worked for everything, from small requests such as a parking spot next to a busy restaurant or a seat on the subway to the really important situations in my business and personal life. After having made these requests between 10,000 and 15,000 times over the years, I am firmly convinced that our Guardian Angels are there to assist us in living more gentle lives. We just have to ask.

So how do we utilize these requests with our pets? As an example, we found one of my dogs, Sandy, at a local animal shelter. They had discovered her on the side of a busy highway. A beagle-dachshund mix, she will roam the neighborhood if we accidentally leave the gate open, which certainly at the very least could mean the permanent loss of a sweet, lovable dog. When this happens, I have immediately requested out loud, “I request a Most Benevolent Outcome for finding Sandy safe and sound. Thank you.” You always thank your Guardian Angel and make these requests with emotion, as that works best.

We always find her, although one time some workmen were holding her in a house being remodeled down the street from us. When they saw us searching the grounds of the house for the third time (I “felt” that she was nearby), she suddenly appeared. Another time she ran across four lanes of traffic on a busy street that we live next to. Most of the time we can find her socializing with other dogs within a block radius. Requesting a Benevolent Outcome always puts me at ease, as I KNOW that I’m going to find her. It takes the stress and worry away.

I will explain how to take the stress and worry out of caring for a sick pet below, but first let’s back up a little. When it’s time to add a pet into your family, you say, “I request a Most Benevolent Outcome for finding the perfect pet for our family. Thank you.” If you have definitely decided upon a dog, cat, or other animal or bird, you can be specific in your request, but if you have not decided, let your Guardian Angel and the universe assist you.

It works this way. Perhaps when you go to an animal shelter, possibly one of the attendants there points out a pet that just arrived that morning, even just a few minutes before you arrived. Or you will just be drawn to one particular animal that in your heart you know is the perfect companion for your family. Possibly even before you go out searching one of your friends calls and says their dog or cat just had a litter of puppies or kittens. They ask if you would be interested in coming over to take a look at them. Your Guardian Angel works in amazing ways, and I can assure you it’s FUN to sit back and see how the pieces of the puzzle come together when you make requests for MBO’s (as I call them). Just remember that requesting Benevolent Outcomes has to be benevolent for all concerned.

Next, you have to choose the right food for your new companion. There are so many foods on the market today that I think it’s best to request a Benevolent Outcome for choosing the right food for your pet. Even your vet can make a mistake in recommending a certain brand. Let yourself be guided in choosing the right formula and the right amount to feed your pet. And don’t forget to request a MBO when choosing vitamins to help keep your pet healthy and live a long life.

When your pet is sick, that can really cause you to be concerned and worry for their welfare. One lady that had previously read my articles on requesting Benevolent Outcomes told me how her cat was recently in distress; so she took her cat to the veterinarian and requested a MBO that the cat would be fine. She was greatly relieved to be told by the vet that it was an easy problem to treat.

Your pets normally are quite afraid of their trips to the veterinarian. I always say, “I request a Most Benevolent Outcome for our (pet’s name) visit to the vet.” One of our dogs is so afraid of going to a vet (after being given up twice by other families) that I have to leave his leash off until we are ready to go inside. One of our previous female dogs had a parvo type disease that is fatal 99 out of 100 times. We requested a Benevolent Outcome for her recovery, and then had the “inspiration” to start feeding her large amounts of the same vitamin E we took for our health. Her blood count slowly increased to the point where she completely recovered.

I’m going to give you something else that works when you see an animal on TV that has been injured, tortured, or trapped. If you love animals (and you wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t) you feel quite frustrated that you can’t help that animal in person. You can do something. You can say out loud, “I ask that any and all beings come to the aid of this animal and comfort, aid, and assist this animal in any and all ways. Thank you.” These requests are not acted upon by your Guardian Angel, but by other Angelic beings, and INSTANTLY. You do not limit the request to humans, as it could be other animals or Angelic beings that actually physically assist that animal in distress. You use the word “ask” instead of “request” as that is a more general request. Then you will feel better that at least you did what you could to aid that animal. This confidence will be higher if you have been previously requesting Benevolent Outcomes in your life, so you know from direct experience and knowledge that making these requests really work!

So, a Most Benevolent Outcome for you life with those loving companions who do so much to make our lives more enjoyable! Your life with them will be much less stressful and worry-free when you request Benevolent Outcomes from the time that you wish to add them to your family and all through their lives with you. I wish you all a Good Life!

Copyright 2009. Tom T. Moore is an entertainment industry CEO and speaker, who distributes motion pictures and TV programs internationally. His books, The Gentle Way: A Self-Help Guide For Those Who Believe in Angels (ISBN # 1-891824-60-0, Light Technology) and The Gentle Way II: The Story Continues, gives many more suggestions for requesting Benevolent Outcomes. Visit his website at www.TheGentleWayBook.com.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Tom T. Moore

I’ve traveled a lot for both business and pleasure over the years, and have encountered my share of airplane delays, lost luggage, and even sports injuries on these trips. Besides my normal reading of my industry “trades,” I like to read a lot of spiritual literature. About ten years ago, I kept noticing the word “benevolent” used in stories about Angels. As this is not a commonly used word in the English language, it was quite noticeable to me.

One day I read the suggestion to request benevolent outcomes for events in your life. I decided to try it out, and was amazed how PERFECTLY it worked for everything, from small requests such as a parking spot next to a busy restaurant or a seat on the subway in Paris to the really important negotiations in my business. After having made these requests between 10,000 and 15,000 times over the years, I am firmly convinced that our Guardian Angels are there to assist us in living more gentle lives. We just have to ask.

So when do you make these requests? I request Most Benevolent Outcomes (MBO’s as I call them) for everything. While packing for a trip, I’ll say, “I request a Most Benevolent Outcome for remembering everything I need to take on my trip. Thank you.” When it comes time to go to the airport, I request a Benevolent Outcome for the drive to the airport in safety and with no delays. How many people have you heard about that have missed a flight because of a traffic jam or wreck on the freeway?

At the airport, I’ll say, “I request a Most Benevolent Outcome that my bags arrive safely and on time. Thank you.” I always say “thank you” to my Guardian Angel. David in St. Louis emailed to tell me he requested a Benevolent Outcome for making it through the Security check line with no problems (nothing can slow you down more than being “randomly” chosen for a full search). There were two lines, one that traversed back and forth and the other for flight personnel. Just as the person ahead of him was directed into the maze, the gatekeeper closed off that path and let David be the first person to pass through the fast-path route through security. As he said, “that was cool!”

David also mentioned that he likes to request MBO’s for meeting interesting people on the plane. I tried that out recently on a business trip back from Washington DC, and after a gentleman offered to trade seats with a young lady sitting next to me so she could sit with her friend, he turned out to be a buyer that I had not seen at the market. I was able to give him some information, which will result in a sale. That’s how Benevolent Outcomes work. It is so much fun to see how your Guardian Angel makes these things happen!

Last summer my wife and I went to a conference in Mt. Shasta, California—a really beautiful place. On our way back to the Sacramento Airport, I requested a MBO for a safe and problem free drive. On the car radio, there was a news bulletin that the California Highway Patrol was getting tough on Interstate 5 and would be ticketing anyone barely over the speed limit. As we were driving along, I had passed several slower moving cars when an oversized pickup came up behind me. I decided to let him pass, although there was still another car to pass ahead of me. As he passed, I started to move out again to pass the car when suddenly out of the bushes in the median roared a CHIP’s patrol car with lights blinking. I jumped back in line and watched as the pulled over the pickup. That could have been me. I have found over time that after requesting a MBO for a drive, the highway patrol cars are either turning off, going the other direction, or have just pulled someone over as I pass by.

One time I rented a car in Nice, France for the 20-minute drive to Cannes on a freeway. Naturally I requested a MBO for the drive. A few minutes into the drive a small car passed by me at a speed of approximately 90 miles an hour. About 100 yards up the road, he tried to weave in and out of traffic, lost control, spun out and bounced off the guardrail ending up straddled across two of the three lanes of traffic. Had I been five seconds earlier, I would have been in danger of being involved. I was able to slow down and creep by the car on the far right lane.

In Milan one night, I had eaten dinner on one of the downtown “walking streets.” After dinner, I walked out of that area to a busy boulevard, thinking I would easily find a taxi back to my hotel. All the taxis that passed were full, so after five minutes, I requested a Benevolent Outcome for a taxi. Before the words were completely out of my mouth, a taxi turned right in front of me, I signaled to him, and off we went to the hotel.

The Milan airport is a long drive outside the city, so I checked with the hotel concierge to see if I could share a taxi for the very early drive to the airport. He had no one scheduled at 5:00 am in the morning, so I requested a MBO for someone to share my taxi. The next morning when I checked out of the hotel there were no people in sight, so I was resigned to paying for an expensive taxi, when in walked five or six doctors from the Mayo Clinic that had been in Milan for a cancer conference. They had hired a mini-bus to take them to the airport and invited me to join them, at no charge!

Jean from Ontario, Canada emailed to tell me she was in Seattle on vacation. She was exploring the city via their “excellent” bus service. She asked for a Benevolent Outcome for her ride downtown. As the driver approached his stop in front of the Seattle Center, home of the Space Needle, a parcel delivery truck suddenly stopped in front of him. The bus driver had been looking at the bus stop to see if any passengers were waiting. “Something” told him to look ahead, and he did, bringing the bus safely to a stop within inches of the truck. No one was injured, and Jean was able to joke with the driver about all the paper work he had just avoided!

What are some other Most Benevolent Outcomes (MBO’s) you can request while traveling?

· Request a MBO for your passport to be delivered on time;

· Request a MBO for getting the best room in a hotel for your preferences;

· Request a MBO if you are having to “standby” for a flight that’s quite full;

· Request a MBO for seats on busy subways, buses, or trains;

· Request a MBO when you are in dangerous places for your safety;

· Request a MBO each time you take part in a sport, such as skiing, on a trip;

· Request a MBO for being seated at the perfect table on a cruise to meet interesting people;

· Request a MBO for pleasant weather conditions for your excursions.

There are few rules for requesting Benevolent Outcomes. You must say your request out loud, or you must write it, as we are in a physical world. Just thinking it doesn’t work nearly as well. Request a MBO with emotion. They work better that way. Say “thank you” when you make the request, and a couple of “thank yous” when your request is answered. Request Benevolent Outcomes often, so they become a habit. Otherwise you’ll forget to request them on your trip.

I wish you many “happy trails!”

