ACIM Brother Gi�??s Blog

Why not to pour Gasoline on a Fire (or: Why not to Fight the Ego)

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:00:00 +0000

ACIM Mentor made a comment today that I think is very important to remember:

"You have to let go of ego. Don't embrace it, don't fight it - let it go."

Too many people fight the ego. After all, it makes sense: You learn that the ego is the cause of your troubles, and so it makes sense to get rid of it. So far so good, but how do you get rid of it?

By not fighting it!

Why? Because fighting is part of the ego. In fact, fighting is the very core of the ego. That's what the ego is.

The ego is the fighter inside of you. It's the ego inside you that screams in outrage when things go wrong. It's the ego that judges your brothers and sisters. It's the ego that fights the ego itself . . . why? Because it knows that by fighting it merely increases in strength.

Fighting the ego is like pouring gasoline on a fire.

So how do you put out the fire? A Course In Miracles gives us this very simple advice:

"I need do nothing."

Your only problem is that you keep on fighting. At first you fight everyday things around you. Then, when you grow a bit spiritually and notice that your suffering is actually caused not by outside events but by internal reactions, you make the first mistake of the spiritually minded: You start fighting yourself.

Of course, ACIM teaches that everything you see, including your own thoughts and body, are merely external projections, all part of the illusion you have made. Whether you appear fight things outside yourself or things inside yourself makes no difference whatsoever.

Finding peace means letting the fire burn itself out. Simply stop feeding it.

If you stop feeding the fire, eventually it will run out of fuel. The ego can only exist as long as you put faith in it. It depends on you to keep feeding it. And the ego feeds on fighting and judgment.

The key to peace in ACIM is simple once you understand it. You can be sure that you will not always want to practice it, but at least you have no excuse. The key is simply to give up all fight, completely. I don't mean be like those depressed people who go around moping, complaining that they've "lost all hope". I mean recognising that since you are one with God, there is no need to fight. You are free. Be glad!

Simply allow all reactions to burn themselves out by not reacting to them. They won't change immediately, but that doesn't matter. What matters is that you are no longer pouring fuel on the fire. Eventually, if you keep that up long enough, there will be nothing left for the ego to burn with.

No more fighting. No more fire. Perfect peace.

When that happens, we say that someone has become "enlightened". It's not such a big deal. It's not something you have to "achieve". It simply means that there is absolutely no more fight in you.

I know that phrase sounds terrible to our ego distorted ears. But just try it. It works. It brings tremendous joy and peace.

Does that mean you should become a doormat, and just let people walk all over you? Quite the contrary! But that is a topic for another day...

Peace,
Brother Gi

Don't venture too far off Course

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 16:39:00 +0000

When it comes to A Course In Miracles, there's a policy that is quite useful:

Don't venture too far away from the Text itself.

Don't get so caught up in the things other people teach about the course, that you end up studying the teacher, and not the course. We are only human, and our understanding is not perfect. Anything that anyone teaches, and this includes myself, is merely the best approximation of truth for that person at that time.

Even the Course is just an approximation of truth. It is, however, the most accurate and useful approximation that I have found. As Arten and Pursah say in The Disappearance of the Universe, A Course In Miracles is the closest that language can come to expressing the truth, which simply cannot be expressed in language. Truth is an experience beyond words because it is beyond all separation - something that language fully relies on.

That is why ACIM focuses on practices that lead to the experience of truth, instead of simply stating the truth and expecting you to be satisfied, like most other systems do.

The idea that the world is an illusion is not new. But that idea is useless without practical techniques to experience this truth for yourself. That is why ACIM is useful - it provides the means to achieve the goal.

So when some people say things like "oh, ACIM does not teach anything not taught by system X, Y, and Z", my response is, "Not in theory, no, but certainly in practice."

And practice is what matters.

You see, some people like arguing theology. They like doing what the course calls "being right". ACIM asks us this:

"Would you rather be right or happy?"

That means you can either argue with people, or forgive them. You cannot do both. It's not possible. Arguing with them in the first place means that you are making the illusion of bodies real. You are seeing them as separate from God and guilty, otherwise you wouldn't be fighting them in the first place. And remember:

"As you see him you will see yourself."

So stop fighting people, and start forgiving. Scoring a few theological points will get you nothing. It will keep you stuck here in the dream. Nor will convincing anyone, blaming anyone, trying to correct anyone's mistakes, or thinking you are better than anyone help you one bit. In fact it will hold you back.

Remember when I talked about not fighting the ego? Just let go! Just forgive. ACIM teaches:

"The only function of a teacher of god is to accept the atonement for himself."

You need to understand that the Holy Spirit is working with every one of your brothers and sisters just like He is working with you. And here's the important point:

The Holy Spirit knows his job much better than you do.

Do you really think that you can do a better job of helping your brothers find peace than He can? You need to think about this seriously. If you are honest with yourself you will realise that the answer can only be no.

This leaves you with only one thing to do: forgive. If, once you have forgiven, you feel guided to share your insights with someone because you care for them, then of course you do so. Or perhaps because you find that sharing these ideas actually helps you to remember and practice them, like I do.

