All That is Within

Respect your Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:32:00 +0000

"Let me think about it".
This is an all too common statement that many of us make without much 'thought'. We have been taught at home, in schools, at work places and everywhere else, to think about things because thought is intelligent and certainly helps you to figure the best ways to deal with issues - WRONG! The human being was not made (created) to think!

Now, before you start asking questions or making demanding observations, the learned scientists around us have confirmed that the human brain does not have any thinking capacity. The brain contains no part that is used for "thinking". Yeah!, I also ranted and raved when I came across this the first time but I did an experiment - next time you get that beautiful idea, the light bulb sort of thing, try sitting down with pen and paper and try to build on the new idea. Chances are, if it is a totally new thing like the COKE formula, you will end up with a blank. If you manage to pen down anything, it will most likely be bits and pieces of data that is already stored in our brain.

The brain is like a computer. You take in data and store it in there, and also have a system of retrieving that data - remembering it is called. This is not thinking, if it was, then computers can think. This is the process that is used in education to the highest level possible. Personally, I respect education a great deal and so this is not to suggest anything untoward to all of us educated people, but have you ever wondered why some do not make it in the scholarly area? Could it be that they are not endowed in the art of storage and retrieval of data? Have you ever wondered why inventions and other great ideas are rear in 'fountains of learning'?

Thought comes from beyond the mind.
All thought comes from the fountain of life, further deeper than where the human mind can be found. Thought comes to us as intuitions. Thoughts have their own dynamic lives and when we create things, be they a successful business or an imposing structure, we are only speaking life into the thoughts. When we fail to speak life into the thoughts, someone else does so that we can get the chance and opportunity to say "that was my idea"!
So instead of thinking about it, maybe we should try sleeping over it.

The Place of Harmony and Peace

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:37:00 +0000

Many years ago, as Saint Paul wrote to the Romans, he identified the need to ask them to pursue a transformation of the mind. He explained that the way to achieve the required harmony and peace in life was by the renewal of the mind and non-conformity to this world. "Think outside the box", he said, adding that it was only possible to think outside the box after we have transformed our minds. What is the hope and purpose of this kind of transformation? Saint Paul says that it is the way to test and approve what the will of God is, his good, pleasing and perfect will for humankind. It is the key to how life should be, plain and simple.

The nature of the spirit of man is to reach The Place of Harmony and Peace.

Saint Paul's observations remain true to this day. Have you ever determined to commit yourself to the discovery of self or the achievement of a life-changing status, only to find it strange that absolutely nothing happens? The self-help industry is huge and booming. Billions of dollars are continually changing hands. People are spending large sums of money on motivational talks, books, seminars etc, and although a number attain the required breakthrough, the greater majority find themselves trying one strategy after another without much to write home about. Surely, there is absolutely nothing wrong with these folks, no matter what the promoters of the strategies say. The question that begs here is this, have you ever spent time and money on a success strategy and ended up achieving zero from it? The answer, I would bet is YES.

So why did it not work? Why was it presented as a formula that works and yet it failed to bring the desired change in your life? Did you feel frustrated by the results? Did you feel empty or inadequate? Did you consider that it could have been a problem with you and not with the strategy? Chances are, you never got any of these feelings. Chances are, you probably just thought that you needed to try again. Maybe you thought little about this particular bit of advice and decided it was not really for you. Deep inside, you may have felt that you were not ready - and you were right! Your subconscious mind was not ready for the process that you had chosen. If this were not true, then all those strategies do not work for anybody else. But they do!

In this blog, I look at the fact and truth that all that we are comes from within us. Unless our subconscious minds be first transformed, unless we first deal with the inside, we can achieve little change in our lives, if any at all.

The State of Conformity.
If we are seriously and genuinely seeking change in our lives, then we must be stuck somewhere that is undesirable, whether this is a realisation that we are able to acknowledge or not. If we are conformed to a belief or belief system that is less than rewarding, then we remain stuck. The problem with being thus stuck, is that we can never be all that we ought to be. We cannot achieve our life's purpose. We cannot fully enjoy what we engage ourselves in. We cannot positively impact the lives of others, least of all our own. More profoundly, such conformity is made up of some very slight and seemingly harmless ways of perceiving and doing things. It is therefore possible to be and remain conformed without having a clue that you are in the wrong place. After all, things have always been done this way! How often have you heard the words "I know nothing much will come out of this", or "I hope am not wasting my time doing this"? The state of one's life is the hallmark of a conformed subconscious mind. As a man thinks, so is he. This is the make-up of a person who is "stuck in the rut", and many of us are!

The State of Freedom.
When freedom from the state of conformity is attained, one should expect to live a life that encompasses the following positive qualities among others:

Less busy-ness in life
Better time and issues management as better focus is achieved in all things
A more heightened creativity
Increased energy levels as a passion for all we do grows
A more fulfilled work life
More enjoyable and meaningful relationships
Better resource management
A more generous demeanor
Less (unnecessary) problems in life
A more balanced, organised and interesting life all round

In a nutshell, we find that we begin to live a life that is focused on other people more than we are concerned with our own. In essence, we stop focusing on ourselves since in reality, no problems exist in our lives as do in the lives of others - we begin to love our neighbours. This, coupled with the fact we become more caring for others, brings us to the state of selflessness. After all, we cannot become selfless when we ourselves are in need, as we are bound to concentrate on our lot first.