Copyright 2009. Tom T. Moore is an entertainment industry CEO and speaker, who distributes motion pictures and TV programs internationally. His books, The Gentle Way: A Self-Help Guide For Those Who Believe in Angels (ISBN # 1-891824-60-0, Light Technology) and the upcoming The Gentle Way II: The Story Continues give many more suggestions for Benevolent Outcomes. Visit his website at www.TheGentleWayBook.com.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by crystal

When considering the individual spiritual development in the course of human evolution, be it within the eastern school of thought or within the western esoteric schools, we cannot but talk about the seven chakras. Usually, these seven energy centers or wheels of light are thought to be among the most important symbols of various different Yogic systems of self-realization. These centers, however, as an integral part of human inner organization, are equally important for the western mystical schools of self growth and self-discovery.

The seven chakras are, of course, not to be found on the physical level. This is no surprise, since here we are talking about very subtle, invisible centers of spiritual energy. Although invisible, the whole system of energy centers and energy channels is a foundation which animates our physicality, and thanks to it we consider ourselves living entities. Within this network of energy channels and energy centers there are much more than 7 chakras, but seven are the main ones. Today in the human physical body we can see a representation of these centers. If the chakras were to densify and descent to the physical level, they would be at the very same spots as the areas where the seven main glands of the endocrine system are located.

Cultivating the 7 chakras means preparing them for awakening of the so-called “serpent power” or kundalini. This is the process that leads to spiritual self-realization. Kundalini is the energy that rises up the spinal cord, through the so called Sushumna channel (the most important of the 72000 energy channels within the subtle body). During this process of rising up the Kundalini, the energy centers are awakened from their inactive state and they develop their full potential. This process usually takes several incarnations and thousands of years to be fully completed.

One way or the other, spiritual awakening demands awakening of the kundalini energy. In its dormant state Kundalini is located at the base of the spine, and only a minute part of this energy is needed for maintaining our body and its functions and our normal emotional and mental processes. In the awakened state, kundalini is able to open up our consciousness toward the Cosmic consciousness, bringing us further than we have ever been able to imagine.

This evolution potential is already there, waiting within our seven chakras. Each chakra is represented by a circle of energy, and each of them plays a special role in healing and self-healing.

The seven chakras can be divided into three primary regions. The lower three chakras (root, sacral and solar plexus chakra) are very close to each other – only 10 to 15 centimeters apart, if we count them from the root of the spinal cord. The root or base chakra is opened towards the earth, connecting us with the energy of our planet, and at the same time grounding us firmly to it.

Similarly, the tree higher chakras – throat chakra, third eye and crown chakra – are closely connected to each other, governing the higher mental centers. The crown chakra is opening toward the sky, ready to receive Divine energies and higher guidance from above.

In between the two, there is the heart chakra, which joins the lower and higher chakras together. This is the area of the Sun of our microcosms.

To recapitulate we have the following chakras (The Sanskrit expression is given first):

Sahasrara – crown chakra.

Ajna – third eye chakra.

Visshuddha – throat chakra.

Anahata – hearth chakra.

Manipura – solar plexus chakra.

Svadhisthana – sacral chakra.

Muladhara – root chakra.

This is only a brief overview of the basic terms connected to the chakras. Please note that a second of practice is more useful than tons of theory on this subject. Therefore, you should try to get in touch with your spiritual teacher and start conducting a practical metaphysical work and meditative chakra techniques. At the end, as a reward, the infinite omnipresent Divine Love will be achieved through your mastering the 7 chakras.
Read more about the 7 chakras at the following web page http://www.sunnyray.org/7-Chakras.htm. On the Sunnyray website you can find a lot of additional information about the crystals and stones appropriate for each of the chakras. There is also general Semi precious stones information. Also, various new age meditative techniques and meditations are discussed.

by Almabella

Tarot images have been used to create positive affirmations, or explore the emotional background of an illness. This will certainly do no harm, it might even do considerable good.

Tarot can be used as a tool to explore the realms of wellness, the harmony of mind, body and spirit. The most potent applications of any symbolic therapy will be to reach the body through the gateway of the unconscious, that part of us we do not see, we can not touch, yet we can bring into harmony with our total being and trust that it will open our world to the Universal abundance that is available to all of us.

Our well being does not just cover the physical and mental self. We draw strength from our Higher or Innerself to stimulate and develop our creativity, our intuition, that “gut” feeling we all experience. It is that voice within that sets off alarm signals when things start to draw negativities around us.

When we discover this mind-body connection, this helps us to maintain a positive outlook. In this respect, Tarot has a lot to offer.

On a very basic level, working with Tarot stimulates and strengthens right brain competence, the most synthetic, intuitive and creative side of the brain.

Tarot has been used in meditation for sometime. To take this further, think about what aspect of the psyche or of the body is in need of

strengthening or nurturing. Then choose a card that feels right to you. Use this card in meditation as you ponder on results you hope to achieve.

Examples: (as quoted from the book)

Low energy or lack of motivation might call out for the directed energy of the Chariot or the Sun.

Distractibility or nervousness could require the focused inferiority of the Hermit.

An upset stomach might be calmed by Temperance

Insomnia could be abated by the Moon. As well, the Moon offers the encouragement to deal with the”shadows”, those nagging hurts, pain, frustrations, guilt and even vindictiveness that keeps you awake at night. It encourages you to be prepared to face the “unknown”, that is Tomorrow.

Empress conditions: feminine body-related, fertility-related, reproductive disorders, PMS, eating disorders.What Empress character does one have too much of? Try to balance with the High Priestess, if there is a need to be more in touch with one’s psychic energies; or the Sun, if there is a need to be more rational and less emotional.

James Wanless, creator of the Voyager deck found himself with chronic fatigue syndrome. This low-energy syndrome might need the boosting energy of the Charioteer the Sun, driven by a highly demanding career, he lost his balance, slipping in over identification with the Chariot. His remedy was to focus on

the feminine,passive energy of the Empress.

There are many ways the Tarot images can be employed therapeutically. In her book, Cynthia Giles goes on to say to turn to proactive attitude and consider how Tarot can be incorporated into a fitness program. Tarot and other symbolic therapies should be considered as tools for wellness,not as treatments for disease.

Use your imagination. The more you know about Tarot symbolism, the more connections you’ll be able to recognize.
Reference: {1}Cynthia Giles: The Tarot, Methods, Mastery and More

Bonnie Moss write to inspire her readers to reach deep
within, to find that important connection between mind,
body and spirit. She draws from her life experiences and
her deep interest in everything metaphysical.
Read more articles on her website:

http://goldencupcafe.tripod.com/

by Kephri Ra

The practice of Kabbalah has been going through something of a renaissance in recent years, and with celebrities such as Madonna talking publicly about its benefits many people have become interested in the subject. At the same time as gaining in popularity modern Kabbalah has also evolved and morphed from its ancient origins so that what I call ‘modern Kabbalah’ is something quite different from the traditional subject. In this article I will try to give a general outline of, and introduction to, the study and practice of modern Kabbalah.

The origins of Kabbalah lie in early Jewish mysticism, but from those beginnings the study of Kabbalah has grown and branched out, first into a Christian and Islamic Kabbalah, and then further, so that today many people who study and practice this mystical and magickal discipline do so outside of any particular religious affiliations, treating it as an independent spiritual system in itself. The variant spellings of Qabalah and Cabala are often used to denote the non-denominational and Christian versions respectively.

Within Jewish legend there are two distinct stories of the origins of Kabbalah; the first states that it was received by Moses on mount Sinai, but whereas the commandments were for everybody the esoteric teachings of the Kabbalah were passed on to a select few as a secret inner teaching. The second states that these teachings have always been with man, having been given to Adam by an Archangel at the time of his expulsion from the Garden of Eden, out of pity for his plight and a desire to help.

Within Judaism the Torah and other ‘exoteric’ teachings were often considered to be the body of Jewish teaching, and the Kabbalah, at the height of its practice, was considered to be the soul. In many ways Kabbalistic teachings can be thought of as the distilled essence of spiritual teachings, without the cultural baggage and rigid dogmas that go along with religious teachings. It is because of this that the Kabbalah has been so successful at moving out of the confines of the Jewish faith to provide inspiration, guidance and empowerment to people of all different backgrounds and beliefs. The modern study of Kabbalah has become intimately entwined with the concept of the ‘Perennial Philosophy’; the idea that there is a unifying thread of truth behind all of the world’s main religious and spiritual teachings. Kabbalistic principles and teats can be used to understand and draw upon the teachings of a wide range of very different spiritual traditions by stripping away everything but the perfect ‘essence’ or soul of the teaching.

The esoteric nature of Kabbalah means that rather than being composed of a set of rules, rituals and dogmas, and being essentially social and collective in nature, like exoteric religions, it guides its practitioners on a very personal journey and is composed in a large part of techniques; the path of Kabbalah is that of mysticism and magick, an of philosophy rather than dogma.

The entirety of Kabbalistic wisdom is contained within and expressed by a single diagrammatical representation and system of classification called the Tree of Life; it has 10 spheres, or sephiroth, and 22 paths connecting them. The 10 Spheres can be thought of as describing objective existence whereas the 22 paths describe the subjective experience of being human. This system of classification lends itself well to use as a tool for the objective study of comparative religion and spiritual studies; it also led the infamous occultist Aleister Crowley to describe the Tree of Life as a ‘spiritual filling cabinet’.

The tree is said to bestow very magical and mystical gifts.

In addition to being used philosophically as a system of classification the tree of life is also used in meditative and ritual practices. Associated with each sphere and path are the Archangels and choruses of Angels, and other symbolic representation of their nature.

Many of the so called magical practices of Kabbalah can be understood in a modern scientific sense. The perfect example of this is invocation, in which the practitioners invoke the power of some spiritual force within themselves. This is described as a supernatural occurrence, but can be explained entirely as a psychological process harnessing the power of the subconscious mind.

I would wholeheartedly recommend the practice of Kabbalah to anyone.

For more info and other resources take a look at the Morning Star Kabbalah Portal or the free online reference resources at Web of Qabalah. There is also a nice page on squidoo you may like to take a look at, which features Kabbalah Art

by H.P. Thomas Moore

I see many people that are interested in the Tarot and learning to read the Tarot. However many people give up right away thinking that it is too difficult to memorize all of the card meanings in order to interpret them. What I would like to do here is to give you a quick and easy way to learn to read the Tarot using keywords that are easy to remember and string together. I will go over both the Major and Minor Arcana Cards in both upright and reversed positions. After you are done with this article you will be able to do a straight and accurate Tarot reading without having to memorize many different phrases for each card. Don’t forget that if you want to add any psychic information that you get do that in your readings! I am giving you the meanings and the way that I know the Tarot, though it may differ from what you have learned it is always good to see it from a different point of view so that you can better find a way that suits to your personal needs as a Tarot reader.

Minor Arcana Cards:

The Minor Arcana cards are all of the cards in the Tarot deck that are numbered only. They usually follow suits such as Wands, Swords, Cups, and Pentacles. The numbers go from 2 to 10 in each suit. Each Card has its own personal meaning, and though they are important there is no need to worry yourself with it right away. Sometime down the line it will be good to learn but what we are doing here is teaching you an easy way to start reading Tarot so we are going to forget about that for now. Instead let’s begin with a focus on the numbers.

