Solotow

Karma: The Spiritual Path

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 07:41:00 +0000

It has been rightly said that the spiritual path is not a way for the faint hearted. It can appear, on the surface of it, that it is all about getting in touch with one’s inner self, meditating in peaceful surrounds and ‘blissing out’ without regard to the physical world around us. This, in fact, is far from the case. The spiritual path is a returning to God. That means we must undergo the process of clearing our energy field of negative vibrations. You may have heard of this concept; it is commonly known as karma...

Christians preach that Jesus atoned for all our sins. This is only part of the story. While it is true, it does not mean that we are exempt from the influences of current life, or indeed, past life karma. It means, and I do not profess total understanding here, that the sins of man as a whole have been atoned for. It does not nullify the need for personal work, nor does it give us carte blanche to do whatever we want, then simply say a few “Hail Mary’s” and hey presto we are forgiven. This is one of the Churches most hideous lies.

Karma is a real phenomenon. It comes with a price too, although, it is the price, so that is neither here nor there! Karma cannot be simply brushed away. Each act we perform must be paid for in full. What this means is that all sorts of painful circumstances will befall us. This is even more so when we are on a spiritual path, for what has happened, when we commit to the path, is that we have, metaphorically speaking, placed our hand in the air and declared “I am ready to do the work”. The result of this is that we take on a larger amount of karma than most in order that we may work through it and learn the lessons that will take us home. Events from the past must be dealt with, and not just from this life either.

The thing with karma is that it is not a conscious process. What this means is that most people will have no idea where the things that happen to them come from. Illness, for example, is just one of the ways in which negative karma can manifest itself in our lives. A cold may be the spiritual clearing of an argument that took place at some point in the past. It is not without good reason that we have been unable to find a cure for the common cold. When we medicate that cold, we are simply numbing ourselves out to the healing effect of our spiritual energy field.

It is possible, indeed, if one is sufficiently attuned, to know when an illness is coming and to deal with it’s affects in the spirit body as opposed to having to deal with it in the physical. This is not something that can be attained straight away. A person must sufficiently raise their vibrational rate to the level at which they can perform such things.

If you have seen the excellent TV show, “My Name is Earl”, you will be familiar with karma. It is a universal phenomenon and it continues to operate whether we want it to or not. Theories abound as to the extent of karmic retribution. Some say that whatever one sows comes back tenfold. Others say threefold. Clearly we do not know, however, the general consensus is that whatever negative karma we incur is magnification of the original transgression. On this basis, it becomes evidently vital that we make all effort to ensure that we do not continue to create negative karma for ourselves, our planet or for other people.

How does one do this, then? To begin with it is quite simple. We merely follow a moral code such as the Ten Commandments, or the teachings of Jesus, or we may simply follow the old adage of ‘do unto others as you would have them do to you’. In the end, it is entirely up to the individual what moral code they choose to live by.

What is essential though, is that we must be aware of the concept of personal responsibility. This is really what karma is all about. If we hurt or cheat or steal or lie or whatever, then we must be prepared to face the consequences of this. In fact, whether we are prepared or not, the consequences will come, if not in this life, at least in the next. It is as simple as that; only it must be continually remembered that we cannot hide any of our actions from the spirit. We may well be able to get away with things in the material world, and it may be that our fellow man does not realise our actions, but this is not the case in with realm of spirit. All our actions, both good and bad, are recorded and must be accounted for.

When one starts on a spiritual path, these concepts will be incurred very early on. The reason for this is that, when begins to look at life in this way, it becomes easier and easier to understand how we create negative or positive karma. By this knowledge, we are able to start taking responsibility for ourselves and our actions. I have dealt briefly with the ways to begin to raise ones level of vibration in other articles, but this is one of the ways in which we can become more aware of ourselves. The key to releasing karma, until one is more advanced along the spiritual path, is knowledge.

When one comes to the point in life where spiritual concerns begin to be important, it is very good to read as much as possible. In this way one may come to learn for oneself what holds good and what does not. Do not take as truth any one writer’s words. Even the Holy Scriptures can not to be taken as on face value. This is because of the fact that they are spiritual books and therefore can only be understood by the spirit. Many of the atrocities of this world have been caused by the interpretation, on a physical level, of spiritual words.

Therefore, test everything and keep that which holds true and dispense with the rest. Likewise with these words. It is all very well me offering these teachings, but how do you know who I am and what manner of man I am? It would be seriously remiss of me to pretend to have the answers you seek. To do so would incur a huge level of karmic debt on my part, and I am aware, at least enough to know not to travel down that road. I offer only that which I have found along the path I have travelled. It is often said that each must take his own road and that the traveller must beware not to mistake the map for the territory. I have found this to hold true.

My Spiritual Path...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 22 Dec 2007 11:40:00 +0000

Currently there are many people in this world that are searching for more. They have reached that point where they genuinely ask themselves the age old question, "Is this really all there is to life?"

The fact is that this world is such a wonderful place to learn these lessons, by that I mean that it shows one very effectively that material things cannot bring happiness. In this world of ours, one can see it so very clearly if one wishes. The following is a brief description of my path so far...