The Nature of Being in Transition.
Are you tired of being in the rut? Are you tired of debt, the same recurring problems, inability to get things done etc? Then you may be in the state of transition - the true condition of moving from paralysis to success. But I must add a word of caution here; this is only a state and not a guarantee for breaking out. Many live in this state for a large part of their lives, if not all their lives.

All human beings are on the same plane, sharing the same resources in everything that they do. One can therefore rightly say that one's station in life is a matter of choice. We choose where we go from here.

The choice to conform. We are restless and uncomfortable with our situation in life and instead of deciding to get ourselves out of our sorry condition, we embark on a lifelong journey of finding fault from outside ourselves. We vehemently blame the government, the weather, other people, "being born on the wrong side of the tracks" and whatever else we can put a finger on as long as it is not us! We deny our very being - who we are and what responsibility we have over our own lives. Like the drug addict who will not give up his habit, we are in denial.

It is also possible to accept our difficult situation and learn to live with it. "That is the way it is", we say. This is our lot, just as it was with our forefathers, we reason. And then we gallantly live out the difficult life. This is a common phenomenon in Africa where I come from.

The choice to change. We are restless and uncomfortable with our situation in life AND we take the bold decision to make a change. I emphasize the and because we find ourselves in both the conditions since there exist a time lapse between the bad condition and the good as we work our way out. We realise that we have in us, the ability to make the desired difference and we decide to take responsibility. If there is anything wrong with our lives, we are responsible for bringing it upon ourselves. We decide NOT to apportion the blame on anyone or anything. We decide to come up with ways and means of changing our lot. We begin seeking.

Where Do I Stand?
The first step to the walk to freedom is to acknowledge our position. Without this, no journey can begin (since we have no need to leave our station in life!). The drug addict will not embark on any rehabilitation program until he acknowledges the fact that it is better to be drug-free. More fatalistically, it is also possible to hold onto a lie and not realise it. Most people believe that their attainment of small earthly successes brings them to the point where they have "arrived" or "made it". Unfortunately for these dear souls, they never get to embark on the journey to greatness. Indeed, many of the students of The Place of Harmony and Peace are those souls that are broken, those that suffer chaos and confusion in their lives, and more so those who suffer loss and financial difficulties. It is in this scenario that we find the great paradox - as the hungry souls get snapped up by dishonest "saviour" as they insatiably search for answers, the arrived and have made it ones rue at the vulnerability and "foolishness" of the hungry souls while in the whole drama, they themselves continue to hold onto the lie in the hand and fail to realise that they are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

We must therefore truly and honestly identify where we stand in order that we may embark on the journey to freedom. This is a big decision to make.

Crossing the Chasm.
We have already observed that restlessness is not enough to get us out. We need the transformation that Saint Paul spoke about, in addition to the restlessness.

A poor man will not embark on the journey to riches if he maintains the poverty mindset or mentality. An illiterate man will not pursue education if he is comfortable with illiteracy. A lazy one will not roll up his sleeves and work if being lazy is fine. A drunkard will not stop his fatal habit if he has no interest with being sober. In my country, those who partake of alcohol spend a great deal of their time in bars and other social places - they are socialites to the core. If you but tell them that you do not drink alcohol, the question that will be shot at you is "then what do you do?". Wondering what they would do with their time were they to stop drinking keeps them at the bottle. The list goes on and on.

If we critically look at this issue, we come to terms with the truth that is contained in first dealing with our minds before we can claim to want to change our lives, or even have the ability to do so. Many a times, humankind will spend a great deal of resources attempting to achieve something but will end up only scratching the surface, no matter the amount of zeal. As long as our subconscious mind is not in agreement with our thinking mind, then we are condemned to a long and uneventful life journey. But if the two will agree about anything, it will be done by the Father in heaven. Otherwise how would we explain the ease with which our lives take on a new meaning when we arrive at this point?

Speak to your subconscious mind. The six-million-dollar-question therefore is this - how do I train my subconscious mind to accept a new way of life? How do I eliminate the old and existing "mind tracks" in order to create new ones that will allow change to come?

The way to do it is by constantly talking to our subconscious minds, there exists no shortcuts, only faster and effective ways. Faith comes by hearing and by hearing..., we must develop faith of that which we desire, right in the core of our subconscious. The subconscious mind understands every language that reaches our five senses and the effectiveness of our communication with the subconscious is greatly enhanced as we employ more of the five. Even though the subconscious will not perceive the communication in the same way as we do physically, it hears, smells, sees, touches and tastes!

There is therefore a great need to regularly communicate with the subconscious about our many desired destinations. If we can regularly "speak" to the subconscious about our desired place in life, if we can regularly play the "smells" of that destination, if we can regularly "see" the destination and indeed generate a clearer vision with each visit, if we can regularly "touch" all those physical features of our destination, if we can regularly "taste" the givings of our destinations, then we would surely be on our way to convincing the subconscious that we are NOT at the destination of our life's journey and we therefore need to start moving. If we constantly do this, then we will constantly be on the move, up to our final day, since it is not possible to attain all that we can in one lifetime.

