Posts Tagged ‘Life’
Last time we discovered how Life and Death are intimately linked, and we said that it is very important for us to live life to the full. If you don’t know what it means to squeeze every ounce of living out of your life, set some time aside to carry out the following exercise:
The Last Day
Imagine that you knew you were going to die in exactly 24 hours. Let that scenario sink in, then ask yourself the following questions…
- What would you do in the next 24 hours that you hadn’t previously planned to do?
- What plans have you already made for the next 24 hours that you would now cancel?
- Which people would you make every effort to spend time with?
- What specific things would you say to these people which you wouldn’t otherwise have said?
Once you have answered these questions, you will soon realise whether or not you are living life to the full.
If you are then you probably wouldn’t do anything different over the next 24 hours – you would continue with your present plans and see the people you have arranged to see.
If you are not living life to the full, however, the chances are that you would totally rearrange the next 24 hours so that you can ditch the trivial plans and spend time doing something more meaningful.
Now, imagine once again that you have just 24 hours left, and write down a list of ten things you wish you had done during your lifetime but never actually got around to. Here are a few examples to start the ball rolling:
I Wish I Had…
Visited the Grand Canyon
Prepared for the financial well-being of my loved ones
Climbed a mountain
Taken my partner on a second honeymoon
Been less judgmental
Helped people less fortunate than myself
You get the idea. Once you have a list of ten or more of these things which you would have liked to have done (and not before), you may continue…
Now that you have decided exactly what you would have like to have achieved during your lifetime, you have a perfect list of goals which you can now pursue with enthusiasm.
At this point, some of you will scoff. ‘Life is not that easy!’ many of you will exclaim. ‘You can’t just make a list of goals and then expect to achieve them. You need money to achieve some of these goals, and money takes work, and work takes time!’
We too used to think along similar lines. We used to think that life was difficult – that the only way to survive, let alone thrive, was to work hard and long. We used to think that you needed luck to be happy and do all the things you wanted to do.
But we were wrong, and in the final part of this series we will explain why.
You can use your Inner Temple to explore aspects of the universe that most people don’t even think about. In this post and the next I will describe how to do just that so that you can explore both the nature of reality and the law of personal creation. Let use start with the Nature of Reality…
Exploring the nature of reality sounds quite daunting, but all it really involves is spending some time questioning just how real your inner reality is when compared with external reality. This exercise can provide many breakthroughs in your knowledge of your true spiritual identity and in the way you live your day to day life. To start exploring the nature of reality, proceed as follows:
Sit in your inner temple and look around. Now ask yourself: Is this place real? It may not be physical, because you know that you created it with your imagination, but is your inner temple real nevertheless?
Now think about the nature of physical reality. Is that real? You think it is, for you live in physical reality. But what if both inner reality and outer reality were just two different aspects of the same dream? What if your entire life is a dream and you are really the dreamer of that dream?
Explore this concept further in any way you choose. Here are some other questions you might like to ask yourself:
- If I am the dreamer of this dream of reality, where is the dreamer?
- What is the purpose of this dream of reality?
- Is physical reality nothing more than a mass illusion?
- If I am the dreamer, and my reality is my dream, how can I change the reality I experience?
- By asking these questions, am I, the dreamer, beginning to wake up within the dream?
- What would happen if I became fully awake and realised that my life is a dream of my own creation?
This exercise has nothing to do with health, wealth or success. Rather, it is an exercise designed to do just one thing: help you further along the road to true awareness and clarity. Once you have carried out this exercise several times, you may well find that your new understandings of reality make the manifestation of health, wealth and success child’s play, but I will leave you to discover that for yourself.
Life is your teacher, and when you recognise that fact it can transform the perceived challenge of living into a remarkable adventure. When you choose to adopt the perspective that life is your teacher, things that might previously have annoyed, frustrated or upset you can instead help you to learn new things about yourself and the way you view the world. If nothing else, viewing life as your teacher will highlight how your attitude is largely responsible for determining your emotional state.
Working with life as a teacher means being open to whatever each moment has to offer and then asking yourself what you can learn from the experience right in front of you. The situation you find yourself in at any given moment might not always appear to be particularly positive at first glance, but it can certainly help you develop as a spiritual being if you pay attention. Here are three steps to doing just that…
Step 1 – Accept the Moment
The first step to learning from life is to accept the moment exactly as it is. Forget how you wish it was or wasn’t, and as far as possible try to get your own emotions and desires out of the way so that you can look purely on what is. Only when you allow yourself to see your situation exactly as it is (and no worse than it is) will you be in a position to proceed to the next step.