We are actually allowed to be happy within the dream. Too many systems teach that you should scorn the world and not enjoy it. What nonsense! If ACIM teaches anything, it's that the world is simply a dream, and it therefore does not matter what you do. It never says you should not enjoy the dream. In fact it goes so far as to say that you should bring joy to yourself and others, because doing so is symbolic of extending love in Heaven with God. Extending love is how you come to accept God's love for yourself. Remember, ACIM says "as you treat him, you will treat yourself."

So don't listen to people who use A Course In Miracles as an excuse to dislike the world, to withdraw from it, or to feel superior to it. Those people are missing the point, and certainly not practicing A Course In Miracles. What they are doing is simply making another mistake, and justifying it with an incorrect interpretation of the Text.

Peace,

Brother Gi

Why the audio-book is a good way to study A Course In Miracles

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 15:57:00 +0000

By far the most useful thing I have done for my own understanding of A Course In Miracles is to acquire the audio-book produced by the Foundation for Inner Peace.

The beauty of the text is brought to it's full right by the soothing voice of Mr. Jim Stewart, who has been a Course student since 1977. Jim reads the text with deep understanding, so it sounds like it really is the Voice of the Course speaking.

Do yourself a favor. Get this CD set, and upload the whole thing onto an Ipod. I sometimes spend entire days with ACIM playing in my ears. Most of the time I'm not even consciously listening, but every now and again a sentence will float into awareness and enlighten some aspect of my experience.

It is a deeply peaceful way to study the Course, which can be a bit daunting if you try to focus consciously on it. ACIM is best learnt by letting it flow over you like a gentle stream. Struggling with the text does not help, and I think that is the reason why some people find it overwhelming. They fight it, instead of appreciate it.

If something does not make sense to you, just let it be. In time, and with more experience, you will understand what the text is saying. It is not all meant for you at once. ACIM includes very advanced teachings, that are nearly impossible to explain through language, and so builds on itself gently and slowly. Understand the bits that you do understand, and allow the other bits to float through your mind peacefully until they too, one day, sink in and take root.

Too many people take the bits they do not understand, and try to work out complex theories to explain them. This leads to all the misunderstanding about ACIM that you see floating around. Just admit that you don't understand, and ask the Holy Spirit to show you the real meaning, in His own time, and when you are ready for it. Then let it go.

Now I would like to hear from you. What useful ways of studying A Course In Miracles have you found? Let us know in the comments section.

May the peace of God be with you today.

Brother Gi

Why study A Course In Miracles?

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:51:00 +0000

The world is full of suffering. We as individuals are often full of suffering. Whether it's fear over your next paycheck, stress over an exam, the pain of separation from someone you love, or the utter devastation of losing a close family member . . . suffering seems to be everywhere. In fact, the Buddha used to say that realising this was the first step on the path to undoing it.

Now, a lot of people seek temporary escape from suffering. It's true, we all want the same thing - from the worst dictator to the kindest saint - we want to be happy. It's just that there are some ways of gaining happiness that work, and other ways that don't work, or that seem to work for a short while until "something else goes wrong."

What we seek, therefore, and what the Buddha sought for and what Christ sought for and what Osho sought for (insert any wise person here), is a way that will lessen or even remove this suffering not only for a short while, but permanently. We seek a means of removing pain that does not cause more pain later on, whether to yourself or others, and does not last for only a short while. That is to say, it should not be the kind of solution that works only in some cases and not in others. What we seek is a universal solution.

So what is the universal solution?

Well, there have been a number of different answers from teachers in the past who have claimed to find some of this peace they were seeking. Comparing them can lead us to some good clues. This is where comparative religion / spirituality comes in, and studying that has been a large part of my history in search of peace.

In short, a number of common principles arise. A few of them are:

Loving yourself and others unconditionally (Jesus).
Not being attached to worldly things (Jesus and Buddha).
Being humble (Jesus and Buddha).
Choosing peace instead of conflict (Jesus and Buddha).
Forgiving everything around you, that is, letting go of any desire to fight or control it, surrendering (Jesus and Buddha).

And sometimes even such controversial statements as:

The world is an illusion (Buddha, The Gnostics, Advaita & Hinduism)

If you are one of those people that seek peace, then it would make sense to persue some of these concepts and practices to see if they work. Most spiritually minded people I know tend to grow an eclectic spirituality of their own over time. They take bits and pieces from the different teachers and weave these into a fabric that works for them. They practice these ideas until the fabric serves them well, and keep adding and changing as they grow.

Here's where A Course In Miracles came in for me.

Stumbling around between all these different teachers and ideas, practicing this and that, and never quite having any single thing to hold on to, I found something quite surprising: a single document that contained all of these ideas which I had puzzled out for myself. Here they were aranged intelligent by a single voice. What was more, they were not merely stated as ideas to "believe", but were combined with simple and practical steps that I could take to achieve the peace that I wanted - in the present. In fact, the book said that what you believe is much less important than how you respond to what you are seeing - an idea that I agreed with personally. What this gave to me was something that had real results in the present. A lot of spiritual systems ask you to make yourself suffer in the present, with the promise of peace later on. For some reason or another, I never quite bought this - it sounded more like a sales technique to me than good advice. And thank goodness I didn't believe it, because it turned out to be false.