When we look around it is easy to see people that earn the kind of money that one can only ever dream of. Our television screens are littered with them. In this world one can have more money than it is possible spend in a lifetime. The thing is, when I look at these people, I mean really look, they are clearly not happy. One only has to look at Britney Spears at the moment to see this very plainly. This is because the thirst inside for something more always remains.

I thought, a long time ago, that it was just a case of earning more money. I thought this would quench this thirst and so I went after it and got it. I had so much money, that I literally did not know what to do with it, but I was still not fulfilled. Then I began thinking that perhaps it was freedom that I thirsted for; to be the master of my own destiny. So I pursued that. I dropped out of the ‘rat-race’ and attained that freedom. Still, the thirst was stronger than ever...

I thought that it was love and family so that was my next target. This did provide temporary relief. Children are apt to do that. They are so wonderful and take an inordinate amount of work that can distract you for a while. Yet soon the thirst was there again. Next I began to think that perhaps I choose the wrong career in the first place and so tried to live out childhood fantasies in the hope that they would satisfy the constant craving. They did not. I found myself left with little more than my ambitions. I tried fulfilling those. It did not work. Nothing worked.

One by one all the things that this world offered were left by the wayside as I began to realize that nothing would fill the hole inside. That is when I began to despair. I had tried everything I could think of and found that none of it worked. I had been to all the wild parties, taken numerous drugs, slept with more people than should be legal, earned more money than I could ever need, achieved goals I never thought possible, and so on and so on until I finally accepted that what I needed cannot be found in this world.

This was when depression set in. Thoughts of suicide plagued me. This stage lasted a long time. What I came to understand was that this too was an illusion. All I was really doing was trying to convince myself that I had not made wise choices in this life and if I had then everything would be alright and I would not feel this way. So, I thought, let's end this life and just try harder in the next, (I believe in reincarnation, by the way). Fortunately though, I am strong and know deep down that this is not the way. Having said that, this did not stop me fantasizing about it.

Then, suddenly, and without my even realizing it for a while, a wonderful thing happens. God came to me. It was not a ‘road to Damascus’ type of experience; it was so much smaller and so much quieter than that. There is light but it is not the light that is visible to human eyes. It is light on the inside. It is the light of God that fills you. You suddenly know what you must do and where you must go. Life takes on new meaning.

And yet … yet, I had absolutely no idea how to get there; no idea even where ‘there’ was. I had read much about it. Indeed, in reaching this place, that had been an inevitable necessity. None of it really helped at this time, though. There is so much confusion in this world that I came to a point where none of the information out there added anything other than more confusion. I had reached the stage where it all said the same thing, in the end. The problem, though I did not know it yet, was that my cup was simply full, as the saying goes. How can the spirit pour anything new into you when your cup is already overflowing with the ideas of this world? Soon I came to realize this.

This is where I understood that it was time to stop. By beginning the process of emptying my mind of all the thoughts that had got me this far I slowly began to be receive the spirit. The paradox is that I needed all that information to get me to this point but, now that I was there, I needed to completely empty myself of it.

I discovered, as did Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz”, that I already possessed everything I would ever need to take me home. This is where the real work began; only it is not work at all. It is the absence of work, the absence of anything at all.

I began to go inside myself, and now everything is becoming clearer. This has not happened overnight and the path from here is still a very long one. What I did not realize for a long time is that the process changes you anyway. Truly, it is not a destination but a journey. It is how we travel that is the most important thing. When we travel in the right way, the destination will come to us and we will realize that we were there already. Again, just like Dorothy, we will realize that it was all just a dream.

I have been on the spiritual path almost all of my adult life now. I have left behind much that once mattered in this world of form. This is good. This is necessary and the process will continue. I see now that everything up until the point where I started to look inside was just preparation, though very necessary preparation at that. It was then that the true journey began...

We are all beginners in this thing called life. Experience and knowledge do not make wisdom. Wisdom comes only from the God within. It is not of this world.

More Psychology of Selling

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 16:39:00 +0000

[Note: This is part of a chapter from my forthcoming book “The Art of Telesales”.]

That the customer is always right has become a modern day cliché. In his seminal work, “How To Win Friends And Influence People”, Dale Carnegie stated that if you want to get people on your side you must never argue with them. This is especially so for a salesperson, but why is this? Surely the whole idea is to persuade the prospect to your way of thinking, isn’t it?

The answer is that, as salespeople, we are not trying to get people to think that we are right and that they are wrong. If this was the case we would never get a sale. The times when we do prove a potential customer wrong, we will invariably NOT get the sale. They will resent us for highlighting their folly. If this is the case, then what is our role? ...

Our role as sales people is to present our product or service in such a way that the prospect can not, reasonably, say no to us. That is all there is to it, really. We must be guides and ushers at best – or at least that is how we must be seen to be.

I remember once, when I was fairly new in sales, I was out on a corporate night out. At the time I was selling alternative supply maintenance agreements on telephone switchboards. I happened to get talking to a rather attractive lady that was not part of our company but happened to be at the same venue as us. The subject turned to what we did for a living. I mentioned what I did and she exclaimed, in delight, that she was a sales trainer for her company. Jumping at the chance to learn, I offered to give her my pitch so that she could give me some pointers. She readily agreed.