All Tarot cards are numbered. If any of you are familiar with Numerology you know that each number has a meaning to it. The number meanings are the first step in helping to read the Tarot. In numerology we add numbers together until we are left with a single digit. It is that single digit that we interpret, that is unless it is a double number that is the same like 11, 22,33,44,55 etc. If it is a number like that it is first interpreted in its double form and then broken to a single form and interpreted as a single digit. What will follow are each number in Numerology 1-9 as well as some doubles for extra fun. I am going to use 1 keyword for each number. The reason that I use 1 keyword is that when you begin to read the cards you are going to remember that 1 word and then use word association in order to pull other information from that keyword. It is the word association from the one keyword that makes this method so easy and fun to start with instead of all of that memorizing. This way you can begin to interpret the cards using your own feelings and wording for each and it will be easier to remember for you as the individual reader.

1: New Beginnings

2: Balance

3: Expansion

4: Foundation

5: Change

6: Responsibility

7: Organization/ Spirituality

8: Material

9: Endings

11: Master of manifestation

22: Master of Equality

33: Master of Knowledge
Each number has one meaning for you to work with so write all that down for now and we are going to move on. I promise you that it is all going to come together in the end!

Now that we know the numbers I want to talk a bout the suits of the cards. Pentacles, Swords, Cups and Wands. Each of these suits carries a lot of information on their own and is very rarely harnessed in the beginning. Each have an element that it is associated with, that element can be interpreted to give information. In addition to that, they also work with particular astrological signs that can be interpreted as well.

SWORDS:

Element: Air – Keyword: Communication- Signs: Libra, Aquarius, Gemini , Winter

PENTACLES:

Element: Earth- Keyword: Material/Spiritual- Signs: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn, Fall

WANDS:

Element: Fire- Keyword: Action/Physical- Signs: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius, Summer

CUPS

Element: Water – Keyword: Emotions- Signs: Pisces, Cancer, Scorpio, Spring

With just these simple understandings you can already begin to interpret the Minor Arcana cards! Don’t believe me? By looking at all that we have learned so far lets look at a card:

If we look at the “ 2 of cups” what can you tell about the card already?

1: Cups represent water that talks about emotions

2: the number 2 talks about balance

So string it together and see what happens: the “2 of cups” talks about balancing the emotions! Now here is where the word association comes in, see what other words that you can think of that talk about emotions and balance and string them together with the original interpretation that I gave here…………………see easier than you thought right!

With all of that you already have a base understanding on how to read all of the Minor Arcana cards of the Tarot. This means that you can take all of the Minor cards and do a reading with them using all of the information that we just went through. As I said before as well if you want to at some point look further into the cards then you can get the definitions of each and go even deeper into the reading. This is a good start off point and it being so fun and easy will really allow you to experience the Tarot more fluidly. Now I said that I was going to go over reverse meanings as well so here it goes. If a card comes up reversed, it has the same meaning as it does upright only it is manifesting slower than normal. So you give the same meaning and tell the person that you are reading that it is manifesting slower. Also it is good to know that the Minor Arcana represent all of the day to day things in our lives. You can also look at the full reading once it is done and see what suits have more than others. If you have more cups than other suits then the person is working on emotional situations, more wands then it is more physical. Swords they are focusing more on mental and communication, pentacles focus more on material things or spirituality.

Major Arcana Cards:

The Major Arcana are the cards that have writing on them. Everything from The Fool to the Aces and the Court Cards are part of the Major Arcana. We already know about the numbers and the suits so we already have the Aces figured out! Aces are the number 1 of each suit that means they are new beginnings. The type of new beginning depends on the suit; wands for example would be physical new beginnings.

At this point I’m sure that you are thinking that the reading that you are going to be doing will be pretty general, and you’re right. When you are first learning the Tarot the readings are bound to be general, but as you choose to learn more and add your intuitive information to it they are going to be more and more specific as time goes on! Let’s continue on now and talk about the Court Cards of the Tarot.

The Court Cards are the people cards in the deck, Knights, Pages, Kings and Queens of each suit. These cards literally represent people! By knowing the sign of each suit you can even tell what signs that person may be. The King of Swords for instance is going to be a man that is a Libra, Aquarius, or Gemini. Kings represent men that are usually adult males, Queens are adult females, Knights are young adult males sometimes teens, Pages are children and can be male or female. There is usually not a card for young adult females and this is mainly because females tend to mature faster than men, so there is no need for a female young adult card. Now you know not only the Aces and the Minor Arcana but the Court Cards as well!

Now we are going to go into the other Major Arcana cards. This is usually where people get a little freaked out because of the memorizing but you already have some information on them because you know the numbers so what I am going to do here is list the cards as well as 1 keyword for each, then using your powers of word association you can string together other words in order to interpret the cards more fully, then after that you will have a solid base understanding on reading the Tarot Cards!

0 The Fool: New Beginnings

1 The Magician: New Beginnings

2: The High Priestess: Secret Knowledge

3: The Empress: Nurturing

4: The Emperor: Stability

5: The Hierophant: Religion/Spirituality

6: The Lovers: Choices

7: The Chariot: Travel

8: Strength: Courage/Strength

9: The Hermit: Guidance

10: The Wheel of Fortune: Cycles

11: Justice: Harmony/Law

12: The Hanged Man: Objectiveness

13: Death: Change

14: Temperance: Healing

15: The Devil: Bondage

16: The Tower: Rebuilding

17: The Star: Optimism

18: The Moon: Reflection

19: The Sun: Vitality

20: Judgment: Understanding

21: The World: Success

Now you know all of the Tarot Cards and can begin to do a reading based on what you have learned in this article. After you have practiced with this for a while go out to your locally owned bookstore and find yourself a book on Tarot and begin to learn dome of the deeper meanings of the cards as well as the symbolism that they possess. After that you will be able to do very accurate readings and you will open your intuitive abilities as well so that information can come from your psychic side too!

Rev. Thomas Moore is High Priest of The Coven of L.I.G.H.T in South West Florida, as well as a professional Psychic and Healer. He teaches a variety of metaphysical classes as well as working as Store Manager for Starchild Books in Port Charlotte Florida.

by H.P. Thomas Moore

In my previous article “An Easy Start to Tarot” we talked about the Tarot card and how we can interpret them fast fun and easy! Here I would like to take that same fast fun and easy principle and apply it to preparing for the reading, and the layout used for the cards. We will talk about shuffling the cards, card placement and stringing all the meanings together to create a full cohesive reading.

First let’s start by going over what we do to prepare for a reading. Many times as you do a Tarot reading you are not only going to read the card meaning but you are also going to get some sort of information from your Guides and Higher Self, though we may not always be aware that is happening. As you become more and more proficient in psychic work and study you will become more aware of the input that your Guides and Higher Self actually add to your readings. So what is it that we need to do first? Well reading the cards is great and can be very accurate but you want to allow other information to come through as well. So what is done first is a small meditation. Bring yourself into your quiet space of reflection, see yourself engulfed by the White Light of divine love and protection, and even if you don’t know who they are yet ask for your guides to be with you during the reading. Doing this will open you to accept information that may come from your Higher Self and Guides in addition to actually reading the meanings of the cards. Second you want to hand your cards to the person that you are going to read and allow them to shuffle them. There is a lot of myth surrounding the shuffling of the cards. Some people say that only you as the reader should shuffle, others think that there should be a specific time limit of shuffling, or that the cards should be split into a certain number of piles. The fact of that matter is allow the person you are reading to do what feels most comfortable for him/her. This way the energy that they have can easy find their way to your cards and the cards that come out will have a deep meaning to your client. After that you take the cars back and begin your reading by first asking what it is that your client wants to focus on, is it Money, Love, Career? Anything! After that it is time to start your layout and do your reading. Ok but where exactly do you begin?

Let’s start with the layout. The layout is the pattern in which you will place the cards on the table. Each of these places has a specific meaning that you can use to better interpret the card and place it somewhere within your client’s life. Sounds a bit complicated but it really is fun and easy! The standard layout seen most often is called the Celtic Cross layout and it uses 11 cards. Lets first go over each of the 11 spaces to know what each will mean, and then we will go over how to lay and interpret the cards in those positions.

1: What is on the Clients Mind?

2: Obstacles

3: The way through those obstacles

4: Foundation

5: Last 6 months

6: Next 6 months

7: 1-2 years from now

8: Family and Friends

9: The next 2 weeks

10: Hopes and Fears (related to the situation)

11: Outcome

These represent what each card of the layout is going to mean. And feel free to use this as a cheat sheet when you are first starting out until you become more comfortable with it! So, our first card that we lay is going to represent what is on the clients mind. So let’s say you are reading Joy, and Joy wants to know about her love life. Place the first card down in the center of the table and tell Joy that this represents what is on her mind. From there you interpret the card, in the position according to what Joy is asking about. For example if the first card out is the Ace of Cups what can we say about what is on Joy’s mind regarding her Love life? Well it’s easy we start by saying “This card represents what is on your mind in relation to your love life….” Then we add in the card information, “the Ace of Cups talks about new beginnings in an emotional way.” From there all we have to do is then string it together “So what is being focused on now is adding some new emotions to your love life.” See, easier than you thought isn’t it? And don’t forget that if it is reversed to mention that it is happening at a slower pace!

Now we move onto the second card of the layout, this card lies sideways directly on top of the first. This is the obstacle that Joy is having in relation to the first card on what is on her mind. So let’s say that the card you pull is the 2 of wands. This is how you start. “This card represents the obstacle that you are having in relation to what is on your mind, it is the 2 of wands which talks about physical balance, so your obstacle is to keep the balance of yourself in a physical way.” From here we add this interpretation to the first card that we put down.” So in order to attain a new emotional beginning in your love life you need to keep balance within yourself.” All we did was to interpret the card by itself first and then tie it in to the card that we first spoke about. This same pattern is followed throughout the rest of the reading. You lay a card, interpret it and then tie it in to all the other cards that you have down previously. Let’s move on.

Your third card down falls underneath the first 2. And from here we do the same thing we relate the interpretation of this card to the previous card or cards. Say the card here is the 7 of swords. This is how it may sound. “This card represents the way through your obstacle, the 7 of swords is mental organization. So in order to balance yourself physically to attain a new emotional beginning you could first try to organize your thoughts and then start from there.”

The Fourth card falls underneath the third. And again we do the same. Say this card is the 6 of pentacles. “This card represents your foundation currently; it is the 6 of pentacles which talks about responsibility to finances. So in order to organize your mind so that you can balance yourself and gain that emotional beginning in your love life, this says that you could begin that organization with your finances.”