So now I have a single document which replaces the need for me to puzzle out my own practice from all the systems out there. Of course I am still interested in all these systems, and I sometimes practice forms of Buddhist meditation as well, but I no longer cling to these things and struggle with them like I did. I read and study them because they interest me, and because they can often shed light on something within ACIM that I didn't fully grasp beforehand. My practice of Vipassana Meditation was one such example that taught me what true forgiveness means in practice.

So should you study A Course In Miracles? The answer is that it doesn't matter, and there certainly is nothing in the world that you should do. But why might one study A Course In Miracles? Well, I can only answer from my own experience and explain why I prefer to study A Course In Miracles above all else. The answer is simply this:

I want peace.
A Course In Miracles brings me peace.

As simple as that. That's all it comes down to. ACIM works for me. It works very well. Looking at how I feel nowadays as compared to the past is like looking at two different people. I have more peace now than I have ever had and this continues to grow daily. Do I still go through difficult times? Of course. But they invariably get less difficult the moment I remember the forgiveness that ACIM teaches.

I am under no illusion that everyone will find their key to peace in A Course In Miracles. I am certain, however, that for those to whom it does speak, to whom it does resonate, it is a powerfull system that brings immediate results if you actually practice it. That is more than I can say for 99% of the so-called spiritual ideas that I have come across before.

Nor is A Course In Miracles in competition with anything else. In fact is says that it is merely one form of the "universal curriculum". The truth is that the Holy Spirit is working with every person, every group, every organisation - any illusory ego of any kind - to teach them the simple lessons of peace. How they will come to translate that into language does not matter. That they practice it does.

It is like someone once said, and I forget who: If you are a Christian, be a good Christian, if you are a Muslim, be a good Muslim, if you are a Buddhist, be a good Buddhist.

That is how it should be, and that is perfect. As the Course says:

A universal theology is impossible, but a universal experience is not only possible, but necessary.

Peace to you all.

Brother Gi

The simple choice

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:34:00 +0000

A Course In Miracles is really simple because it always comes down to this, and nothing else:

A single choice, in the moment, between "making it real" and "not making it real".

That is all.

To forgive is simply to remember that nothing you see is real, that only God exists, that the apparent Separation from Him never occurred because it never could occur, that you are not a body and neither is anything or anyone else, because you are all simply one with God.

"Making it real" is what you've been doing all your life, and it's been causing you nothing but suffering.

Practice to make forgiveness a habit. Keep practicing it over and over again. It will become more natural, more frequent. Your suffering and fear will start to lessen until one day there will be nothing left of it. Eventually the Peace of God will be your constant state of mind.

It simply comes down to practicing forgiveness, over and over again, in the present moment.

It's not difficult, but you can choose not to do it. It's always your choice.

In Peace,
Brother Gi

Don't Course-bash yourself!

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 07:23:00 +0000

A lot of people use spiritual teachings to make themselves guilty, instead of using them to free themselves.

We are all familiar with the phrase "bible bashing", which refers to people using the Bible to make other people guilty (although, as we'll see, making yourself or another guilty is just two sides of the same coin). Now, with A Course In Miracles it is really extremely difficult to make yourself or another person guilty. I mean, this is a book so full of love and beauty, and so devoid of fear or anger in any form, that it is amazing to me to see how far the ego will go to use even ACIM as a weapon...

One thing I hear sometimes is, "Oh my! How could I possibly project such horrific things?" (I must be terribly guilty! Look at all this disgusting...) WOAH! Take a step back. You are missing the point . . .

The point is that it is a projection, which meas it isn't real, which means you aren't guilty. It basically comes down to understanding the Atonement principle.

The Atonement principle is simply this: The separation from God never occured.

What this means is this:

1) You are able to imagine all kinds of things that do not exist, right? (think of a pink elephant...)

2) Imagining something does not make it real. You cannot go to jail for imagining that you punched your neighbour in the face (otherwise we would all be in big trouble!)

3) Before this separation even appeared to occurr, we had a thought. Just for an instant a tiny thought entered the mind, in the form of a question. This question goes something like this: "What would it be like to go off on my own and be the ruler?"

4) The mind cannot not provide you with an answer. The moment you asked that question, you started imagining what that would be like. The answer, as you're seeing in your imagination all around you every day, is that it would actually suck quite a lot . . . if it were real.

But of course it's not real, because you're just imagining it.

That is what A Course In Miracles means when it says that you are dreaming and that everything you see is a projection. It's kind of like a stage actor playing a role, then forgetting that he's merely acting and getting stuck in it. When he goes out to play the role of Jack the Ripper, he has to imagine, in his mind, that he is a murderer. He must feel like one, talk like one, think like one . . . for a little while on screen he must fully become a murderer in his mind . . . But does this make him a murderer?