So how do we practice the exciting art of talking to our subconscious minds? Some recommended means that I have personally tried with success include:

Listening to tapes particularly before retiring to bed and immediately on waking up. The Paraliminals are a great winner here.
Meditating and employing all the techniques of the five senses as discussed.
Strategically positioning written affirmations of what is desired and believed for.
Keeping the mind focused on the present moment and its needs, in order to eliminate regrets, unforgiveness, hurts etc of the past as well as the fears, anxiety, stress etc of the future. The Power of Now is a classic in this area.
Maintaining a positive outlook of every aspect of life, continually affirming the positive with all the feelings that you can muster. This is quite effective when we talk to our image in the mirror while maintaining direct eye contact.
Maintaining a thankful and grateful heart that accepts all that is, as we positively seek to surrender all. Great conflict and difficulty is created in our lives when we seek to control and manipulate the issues of life.

These are by no means the only ways to reach the subconscious mind. Indeed, every true seeker knows that a new industry is quickly developing in this area, and this is good. The beauty with the art of talking to the subconscious is that all systems are simple and can be performed by anyone. Rick Warren said that if you can worry, then you can meditate, how true!

Then we fully understand the exhortation to think about whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. If we will do anything in life, we must keep negativity out of our being. Negativity is poisonous.

Do We Arrive at The Place of Harmony and Peace?
If we did, life would cease to have meaning! What would we wake up to the morning after? But wait, it is not about us, it is about the universe, it is about the world, it is about the creation, it is about The Creator. It has been said that we cannot solve the world's problems. Jesus said, in this world you shall have trouble. If the problems of the world are not your responsibility, then they will always exist - as you solve one, someone will be creating another - and you cannot keep up.

Look at it from the following two perspectives:

1. The other person. No one has control over you. You do not have control over another. Not your kids, not your wife, not your husband, not your siblings, not your friends, no one. In fact, any attempt to gain control over another is witchcraft. Period. Because we do not have control over others, we do not have control over all the problems that keep cropping up all around us. We are therefore left with only one course to remedy this, to continually point everyone to the truth and leave them to take it from there, as they also hopefully pick the cue and start the journey of seeking The Place of Harmony and Peace.

2. You. Yes, you can arrive at The Place of Harmony and Peace in your own life and so can every human being. As we have explored in this discussion, we arrive at the point where we drastically reduce drama in our lives. We can put most or even all aspects of our lives pretty much under control. People do it all the time, in their jobs, with their time, with their money etc. The hope of this is that if we can change ourselves one at a time, then we would well be on our collective journey to delivering the entire world to The Place of Harmony and Peace.

The two way test

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Thu, 10 May 2007 03:03:00 +0000

Two days ago as I was reading, these words jumped from the article right into my face: "do you spread the gospel because you are required to, or do you do so because you enjoy its benefits and are therefore determined to ensure that others do not miss the bus?".

There are two ways through which we get into whatever vocation or purpose in life. We are either authentic (the good) or aping others (the bad) when we decide to settle into a life activity. This is what determines whether we enjoy or suffer the resultant harmony and smooth running or disharmony and conflict. Think about the one or two grumpy medical nurses that have had the pleasure of driving a needle into your body at some time or the other. One wonders why anybody would want to be a nurse and seem to hate the work at the same time. Anyway, that is simply it. It's either a calling or you simply got involved because of some other fascination.

Life is simple yet interesting. I have found a simple and interesting way to make a self-assessment as we journey through our daily activities.

Two ways of getting absorbed into your desired area in life:

By a deep yearning to release that which is good within you. That which is true and born of a higher value than the physical.
By admiration of those who are actively practicing their purpose or even a fascination with the activity, financial rewards etc.

Two ways of testing whether you are riding on the good or the bad:

By experiencing harmony and a very deep satisfaction in your work and life - an unhindered flow of ideas and creativity.
By experiencing constant difficulties and disharmony in work and life - numerous mental blocks and the repeated necessity to procrastinate.

Two ways of testing whether you have a future in your chosen area or not:

Total harmony where the choice is good. A burst of energy and little need to think as you work, since all energy works in concert to achieve the higher goal.
The need to juggle the issues of life - total neglect of one issue in order to concentrate on another. The need to constantly stop working in order to think and vice versa as energy is divided and pulling in different directions.

Two ways to test and know whether you are in your element or not:

While in the good you find no or little need to keep checking whether you are doing the right thing or not. You are too busy and in the flow to think about the energy that is coming from within.
The constant need to seek external energy boosts when in the bad. Occationally requiring to consult your hero or inspiration in order to pick up new ways and tricks - very much in the way that drugs work.

Two ways to move on when you have determined your position:

When you are in the good you must determine to learn the art of planning and setting goals. You must determine to stick to those plans and goals as a matter of great and critical importance.
If you are in the bad, you must go back to the drawing board and seek to discover (uncover from under the illusions, perceptions etc) your authentic self. It is never too late to embark on the journey. Besides, all the problems that you encounter while in the bad go into making you better in the future.