During my pitch, it turned out that she also happened to be the person in her company that made decisions regarding their switchboard. Anyway, it was not long before I had her ready to be signed up as a customer. She was just about to give me her work number so that we could sort the paperwork out the following Monday morning, when she suddenly said "Oh, weren’t you going to give me your pitch, by the way?” To which I replied, “I just did!”

That was the exact moment where our blossoming relationship and my chance at a sale ended. It seemed that she was not impressed at all by my revealing that our whole conversation had been a sales pitch. It took me a long time to work out why, but the reason is simply that it showed her up to be foolish and naïve and also not a very good sales trainer, to boot!

The moral of this story is that, contrary to popular opinion, real salespeople are not wide boy Jack-the-lad types who can beat everyone in sight with their skill at rhetoric. What we are is highly skilled manipulators. If people can see your technique then you are not delivering it correctly.

How does this transfer into an actual sales situation, then? Well, the most important place is in objection covers. If someone raises an objection, what is the first thing you should do? Do you spend the next few sentences explaining exactly why they are wrong? NO! All that would happen is that the prospect will go into ‘fight or flight’ mode. They will either end up hanging up on us or getting into a verbal brawl. Both ways we lose out, in sales terms anyway. Be constantly on guard for this. Our task is to deliver our pitch in a way so as never to prompt the ‘fight or flight’ response in our potential client.

So, given an objection, therefore, what you do, first and foremost, is this:

Agree with the objection!

I do not care whether they have just come out with the most ridiculous statement ever, (we will go into how to deal with that later). Your line is simply and almost invariably:

“I appreciate that…”

Notice how, in terms of martial arts philosophy, we are like water; we are pliable, yielding, soft and playful even, yet when the time is right we can unleash devastating power. This is the art of sales at its very core. Remember the old saying, ‘no one expects the inquisition’? That was what gave it such power; the fact that no one expected it. We must be just like this – no one expects a good salesperson because all they ever see are the bad ones. When they do come across a good one, they do not even know it because all the customer thinks is that they merely spoke to a really friendly and helpful person who helped them buy what they wanted. The prospect never knew what hit them. It is probably true to say that the greatest salespeople are like cats toying with their prey, for only when they are absolutely certain that there is no more fight left in the quarry, will they go in for the kill.

The real question, though, is how we turn them round after agreeing with them. The answer to this is revealed in my book, "The Art of Telesales".

Two inspirational stories

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 21:55:00 +0000

I had the urge to relate a couple of very short stories that I once heard. I must stress that these are not mine and I do not know the origin of them so I cannot reference them. All I can say is that I have found both to be a source of inspiration...

The first is a little silly, to be honest, but ... well, here goes anyway. I like it!

Two ants were admiring the Taj Mahal. After a while, one turns to the other and remarks, "Aren't the creations of Man wondrous to behold?". To which the other replies, "What?! Don't tell me you believe in Man, do you?".

The second is a little less frivolous.

Upon dying, a man goes to heaven where he meets God. After a while he plucks up the courage to ask God a question. "When I was dying", he says, "true to the stories, I saw my whole life pass me by. My question relates to this. I was wondering why I saw it represented as footprints in the sand - two sets of footprint to be precise, side by side?"
"Ahh", replied God, "That is because throughout your life I have walked by your side".
"In that case", the man retorted, "why were there sometimes only one set of footprints?"
To this God said that they were the times when the man had had trouble in his life.
"What?!" cried the man, "You mean you deserted me whenever I had any trouble in my life. What sort of a God are you?"
God simply replied "You do not understand. When there was only one set of footprints, it was because I was carrying you".

Telesales Book

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:06:00 +0000

I have received a number of requests asking where people can get copies of my forthcoming telesales book.

It is currently still in the production stages but should be ready very early in 2008. Please check back here for progress updates...

Thank you.

End of post.

Latest artwork

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:01:00 +0000

End of Post!

Ramanama

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 14:16:00 +0000

I have, of late, begun to read Gandhi’s autobiography. I have not proceeded very far with it, as yet, but one thing has struck me with such a force that I am already thankful for beginning this reading. This is the concept of “Ramanama”.

Gandhi purports to have gained immense strength from this practice. I have conducted a brief web search but profess that I have yet to find the exact methodology behind this practice. However, I am particularly impressed at the notion of having a ‘practice’ that possesses the potential to imbue one with such power and motivation as had Gandhi.

I am, therefore, set to the task of finding such a practice as this for myself. It, of course, does not have to be ramanama, since that is based around the Hindu deity of Rama. Just as long as I find something, that is what counts. I am exceedingly glad to have discovered that such a thing as this exists”

Who Wants to Live Forever?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 12:20:00 +0000

As I look around me, everywhere I see people giving up. I overheard a conversation this morning where one man asked an old acquaintance that he had clearly not seen in a while, what he was doing with himself these days. To this the other replied that he was not doing much at all other than playing a little golf occasionally. This struck me of a man that sees no future for himself. Of course this is a judgement on my part and one should always be wary of such a tendency, yet I feel as though I hit the mark in this case.