Step 2 – Look for the Lesson
Having been brave enough to look reality square in the face, look for the lesson that you can learn. It could be something rather obvious, such as the life teaching you to be more patient through a traffic jam. Or it could be something more subtle, such as life teaching you to take more educated risks when opportunity comes your way. Whatever the lesson is – and there is always one, if not several, in any situation – be sure to acknowledge it.
Step 3 – Learn the Lesson
Having established that life is currently going out of its way to teach you to be more patient, courageous, adventurous, daring or whatever else is applicable, choose to be more cooperative by deliberately cultivating that quality. Not only will this help you to get something positive from every situation that you experience, it will also help you to progress rapidly through those especially ‘challenging’ times that exist to teach us particularly important lessons.
Remember, whether the situation you face is easy or difficult, life is your teacher. Learn the lesson you need to learn and you will then be able to move on.
In Take Control: Part 1 it was said that, “The more you learn to control your life the faster you will grow spiritually, because less psychic energy will be used in coping with day to day events.” In this concluding post we discuss the three-step process that you can use to take control of your life in a more effective way.
Step 1 – Identify Problem Areas
If you are really honest with yourself then you probably already know what these areas are because your inner (or Higher) self will have been pointing them out for quite a while. Common symptoms of a lack of control are as follows:
Physical Lack Of Control - Indicated when you smoke too much, drink too much, take too little exercise or eat too much of the wrong kinds of foods.
Emotional Lack Of Control - Indicated when you lose your temper regularly, worry constantly about seemingly trivial matters or suffer from depression on a frequent basis.
Financial Lack Of Control - Indicated when you find it difficult to make ends meet, when your outgoings exceed your income or when you have debts which only get bigger.
Spiritual Lack Of Control – Indicated when you cannot find the time or energy for meditation, study time or actively using the power within you.
Write down which area you lack control in most and define exactly how your lack of control manifests itself in your life. For example, you might write: “The area in which I have least control is in my emotional life. This manifests itself in the way I always worry about trivial matters.”
Step 2 – Think Control
Now that you have defined the main area which lacks control, think about what life would be like if you had total control in this part of your life. How would your life improve? How would you feel? How would you act? How would you manage to stay in control?
When carrying out this exercise, imagine that you already are in total control. From this perspective, think about what things you do differently to maintain control. What habits do you have that help you stay on top of life’s circumstances? What habits do you avoid because they might weaken your control?
Looking at the situation as though you are already successful in having control is an excellent method of identifying what steps you need to take to actually succeed. For example, if you identify that you have lose control of your finances, imagine what you would be doing if you were in total control. You might see yourself balancing your cheque book on a regularly basis. You might see yourself curbing your spending habits. You might see yourself starting a part-time business of your own in order to generate more wealth for yourself. These are all steps which you can take now to start experiencing more control over your finances.
Step 3 – Take Control
Once you know where you need to have more control and what steps you could take to secure this control, all you need to do is take control. This step is both simple and difficult at the same time.
It is simple because you already know what you should do to get control. The last exercise revealed the steps you need to take – for example balancing your cheque book regularly or launching a part-time business of your own.
Yet at the same time this step is difficult to take because all of us tend to resist change to one degree or another. We feel comfortable with our routines, no matter how destructive these routines may be, and so taking new steps goes against the grain.
It makes us feel uncomfortable. It makes us step out of the comfort zone.
For this reason, many of you who study this tutorial will never actually get around to acting on it. You will read, nod your head, agree that taking control would be a good thing, but then postpone actually doing anything about it. If this is you then please think again.
If you continue with the habits you currently have, any area which is out of control will only become more so. Thus the challenge of regaining control will become even more difficult over time – not easier.
Look at an alcoholic. In most cases he doesn’t set out with a goal to become an alcoholic. In fact even the idea would probably have repulsed him. But he developed a habit for drinking regularly. Maybe just one or two each day in the beginning. And then three or four. He could have nipped this destructive habit in the bud way back then, but he didn’t really think he had a problem, so he let it continue. As the weeks and months go by, his alcohol intake increases to the point where he feels he simply cannot live without it. Now taking control is far more difficult than it would have been in the earlier stages, and so he probably won’t even bother trying.
If you lack control in any area of life right now, you must understand that now is the easiest time to regain the control you should have. Wait a day, a week, a month or a year and the task will only get more difficult. This is why debt snowballs, a little indulgence becomes a habit of over-eating and the occasional negative thought eventually gives birth to incessant worrying.
So the time to take action is now. Today. Within the hour.