The fifth card now falls to the right of the first card that you placed. This is the last 6 months. Say this card is the 2 of swords. “This card represents the last 6 months. Here it shows that you have had the mental balance but the responsibility of the finances has thrown you out of that balance so that you are both physically and mentally out of balance and aren’t allowing the new emotional beginnings that you want.”

The 6th card now is the next 6 months. Here is a little trick that I use often. All the cards that are future oriented cards 6, 7, and 11 I interpret together. Cards that are past and present cards 1-5 I interpret together. Then the cards 8, 9 and 10 I interpret by themselves. This way it is easier to “tell the story” that the cards hold by keeping them in order. So card 6 falls to the left of the first card and begins your future interpretations. Say this card is the 3 of cups. “This card represents the next 6 months, the card is the 3 of cups that talks about an expansion of emotions, so it is likely that within that time you will overcome your obstacles.”

Card number 7 now falls above the first card that you placed. Say this card is the Queen of Cups. “This card represents the next 1-2 years, the card in the Queen of Cups and it talks about being an emotional person and finding that emotion within the self. By that time period it is likely that you will have fully attained the new emotional beginning you have been looking for.”

Cards 8-11 fall to the far right side of card 5. These cards will form an upward line one above the other. 8 is the family and friends. Say the card is the 4 of wands. “Her represents your family and friends, the 4 of wands talks about physical foundation, this says that your family and friends are willing to physically support you in overcoming your obstacles.” Are you getting the idea here of how everything is interpreted first and then tied into the other cards as well as Joy’s question?

Card 9 is the next 2 weeks. Here say we pull the 4 of pentacles. “The 4 of pentacle here represents the next 2 weeks. This card says that within that time you will have a firm foundation of the finances and begin to work with them responsibly.”

Card 10 hopes and fears. I won’t give an interpretation for this card because honestly there are times where I don’t feel that it is needed. Know though that here you would do the same as we have been.

Card 11 is the outcome from here you are going to interpret the card alone and then pull in into all of the cards that you have placed in relation to Joy’s question to give the reading that final touch and pull all of the information together!

Not as hard as you thought it would be is it? With time and practice you are sure to get this to go smoothly. As you interpret cards if you feel there is additional information from your Guides or Higher Self feel free to add that in as well. The more information you can get the better the client will be in deciding what decisions and choices they fell are best for them to make. So go out and practice some Tarot reading and have fun doing it!

Rev. Thomas Moore is High Priest of The Coven of L.I.G.H.T in South West Florida, as well as a professional Psychic, Healer, Speaker and Author. He teaches a variety of classes in the metaphysical field as well as Wicca.

by Jackson Swift

There are two basic types of tarot readings – open readings and question readings. Open readings don’t require a question and are used for general occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries or a turning point in one’s life. Question tarot readings can be used to explore personal questions.

The question tarot reading starts by setting the right mood. The querent should open himself or herself up to the insights brought by the cards. The reader, on the other hand, should feel secure about his or her abilities. The environment should be relaxing and comfortable, but allows full concentration for both parties.

Next, it’s time to ask the question. The reader may ask the querent to touch the card while thinking about the question to transfer some of his or her energy to the cards. The reader can make an opening statement, either in the form of a prayer or an affirmation, to welcome in the message of the cards. The querent may then ask the question out loud. Some may prefer to write the question before hand, and at this point can read it from what was written.

The cards are then shuffled and cut. Next, the tarot cards are spread. There are several spreads available. The selection is usually based on the reader’s preference or specialization. Some of the most popular include the Celtic Cross, the Horseshoe spread, the Tetractyte, the Mirror Spread, Mandala Spread, Star Spread and even the single-card spread.

During the tarot reading, a story may unfold that answers the question posted by the querent. The answer may branch out into details that are important to the querent’s life, as such, it is ideal to keep a notepad and a pen handy for taking down notes.

The last part of a tarot reading involves clearing the deck of all energy patterns to prepare them for another reading or another question. Tarot readings can be very insightful and can help one discover the answers to some questions in an unconventional manner.

Tarot Card Pairs

If you’re a beginner at tarot card reading and interpretation, there is one important concept you need to learn: card pairing. Most tarot readers base their interpretations on two things: the single cards and the whole spread. Each tarot card has an inherent meaning that can give good insight to questions or situations. But the meaning of the cards may change depending on those adjacent to it and its position in the spread. This combination, therefore, lets the tarot reader tell the full story.

Card pairs, on the other hand, can bring forth insight on the querent’s balance issues. It tells us which personal characteristics or elements in our lives we need to focus on to achieve balance.

There are three types of card pairs:

Permanent pairs – Tarot cards that are permanent opposites. The most known are The Magician and the High Priestess and the Eight of Swords and Four of Wands. For the first example, the Magician represents action while the High Priestess represents inaction.

Occasional Pairs – These are the pairs that arise by chance and their relationship only becomes obvious during the particular reading. If the idea behind the cards becomes meaningful to the querent, then it can be considered an occasional pair.

Reinforcing Pairs – Most pairs illustrate opposing forces or ideas. This pair, however, works in a different way. They are meant to support each other. An example would be the Empress and the Nine of Cups. Their combination denotes pleasure and sensuality.

Jackson Swift is the author of this article for Universal Psychic Guild that offers free email psychic readings, free psychic chat online and psychic text services.

by Bill Douglas

According to a twenty-year study by Kaiser Permanente, between seventy and eighty-five percent of illness is caused by stress, meaning that in the U.S. alone stress is costing us about one-trillion dollars per year in healthcare costs. Since most absenteeism is due to stress, US business is losing upwards of $300 billion per year.

On a more personal level, it is disturbing to realize that aging is accelerated by stress, and stress is a growing issue with all of us. Studies show that change is stressful, even “good” change. So as we computer jockeys settle into the saddle of a new age of rapidly changing information, we need an edge that can help us stay healthy, sane, “younger” and more vibrant, even as we are often at the very center of the hurricane of modern change, such as keeping up with new hardware and software.

Ironically an ancient mind/body tool provides the perfect balm for our generation’s modern problems — it is called “Tai Chi” (pronounced tie-chee). T’ai Chi is a gentle series of relaxing motions that cleanse the body’s tissue of accumulated stress and, by doing so, boosts all aspects of our health systems. According to emerging research boosting the immune system’s strength dramatically, while reducing the incidence of depression, anxiety, and even reducing chronic pain conditions, are just a few of T’ai Chi’s myriad benefits.

What makes ancient T’ai Chi the perfect modern balm is that it doesn’t require special facilities or clothing, and doesn’t even make you break a sweat, meaning you can do it in office attire in an empty boardroom just by kicking off your heels. Yet, it provides the same euphoria of a long run, the cardiovascular benefit of moderate impact aerobics, and burns nearly as many calories as downhill skiing.

Our time is filled with paradox. A problem in this modern age stems from the great promise of the information age — a tidal wave of data being created by and offered to our “left brain”; that part of our minds that is analytical, calculating, and categorizing the world. Of course, this is a powerful and important part of who we are. This is the part of the mind that gets things done, pays the rent, builds the houses, and makes the cars. Our “right brain,” however, is getting left behind in our rapidly changing techno-world, and this imbalance of thought processes is at the heart of modern stress.

Our right brain is the feeling, smelling, sensing . . . enjoying part of the mind. This is the part of the mind that smells the flowers, not to analyze the smell, but to be filled with its beauty — and this is the part that has been left behind in the digital world. When we go to the cyber mall, for example, our right brain doesn’t get to play. The cyber mall is a wonderful thing that saves us time, money, and gas for our cars (and thereby saves the environment), but there are no Auntie Anne’s Pretzels to smell in cyberspace, or warm sunlight streaming in through the big skylights.

So what do we do? We get the best of both worlds. T’ai Chi is a series of exercises to balance the mind. T’ai Chi teaches us to experience life for sheer pleasure, thereby creating balance in our busy “get things done yesterday” world. If you learn T’ai Chi and practice in the morning before you sit down at your computer, your right brain (the sensing and enjoying brain) will be turned on more. You will feel the texture of your computer keys. You will remember to take the time to get a nice cup of green tea or herbal cinnamon spice tea, and you’ll interrupt your staccato keyboard occasionally to smell the tea’s rich aroma, feel the warmth in your hands, and breathe the breath of life deeply into your lungs.

Although you are at the cutting edge of the information age revolution, you are also in the garden of life. This will give you an edge in the long run. Why? Because chronic stress diminishes our cognitive skills and therefore, our creativity.

Einstein said, “Creativity is more important than knowledge.” Even if we have the world’s knowledge at our fingertips, if we are too stressed out to use the knowledge “creatively,” we are much less effective. Plus, we’re not as much fun!

The bottom line is T’ai Chi is a set of exercises to practice enjoying life. It’s not enough just to say, “I’m going to enjoy life more.” We actually have to practice mind/body tools that can positively affect our brain wave activity, in an integrative way, as T’ai Chi is proven to do.

T’ai Chi is an extremely sophisticated mind/body science that evolved over millennia, and is now being made available to all of us after centuries of being closely guarded secrets in China. Even though the practices are ancient, they are in many ways just as cutting edge as the multi-gigabyte computer.

Don’t just be “cutting edge” with your left-brain. Go all the way and stretch the envelope with your right brain, too, by weaving T’ai Chi into your life. You will be forever glad you did, as you discover balance and calm in the eye of the modern world’s ever accelerating storm of changes rushing at us.

About the Author: Bill Douglas is the Tai Chi Expert at DrWeil.com, Founder of World T’ai Chi & Qigong Day (held in 50 nations each year), and has authored and co-authored several books including a #1 best selling Tai Chi book “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to T’ai Chi & Qigong.” He is also the presenter in the world acclaimed DVD instructional anthology, Anthology of Tai Chi & Qigong: The Prescription for the Future. Bill’s been a Tai Chi source for The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Reader’s Digest, Parade Magazine, The South China Morning Post, Russia’s Omsk Weekly News, New Zealand’s Alternative Health Magazine, Family PC Magazine, and hundreds of television, radio, and print media worldwide.

You can learn more about Tai Chi & Qigong, and also contact Bill Douglas.

by Steve Hill

More and more people are looking at the different alternative health therapy options these days. In this article, I write about the health benefits which using tai chi can bring. I hope you enjoy the read.

Tai chi is the most popular exercise in the world today. It is relatively new to the western world but is becoming more and more popular. The two thousand year old Chinese martial art is quite simple to do and has many benefits.

I have been attending tai chi classes for around a year now and it has massively helped me to control my anxiety and stress levels. Stress has been a big factor in my life and I have always struggled to think in a positive way. I now try many alternative treatments to manage my stress including meditation and tai chi. Both work very well for me.