This point can be difficult to get, but you need to get it:

You are only dreaming! None of this is real! (And therefore you are not guilty at all, in any way, not even for projecting the images you see.)

So do not fall for the old ego trap of using perfectly harmless ideas to bash yourself over the head with. Leave that to the ego, and forgive it for merely appearing to do so. I often see Course people doing this to each other too, like when the so-called "Master Teacher" slapped Gary Renard on the head with a shout of "dumb sh*t!"

Seriously, how enlightened could the so-called Master Teacher be if he not only does not realise that Gary is merely a projection for his own guilt, but actually thinks that the guilt is real in the first place? Or that he as a person is real, for that matter?

And of course, even as I write that, I realise that the "Master Teacher" is merely a projected symbol inviting me to project my own belief in guilt onto - thus providing a perfect opportunity to forgive by merely remembering the Atonement Principle . . . do you see how many levels the ego tries to make? Don't forgive one level merely to get caught out by another. To project guilt onto anything, even your apparent "self", is to make the separation real, and therefore not to forgive at all.

It's time we all stop playing these ego games, stop Course-bashing, stop Bible-bashing, stop Bhagavad-Gita-bashing, stop Evolutionism-or-Creationism-bashing, stop Politics-bashing . . .

. . . and Forgive.

In Peace,

Brother Gi

Brother Gi's New Website

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 13:59:00 +0000

Hi Everyone!

If you're following this blog, be sure to check out my new website at http://brothergi.110mb.com/

I decided I need more space to place links, articles, thoughts, suggestions, authors, readings and more . . . all related to A Course In Miracles!

A single blog is just not enough space. Check the website periodically for updates. If you have any suggestions for content or links that can be placed there, let me know at acimbrothergi@gmail.com

In Peace,

Brother Gi

What does A Course In Miracles say about the past?

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:43:00 +0000

What does A Course In Miracles say about the past?

"The one wholly true thought one can hold about the past is that it is not here. To think about it at all is therefore to think about illusions. Very few have realized what is actually entailed in picturing the past or in anticipating the future. The mind is actually blank when it does this, because it is not really thinking about anything."

Which is why it also says:

"Can you find light by analyzing darkness, as the psychotherapist does, or like the theologian, by acknowledging darkness in yourself and looking for a distant light to remove it, while emphasizing the distance?"

A lot of people like to think the past is extremely important, they go digging in there for all the dirt that they are sure must be there - after all, something is clearly very wrong, so it must have been caused in the past, right?

Wrong. A Course In Miracles teaches that your choice to suffer or be happy is always made in the present. The past or future are just excuses you use to see the apparent cause of your suffering as somewhere else, thus ensuring that you can hide it from yourself just a little while longer. Do not be fooled by your apparent attempts to seek it there. They are nothing but a delusion of self. If you would really let go of all fear and suffering, it must be done right now, in the present. Forget all the forms that you associate with it and remember the one truth that releases them all, regardless of how big or small you think they are:

"Nothing real can be threatened.

Nothing unreal exists."

If you measure any belief you hold about yourself against this, you cannot go wrong about what you really are. Ask yourself: can a body be threatened? Then you are not a body. Can your world be threatened? Then the world is not real.

The logic of A Course In Miracles is really simple. In fact, it is so simple, as Jesus teaches, that it's impossible to mis. It is actually extremely difficult to keep ignoring the truth, and it is this effort that is making you tired and unhappy. Just let go. Drop all effort, as both Buddha and Jesus have taught us, and truth must surely come to you, because it is natural.

Have a blessed day!

Brother Gi

We say, "God is", and then we cease to speak because there is nothing else.

If Heaven is so great, why did we leave?

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:19:00 +0000

I liked this author's explanation of the non-duality of A Course In Miracles so much that I decided to direct you guys straight to it, instead of trying to write something about it myself. The author's use of metaphors is extremely good as he explains the Atonement principle, which can be difficult to grasp intellectually. The post is essentially his answer to the question: "If Heaven is so great, why did we leave?". Enjoy!

http://whyamiaduck.wordpress.com/2008/09/03/5-if-heaven-is-so-great-why-did-we-leave/

In Peace,

Brother Gi

The River: I need do nothing.

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:07:00 +0000

Your journey is in greater hands than yours. You struggle too hard to try and save yourself - let go. Flow as if you are flowing down a river. Relax. You won't get there any faster by your own efforts. The River knows where it is going. It will wash you out into the great ocean of God in it's own time, gently. There's only one thing you need do on this journey, and it is not a doing at all, merely a remembering: Forgive.

That is why A Course In Miracles teaches:

"I need do nothing."

Peace,

Brother Gi

How could you be afraid?

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 08:06:00 +0000

How could you be afraid of images that you have made?

Everything you see, including yourself, is simply an image that you have made. All of the fears and dangers that you come across in your daily life was chosen by you to appear there in order to hide the deep guilt that you feel. None of this is real, including the so-called guilt. Why is this so? Because of the one thing that never happened: The apparent separation from God.