I see example of this type of thing all the time. It is as though people are programmed by this world to accept the inevitability of old age and death, which of course we are. Think, for example, of the old saying that there are only two certainties in life, namely, death and taxes.

The difference between this ‘worldly’ thinking and the thoughts that arise when one dwells in God are that, in God, one assumes life. Indeed, that is the entire premise of religion, is it not? That one will surely die without God, yet with God one can have everlasting life. In was not without a certain smile that I once read of one man’s response to this which went along the lines of “Why on earth would I want everlasting life? Don’t you think this one is hard enough?”

The Christian Church plays on this everlasting life aspect. It is essentially their sales pitch. I see this now. Yet, the problem is that the bible does not promise this to all believers. In fact it goes so far as to declare that most will actually not be chosen.

“Many are called, but few are chosen”
Matthew 22:14

The Church does not teach this. It implies that one is guaranteed salvation and eternal life if one simply believes in Jesus, attends church and leads a good life. This is totally incorrect. One of the core messages that Jesus tried to teach was that belief and leading a good life are just not enough. He held up the scribes and the Pharisees as an example:

“For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 5:20

The Pharisees were considered, (or considered themselves, at least), to be among the most righteous of all. They were well versed in scripture and held perfectly to the letter of the law. And yet they would not see the kingdom of heaven. How, then do we imagine that things have changed today?

We are taught that Jesus’ death on the cross has fully atoned us for all our sins, and that this has guaranteed our salvation, if we believe, that is. If this was indeed the case, do you not think that Jesus’ message would have been more along the lines of “Hey, don’t worry about a thing guys, I’m going to die for all of you so all you need to do is go to church and believe in me and we’ll be sorted!”

Clearly this is not the case, so what more must we do? While it may well be true that Jesus’ death on the cross atoned for our sins, we cannot expect that this automatically ensures our salvation. We must come to know the Christ in each of us. In John 17:3 we are told:

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

How do we come to know God? This passage is interpreted by far greater scholars than I as meaning to be at one with God. Therefore we must achieve what is known as Christ Consciousness. This is known by varying names around the world. Some call it enlightenment or nirvana. Jesus quoted Psalms 82:6 when, in John 10:34 he said:

“…Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?”

Clearly, in our present state, we are not Gods, or at least we do not think we are. We must realise our God nature and become God before we can escape this cycle of life and death. Zen Buddhism teaches that you are Buddha. It is exactly the same as saying “Ye are Gods”.

How do we achieve this feat, then? By first realising that we can do nothing of our selves. The self is the anti-Christ, the very antithesis of our true God nature. We have often heard it called the ego. Society has diminished the meaning of this to a large extent. We often think of it in terms of merely just being big-headed. This is erroneous and dangerous. To underestimate the ego, the anti-Christ, is the route of our ailment. It wants nothing less than to continue to rule our earthly lives as it does already.

In its effort to accomplish this, it will stop at nothing – even killing us. It knows we do not need it and that we are perfectly capable of existing without it, (though not in the sense you now think of existence). The result is that it hides from us. Remember, that the devils greatest feat was convincing mankind that he does not exist. The vast majority of people are not even aware of its existence and almost all are unaware that the entity, with which they identify themselves, is actually the very thing that would deceive them.

We live under mass hypnosis. Spiritual disciplines speak of the awakening process. This is what is meant by this. It is an awakening from the sleep that is our everyday consciousness. It is an awakening to the fact that “Ye are Gods”. It is the death of the ego, the anti-Christ within each of us that has taken possession of our lives.

Once we come to realise this, we can approach an understanding of the doctrine that we, of our own efforts, can do nothing; for the very reason that ‘our’ efforts constitute the efforts of the great deceiver. The Churches have this, at least, right. Yet, by attempting thus, we send out a message or a distress call if you will, to the Higher Self that we are ready to begin the process of return.

The process can and almost invariable will take many, many lifetimes to achieve and during each we must face many more trials and tests of our commitment along the way. Do not be discouraged, though. For, by the mere fact that you are reading this, the chances are that you are already well advanced in this respect anyway. Those that are will understand of what I speak. They will know already that this is so by the unmistakable leap of your soul in recognition of these words. This will be so even if you have not consciously contemplated these concepts before.

We will be guided by our Higher Selves to read the right words, to seek out the right things for our development. Our inner direction shall act as a compass and as we progress along the path, we will gradually learn to heed this more and more. It is our intuition. The truth is that this is the inner guide alerting us to the things that will take us home. This is how we shall achieve unity with the Christ Consciousness. Not by our own efforts, but by the grace of God and by following our inner guide. Jesus came to show us the way. The Church and the State have conspired to pervert this message. When Jesus said:

"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me"
John 14:6

He did not mean that Christianity is the only religion. He meant that we should become God, achieve unity with our Higher Self. None come to the Father except through unity.

In this, do not be further deceived, though. The Church and the State have indeed deceived us, yet their motives were pure, (by and larger, anyway). They truly believed that the things that have been done have been so as to benefit the world. In this they acted nobly, but the problem is they have been guided not by God but by the anti-Christ. Anyone that looks at the history of the Church can plainly see this.