I was introduced to tai chi by a friend. I must say that I did not really know much about it before this. He told me that it had helped him no end in controlling his depression. His name is John and he has many issues in his life which not only affect his self-confidence but also makes him very depressed at times. John has been attending tai chi classes for nearly two years and has seemingly become a new man. For whatever reason he did not tell people about what he was doing. On a night out I mentioned to him that he had been a lot happier in the recent months. This is when he talked to me about tai chi. He also asked if I would like to attend the classes with him, which I duly agreed to.

I am very glad that we had this conversation as I can also quite easily spiral into a state of depression.

It may be a piece of mind thing as I know that I will be attending a tai chi once a week, but I am now very able to deal with stress and am far less anxious than I ever used to be.

People have also mentioned that I look far healthier and even that I look younger than before. This is supposed to be another benefit of tai chi, it helps to delay the aging process. This is good for somebody like me as people always thought that I was around five years older than I actually was.

Other health benefits of tai chi:

Helps to keep people mobile well into old age

Helps to improve balance

Helps to reduce asthma

Helps people to recover from certain injuries

Helps to boost the immune system

Helps to lower blood pressure

In conclusion, if you are like me and are a person who is always stressed out and often depressed, tai chi could be the answer for you. Give it a go and it could change your life.

It goes without saying that tai chi is not for everybody and I would also recommend meditation, reflexology, aromatherapy, and hypnotherapy.

I am a person who likes to try new things as I am always trying to improve my life. I want to live a long, happy and stress free life. Using these forms of alternative treatments is helping me to achieve this at the moment.

About the Author: Stephen Hill helps to promote a number of websites including:
http://www.stammering-stuttering.co.uk

by C. Guan Soo

Based on Traditional Chinese Medicine, the concept of ‘Qi’ is extremely important. Qi can be translated as energy. It’s a form of life energy. Every living thing has Qi, even plants.

For us – human being, Qi plays a very important role. It’s your LIFE!

It regulates the proper functions of your body. The five vitals and six organs of your body must function properly in order for you to maintain good health.

The five vitals are the heart, liver, spleen, lungs and kidneys; and the six organs are the stomach, gall-bladder, big intestines, small intestines, bladder and the three systems which include respiratory, digestive and eliminative.

The concepts of five vitals and six organs are based on I-Chings’ yin and yang, plus “Internal Text of the Yellow Emperor”. This means, if its yin and yang elements are balanced – all the internal organs and systems should function properly.

And good Qi circulations in your body maintain the functionality of the five vitals and six organs. It strikes a balance of elements in your internal organs and systems.

In Chinese medicine, it is stated that our body has various meridians and network that carry our vital energy or life energy throughout our body. There are many meridians and networks in our body. All these together are known as the 12 Meridians and Networks.

Each of our body has all these 12 Meridians and Networks, which is divided as follows:

1. Meridians which includes 3 Yin Hand Meridians, 3 Yang Hand Meridians, 3 Yin Leg Meridians, 3 Yang Leg Meridians, 12 Alternate Meridians, 12 Sinews Meridians, and the Weird Meridians of 8 Channels.

2. Networks which includes 15 Networks, Floating Network, Sun Network and 12 Skin Networks.

Out of these meridians and networks, there are 2 which belong to the Weird Meridians of 8 Channels, are the most important one – which is known as Ren Channel and Du Channel.

I have seen authors translated Ren literally to Employment Meridian and Du literally to Supervisory Meridian.

Yes, it is the correct meaning of the characters. I prefer to use Ren and Du as it is in Pinying as, frankly, I’m not too sure of its actual meaning to render it correctly in English. The reason I use ‘Channel’ is to differentiate these from the meridians which is more accurate to describe its nature.

Qi travels around this two major Channel to ensure your organs and internal systems function properly. The complete travel of the Qi through Du and Ren Channels forms a complete circulation cycle which is known as One Heavenly Circulation.

If the Qi did not complete the Heavenly Circulation, and gathers at Dantian, then whatever Qi we absorb or collected will be lost or faded away. Therefore it is important for you to make sure that the Qi is able to travel through both Du and Ren Channels.

Thus it is important to make sure that these Channels are connected while breathing – to guarantee that Qi flow smoothly through your body and serve you as your diehard loyal servant.

And this is specifically why Connecting the Channels in my 5 Steps Tai Chi Breathing are designed for – to increase the Qi circulation and guarantee you the maximum effects of whatever practices that you are doing now. This also increases the effectiveness of Abdominal Breathing manifolds.

The best thing about this technique, you don’t have to lift a finger to do it. Straightly out-of-the-mind simple! It’s sad to see that many do not know this technique and reap it powerful benefits for better health.

About the Author: C. Guan Soo is a Tai Chi Chuan practitioner who has 23 years experience in various meditation forms, martial arts, healing arts, chakra healing and meditation as well. He is the author of “Basic Tai Chi Breathing” and “Advance Tai Chi Breathing”, which can be downloaded from: http://www.TaichiBreathing.com

by Rose Greenwood

The traditions and lore of fairies has existed in highly diverse cultures around the world for centuries or even millennia. In some cultures, fairies have been viewed as mischievous little sprites, whereas in other cultures they have been given god-like stature. Fairies are said to appear to humans in ways that meet their own cultural expectations. Fairies and fairy-like beings are also known as nature spirits, house spirits, dwarves, elves, gnomes, mermaids and leprechauns.

Fairies can be divided into four basic types based on their primary association with the aspects of the four esoteric elements: earth, fire, air and water. Earth fairies include gnomes and trolls. The symbol of the earth element and gnomes is the stone.

The word gnome is believed to have originally derived from the New Latin gnomus and the Greek genomus or earth-dweller. Gnomes are often thought to live underground or in subterranean passageways. Gnomes are known by many different names. Germans call them erdmanleins. In Denmark and Norway they are called nisse. In Britain they are called nains.

Gnomes are usually depicted as small, bearded men who care for plants, trees and other aspects of the earth. Garden gnomes are the most well-known type of gnomes. They are believed to assist in the healthy growth of plants of all types. The use of representational statues of gnomes in gardens began in the mid-1800s. Garden gnome statues are most prevalent today in England, Germany and France.

Other types of legendary gnomes are forest gnomes, house gnomes and dune gnomes. In some cultures, the terms gnomes and trolls are used interchangeably. Unfortunately, gnomes are often misunderstood and portrayed as mischievous or bad-tempered. The true nature of gnomes is that of guardians of the earth. Gnomes try to counterbalance hazardous conditions in the earth. For example, gnomes work closely with other nature spirits and angelic hierarchs to mitigate cataclysmic events such as earthquakes.

Fire fairies are known as salamanders or dragons. The symbol of the fire fairies is the spear. Descriptions of their appearances differ widely, but most are centered around a lizard-like shape a foot or more in length. Fiery salamanders are said to associate with all forms of fire from volcanoes to candle flames.

Fiery salamanders are considered to be the strongest and most powerful of all the elementals. Fiery salamanders have often invoked fear among men. Their destructive powers are truly legendary. For this reason, many alchemists in the middle ages sought to exert influence over fiery salamanders and other nature spirits to gain power themselves over weather patterns and other forces of nature.

Salamanders, along with other nature spirits, are guardians of the earth. Salamanders play an important role in the spiritual world and in the maintenance of the balance of the earth as a physical platform for mankind’s evolution.

Air fairies are known as sylphs. The symbol of air fairies is the sword. According to folklore, sylphs transform clouds into create artistic renderings in the sky. Sylphs are also responsible for wind, certain types of storms and weather patterns. From the tiniest of breezes to the most powerful hurricane, sylphs are a part of every natural phenomenon involving the air.

Since we are completely dependent on air and can last only a few minutes without breath, the work of the sylphs is critical to our survival. Sylphs work closely with our own bodies to ensure that oxygen is properly absorbed in our lungs. Sylphs are also said to have specialized functions such as integrating new knowledge and mental development.

The crossover between sylphs and angels becomes blurred. There may be a connection between young sylphs and small cherubs. Angel devas are in charge of the activities of sylphs. Sylphs may also serve as messengers for both angels and other elementals.

Sylphs are regal in manner and bearing, much like eagles. Sylphs have a very broad wingspan and live in the high mountains of the earth. Sylphs are immortal, non-physical beings. In modern times, the term sylph has also come to mean a lithe, graceful woman.

Finally, water fairies are known as undines or mermaids. The symbol of the water fairies is the cup or cauldron. Undines can be found in any type of body of water, particularly forest pools and waterfalls. They are said to have beautiful voices, which are sometimes heard over the sound of the water. In Scotland, undines are referred to as wraiths of the water.

According to some folklore traditions, undines can take human form, thereby losing their immortality but gaining a soul. This misleading notion has led them to be a popular motif in romantic and tragic literature. Undines are sometimes referred to as nixes, nasty water sprites with mean temperaments. This is another unfortunate characterization of undines. Likewise, undines are often confused with mermaids and sea goddesses.

Paracelsus, a Swiss philosopher of the 15th century, believed that undines and other nature spirits occupied a realm between that of humans and spirit. Although they resemble man in physical form, they are more akin to the spirit realm in their abilities.

Since water is critical for human life and all life on the earth, undines understandably play a significant role in mythology and esoteric traditions. Undines are particularly involved in clearing bodies of water of pollution and other chemical hazards.

Some traditions claim that certain types of fairies or nature spirits have a group consciousness while other types of fairies are individual, exalted beings very close to the angelic kingdom. The fairies with a group consciousness, or trooping fairies, have a fairy queen that serves as their spokesperson.

Other traditions emphasize the immortality of fairies. Due to this immortality, the fairies have a different perception of time than humans. Another common fairy tradition is that the fairies are rarely seen in modern times because they have left the earth due to the negative consciousness and wars among men. Fortunately, the tradition continues that fairies and nature spirits will later return to the earth to aid mankind in times of cataclysm and spiritual crisis.

Rose Greenwood specializes in spirituality and natural health. For more information, please see http://www.theheartscenter.org. The Hearts Center offers seekers up-to-date inspiration from the ascended masters. To purchase related products, please visit http://store.heartscenter.org or find our new products at http://store.heartscenter.org/newprods.aspx.

by Rose Greenwood

The ascended masters once walked the earth the same as we do. They had lifetimes in which they perfected various soul and character qualities. A study of specific lifetimes of the masters helps us to understand what is required for true self-mastery.

El Morya is an ascended master recognized for his devotion to the will of God. He is the lord or chohan of the first ray. Some of the more well-known lifetimes of the ascended master El Morya are Akbar the Great, the legendary King Arthur, Thomas More the statesman and Thomas Moore the poet

Akbar the Great is considered to be the greatest of the Mogul emperors in India. Akbar began his rule at the age of fourteen in the sixteenth century following his father’s death. For the next two decades, Akbar doubled the size of the Indian empire, bring the northern and central parts of India under his control. His most lasting contributions, however, were in the arts and religion.