If A Course In Miracles teaches one thing, it is this: The separation from God never occurred.

This is what ACIM calls "The Atonement principle". To remember the Atonement principle is simply to remember that God is still the only reality, that nothing else exists, and that we never could be separate from Him in any way. This is the meaning of forgiveness, as ACIM teaches it.

Nor is this a God that exists as some being in the clouds controlling everything, the way that outdated religions understand Him. ACIM teaches that God is perfectly abstract, because He is beyond all form, beyond all space and all time, and this includes any opposite you can think of, including gender. When ACIM speaks of God as "He", or His "Son" and our "Brothers" be sure to understand that this is purely metaphoric language. ACIM is very clear on the fact that there is only perfect abstraction. There cannot really be God and His Son and our Brothers if there is only One - which is called God.

This is why Ken Wapnick so often stresses that ACIM talks in two levels. Level I is the level of pure non-duality, the truth that only "God is." Level II is a metaphoric level that speaks in a language that makes sense to "us" in the illusion in order to guide us gently out of it. The two levels should not be confused, and it should always be remembered that the second level is not real at all.

The Course is so long because the ego that we can made is so complex, and it seeks to undo that ego from the ground up. But ultimately A Course In Miracles is an extremely simple Course. In fact it is the most simple Course possible, because that it can be summed up simply in two words:

"God is."

Or, to be more complete, we can provide the summary that A Course In Miracles gives of itself in the preface:

"Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists."

In these two sentences the entire Course In Miracles is summarised, for those who have come to understand it. The meaning is exactly the same as a sentence that I often like to use: "We say, 'God is', and then we cease to speak because there is nothing else" (From The Disappearance of the Universe by Gary Renard). The "real" is referred to as God in ACIM. The "unreal" is everything else that you think you see, all those images that you have made that cannot do anything in reality.

So as I've said, how can you be afraid something that doesn't exist? How can you be afraid of images that you yourself have made?

Peace,

Brother Gi

Everything is always about God.

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:01:00 +0000

Everything is always about God. That is the secret to salvation. Both the real reason for your troubles and the secret to your escape from them lie in this. It is the secret to what is really going on, because as A Course In Miracles says in the Workbook, Lesson 5, "I am never upset for the reason I think." I think I am upset because the neighbour's dog is barking, because I lost my keys, because my car broke down, because a friend of mine died . . . But these are only symbols of what really upsets you: the terrible thought that you fell away from God, that you are now alone, extremely guilty, and likely to be attacked by God Himself at any instance for the terrible crime you think you have committed.

Child of God, this is not true. Stop projecting this single fear into every form that you make. Solving each of your tiny worldly problems, even if you could, would not solve the real problem, which is simply your mistaken belief in something that never occurred. God is not broken, God is not angry, God is only perfect innocence and love, and could never be anything else. How could you think it is even possible to separate from God? Are you somehow more powerful than Him, that you could say to the Father, "I do not want you anymore, I am going away."? Do not play with silly, childish thoughts like this. A child points his finger at a toy car, and in his mind dreams that he is firing powerful rockets at it that can destroy and burn and break . . . do not be a child. You cannot simply point your finger at God and break Him. Nor could he be angry, because he knows that in these dreams of fear and hate that you take so seriously you are merely a Child of His, playing silly games as children do. As ACIM says, "God is not mocked" is not a warning, but a reassurance. It reassures us that nothing has ever happened, that there is no guilt and fear, and that we can simply let all our illusions go, including every dream of a worldly problem we think we have.

If you are not a body, and I assure you that you aren't, then how could all these little things matter?

That is why "God is" is the answer to all questions, if you understand it correctly. What is it that you are so afraid of, what is it that you really think has gone wrong? The answer is God. And what is it that can solve your problems, and take you beyond even the greatest of them in this world? Simply remembering that your illusions about God could never be real.

God is perfect, God is love, God is all-powerful and you are not separate from Him in any way. Forget your name, forget your life, forget your goals and dreams and fears, your righteous indignation, your childish demands - let go of your kicking and screaming. They are nothing but the tantrums of a little child.

God is calling you. Put down your toys and go back to Him.

In Peace,

Brother Gi

healer, heal thyself!

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 21:16:00 +0000

How does true healing occur? It occurs when you forgive yourself and the other person what neither of you have actually done - for, in fact, not existing at all as anything separate from God. Can God be sick? Could God need healing? Then what mistake of the mind are you choosing to make by seeing anyone or anything as sick.

Sickness is not of the body, because the body does not exist. Sickness is merely a condition of the mind, which it chooses because it sees itself as guilty and separate. To heal another then, you simply need to recognise, for them and for yourself, the complete unreality of anything that is not of God. Sickness is not possible because God did not create it. To see it then in anything, including yourself or anyone else, is simply to make a mistake in perception.

You can choose to see guilt because you can choose to make yourself and others appear guilty. Doing so, however, will only result in suffering, which is always a mental thing. There is no such thing as physical suffering. How can suffering be physical if there is no physical body?