When we preach the gospel because it is a duty, we are not authentic and are doing the gospel a disservice - the gospel does not need us. When we are genuinely fearful that others will miss out on the goodness that we are enjoying, then the gospel cannot do without us. That is why it is said that, that which makes you cry is your true purpose.

Towards A More Secure Spirituality

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 13:29:00 +0000

While we continually strive to keep the spiritual dimension of the success of life in perspective, we must always remind ourselves of the most practical ways to achieve the best that we can in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. The human mind tends to always want to set prerequisite standards for the achievement of anything, hence the common words like, “if only” and “they get all the breaks in life” etcetera, that we keep hearing from others and also from ourselves. This is a less than true attempt that we make in trying to bridge the split of personality that we suffer out of resisting situations that we find ourselves in, in comparison to where we presume we ought to be. This is insanity.

We are all individuals who are different total sums of our diverse life experiences, cultures, exposure and everything in between. If we are unhappy with our lot, then the total sum is wrong and requires to be changed. If we are experiencing external conflict and turmoil, then there is internal conflict and turmoil. I have come to appreciate and hold in high regard the following basic parameters that are important in helping us to reach a certain level of calm in our spiritual lives:

Surrender.
Without belaboring the power of surrender, please take a look at Surrender is Powerful.

Surrender says, “I am not contesting what is, indeed am working with what is, in order to move from where I am to a better place”. When we surrender to what is at this moment, we remove all opposition, all strife that blocks us from being able to find solutions to our circumstances is removed. By surrendering to the situation, we allow life energy to flow through us and thereby gain the benefit of mining our creativity and daily energy in order to move ourselves from the ruts that we find ourselves in.

Surrender accords us the opportunity to the following among other things;

To examine our current situation without any prejudices, thereby coming up with the most qualified analysis of what we are going through.

To make critical analysis of our situation without the misfortune of applying emotion to our thinking. Emotions easily give us biases when it comes to decision making.

Surrender accepts the situation. It is important that we accept our situations as if they are what we wished upon ourselves. Before his crucifixion, Jesus prayed “…not my will but your will be done…” – He clearly expressed his wish to forego the suffering. But the important thing here was his acceptance of the impending death – he surrendered to it in order that he may be able to go through it, to achieve the higher good for mankind. I would imagine that the scenario would have been totally different if he had resisted his purpose on earth.

Surrender also suggests that we are done with our current situation and are willing and ready enough to move on to the next thing. This is particularly important once we have learned the lesson or lessons from our current situation.

Most importantly, surrender confirms that we fully understand that God has allowed the current situation in our lives and it is therefore an ingredient for our growth and not just a bad thing that is meant to torment us.

It is only when we are fully surrendered that we are able to deal with the next ingredient of our spiritual freedom

Thanksgiving.
We cannot possibly give thanks if we are not surrendered to our situation. It is totally absurd to give thanks for a difficult situation or one that is making our very lives unbearable. Many know of the need to give thanks but are mistaken when they get the attitude that “God is punishing them” – how could they ever get themselves out of such a situation? Whether the situation that we are dealing with is positive or negative, we must always be able to arrive at a point where we rise above the situation in order that we may move on. In as much as we do not want to get stuck in a negative situation, in the same way, we do not wish to get stuck in our last success. Thanksgiving confirms that we have risen above the situation, paving the way for onward movement.

Thanksgiving confirms some very powerful scenarios;

“Thy will be done” – we acknowledge God in our situation and more so appreciate and honor His wisdom in allowing us to fall into “diverse temptations” for which we must rejoice! This is a direct matter of trust in God.

Thanksgiving is the door through which we walk out of our current situation in acceptance of the fact that we are indeed done with the situation at hand and are moving on.

Thanksgiving deals with all emotions. Even when there may be a sense of regret in our spiritual practices, thanksgiving tends to be able to clear all doubt. As already discussed, this is a must if we are to be able to move on positively.

This then takes us to the next ingredient which not only works with particular situations but is the thing that we all need in order to be over comers in our overall life situation.

Change of Mindset.
Many suffer because they lack the simple knowledge that life and the Universe are about abundance and more abundance. Those who have acquired this mindset are in complete control of all that goes on in their lives. They may suffer lapses of this truth but they generally do not suffer lack of any kind spiritually, mentally or physically.

At whatever stage in our lives, we are bound to come to terms with the fact that almost always, it is our mind that stands between us and any meaningful progress or growth, regardless of whether our minds are influenced by external or internal forces. This is largely true, whether we are embarking on a small venture, or on one that is of a large magnitude. It is our mind that sends us to all the wrong people so that they can side with it, to try and convince us that our dreams are impossible to achieve. It is our mind that works so hard to try and convince us that everything is not perfect for us to embark on our dream or dreams. It is the same mind that creates the false personality (the ego), who feeds on perceptions and displaced attitudes, in total avoidance of the truth. We must therefore always yearn to transform our minds.

When we are able to accept the truth that we are about abundance, when we come to the realization that success and prosperity in all our being is a necessity and not a choice, then we are able to do among many other things;

Pursue the idea seeds that are planted in us by God.