Akbar commissioned the building of notable architectural structures, collected art from around the world and began a large collection of literature from a vast array of cultures. He was himself an artisan skilled in fine art, carpentry, blacksmithing and lace making. Akbar is said to have had refined tastes in a wide variety of music.

Akbar’s religious tolerance was well known and unusual for his day. He was said to have been both a sound judge of character and decisive in his actions. He invited practitioners of many religions including Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, atheists and Jesuits to hold a series of religious debates in his court. He also founded his own religion, known as Divine Faith. This religion, however, did not survive for long after his death.

The historical personage of King Arthur is shrouded in mystery. Most sources pinpoint his birth at about 465AD. He was the son of Uther Pendragon and Igraine of Cornwall, but was raised apart from his family for his own protection among the warring factions then present in Europe. At the time, there was no unified King of England. Legends claim that Merlin, a respected prophet and political advisor, determined that the person who could pull a sword from where it was magically embedded in a stone would be crowned king. Arthur was the one who was able to accomplish this feat.

During his reign, King Arthur is reputed to have been a fierce warrior who led Britain’s defense against the Saxons. His exploits were expanded in stories and myths to include the ability to fight supernatural beasts and denizens of the underworld. King Arthur’s exploits have been described and embellished for centuries by poets, authors and playwrights.

The tale of Lancelot, King Arthur’s most illustrious knight, and his love for Queen Guinevere took on a life of its own. The deceitful activities of Mordred and his betrayal of King Arthur also became a significant part of the Arthurian legend. The exploits of each of the knights lent color and excitement to the growing saga.

Thomas More was born in England in 1478. He was a successful student who became a lawyer and served his country in many capacities, eventually becoming Lord Chancellor. More wrote a number of books, including his most famous work, Utopia. Utopia was a vision of a perfect society vastly different from the world that More saw around him.

Although More was quite close to King Henry, More was opposed to having the king claim an authority higher than that of the pope. More was accused of high treason for his refusal to sign a letter asking the pope to annul the king’s marriage to Catherine in order for him to marry Anne Boleyn. He also did not attend the queen’s coronation and refused to accept the validity of the Act of Succession.

More’s trial is generally considered to have been a farce, with his guilt having been decided before the trail even began. More’s defense of his own position revealed both the mind and heart of a man of deep principles. He was convicted of treason and beheaded. More was affirmed a saint of the Catholic church in 1935. Pope John Paul II later officially declared Thomas More to be the patron saint of politicians.

Thomas Moore the Irish poet was born into a family of relatively modest means in 1779 in Dublin. Thomas studied at Trinity College and later went on for studies in law in London. Thomas Moore’s family imbued in him a love for language and learning. Thomas was also clearly dedicated to absorbing and promoting his own Irish heritage.

While he was still a young man, Thomas’ talent for writing, poetry and singing was notable. Thomas Moore was also successful in his political career. He was appointed to a post in Bermuda and then traveled to both Canada and the United States. After returning to England, he married Elizabeth Dyke, an actress.

Eventually Thomas Moore settled down in Bromham, Wiltshire, England. For the remainder of his life, he was occupied as a novelist, biographer and poet. When Moore died in 1852, he was already beloved as Ireland’s most famous poet and songwriter. Moore’s songs, including The Harp That Once Through Tara’s Halls, Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms, and The Meeting of the Waters have become Irish classics and can be heard the world around.

These incarnations of the ascended master El Morya demonstrate his ongoing devoted to truth in all of its forms: religion, law, government and the arts. As a result El Morya is the lord or master of the first ray of God’s will, associated with the power of speech, the throat chakra and the color blue. The lifetimes of El Morya serve as an inspiration for many on their own contemporary spiritual path.

Rose Greenwood specializes in spirituality and natural health. For more information, please see http://www.theheartscenter.org. The Hearts Center seekers up-to-date inspiration from the ascended masters. To purchase related items, please visit http://store.heartscenter.org or find our new products at http://store.heartscenter.org/newprods.aspx.

by Rose Greenwood

Serapis Bey is an ascended master recognized for his devoted to discipline, excellence and purity. He is the lord or chohan of the fourth ray, the color white and the base chakra. A study of the lifetimes of the masters such as Serapis Bey’s lives as Amenhotep III and King Leonidas help us to understand what is required for true self-mastery.

Amenhotep III is believed to have begun his rule at about the age of nine. It is likely that a relative acted as a regent for him until he came of age. As an Egyptian Pharaoh, Amenhotep III and his wife Tiye are known as the founders of monotheism in Eygpt, a practice continued and expanded by one of Amenhotep’s sons, Akhenaten.

One of Amenhotep III’s first decisions as king was to open two new limestone quarries. His extensive building projects included the construction of the temple at Luxor on the Nile and a large number of other projects in Nubia. He also oversaw comprehensive building projects at the temple of Karnak.

When Amenhotep III died, Egypt was a strong and powerful country with a great deal of influence in the international world. His son Akhenaten extended Amenhotep’s reformation of the many-faceted Egyptian religion, emphasizing the worship of one God represented by the sun. Akhenaton reigned from 1417 to 1379 BC.

Amehotep III’s legacy continues in his current service as the ascended master Serapis Bey, guiding earth’s evolutions. The ascended masters are souls who have passed their spiritual initiations on earth and are no longer required to return to embodiment. They once walked the earth and had lifetimes in which they perfected various soul and character qualities. Today, Serapis Bey helps to guide earth’s evolutions and is the sponsor of architects, builders and those who receive the Holy Spirit’s gift of the working of miracles.

King Leonidas is believed to have been born around 540 BC. Although little is known of his early life, the battle of Thermopylae that he waged against the Persians is one of the most famous battles of all time.

In August, 480 BC, Leonidas received a request from the Greeks to defend them against an invasion by the Persians. Leonidas set out to meet the army of Xerxes, the Persian commander, with three hundred of his personal body guards. Due to the danger of the mission, only men with sons to carry on their names were included in this small force.

An army of four to seven thousand Greeks joined Leonidas and operated for awhile under his command. This army was set against a massive army of Persians estimated to be between 80,000 and 290,000 strong. On the third day, the Spartans and Greeks were trapped from behind when a traitor led the Persians to a mountains track at the rear of the forces under Leonidas’ command. At that point, Leonidas sent away the Greeks and remained in the pass with his 300 body guards and 1600 other Spartans (Helots and Thesbians) who had joined them.

The Spartans fought until every man, including Leonidas, had been killed. In return, they destroyed approximately 20,000 of the Persian troops. Their sacrifice gave the Greek naval fleet the time they needed to retreat and later defeat the Persians in a battle at sea.

At one point in the battle, the Persians asked the Spartans to put down their weapons. The response of the Spartans: “Come and get them!” has been immortalized on a monument and statue erected at the site of the battle in honor of Leonidas and his men.

King Leonidas himself is believed by many spiritual devotees to have attained immortality through a series of incarnations both before and after his lifetime as King Leonidas. He is now known to spiritual seekers as Serapis Bey, an example of dedication to both discipline and purity.

Rose Greenwood specializes in spirituality and natural health. For more information, please see http://www.theheartscenter.org. The Hearts Center seekers up-to-date inspiration from the ascended masters. To purchase related items, please visit http://store.heartscenter.org or find our new products at http://store.heartscenter.org/newprods.aspx.

by Rose Greenwood

The ascended masters are souls who have learned all of their lessons on earth and no longer need to take incarnation among men. The ascended master Hilarion was embodied as the apostle Paul and his final incarnation was as Saint Hilarion. A study of these lifetimes can give us clues to the qualities that he developed in order to make his ascension.

Saul of Taursus is a pivotal figure in the early formation of the Christian church. His conversion and resulting new life as Paul, author of many key writings and letters in the New Testament, are some of most well-known events in Christianity. His views and opinions have shaped Christianity for over two thousand years.

Saul of Tarsus was a determined persecutor of Christians, originally seeing them as a rebellious faction and a danger to the government and society. He consented to the stoning of St. Stephen, the first martyr of the Christian church. Although they were alive during overlapping time periods, Saul never met Jesus in person.

After the death and resurrection of Jesus, Saul was traveling on the road to Damascus when a vision of Jesus appeared to him, saying, “It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.” Saul was temporarily blinded after this vision. Saul took the name Paul, and resolved to spread the word of truth throughout the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Three years after his conversion, Paul spent three years in seclusion in the Arabian Desert. Some believe he was in communication with Jesus through visions and meditation during this time.

Paul worked tirelessly to spread Christianity for the rest of his life. Many people believe that Paul achieved sainthood in that lifetime. Others believe that he needed additional lifetimes to perfect himself and atone for his responsibility for the torture of Christians. Those who believe that Paul needed additional lifetimes believe that his next lifetime was as St. Hilarion.

Saint Hilarion was born in Palestine at the end of the third century. Although he was the son of pagan parents, he went to Alexandria to be educated and became a Christian. Hilarion had heard of Saint Anthony, who was still alive at the time. Rather than pursuing the expected life of the son of a wealthy family, Hilarion left the city and school at fifteen to go and find Saint Anthony, with whom he stayed for a couple of months.

Most of Hilarion’s life was spent in the desert as a hermit. Hilarion continually subsisted on very little food, mainly figs and a few lentils and bread. In fact, he developed a number of health problems from his constant state of malnutrition. When his parents died, he returned home briefly to divide his inheritance among his siblings and the poor, and then went back to his nomadic life in the desert.

Hilarion suffered from frequent temptations and visitations from demons as well as robbers. He devoted most of his waking life to spiritual exercises, but he also made baskets from reeds and eventually built himself as small hut in which to live. His appearance was completely unkempt, as he did not wash his clothes at all and shaved his head only once per year.

Hilarion’s first healing miracle was curing a barren woman. Other miracles were also credited to him: expelling demons, healing paralysis and blindness, raising children from the dead. Hilarion began to be surrounded by disciples. He moved a number of times to avoid the unceasing visitors, disciples and even arrest by government authorities. Finally he traveled to Cyprus and spent his last years living in an isolated cave.

Many of the facts about Hilarion come from the writings of St. Jerome. It is clear that Hilarion was an historical rather than legendary figure. Hilarion died at the age of eighty, leaving a few scraps of clothing for his disciple Hesychius.

In the Catholic church, Saint Hilarion’s feast day is October 21st. Like the patron saints of the Catholic church, the ascended masters can aid those who are remaining on earth if they are called upon for assistance. Famous for his healing ability while on earth, as an ascended master Hilarion is the lord or chohan of the fifth ray, the ray of healing.