Come back to your Self. See suffering and pain as where it really comes from - within your own mind, as a choice that you are currently making in the present about what you, and everything and everyone else you see, really are. Then choose to forgive it with the Holy Spirit by choosing to remember that only God is, and that nothing except God could ever exist.

Then release whatever is going on. Whether it appears as though the symptoms go away or not is not the point. How could it matter when the body or the illness is not real to begin with? The point is that now the mind is forgiven and released, and experiencing pain becomes impossible. The innocent mind cannot suffer, under any circumstances.

And does distance matter in healing? Can you heal something or someone far away? Of course - what could space possibly mean if the whole world is an illusion? A Course In Miracles is very clear about the fact that both space and time are merely incorrect perceptions. They do not exists, and the illusion of them will ultimately fade away as the mind is completely forgiven.

So across space and time, nothing is beyond the minds ability to forgive. You can forgive and therefore heal anything that occurred at any time past, present, or future no matter how crazy or how bad it may appear to you to be in the illusion.

Nothing is real except God. In this recognition all healing lies.

In the peace of God, Amen.

Brother Gi-

what is the cause of suffering?

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 11:09:00 +0000

I found this quote from the Manual for Teachers today:

M-5.I.1. Healing is accomplished the instant the sufferer no longer sees any value in pain. Who would choose suffering unless he thought it brought him something, and something of value to him? He must think it is a small price to pay for something of greater worth. For sickness is an election; a decision. It is the choice of weakness, in the mistaken conviction that it is strength. When this occurs, real strength is seen as threat and health as danger. Sickness is a method, conceived in madness, for placing God's Son on his Father's throne. God is seen as outside, fierce and powerful, eager to keep all power for Himself. Only by His death can He be conquered by His Son.

Suffering, sickness and death are nothing but our own choice to punish ourselves for something that we did not even do in the first place. If we choose to see the illusion as real, we cannot help but feel guilty about it, projecting the guilt upon others, and secretly punishing ourselves without even knowing it.

We can choose to be free of it. The instant we no longer choose pain and guilt, in anyone, but choose to recognise the truth that only God is. It takes practice and experience to fully realise what we are doing to ourselves. But it also takes only a simple decision to stop doing it.

Pay close attention. What is the real cause of your suffering? Is it really what is going on outside yourself? Or is it rather your own interpretation of what is going on outside yourself?

If you choose to make your body real, to see yourself as one with it, then you cannot help but suffer and be fearful in the world. After all, the body is extremely fragile and can fall victim to any number of problems, be they physical, psychological or social. What if you realised that you never where a body, and that what appears to happen to the body makes no difference to you as the Son of God at all? How would you feel? Would that not be a far more peaceful state to live in, with the knowledge that you cannot be harmed or threatened in any way?

What but exactly this does A Course In Miracles teach?

Peace,

Brother Gi-

sometimes we desperately want to leave this place

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:06:00 +0000

There is a quote from the Bible that has always struck me deeply because I know what it feels like. It is this:

Psalm 130:1-4: Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD.

Sometimes we despair at the horror of the world. Sometimes we feel trapped, desperate to escape the chains that hold us in a place that we simply no longer want to be in. Some people even contemplate suicide. The Course, however, has a much better idea. I am reminded of this again by the following question and answer passage, and I would share it with you gladly. It is from the Question & Answer service at http://www.facimoutreach.org/. I find the answer provided to be exactly on par with my understanding of what A Course In Miracles teaches. Read, enjoy, and be at peace, my brothers and sisters:

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Q #1331 Help! As a Course student I feel I just don't want to be here any more!

Q #1331 : I've been studying the Course over a long period of time and so it seems strange to me that I'm having this thought. The thought is: I really don't want to be here any longer. It's a thought that I experience so deeply and so frequently each day. It's a thought that haunts me. Now, I do understand that the Course is about changing our mind and not about going to another place. I also understand that suicide is not the answer since the death of the body doesn't solve anything. Maybe the deep longing to be out of this world is really a reflection of wanting to be out of the misery that having an ego entails -- but this process takes so very long. Could you help me with this?

A: Recognizing that you do not want to be here is not only a normal and predictable consequence of studying A Course in Miracles , but, in fact, a crucial one. Again and again, the Course returns to the theme that this world is not our home. Indeed, it beautifully describes the experience of feeling haunted by the thought of not wanting to be here: "there is a Child in you Who seeks His Father's house, and knows that He is alien here. It is this Child Who knows His Father. He desires to go home so deeply, so unceasingly, His voice cries unto you to let Him rest a while. He whispers of His home unceasingly to you." (W.p1.182.4:3; 5:2,3; 7:4).