Positively see our dreams and aspirations through, as we then pursue all that we need to pursue with the full knowledge that we will succeed.

Generate enough passion for every activity that we get involved in. Most of the time the human being goes through life half-heartedly because he believes that it is all in vain or that success is far off and difficult.

Pursue multiple activities, even if they are limited to; honouring God, building up our spouses and children, excelling in our jobs and being of good value to our communities and those around us. A good mindset gets us to do all this and more, comfortably.

Honor and respect all other persons, seeing the good in people and being able to immediately forgive others in their weaknesses and shortcomings. Not celebrating those weaknesses and shortcomings but wishing the best for them and helping them along the way.

Wish for honest measures and honest weights for all mankind, not exploiting others for our perceived “gains”.

Most importantly, we are able to appreciate the truth that humankind suffers because of lack of knowledge and we are therefore always ready to help others by sharing whatever valuable lessons we have learned.

Although this may sound odd or even boring, the only way to enjoy the proposed spiritual freedom is by daily practicing what we learn. We are only as wise as the motion we put into knowledge.

Surrender is Powerful

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 11:34:00 +0000

Under normal circumstances (if that is normality), to surrender is to give up the power to do something when we are in a situation. Under these circumstances, surrender is seen as weak, a giving-up condition that should only be the recourse of those who do not want to achieve anything. This is a description that well fits the physical being of man.

Nevertheless, from the spiritual perspective, this is one of the most powerful acts that man can engage in. Surrender in spirituality, means the acceptance of that which is, right at his moment - that is, something whose current state or condition is, as it is. Any nonacceptance of such a truth only creates conflict. It is this conflict that surrender removes from our lives and no student of positive mentality should have any conflict in their lives.

After surrender, we then allow life to take over and correct the unfavorable situation that we are experiencing at that moment.

Procrastination is Good

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 10:49:00 +0000

Now, that sounds a little strange for a blog like this one. I also thought it to be an ambiguity when I first came across the statement but I just needed to understand that procrastination works when it is directed to the right thing.

I learned that study has shown that out of all the things that we need to do, only 15% of those are important and urgent. The other 85% are not really that important or urgent. It therefore follows that we should do all we need to, in order to put off the 85% - that is procrastination. We must concentrate on getting the 15% done before we can turn any attention to the 85%.

Additionally, when we have the 15% clearly outlined, I have also come to learn to deal with those that I have fear of doing. This approach is most effective because it makes everything else so easy.

In learning this, don't we all procrastinate?

You Are Not Your Mind

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 10:47:00 +0000

In being tempted by the devil in the wilderness during his 40 days of fasting, were Jesus Christ ordinary mortal, He would have most likely exclaimed “what am I thinking about?!”. We are not told that the devil appeared to Him in any way like he did to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. It is right, therefore, to think that he appeared to Jesus as a thought in very much the same way as thoughts appear to every man and woman today. Instead of wondering what he was thinking about, the enlightened one knew quite clearly that the thoughts that were appearing to Him were not his. In spite of the extreme conditions that were prevailing at the time, Jesus was able to fend the devil off and continue with his work. Can the same be said about many of us today?

I recently had the privilege of interacting with a profound book – The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle – and I must say that it accorded me an experience that enabled me to come to terms with this everyday phenomena. It is simply amazing how much transformation us human beings can go through, without as much as a thought of the enormity of what is actually happening to us. Coming to terms with this truth can only change one’s life.

My story.
Living in Africa and being surrounded by so many unnecessary limitations as is the norm for most countries in the continent, I grew up to see many, many reasons (or excuses), for the debilitating underdevelopment of every facet of life around me. Deep inside, I knew quite well, that all this difficulties that we have to endure daily, could either be removed or overcome in one way or the other, but the ever present voice of excuses was always there to console me to live for another day. In my country, we once had a president who was always quick to remind us that we were better off than Somalia (he never compared us with the better off countries) – this was an external voice, but one of those voices anyway. And therefore life continued.

As a child, I remember reading comics and other illustrations that had two little guys in the minds of people. A little guy with a set of wings and a halo, and another little guy with a set of horns and a tail. Each of them worked really hard to get one to either do good or bad, but most of the time the little horned/tailed guy won the day leaving the other little guy dejected. Today, I realize that this is a simplistic if not wholly wrong perception of the truth. There are no little guys competing for attention in our minds. Just us, who hold the truth, and many other voices (and reasons) that always seek to give us the easy way out of every situation that we may encounter.

I have come to learn that living with many voices in your head is insane. If it was not, then it would not be true to say that if one visited the psychiatrist and confessed of hearing voices in their head, they would be detained for treatment. It is therefore imperative that we make every effort to retain only one voice in our heads.

Daily exercise.
How do we ensure that we only retain one (the truth) voice in our heads?
If the mind is the playing field of the many voices, then we cannot find the solution therein. The solution must come from somewhere else. There are two ways of thinking – with the mind and with the heart. Unfortunately for many, education systems are based on mind thinking only, almost entirely neglecting heart thinking. Because of the education systems already mentioned, this becomes a rather difficult subject to broach as it becomes rather difficult for many to understand. Happily, the art of thinking with the heart has been practiced for ages in many different ways and is indeed available to all cultures of the world. Better still, many teachers have emerged and gone universal in the quest to share this incredible activity with any who care to listen.