It is this that is the challenge we face today. While we must realise our own error and the error of our ways, we must not condemn those that would guide us for their folly, for, had we been in their position, the chances are that we would have made the same mistakes and probably many more also.

Around us we may observe the masses turning from the religion of their birth, whatever that may be. In tandem with this, we see people giving up hope of another way. People turn instead to illusory sensory pleasures and carnal vices to numb the pain of everyday existence. There is so much more than this. The journey is not an easy one, but it is the path we must tread to ultimately escape this trap, this earthly life.

Michael Jackson Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 14:20:00 +0000

I did this a few years ago. He has changed his looks again since then so I may have to update this.

Adolf Hitler Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 14:18:00 +0000

Albert Einstein Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 14:14:00 +0000

Marilyn Monroe Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 14:07:00 +0000

Illustration

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 13:53:00 +0000

This was an illustration I did for a children's book.

Caricature of Self

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 13:31:00 +0000

A Recent Sketch

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 13:27:00 +0000

Religion: The Nature Of...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:16:00 +0000

I would like to make it clear that I do not belong to any one religion. The things I have found to hold truth and the things I share on this site and in my writings belong only to the category of "truth" as I have experienced it. Many times I will use quotations from the bible or from Jesus. This is only because I grew up in the west where the dominant religion is Christianity. I am not a Christian. Certain things that the Christian Church holds as absolute, I cannot agree with; like Christianity being the only way, for example. ..

It is clear that each religion holds a spark of the truth. I believe that we can come to know the whole truth, but we must be prepared to search for it. One of the main tenets of Christianity is that we are helpless and cannot attain salvation by our own means. It wields this as one of its primary weapon against other religions. The thing to be pointed out though, is that other religions have the same tenet. Yes, they say that one should purify oneself through practices such as meditation, fasting and so forth, but then so too does the bible, if one reads it.

As a student of God I can say that, when one looks closely at the religions of this world, what leaps out most is the inherent similarities. Countless thousands of lives have been lost due to the differences between religions. It seems that not a single one of these religious leaders is prepared to say, "Oh, hang on a second; doesn't it say something, somewhere about thou shalt not kill?"

I remember all too well when the World Trade Towers were bombed on 9/11. At the time I used to participate in several spiritually based discussion forums on the net. I had, previously, been most impressed at the other participants' general level of tolerance and professed love of peace. On the morning of 9/11, I was shocked by the reactions of these same people. The posts called for America to retaliate with full force. I believe the exact words of one member were simply "Bomb the f***ing b*****ds". Needles to say, my eyes were opened on that day.

This is perhaps still a very sensitive issue and it may be that I am inviting hostilities here, but retaliation, even under extreme circumstances, is not the way of Love.

One of the things that this world does with amazing regularity is that when a messenger from God appears, it promptly kills that messenger, discards the message and then systematically works to create a religion based around worshipping the messenger whilst speedily sweeping as much of the message under the carpet as possible. Is it any wonder that people have rejected God as they have? How I would love to delve inside the Vatican and see just what they have concealed over the centuries. What is it they say about absolute power…?

Gandhi was only too well aware of the nature of this world. He repeatedly insisted that his followers did not create a religion based on his teachings and that he should not be worshipped.

Let us look, for example, at the history of Europe. It becomes clear that during feudal times, when feudal lords warred against each other to gain control over the masses, it was the Vatican state that became the ultimate victor and the ultimate feudal lord. The only difference is that it did not use physical weapons to defeat its enemies, (that came later!). It learned to control people’s minds.

The main point, to conclude, is that one should always question what is set before you. Never accept something just because you think, or are told, that you should. We experience this world through the five senses. They are the tools of the ego with which it maintains its illusory hold over us. The senses are, unfortunately, infinitely fallible and all too prone to deceive. Always remember that the devil's greatest feat was convincing mankind that he does not exist.

Car Alarm Invention

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 14:12:00 +0000

I have an idea for a car alarm that combines a cell phone with the alarm itself...

The alarm would have an inbuilt cell phone of some sort. The way it would operate is, when someone tries to break into your car, the alarm triggers a switch that automatically sends a text message from the inbuilt cell phone to a predesignated number or rings that number with a special ring tone to alert you that your car is being stolen.

In addition to this, the phone could also act as a tracking device so that your car could be tracked if the thieves managed to get into your car and drive it away.

The cell phone would be powered buy the car in the same way as other electrical devices. It could even offer a subscription service that allows the phone to notify the police with an automated message when your car is in danger from thieves.

This invention idea is not something that I shall ever do anything with, therefore feel free to use it with my blessings.

God helps those that help themselves

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 12:19:00 +0000

"God helps those that help themselves". I just prayed a simple prayer for help from God and that was the reply I got. It came instantly like a bolt of lightening. "God helps those that help themselves". Well, there you have it.

I felt compelled to research this. Here is what I found...