Rose Greenwood specializes in spirituality and natural health. For more information, please see http://www.theheartscenter.org. The Hearts Center seekers up-to-date inspiration from the ascended masters. To purchase related items, please visit http://store.heartscenter.org or find our new products at http://store.heartscenter.org/newprods.aspx.

by Rose Greenwood

The ascended masters are similar to patron saints. They have learned all of their lessons on earth and no longer need to take incarnation among men. The ascended master St. Germain is the master of the seventh ray. This means that he has mastered the spiritual quality of forgiveness and the power of alchemy. One of St. Germain’s incarnations was as the prophet Samuel in the Old Testament. Other lifetimes include Christopher Columbus, Roger Bacon and Francis Bacon. A study of the earlier lifetimes of the ascended masters can give us clues to the qualities that they developed in order to make their ascension.

Samuel’s mother Hannah was the second wife of Elkanah. For many years, Hannah had no children. One year when Hannah and Elkanah went to the temple to make sacrifices and pray, Hannah begged God to allow her to have children. To be barren in those days was a source of shame for women and was considered an indication that one was not favored by God. A priest named Eli saw Hannah praying and realized the sad predicament she was in. Eli blessed Hannah and assured her that God had heard her prayers. A year later she gave birth to Samuel, followed by three more sons and two daughters. Hannah brought Samuel to Eli as a young child to serve with him in the temple in gratitude for God’s blessing.

Eventually Eli became old and weak. Before Eli’s passing, God spoke directly to Samuel, calling him to be a prophet for Israel. Samuel traveled throughout Israel, urging the various tribes to work together and to cease worshipping idols. Samuel became a wealthy man with a flourishing household, but his two sons, Joel and Abijah, were not well respected. The people did not want them to lead Israel. Instead, Samuel was urged to appoint a single national leader. Samuel was considered to be a prophet and to have the gift of foresight, so the people trusted in his decision. Samuel chose Saul to be crowned king.

Unfortunately, Saul was not the model king that Samuel desired. In response, Samuel secretly anointed David as king of Israel. A conflict between Saul and David dominated the remainder of Samuel’s life. Samuel was the last judge of Israel. His appointment of David as king began the biblical monarchy that was the lineage for Jesus. In Islam, Samuel is also regarded as a prophet. As an ascended master, St. Germain is also a prophet who warns of impeding dangers so that people will have time to take necessary action.

As Christopher Columbus, the same soul was born in 1451 in Genoa, part of modern Italy. His father was Domenico Colombo, a middle-class wool weaver. His mother was Susanna Fontanarossa. Bartolomeo, Giovanni Pellegrino and Giacomo were his brothers. Columbus claims to have gone to the sea at the age of ten.

At the age of twenty-two, Columbus began his apprenticeship as business agent for three different families: the Centurione, Di Negro and Spinola families of Genoa. Columbus settled for awhile in Lisbon, continuing his trading for the Centurione family. He married Filipa Moniz Perestrello, daughter of the Porto Santo governor. A year or two later, his son Diego was born.

Europe had long enjoyed a safe land passage to China and India, but with the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the land route to Asia became difficult. In response to this, Christopher Columbus his brother Bartolomeo developed a plan to travel to the Indies by sailing directly west across the Atlantic. In 1486, Columbus presented his plans to Queen Isabella, who referred it to a committee. They pronounced the idea impractical, and advised the queen and king to pass on the proposed venture.

However, to keep Columbus from taking his ideas elsewhere, and perhaps to keep their options open, the King and Queen gave him an annual allowance and furnished him with a letter ordering all cities and towns to provide him food and lodging at no cost. After continually lobbying two years, he finally had success in 1492.

On the evening of August 3, Columbus departed with three ships: the Santa María, the Pinta and the Niña. Instead, Columbus landed at a locale he named San Salvador. According to the contract that Columbus made with King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, he was to be given the rank of Admiral of the Ocean Sea and appointed Viceroy and Governor of all the new lands. The terms were unusually generous, but the monarchs did not really expect him to return. Columbus was later arrested and these posts were taken from him.

In another lifetime, he was born as Roger Bacon in Somerset, England in 1214. During the stormy reign of Henry III of England, his family’s property was abandoned and several members of the family were driven into exile. Bacon pursued a life as a scholar and was engaged in academic and theological studies for decades. He became a professor at Oxford, specializing in philosophy.

Bacon later he lectured at the University of Paris, then the center of intellectual life in Europe. Eventually he became a Friar in the Franciscan Order. This prevented him from holding a teaching post. His activities were further restricted by a Franciscan statue in 1260 forbidding friars from publishing books or pamphlets without specific approval.

Bacon’s friendship with Cardinal Guy le Gros de Foulques, who became Pope Clement IV, proved to be highly fortuitous. The new Pope issued a mandate ordering Bacon to write to him concerning the place of philosophy within theology. As a result, Bacon sent the Pope his Opus Majus, which presented his views on how philosophy and science could be incorporated into theology.

Roger Bacon also wrote other works on alchemy and astrology. Pope Clement died in 1268, and Bacon was later placed under house arrest by Jerome of Ascoli, the Minister-General of the Franciscan Order for his beliefs and writings.

During his lifetime, Roger Bacon performed and described numerous scientific experiments, which are viewed as the first instances of true experimental science, several hundred years before the official rise of science in the West. Bacon is remembered as a brilliant scholar, scientist and philosopher.

Roger Bacon is one of the foremost lifetimes of the ascended master St. Germain. St. Germain is an ascended master recognized for his work with alchemy and the performing of miracles. He is the lord or chohan of the seventh ray, the color violet and the seat-of-the-soul chakra. During each lifetime, souls perfect various soul and character qualities. A study of the lifetimes of the masters helps us to understand what is required for true self-mastery. Roger Bacon is renowned for his inquisitive mind and his conviction to independent thinking and the scientific method.

As Francis Bacon, he was born once again on January 22, 1561. Biographers believe that Bacon was educated at home in his early years owing to poor health. At the age of twelve he entered Trinity College, Cambridge, and lived there for three years with his older brother Anthony. Francis Bacon studied mostly Latin and the medieval curriculum common at the time. It was at Cambridge that Francis first met the Queen, who was impressed by his precocious intellect, and gave him the appellation “the young Lord Keeper”.

For the next three years, Francis traveled extensively, visiting Blois, Poitiers, Tours, Italy, and Spain. During his travels, Bacon studied language, statecraft, and civil law while performing routine diplomatic tasks. Bacon had three goals: to discover truth, to serve his country, and to serve his church. Seeking a prestigious post would aid him toward these ends. In 1580, through his uncle, Lord Burghley, he applied for a post at court. This would have enabled him to pursue a life of learning. However, he was turned down. For the next two years he worked quietly at Gray’s Inn studying law, until admitted as an outer barrister in 1582.

Two years later he took a seat in the House of Commons. However, his opposition to Queen Elizabeth’s tax program in 1584 slowed his political progress. He had powerful enemies; foremost among them was Sir Edward Coke. Under the reign of James I, Francis Bacon translated the King James version of the Bible. An increasing number of scholars also believe that he was secretly working a group of some of England’s best poets writing the plays credited to William Shakespeare. Perhaps the most accepted and celebrated of Bacon’s own literary works is The New Atlantis.

Francis Bacon’s works founded and popularized an inductive methodology for scientific inquiry. His demand for a planned procedure of investigation established proper scientific methodology still in use today. Bacon was knighted in 1603, given the title of Baron in 1618, and Viscount in 1621. He is widely recognized as one of England’s greatest philosophers, statesmen, scientists and authors.

Saint Germain’s lifetimes as a prophet, scientist, author and explorer provided him with varied lessons in self-mastery and alchemy to prepare him for his role as an ascended master today.

Rose Greenwood specializes in spirituality and natural health. For more information, please see http://www.theheartscenter.org. The Hearts Center seekers up-to-date inspiration from the ascended masters. To purchase related items, please visit http://store.heartscenter.org or find our new products at http://store.heartscenter.org/newprods.aspx.

Article Source: NewAgeArticles.com

by Laura Turner

There’s been lots of health-hype lately surrounding the benefits of green tea. I’m certain you’ve heard it, too. Have you ever wondered: “Is it really worth my while to drink tea of the green variety?” Stick around and decide for yourself.

First: The Claims:

A rich source of anti-oxidants:

What are anti-oxidants? Anti-oxidants neutralize “free radicals” or unstable molecules in the body that can eventually become unfriendly and wreak havoc on the cells. Free radical damage can cause everything from sun damage to hardening of the arteries. Green tea will help you bulk up on the anti-oxidant warriors that help to both lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease by controlling blood pressure.

Cancer prevention:

Green tea has been shown to lower rates of cancer in Asian populations. The cancers studied and which have been recorded include: bladder, colon, esophagus, pancreas, rectal and stomach. New evidence suggests green tea may also help prevent prostate cancer, as well.

Help with arthritis:

Studies also suggest there is possible anti-inflammatory and arthritis preventing effects in green tea although, I’ll admit, solid scientific evidence was difficult to come by. By simple suggestion, I’ll give green tea an A for effort in the arthritis category.

Liver protection:

Green tea has been proven to protect liver cells by stimulating the immune system. Green tea protects the liver by warding off toxins such as alcohol and cigarette smoke.

Teeth protection:

Green tea has been thought to promote oral health (although scientific proof was difficult to come by here, too). Green tea is supposed to work against bacteria, protecting teeth from cavities.

Weight loss:

Here’s another benefit that will raise many an eyebrow. Several sources I found claimed that green tea may actually help to stimulate weight loss. Yes! Green tea contains polyphenols (molecule compounds) that actually help the body to burn weight and regulate both blood sugar and insulin levels.

The Bad News

What’s the bad news?

The only negative side effect I’ve found is the simple recorded cases of insomnia due to naturally occurring caffeine in green tea. It looks like there’s only 30-60mg in 6-8 ounces of tea, however. That’s less than half the caffeine content of coffee which weighs in at 90 mg. per 8 ounce cup.

Other FAQ’s About Green Tea:

How much green tea is enough to reap the benefits?

No one seems to be too sure about the answer to this question, either. Let’s be realistic – most people could easily drink 3-4 cups of green tea daily. This is a good round number and one that I came up with based on its frequency in the research studied. A suggestion: why not try replacing your usual cup of coffee with a clean dose of health?

Where to get a good cup of tea?

Check out your local grocery for my favorite: Lipton. There’s plenty of others, but I like the way Lipton aims to zip up green tea with variety. They even have a orange, passionfruit & jasmine flavor that’s de-lish!

If drinking tea really isn’t your thing, but you still want the benefits – no problem! Green tea is now available in capsule form, too. This could be as close as your local pharmacy. Check around.

In summation:

In this scientist’s opinion, green tea is well worth your consideration. The simple speculation of benefits is enough to get excited about it. It’s easy to digest, tastes good and, hey, if it helps me with my goal of wellness and illness prevention, I’ll take ample tea time, any day!