It all starts with the spiritual dimension. Everything begins in the spirit and not in the mind as has been suggested by many. To say that things start as a thought is correct but to say that things start in the mind is wrong. The mind is only the passage through which things are translated into the physical hence its analytical capabilities. Not to understand this simple truth is many a time abortive and disastrous. For us to be able to follow through with those creative thoughts, we need to be able to constantly make reference to the origin of the thought so that we may work with all the data that is available to us. Beautiful ideas are aborted or turned into disasters when the mind takes them over and conjures its own end to them. We all know that the mind has a knack of complicating even the simplest of matters since over the years it has been told that the more complicated it can get, the more intellectual it is. We also know that life is simple. Besides, the views of the two minds are always at odds on everything issue. For example, where the outer mind may think “hold on to” the inner mind may be suggesting “let go” – this is a classic example of the constant conflict that we experience in life on a daily basis.

Personally, I have used simple meditative like procedures to arrive at a point that I can clearly realize the strength of the inner mind. I have also committed to daily practice doing this, on top of engaging the same, every time I am faced with an out of the ordinary situation. Different people will find it useful to access their heart mind different ways. We must seek to a way that is most comfortable with our lifestyles, but accessing this kind of information is as easy as 123. Try googling the words ‘inner mind’.

Summary.
In summarizing, we see that the first step is to come to terms with the fact that we are not our minds. The second step is devising or learning an easy way of accessing the heart or inner mind. The third step is learning to obey and to stick to the instructions of the heart while giving mind voices the contempt that they deserve. Just like Jesus, we must let those mind voices know that we know the truth by countering them with it.

Trying this out has personally given me an unbelievable burst of energy and seriously awakened my creativity. Yet I know there is more on the way.

Quip.

A week ago, an elderly man that we spent an afternoon with, raised this interesting question – “Why do people, when they grow old, go back to walking exactly as they did when they were little children?”- we all thought that it was because by that time the ego is either dead or is seriously disabled!

Valuable Lessons Learned

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 10:44:00 +0000

Along time, I have come across some lasting lessons of life that I have an obligation to share with everyone who needs the same lessons. In this section, I will endeavor to make a list of lessons that have have a positive and lasting impact on my life.

Here we go:

Procrastination is Good
Surrender is Powerful
Respect your Thoughts

About This Blog

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Sun, 21 May 2006 08:23:00 +0000

Anyone who has lived for a long time knows that navigating through life can be quite some work. Indeed, most know that many of the so called downs of life really occur out of wrong decision making or "making the wrong choices" as it were.

I started this blog, more as a personal journey to find out the best way to navigate the strange waters of life. This definitely came after the realisation that life really emanates from beyond the physical - as a matter of fact, I did find that the me that I always thought represented me, wasn't me at all. I have plenty of work to do in order to really mine the real me and effectively bring me out. I must confess that am an avid student of this subject but I must also point that I still have a long way to go.

In putting down my personal thoughts and some of the truths that I have come to discover, I do hope to share valuable lessons with anybody who passes by this blog and would actually appreciate any comments or insights since that is an integral part of learning.

Everybody has become my teacher and the world my school.

From where does the authentic self draw its life?

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Mon, 08 May 2006 10:09:00 +0000

Truth be told. We can all be able to live real, prosperous and peaceful lives. It all depends on where we try to draw such a life from. I have discussed a bit of this here.

The real me does exist.
Enough must have been said by now regarding the age old question of "why am I here?", most of humanity knows for sure that there really is a reason to life. Many also know how difficult it is to attempt and tailor one out ourselves. The majority by now know that self discovery is probably the single most rewarding thing ever. And when we talk about self discovery we are talking about finding the authentic self - not some imitation of what we would like to see on ourselves.

The external me.
The most common way that the human being spends his energy trying to discover self is by filling himself with external things in an attempt to create an impression. An outward impression that is knit together in order to deceive the world that "all is OK with me". No need to talk about bodily pleasures - this is something to do with the whole misconception that the purpose of life is sensual pleasures. Even while we think that the world stands deceived, deep inside us we continue to suffer turmoil and dissatisfaction because the true self still lies undiscovered.

The internal me.
Few people can claim to have discovered the authentic self - least of all me! Statistics show us that probably only 2 to 3% of the human beings have discovered the true self. Statistics also tell us that the entire group is made up of millionaires - evidence that durable wealth resides with the authentic self. Surely then, if the rest of the universe - and more so the inanimate rest - can continue to exist relatively free of turmoil (except that which is brought upon it by man!), I must have in me that natural harmony that is necessary for my own life. If the rotation of the earth on its axis does not require regular servicing and repair, if the sun does not have to be constantly regulated to maintain its heat, then really I as a human being must be better knit.