From http://www.gotquestions.org/God-help-themselves.html

Question: "God helps those who help themselves - is it in the Bible?"
Answer: "God helps those who help themselves" is probably the most often quoted phrase that is not found in the Bible. This is actually a quote from Ben Franklin and it appeared in Poor Richard's Almanac in 1757. In fact the Bible teaches the opposite. God helps the helpless! Isaiah 25:4 declares, "For You have been a defence for the helpless, a defence for the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat..." Romans 5:6 tells us, "For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly."
In terms of salvation, we are all utterly helpless. We are all infected by sin (Romans 3:23), and condemned as a result of that sin (Romans 6:23). Nothing we can do on our own can remedy this situation (Isaiah 64:6). Thankfully, God is the helper of the helpless. While we were still sinners, Jesus died for us (Romans 5:8). Jesus paid the penalty that we were incapable of paying (2 Corinthians 5:21). God provided the "help" that we need precisely because we could not help ourselves.
Apart from salvation, there is perhaps a way that the concept "God helps those who help themselves" is correct. As an example, if you asked me to help you move a piece of furniture, but then just watched me as I moved the furniture for you, I was not actually helping you. I would be doing the work for you. Many Christians fall into the trap of inactivity. Many Christians ask God for help, but then expect God to do everything Himself. They excuse this by pointing to the fact that God will provide according to His will and in His timing. However, this is not a reason for inactivity. As a specific example, if you are in need of a job, ask the Lord to help you find a job - but then be active in actually looking for a job. While it is in His power to do so, it is highly unlikely that God will cause employers to come looking for you!

From http://www.theage.com.au/news/books/the-christian-paradox

In the days before his crucifixion, Jesus said you could tell the righteous from the damned by whether they'd fed the hungry, slaked the thirsty, clothed the naked, welcomed the stranger and visited the prisoner.
...It may be true that God helps those who help themselves, both financially and emotionally. (Certainly fortune does.) But if so it's still a subsidiary truth of Christianity.
... When one of the Pharisees asked Jesus what the core of the law was, Jesus replied: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.''
This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it, "You shall love your neighbour as yourself''.
Love your neighbour as yourself: although its rhetorical power has been dimmed by repetition, it is a radical notion. Jesus made it very clear who the neighbour you were supposed to love was: the poor person, the sick person, the naked person, the hungry person. The last shall be made first; turn the other cheek; a rich person aiming for heaven is like a camel trying to walk through the eye of a needle.
On and on and on - a call for a radical, voluntary and effective reordering of power relationships, based on the principle of love.
...The consumer gospel of the suburban mega churches is a perfect match for conservative economic creeds about personal responsibility instead of collective action. Privatise social security? Keep health care for people who can afford it? File those under God helps those who help themselves.
... Admittedly, this is hope against hope; more likely the money changers and power brokers will remain ascendant in our spiritual life. Since the days of Constantine, emperors and rich men have sought to co-opt the teachings of Jesus. As in so many areas of our increasingly market-tested lives, the TV men, politicians and the Christian interest groups have found a way to make each of us complicit in that travesty, too.
They have invited us to subvert the church of Jesus even as we celebrate it. With their help we have made golden calves of ourselves, become a nation of terrified, self-obsessed idols. It works, and it may well keep working for a long time to come. When Americans hunger for selfless love and are fed only love of self, they will remain hungry, and too often hungry people just come back for more of the same.

From http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/16/messages/895.html

GOD HELPS THOSE WHO HELP THEMSELVES - "Some faith adages roll off the tongue, like 'God helps those who help themselves.' But the saying is not biblical and, in fact, violates a primary scriptural teaching that only God determines a person's destiny, according to religion analyst George Barna (the phrase).is an ancient proverb that shows up in the literature of many cultures, including a 1736 edition of Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac. But it does not appear in the Bible and suggests a spiritual self-reliance inconsistent with Christianity, said David Kinnaman, vice president of Barna Research Group.

It seems that the phrase "God helps those who help themselves" is not in the bible. The question remains though, is it the will of god? From the reading I have done and from the research above, it would seem that god does not want us to remain idle and wants us to take action within gods will. However, it would be more likely that "God helps those who love god with all their hearts and love their neighbour". How does one love thy neighbour? If we look at Christ's actions, it is clear that the way he loved them was by helping them. It seems therefore, that the saying should be "God helps those who help others".

2 blog or not 2 blog?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 11:56:00 +0000

I have come to the point where I am considering beginning a second blog site. I feel that what I am posting appears to be becoming some form of minestrone soup, in that it has no clear focus.

I guess I could start another blog. It would be far more spiritually biased. I could then split my blogs into their separate genres, in that one could be based around self development and the other could be more spiritual. The problem with that is that I would not really be being true to myself...

I have come to the point in my learning where the self-help/self development stuff has merged with the spiritual and the spiritual stuff has won out. What I mean by this is that the laws that govern self help and N.L.P. and so forth are a little like bastardisations of spiritual laws and are watered down versions for the masses.

Please do not misunderstand me, I am not saying there is anything wrong with self-development teaching. There is not. It is just that it is primarily geared towards a lower level of learning. On the whole it is aimed at the mass market and, in truth, much of the deeper level teaching would more often than not be just dismissed as too strange by a beginning student. It is not that the deeper teachings are beyond the comprehension of beginners, no, not that at all. It is just that society has ingrained in us one thing and much of the deeper level teachings do not gel with that. So the student must come to the deeper understanding when they have absorbed the earlier material; when they have begun to seriously question what the world at large teaches. This does happen overnight in most cases.