Because most of us have spent our entire lives keeping this unceasing voice deeply buried, Jesus' efforts in the Course to bring it to our awareness can feel quite shocking. We may simultaneously be comforted that he knows exactly how we feel and frightened that we now have to acknowledge a truth that threatens the very foundation of who we think we are. Fortunately, there is another message in the Course that makes this situation bearable. Jesus teaches us that we are not here. He tells us, "Nothing at all has happened but that you have put yourself to sleep, and dreamed a dream in which you were an alien to yourself" (T.28.II.4:1) . He further teaches us that since this is a dream, we have control over the dream's content: "there is a choice of dreams while you are still asleep, depending on the purpose of your dreaming. A dream is like a memory in that it pictures what you wanted shown to you" (T.28.II.4:3, 5) .

This, then, provides the key with which we can face the sense of not wanting to be here and ultimately find relief from the pain it causes us. The ego would have us interpret our desire not to be here as a longing to leave the physical world -- an inherently futile endeavor because there is no physical world from which to escape. The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, would reinterpret this desire as the perfectly sensible and achievable longing to awaken and leave the state of mind that has brought us nothing but pain. Therefore, by turning over the thought, "I don't want to be here any longer" to the Holy Spirit, we can have it transformed from a hopeless lament about our seemingly external situation into an inspirational wake-up call to change our internal situation. In the process, the world will seem to change from a noxious prison to a wondrous classroom.

When we are tempted to feel like prisoners here, threatened by seemingly cruel external forces and frustrated by a spiritual journey that can feel slow and rocky, we would do well to remember the following words: "there must be another way of looking at [the world] . I see everything upside down, and my thoughts are the opposite of truth. I see the world as a prison for God's Son. It must be, then, that the world is really a place where he can be set free. I would look upon the world as it is, and see it as a place where the Son of God finds his freedom" (W.p1.57.3).

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Signed,

Brother Gi

first email post and thoughts for the day

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:43:00 +0000

This post mainly serves the purpose to test out the new email-blogging feature I found in blogger. However, since this is a blog about A Course In Miracles, here is a thought that springs from Workbook Lesson 1 that I started with again today:

Nothing I see means anything.

Why is this so?

It is because everything I see is merely my own projection, including my own body, that I made up for the purpose of carrying all the unconscious guilt that I feel. Nothing is more special than anything else in the world because it is all the same. It is all the same because it all shares the same purpose: holders of guilt to make me feel temporarily better by making the images I see guilty.

To forgive is to recognise that God is not a form or body in any way, and that God is all that exists. No body is real, no matter how lofty or how abstract it may seem. Even the Christ mind is ultimately an illusion if we see it as anything different or separate from God.

This is why I need not solve any problems in the world. This is why I need never fear. This is why one illusory choice in the world is no better or worse than another. And that is why it does not matter what I choose to do. How important your decision seems makes no difference, whether it is about a new career or which cup of coffee to drink. It is all the same because it is all simply empty projections for the same purpose. Now you can choose to remove that purpose. You can choose not to project guilt but to remember for all the images you see that God is still the only reality. Your brothers and sisters are nothing separate from you in any way - it is simply yourself as God, and Christ - and Christ and God are not separate in any way.

If the Course talks about anything in terms of separation as though it is real, be sure that it is using metaphoric language in order to make a very abstract point more understandable to you. You see, we still believe in these illusions, even if only unconsciously, so Christ and the Holy Spirit need to speak to us sometimes in symbols we can understand. But the purpose is always to lead us beyond any symbols, beyond believing that anything we made up is real or has any meaning. Whenever you can remember that, that only God is, you go beyond all symbols and do not need them in any way.

See, all of this is contained simply in the first lesson of A Course In Miracles. It is truly holographic! You cannot actually miss the message once you get what it really is.

Peace to you all.

Brother Gi

beautiful reminder from a course in miracles

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 14:31:00 +0000

If we lose our peace and start worrying, start fearing, we can simply remember this, a very soothing reminder from a course in miracles:

I am here only to be truly helpful.
I am here to represent Him Who sent me.
I do not have to worry about what to say or
what to do, because He Who sent me will direct me.
I am content to be wherever He wishes, knowing
He goes there with me.
I will be healed as I let Him teach me to heal.

Rest in Peace, Son of God.
Brother Gi

acim workbook lessons via email

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 09:50:00 +0000

I just found this site that has a wonderful idea. It sends out the daily acim workbook lessons as an email newsletter. Unlike other online workbook services, this one starts sending the lessons from the start the moment you sign up.

I think it's a really great way of committing to taking the workbook. If you know the next lesson is already scheduled to arrive in your inbox every day for the next year, you are much more likely to stick with it.

This approach may not work for everyone. Sometimes I like making it a sacred moment in the morning with the big blue book. But I also know that a little bit of reminding helps to keep me going.

See if you like it:

http://www.the-course-in-miracles.com/get_a_course_in_miracles_by_email.shtml

in peace,

Brother Gi

forgiveness process

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 11:05:00 +0000

Here is how the forgiveness process works:

1) I realise I am dreaming. These images I see are projections I made for a very good reason: I thought I had separated from God, and felt very guilty about this. All this guilt I feel I need to get rid of in some way. Innocently and mistakenly, the best way I knew of at the time was to project these images as storeholders for my guilt. That way I could place the guilt in them, and feel relieved of it myself. The problem, as I have now come to realise, is that this does not actually work. In fact, it makes me feel worse than ever, or only makes me feel better for a short while. I now recognise that projecting the guilt on these images is my choice and that I can choose to reverse the projection - by simply not seeing them as neither real nor guilty.