The joy of self discovery.
The majority of us love challenges and this is quite normal. Personally, I have come to appreciate that it is not so much getting there (I don't think you ever do), the joy is really in the discovery journey. Like every journey in life, getting to start off with a given and definite destination is the big thing, once this bit is take care of, then one can sit back and enjoy the rest of the trip (and appreciate the scenery as you go along). As they say "when you don't know your destination any road leads there!". Or even something about climbing a ladder and discovering it was lying on the wrong wall when one gets to the proverbial top. It is in taking the correct road that we derive our best pleasures. But a word of warning is appropriate here - it is not all smooth sailing. For some strange reason, when one starts hitting home runs the opposition tends to grow in strength. All that we encounter once our destination becomes definite, is the joyful bit.

My initial joy began when I determined to find out what my purpose is. And that should be everyone's joy (and pain, I might add).

The easy way out

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 02 May 2006 13:38:00 +0000

Someone is noted to have said that "if you can worry, then you can meditate". As we explore the ways of life and the best way to wake up to it on a daily basis, one question seems to pop up a great many times - this is the question of "the how" to get where one choses to go. Many times, people who are searching complain that the whole matter is made too simple till it seems like some gimmick that a few people are trying to sell. But wait a minute, everyone who has had any trials in life has heard these words at some time or the other;

Only visualize yourself in the future state that you desires and you will convince your subconscious mind to bring it to pass.
Affirm the positive to yourself and in this way build up the necessary passion and the rest will be easy.
Have a positive mental attitude.
Pray and give thanks for the state that you want to see yourself in. Act like you already have what you prayed for and it will come to pass.

The holy book, the bible is quoted as saying that "faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God". While elsewhere it admonishes us to "keep our hearts with all diligence for it's the wellspring of our lives". One best seller claimed the authority of suggesting that the only known way of passing a message to your subconscious mind is by 'auto-suggestion' - repeatedly affirming to yourself. Yet another encourages us to get into the habit of speaking positives things to ourselves at all times.

So, what are we saying? The simple truth is this - you cannot become or achieve anything that you cannot see on yourself. A further truth is - the clearer the picture the better the chances and the results. The suggested easy way out is to therefore dream. Dream it, see it, touch it, smell it over and over again until it becomes difficult to be convinced that it cannot become as you desire.

But we must always operate with a word of caution. The bigger the dream, the more the dreaming. More dreaming becomes more effective when we engage workable plans to achieve our dreams. The more meat we can put in the dream, the more definite we manage to make it.

Now you know how you can become the president of your country - much of the planning part will be consumed by fundraising!

Can I handle change?

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 10:53:00 +0000

Change is something that happens to us on a daily basis. We do not feel much about the changes that affect our lives in this way because most of the time they happen in subtle, almost unnoticeable ways. But they are changes anyway. Think about it, how many times do we find that the waiter or waitress at our favourite restaurant is different, and yet we had struck a good rapport with the one that has just left? Does this do anything at all to our lives and the custom of eating at this particular place or is it something that we can dismiss as of no consequence? Though we ignore such a change, it has a bearing on something in our lives no matter how insignificant it may be.

It is the bigger more effective changes that we all abhor. Changes that disrupt routine and the comforts that we are already used to. It is from these bigger changes that we get the words "nobody likes changes" . Is it the changes that we hate, or is it the discomfort that we can not stand?

If we were to deal with the issue of good changes, that is, changes that improve major areas of our live e.g. work, families, relationships etc, we realize that we will always attempt to resist the change even when it is for our good. Imagine a change that for example removes alcohol and drugs from our family settings, yet almost everyone attests to how difficult it can be to embrace such changes. And yet, if one were to mention a change for the better to anyone's financial situation, the receipient will always leap with joy and eagerness at this prospect. What then is it that causes any resistance or procrastination to change?

What would the results be?
The financial change is easily acceptable because we all know what we can do with a little more money than we have. We can already visualize and appreciate the future with more to spend - maybe because we dream of it daily. Any change that we have not visualized in the future tense remains unknown to us and is difficult to embrace. We are simply unprepared for it both psychologically and physically. It is true therefore to say that the human being can deal with any change - they need only be prepared.

Getting ready.
Each person is best prepared for change when they get to discover what is the most effective way of implementing change. Someone once told me that if he needed to change or pick a habit, he only stuck to the new habit that he desires for 10 straight days. Another suggests a month of religious observation of what we want to achieve and it's done. We can appreciate then that its all about different strokes for different folks. But certain ingredients seem to be necessary for any style of change to be meaningfully effective:

First, we must consult our personal constitution. We must determine beyond any doubt, exactly what we want for ourselves. This is the spiritual part and that which governs our private universe.
It is necessary to have a motivating factor in the endeavor. While our first step can be a sufficient motivation, the end product should be a good energizer. Remember the example of an improved financial situation?
We must manage the particular change. Like all good managers we must have a workable plan that is easy or comfortable for us to follow.
Try this one out! Reward yourself once the change is in place. Of course the idea is to come up with the reward at the beginning of the process and to actually award it to ourselves once we succeed.

If like me you are a change person (or one who only recently decided to make changes), it is always an additional boost to tackle the small changes and use them to graduate to bigger ones. I just don't know how anyone manages to leave civilization and re-locate to some remote village with no running water or electricity - that is major!