Should I aim at the masses or should I share what I have found without watering it down? The answer to that is that I have to be true to myself. If what I have to say alienates some and drives them away then that is a risk I must take. I cannot be anything other than true to myself. It may be the case that I am mistaken in what I have found, but as long as I offer what I believe and have found to hold true in my life then my conscience is clear. I will certainly never stop learning and so if I find anything to be contrary to the things I have shared then I will openly and honestly declare that to be the case.

In fairness, I have found that what actually happens is not that the greater understanding proves that which came before to be false. The greater understanding merely deepens the knowledge and there is an unfolding of the subject thereof. It is like a child in school. Initially it will learn one thing but that will be a watered down and simplified version of the whole truth. As the child progresses, more and more shall be revealed, but this does not contradict the initial fact, it expounds upon it. The level of teaching is geared, in an ideal world, to the level of comprehension, or just slightly above to stretch the child.

I am extremely aware that much of what I say may come across as though I am blowing my own trumpet, as the saying goes. This is not my intention, and it is well to point out that in many, many respects I am, at least by the standards of this world, not currently a successful man. My income is very low at this time. True enough, in the past this was not the case. When my worldly aspirations held a different sway than they do presently, I was considered among the top of my field as a salesman, and had an income to match.

Yet that is not where I feel compelled to be now. The inner yearnings, that I have interpreted as God directing me from within, have lead me to this place and I am happy to a large extent. That does not mean that I have no worldly concerns, for I have not yet progressed to that level. It simply means that there are greater ones right now and it is these I must follow. These writings are examples of this.

I think that what I am saying, in the end, is that I must stay with just the one blog and trust that God will direct my posts.

A lesson in humility

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 21:06:00 +0000

It seems that life has a sense of humour. Well, I guess I'm not saying anything new there, am I?! Still, I had a rather embarrassing lesson in humility this evening that I thought I would share with you...

I had been to the supermarket and on return to my car had found myself unable to start it. Since I am not good with cars I always ensure that I am a member of the AA. The truck arrived after about an hour. I did not consider this an unreasonable wait, but boy was it cold. Anyway, it took the mechanic about three seconds to, in an albeit friendly and understanding manner, inform me that automatic transmission cars will not start in the 'drive' position. Heck, I've only ever driven a manual gearbox before so I had no idea. Needless to say he was speedily on his way and so was I.

The lesson in humility came afterwards when I remembered what had happened to me at the tills in the supermarket. They have installed several new self-service till points. These have proved to be a firm favourite with men that often only have one or two items and are paying by cash. However, when the other tills are busy other people get a little more intrepid and have a bash at these 'new-fangled' marvels of modern technology.

This evening the tills were particularly busy and so I found myself waiting in line at the self-service tills watching as several hapless old ladies were trying to figure them out. They were struggling to say the least. While remaining calm and patient, outwardly at least anyway, inside I was debating, just for fun, whether the store owners should stick signs up around these tills saying "Not To Be Used By Women - especially old ones". (I had my sexist, non-tolerant head on, by the way).

Like I said, it was only afterwards in the car as I drove home that I realised the similarities between the two incidents and the irony hit me. Having mentally used up just about every stereotypical joke regarding the elderly ladies in the supermarket, I was now the proverbial 'woman driver'!!! (Please, I do not mean to offend, I use this image for humerous affect only).

Well, like I said at the beginning; a lesson in humility for me, I think!

The Law of Attraction

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 15:58:00 +0000

So what's my problem with the law of attraction? Well, nothing in and of itself. It is one of God's spiritual laws and it works - just like it says on the can! My problem is that we are not being shown the full can.

This means that there are issues in the application of this law and the limited perspective with which it is portrayed. It is touted that one merely need focus on something and repeatedly visualize it and, low and behold, it will come to you. In short, it is being held up as a magic formula.

This is not the truth and people are being misled over one of the most basic laws of the universe...

Many people try to work with the law of attraction and only end up pushing the things they desire away from them. The wannabe millionaire frantically visualizing success yet not having enough money to pay the rent is an all too familiar tale. There can be many causes for this. It could be, for example that you simply want it too much. There is a delicate balance between desiring something so that it burns like a fire in your chest and becoming too attached to the desired result.

Buddha taught of the need for non-attachment. In this he tried to teach us a great spiritual truth. Remember also what Christ taught when he said:

"...for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him."
Matthew 6:8

The problem with using the law of attraction for specific things is that we do not know what we need. We may think we do, but in reality we do not. How many times have you looked back on what seemed like the worst time of your life to realise that, had things gone any other way, you would have ended up in a much worse predicament. We do not have the phrase "a blessing in disguise" for nothing.

The way to use the law of attraction is to realise that it is all tied up with vibration. We are nothing but energy in motion. Science has effectively demonstrated this. Another word for 'energy in motion' is 'vibration'. The law of attraction is based on the hermetic axiom that like attracts like. If you play a single piano note in a room with another piano, the same note on that other piano will start to sound as well.