2) I then also realise that in fact the separation from God did not occur at all. In fact we are not separate from God in any way and even I as a body or a person do not really exist. If we never separated from God in the first place, there is no guilt to begin with and these images and the guilt that I wanted to project onto them are all equally meaningless. I can relax in the peaceful knowledge that nothing real could ever be threatened, and realise that I need do nothing because God is still the only thing that exists, in wholeness and in peace. I therefore withdraw my mistaken belief in these images, and my mistaken belief in the guilt that I sought to project onto them, and I join with Christ's knowledge of God in peace. Amen.

While these can be practiced as two steps in thought at first, over time and with practice the process of forgiveness can become an attitude that prevails without the need for words or steps of any kind. Your practice will fluctuate, sometimes will be easier than others. Use these two steps, think through them, if that helps you. It helps to distill it into simple principles, phrases that you can quickly and easily recall that bring the whole knowledge of 'God is' flooding back into your mind. For this purpose you can distill the above two steps into something like:

1) I am simply dreaming - I am making these images up to look guilty.

2) God is all that exists - even the guilt I felt does not exist as all, and we do not exist as separate from God - and therefore no-one is guilty.

You can distill this even further to become something like: I am dreaming. Only God exists.

Or, as I like to use it:

God is.

Brother Gi

we have only one function here, and one function only...

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 09:57:00 +0000

"The sole responsibility of God's teacher is to accept the Atonement for himself."

We have no other job, no other purpose. The only purpose we have is Forgiveness, which means to recognise and remember that the separation from God has never occurred, and that therefore everything and everyone is not only completely innocent, but does not exist as separate from God in any way.

The Atonement principle is simply that "God is", and that nothing else is. To accept the Atonement is simply to accept this. To accept this is what it means to Forgive.

Forgiveness does not pardon sins and make them real. It sees there never was any sin in the first place, because there is no such thing as any person or thing that is not God in his pure and abstract form.

To see anything as separate from God is to see it as guilty, and thus to see yourself as separate and guilty. This is not what A Course In Miracles teaches.

A Course In Miracles is a teaching of total and pure non-dualism. To see it in any other way is not only to miss the point, but to miss the beautiful opportunity of practicing true forgiveness - as opposed to the dualistic attempt at forgiveness that the world sometimes teaches.

Dualistic forgiveness can never work. Non-dualistic forgiveness always will. The reason? Dualistic forgiveness keeps things as separate objects, and thus holds the pockets of guilt in place. If God cannot be destroyed (or threatened, as the introduction says) - and I assure you He can't - then how could there possibly be any separate objects to forgive?

What you see is merely an infinite array of symbols of the same mistaken belief - your belief that God has been broken up into pieces, and that therefore someone is seriously guilty becauase of that. Stop projecting this belief about yourself onto the symbols you see. They are not real. Forgive them merely by remembering for them that God is still perfect and one, and that nothing except God exists.

This principle of forgiveness is contained in the summary of the Course:

Nothing real can be threatened.
Nothing unreal exists.

This is the same as saying:

God is.
And nothing else is.

Peace to you all.

Brother Gi

one thing after another

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 19:43:00 +0000

When it comes to forgiveness, it�??s just one thing after another. forget the past, forget the future, just keep forgiving whatever is in front of your face.

And how do you forgive? forgiveness means simply that you recall the Atonement principle: God Is, and nothing else is. The separation from God never occurred. We do not exist as separate from God. The person or thing that you are upset with is no more real in its apparent existence as separate from God than you are. If neither of you exist as anything except God, how can either of you be guilty of anything?

We say �??God is�?? and then we cease to speak, because there is nothing else.

This realisation brings instant release and peace. You will feel it. If you don�??t feel the peace and release that comes from this, keep practicing until you get it right. Forgiveness always brings mental release, otherwise you are not doing forgiveness.

Does it take a lot of practice, and time to learn? Oh yes.

Is it worth it to be persistent in learning? Oh yes.

Go in peace, and keep practicing forgiveness.

Peace,

Brother Gi-

God is.

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 19:42:00 +0000

�??We say, �??God is�??, and then we cease to speak, because there is nothing else.�??

the above is a quote from Gary Renard�??s book, The Disapperance of the Universe.

I choose Gi - God Is - as a symbol to associate myself with, because it reminds me of the absolute truth. If the name I use means that only God is, it means that I myself do not exist as anything separate from God.

This is perfect peace and truth, and leads to perfect forgiveness. let us practice this as ACIM Monks.

In peace,

We say, "God is", and then we cease to speak.

ACIMBrotherGi@gmail.com (Brother Gi) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 19:34:00 +0000

We say 'God is', and then we cease to speak because there is nothing else.

(from Gary Renard's book, The Disappearance of the Universe)