One last word, if we try one way of achieving change and it fails for us, we must go right back and try another. If we persist, we end up discovering that which best suits us.

What really is purpose

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 11:18:00 +0000

Today, a friend posed a fairly good question to me and I would like to post what my specific reply to him was. I understand that different people will have different answers to this same question but that is the healthy part. I consider different answers healthy because I am in the process of learning and am looking forward to the time that there will only be one answer for me - the time that I will not stop to consider anything else except that which has become the real answer for me.

I told my inquiring friend that for me purpose primarily means two important things:

That we have within us (at any point in life) something of value that we need to release into the world.
That the world (and mostly human beings) are in need of that which is within us. Indeed they are always in the process of waiting for it to be released to them.

Further discussions gave us the enlightenment that most of the frustrations that we feel are really our inner beings begging for what is inside to be released as well as those around us demanding that we do the just thing and fill their lives with the good that lies in us. This reminded me of an observation that someone made saying that if we know that we are withholding what belongs to others, this should drive us into action, to fulfill our purpose on this earth - if only we can realise that we do others a great deal of injustice when we remain inactive in as far as our purpose is concerned.

After all, we are everyday enjoying the work of other people in music, books, lectures etc. Why then do we hoard?

With or without a life purpose

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 25 Apr 2006 15:34:00 +0000

It all begins with some kind of personal constitution. That deeper inner self that knows where the lines are drawn and what the lines are about. We all need to put limits beyond which we cannot and will not venture. We must build a foundation upon which all else is built. The foundation must be solid and sound.

In human terms, this kind of foundation can only be found in spirituality. Deep spiritual beliefs are possibly the only solid and sound base that man can build a personal constitution upon - that part of us that remains unchanged regardless of circumstances and happenings. No matter what the situation, our thoughts and actions must remain steadfastly bound to these beliefs.

Harmony.
This foundation therefore acts as the center. It is this center that then helps to lock all of man's aspects of life into place. It therefore follows that our desires, purpose, needs and abilities must be directed and guided by this center. It is, in seeking harmony in these four areas of our lives, that we finally manage to eliminate conflict within us and arrive at the point where all energy is utilized in pushing towards the achievement of our life's goals.

But it would not be fitting at this stage, not to stress the fact that the rather difficult and energy sapping activity of setting goals and planning how to achieve them, must take deep root for us to realize any kind of progress. I will try to examine my own experiences on the issues of planning at a later stage.

In the absence of harmony.
Without a purpose, we only manage to achieve much of nothing, and especially so when we use goals and plans in that state of confusion in our lives. We achieve nothing because our everyday busyness does not necessarily lead us to any destination although it is quite possible to stumble into certain levels of successes that bring us into close contact with our true purpose. Even when we so stumble accross our true purpose, we fail to recognize it and therefore continue in our original state without a realization in the world. We must therefore take definite steps to seek our purpose diligently in order that we may take charge of our very lives.

The fight within

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Tue, 25 Apr 2006 11:31:00 +0000

Truly, deep inside, we all know how our lives ought to be running. The human soul longs for harmony and peace for it knows quite well that it should be so. From the external, come numerous forces that are seemingly determined to ensure that the expected peace and calm is never achieved.

The role of guaranteeing some form of order lies squarely on the individual. Once man realises this, then man must depart on the adventure of self discovery and self improvement. Such improvement of self is the only known remedy for bringing the desired balance in the inside. The adventure is quite interesting - indeed, it can easily be made into a fulltime activity - and why not, the heart is known to be the wellspring of life. If we can spend more time sharpening the inside, then most of the other issues that otherwise keep us busy day in day out would become non-issues. We well know that certain beliefs confine their people into a lifetime of this kind of search and development - surely, it must be well worth it.

I must admit that in my own search and development, I have come to appreciate that the human being is capable of taking full control and care of every aspect of life. What then would the issues that are oftenly considered as being out of control be? I would not be talking about birth, time of birth or death but exactly that which lies in between.

The good thought encourages me to question the things that cause man frustrations and the sense of defeat. Do we bring such things upon ourselves? I dare say YES.

Building Blocks

noreply@blogger.com (david) — Mon, 24 Apr 2006 11:50:00 +0000

Interesting. That really, is what life is.

I have found it strange that everything about life, whether turmoil or calm, comes right from within us. It is all there for us to mine and present to the world. Indeed, this is the very essence of the life of every human being.

Even stranger is the fact that as human beings we can never agree on this issue. Many are the times when we will put our foot down and argue about what is true and what is not. Yet who knows, maybe we all do not even exist - "its just an illusion!". Personally, I think that we actually do exist, and that, for a reason. I think it true therefore, to suggest that there are many versions of the observations that will be contained in this blog - or shall we say that my within is not your within? And yet, there exists universal laws that affect all of us in the same way, and so we might agree albeit reluctantly, that there exists some sameness in us all.

In this blog I will attempt as much as I can, to mine that which is within me (it is plenty) and post it here. Who knows, it might trigger something positive in the life of another. And maybe still, it might help me to leave that which is within me right here in this world, where it really belongs.