Therefore to have health, happiness and abundance in our lives, we must use the law of attraction to gain those things. Yet, to actually have them, we cannot start specifying the form in which they will manifest. It may be that we want a particular house but, if we could see things as God does, we might realise that there is a better house for us. What we must do is to attune our rate of vibration so that the things we desire are attracted to us but at the same time realise that "...your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him."

The question now becomes, how do we raise our rate of vibration? There are many ways, just as there are many ways of lowering it too. In fact, every action, every thought and every feeling we have or do is constantly raising or lowering our rate of vibration. This is what is known as karma.

It is no accident, for instance that spiritual teachers advise against things such as alcohol, drugs, smoking, swearing, pornography and the like. All these things serve to lower our vibrations. Just as watching or reading certain things, if not done so in the correct way, can also lower our rate. Similarly, reading or watching positive material, thinking thoughts of gratitude and love, praying, meditating and so forth can all help to raise our vibrational rate.

What it all comes down to is this, if you want good things to happen in your life then you would do better to have good positive thoughts, feelings and actions. If you have bad, negative and depressive thoughts, feelings and actions, then the things that correspond to that will be drawn to you like a magnet.

Guard your thoughts and your guard you life. Of course, maintaining this is not easy. However, this is what is required of each and every one of us.

The next thing to look at is why things do not come to us even when we get all these things right. That, however, is another post!

Prayer

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 15:30:00 +0000

I have just found an awesome article on prayer. It is a catholic site but the principles taught hold good for all prayer. There is only one God, whether you call it Christ, Buddha, Tao or whatever.

http://holytransfiguration.org/Prayer.htm

Please enjoy.

Inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 13:58:00 +0000

It is true to say that help is always available to us but, to gain access to that help, we must first make the effort to reach out for it.

After my post earlier today about hope I happened upon the following blog post. It concerns a man with no arms and no legs that has gone on to become an inspiration to millions. It is well worth a visit. Watch the YouTube videos. Outstanding!

http://growing-self.blogspot.com/2007/11/no-armsno-legsno-limits.html

Quote: Mark Twain

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 13:02:00 +0000

I just received the following quote in my inbox this morning and wanted to share it. Please enjoy.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

A message of hope

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 12:06:00 +0000

I wrote the following in my journal. It started off very depressive and negative but turned into a message of hope. As a result, I decided to include it on my blog in an unedited format. I pass it on in the hope that it may provide a little hope to someone else when they feel that life is getting to them...

29th November 2007
I've been feeling very down and negative of late. This next entry or, should I say, this current entry is intended to be a release session where I let all my negative and depressed feelings out and release them into this journal. This is a technique I've just read about in a magazine.

Ok, so what is wrong? I guess I'm feeling like I'm just a waste of space and cannot seem to do anything right or well enough. I fantasise that I am a writer or some sort of guru in the making or indeed even that I could reach enlightenment in the future.

In reality it's all make believe. Look at me! I'm earning precisely nothing. I have three failed businesses under my belt and I cannot even motivate myself to collect any of the money owed to me from my customers - even though I'm owed the equivalent of several months worth of living expenses.

I feel like a joke. Who am I kidding that I can achieve anything at all? I should just kill myself and get it all over with. I am so sad and lonely. I have no one to talk to at all. It is my fault really because I do not share my feelings very much. I feel there is no one I can turn to. Instead I turn to God. I would love to say that in God all my troubles are healed but they do not seem to be.

Tony Robbins says that we should not wish our troubles away because they are what makes us grow and become better people. He uses the analogy of a body builder. When asked how he got so big, the body builder replied that every day he pushes against massive resistance to build himself up and by doing that he gets a little stronger each time. The results are what you now see.

I know my troubles are the lessons I must face in life and that if I was not fully equipped to deal with them or strong enough to handle them emotionally, I would not be given them. Yet, through all this I just get so weary and tired and feel like I've gone ten rounds, not just with Mike Tyson, but also with my best friend who has decided to use all my weakest points to destroy me emotionally and psychologically. Worst of all, I do not know whether there will be a bell to signify the end of the round or whether this round will continue for the rest of my life. All I know for sure is that, just as the punches and kicks continue, so too do the humiliating taunts. They say that "sticks and stones may break my bones, but calling names will never hurt me". If only that were true.

I wish I had a passage from the bible to call on at times like this. Instead I think of Job. I think that all that befalls me is nothing compared to Job and his ails. I trust that through it all, God has a plan. God is with me and in God all shall be made right. In the words of the Elvis song "You'll never walk alone" I am comforted:

When you walk through a storm hold your head up high
And don't be afraid of the dark.
At the end of a storm is a golden sky
And the sweet silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind,
Walk on through the rain,
Tho' your dreams be tossed and blown.
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone,
You'll never, ever walk alone.

And so I am comforted somewhat. I feel the release that I so desperately needed. The tears flowed and washed me. All is not rosy, but I am given the courage to continue a little further. Winston Churchill once said:

"When you're going through hell, keep going".