Research for this article has been created through careful consideration of research and articles appearing on WebMD and though several working texts which include:

Balch, Phyllis A., CNC. Prescriptions for Nutritional Healing. New York: Penguin Putnam, 2004.

Mabey, Richard. The New Age Herbalist. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1988.

Mindell, Earl, R.Ph., Ph.D. Herb Bible. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992.

Tierra, Michael L.Ac., O.M.D. The Way of Herbs. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998.

About the Author: Laura Turner is a natural health practitioner and author. She hosts http://www.beauty-and-body.com and publishes the bi-weekly New Body News and Wellness Letter, The Online Magazine Healthy People Read. ( http://www.new-body-news.com ) Subscribe for f.r.e.e. and receive her Special Report: “Take Charge of Your Health!”

by sgiustra

Whether we are heading into a new school year or into the cold & flu season or right smack in the middle of the holiday season, the question of preventing & treating viruses naturally becomes an important issue.

It would be nice if we could start to lessen the chances of contracting these nasty viruses. Luckily, using natural herbs that are easy to incorporate into our diets is an effective way to dodge or treat the common viruses.

Other added benefits to using natural antiviral herbs: no side effects, low cost, safe for children & elderly.

Before getting into specific anti viral herbal remedies, a few words on viruses.

Viruses are infinitesimally small particles that do nothing more than reproduce.

They are the agents that lead to all kinds of health problems including cold, flu & herpes.

Viruses are different from bacteria though the two can be confused by the general public. Medicine has antibiotics which can be effective against bacteria but not against viruses.

However, there are few medications that deal with viruses. Two of the popular ones are acyclovir for herpes & AZT for AIDS.

Luckily, there are many good antiviral herbs.

The rest of this page discusses anti viral herbs that have general effects against any number of viruses.

Best natural antiviral herbal remedies

* Echinacea may be the best general herbal remedy against viruses. Echinacea works by destroying viruses & boosting the immune system so that your own body can then eliminate the virus. Especially good for flu viruses. Take supplements as directed, especially right before flu & cold season. Take in cycles of 6 weeks on & 6 weeks off as needed.

* Hypoxis Rooper (African Potato) improves the immune system according to research.

* Astragalus is also one of the valuable antiviral herbs due to its ability to boost the immune system. Take as directed when needed.

* Agathosma Betulina (buchu) is a natural antiviral that has antioxidant & antiseptic activity & helps the body rid itself of toxins. Good as a preventive.

* Mentha peperita better known as peppermint supports the body’s immune system. Scientific studies show peppermint’s is one of the anti viral herbs that shows a good effect on tuberculosis. Using peppermint essential oil or drinking lots of peppermint tea are pleasant, economical ways of using peppermint.

* Dragon’s blood is a lesser known herbal remedy for viruses. Especially useful against herpes virus. May be available in pill form. Take as directed.

* Solidago Virgaurea (Goldenrod) is one of the traditional antiviral herbs, used for hundreds of years. It seems to increase the ability of the body to fight infections.

* What could you say about garlic, an herb that has so many beneficial effects that it is treated with a reverence by many peoples of the world. Most people find garlic to be delicious too. This natural antiviral can be used for flu, cold & any number of viruses. Consume it raw or lightly cooked in any number of dishes including salads, stir frys, soups etc. Take supplements as directed making sure that supplement has active ingredients.

* Onions are also an anti viral herb though not as effective as garlic. Certainly you could come up with many dishes that contain garlic & onion which go together very well.

* Schizandra Sinesis is a powerful Chinese herb, an herbal remedy against viruses that protects against toxins and cell damage.

* Goldenseal is also an immune stimulant. Many supplements pair goldenseal with with other antiviral herbs like echinacea for a 1 – 2 punch against viruses.

* Olea Europea (from olive leaf) is a very valuable herb & natural antiviral. It helps fight numerous germs. The positive effects of Olive leaf have recently been proven in a variety of clinical studies. Olive leaf also stimulates the immune system.

It may also help stop the production of enzymes that a retrovirus, such as HIV, needs in order to change the RNA of a healthy cell. I’ve used it in place of root canal surgery to good effect. Take supplements as directed but you may need to double or triple dose the first day you are symptomatic.

* Juniper is also an excellent anti viral herbal remedy, excellent against flu & cold virus. Makes a good cold season tea that could be sipped throughout the day.

* Lemon balm also makes a good anti viral herbal tea & is especially valued as anti-herpes.

* Licorice is yet another herb that makes an excellent tea. Effective anti viral herb against many viruses. Take supplement or make a tea out of licorice root.

* Shiitake mushroom is also one of our favorite antiviral herbs. Consume in various dishes or use supplements as directed.

* Ginger, like garlic is a superb herb with numerous health benefits including its natural antiviral effects. Use as a tea or in numerous dishes. Juice a small slice along with fruits like apples, carrots, celery, [parsley – to taste for a wonderfully healthy concoction.

Other natural anti viral herbs

Some other herbal remedies against viruses are not as well known for that purpose but have been cited as antiviral. They include:

* Boneset

* Cat’s claw

* Chamomile

* Cinnamon

* Ginseng

* St. John’s wort

Salvator Giustra is a NYC Teaching Fellow, health researcher, clinical psychotherapist & computer scientist. He currently runs three websites (Healthy World) that advance the idea that good health is based on simple, traditional, commonsense knowledge which research tends to support repeatedly.

For info on how water affects health, visit:
Healthy Water

by John Culbertson

We live in a world of energy. There’s not a single one of us that can say we’ve never energetically attacked another person or that we’ve never been energetically attacked by another person. Those of us that work, or heaven forbid “dabble”, in the new age field will at rare times be up against more than just human attacks. This is the reason everyone needs a basic understanding of psychic protection techniques.In this article we will be discussing five basic methods of protection that can be layered, or used one after another, to boost your defenses.
This article, however, will not be discussing the mechanics of psychic/energy attacks. In other words, we aren’t going to get into the why and how they happen. We’ll save that for a future article.
White Light
The most basic of all protections is white light energy. It is connected to the image of divinity, whatever divinity is for you. It may be God, the goddess, Buddha, The Universal Consciousness, The Great Architect of the World, Cosmic Consciousness, your Higher Self, etc. Whatever your concept of the higher power may be, white light is often times associated and connected to it.

When we surround ourselves in white light we are symbolically saying that we are protected by the highest power there is. We are shielding ourselves from negativity by raising our own vibration and vibrating at the speed of light.

There are many ways to perform this protection. The easiest is to imagine yourself standing in the center of a light bulb that is turned off. When you see or feel yourself standing there, mentally feel/see that light bulb being turned on and imagine and feel the pure bright light that is all around you.

You might also close your eyes and imagine rain/the shower falling down all around you. Mentally turn those water droplets into a cascading bright light and let yourself be totally drenched in it.

Whatever method you use, make sure you have the light soaring within your body as well as outside and around it. Remember, you are wanting to become one with the light.

Worry Balloon
This gets credited to the Academy of Remote Viewing and Influencing. One of my favorite techniques from their program involves a deflated balloon.

Visualize a deflated balloon above your head. Take a deep breath in and as you exhale visualize/feel all your fears/worries/concerns/anxieties going into that balloon. Each time you do this, note the balloon begins to inflate. Eventually, you’ll be free of all those tensions and the balloon will be totally inflated. At that point take one more deep breath in. On the exhale visualize/feel the balloon floating away and out of the universe taking with it all the worries/problems that you had put into it.

This is a great exercise to do before bed if you have trouble sleeping at night. It also does wonders if used prior to going into any negative/stressful situation. Additionally, it can be used to help lessen or even totally release fears.

Blue Shield
Blue is the color we associate with the throat chakra. The throat chakra is noted as being the seat of the will. As such, blue is a highly protective color because when we use blue we are literally willing negativity to stay away from us.

The shield is symbolic of blocking incoming attacks. Warriors in ancient times used shields to defend themselves from both up close attacks and incoming airborne attacks.

Imagine/visualize a blue shields all around you before going into any crowded area or prior to any confrontation you think you may be having. It’ll help to deflect bad moods/negativity and will make it easier for you to deal (or totally avoid) people who aren’t going to be nice.

Prayer and Positive Affirmations
Both prayer and positive affirmations can be used to strengthen any protections you already are using. Both of these help to raise your vibration and puts you into harmony with the positive forces of the universe.

Sample Affirmations for Protection include:
I am totally protected from all ill will and harm.

I am blessed and protected on the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels.

Only positive things are allowed around me.

I feel joy and love in everything I do.

Why the last one? Joy and love are the keys to maintaining a healthy and high vibrational field. When we can turn our attitudes toward complete joy and love we will, over time, eventually discover that we only attract those joy and loving people and situations into our lives. Any negative ones that do occur simply aren’t able to handle this type of energy for long and extended periods of time and thus will remove themselves from your presence.

Archangel Michael Invocation
Finally, the last thing we are going to talk about in our basics of protection article is angels and guides. Please, brace yourselves, you are going to get the short cliff notes version here as those are, once again, a topic for another article.

We all have the ability to “summon” angels and spiritual beings to aid and assist us. We call this “summoning” an invocation.
To perform an invocation you can either be very ritualistic and look for a bunch of herbs and other supplies that various magic books will claim you need OR you can have total faith that the being you are asking for assistance will be there when you call on them.

To enlist angels to help it’s simply a matter of asking.

Angels, according to most sources, are bound by an angelic law which dictates that they can’t interfere in a humans life unless one of two conditions are met.

A) That person is in mortal danger and it’s not yet their time to depart from this world.

or

B) A person, in sincere concern, has mentally or verbally asked for their help.

Of all the angels, Archangel Michael is the one most often associated with protection. He is considered the angel of war and protection and is most noted, mythologically speaking, for casting Satan from heaven during the heavenly wars.

Calling upon this loving yet very protective angel can be done in a couple of ways.

The most basic is simply saying “Archangel Michael, I give you permission to be here with me.”

There is also a Catholic Prayer dedicated to this angel which you may say which will also enlist his help.

“Michael the Archangel, please defend me in my day of battle. Be my safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. Rebuke him, I humbly pray. May the price of the heavenly hosts cast into hell Satan and all evil beings seeking to ruin the souls of man.”

Whatever the case, know that when you invoke or call this particular angel it’s not uncommon to feel an air pressure change and/or a great deal of warmth and heat when he is around.
Now that you have some of the basics down it would be a good idea for you to practice these and make a careful note on what happens when you use different techniques.

The more often you use them the more skillful and stronger you’ll become with them and the more benefit you’ll receive from them.

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John Culbertson is a psychic channel and psychic coach. He is also a Reiki “Master.” You can read more about him at his website Mystic John Culbertson.