Having identified the area you need to control more deliberately (e.g. finances) and the steps which you can take to regain this control (e.g. curbing your spending habits) you must now implement these steps without a second thought.
As someone who wishes to become more empowered and more spiritually evolved, you cannot afford to lose control over your life. If you act now and take one hundred per cent control then you will find that your ability to access and use the spiritual power within you increases. You become a cleaner, more effective vessel for psychic energy and thus your spiritual knowledge, power and abilities will also increase.
Look at anyone who is considered to be a master in the metaphysical or occult sciences. What sets them above so-called “regular” human beings?
In most cases it is an incredible sense of control over their own lives. They take charge of their physical bodies and they treat it like a temple, eating a healthy diet and taking regular exercise. They take charge of their financial lives by developing good spending, saving and tithing habits. They take charge of their emotional lives by refusing to give in to negative thoughts, always projecting positive, tranquil energy out to the universe. They take control over their spiritual lives by taking time out to meditate, study and develop their inner power on a daily basis.
Is it coincidence that spiritual masters of almost any philosophy are almost always in total control of their thoughts, actions, words and habits? We think not. Having control over your life and becoming a master go hand in hand. It is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to have one without the other.
Follow the advice in this tutorial and in a short time your life could be truly amazing. Debt and poverty will be replaced by healthy abundance. Worry and fear by faith and a strong belief in your spiritual ability to overcome all negative circumstances. Destructive physical habits by positive habits of exercise, taking a healthy diet and reaching the peak of your physical potential. Spiritual laziness will be replaced with a fervent desire to develop yourself to the full and habits of regular study and meditation.
“Taking control can be a magical key to your dreams.”
Taking control can be a magical key to your dreams. If you stop blaming the world, your parents, your environment, your boss, fate, destiny or some other external force and start recognising that you have the power to control every aspect of your life, you will quickly take a quantum leap into a new realm of life. You will climb up to the next plateau of self-knowledge. You will come to realise once and for all time that you do own your life, that you have got what it takes to make things happen and that you can succeed in achieving anything you set your mind to.
So start now. Identify any problem areas. Discover the steps you need to take to regain control. Then take control!
To many people, the word control is not one which they associate with spirituality or enlightenment. Such people view control with negative connotations. They think of one person trying to control another, or of one party forcing another to do something against his will. Of course, that is one valid definition of the word, but control also has a very positive side – a positive side which can help anyone to start mastering his life circumstances instead of allowing life circumstances to master him. In this article we will discuss how to use control in this life-enhancing manner.
When you think about it, almost all problems are caused by a lack of control. The alcoholic is a victim only because he allows himself to be controlled by an addiction. If he started controlling his habit then eventually it could be eradicated and his life would improve. The same can be said in the sphere of finances. A lack of control can all too easily lead a man into spending beyond his means, and this usually results in a bad case of debt. But should a man start taking control over his finances, abundance would quickly replace poverty because proper balance is restored.
The hallmark of any truly successful person – spiritual or otherwise – is the ability to control oneself and ones environment in a positive manner. Such a person never worries about circumstances because he knows that circumstances have no control over him – he controls them. He never feels overwhelmed or over-burdened by life, but embraces it, savouring every moment no matter if it rains or shines. He exudes an aura of calmness and tranquillity which can only come through the experience of being in control.
Look at your own life and be brutally honest with yourself. Are there any areas over which you have lost control? Do you overspend, over-eat, drink too much, worry too much or feel helpless when dealing with the circumstances of life? If so, you have lost control to a greater or lesser degree. You probably already know this. You probably also know that this lack of control makes it almost impossible to feel calm, tranquil, serene and in tune with the power within you. What you need is a method by which you can re-gain the control you once had and thus restore the balance of power in your life.
Of course, many people would argue that we don’t have a right to control our lives. “Let go and let God” such people tell us. “Trust in fate, destiny, your higher self… just relax.”
Whilst we agree that trusting the universe and “letting go” can be useful in certain circumstances, we do not think that this is a good principle to apply to every area of life. The fact is that we live in a universe which operates in accordance with a number of physical and spiritual laws which simply cannot be broken. If we are suffering from poverty then we cannot simply “let go” and experience abundance because that isn’t how abundance works. We must first take control of our financial matters, set everything up in accordance with abundance and then relax and let the universe play its natural role. Hence regaining control comes before any “letting go” you might care to do.
Your aim as a person on the path to total enlightenment and total empowerment should be to have total control over yourself and your life. You should aim to become a person of silent power – a person of quiet confidence who is completely unflustered by whatever life throws at you. The more you learn to control your life the faster you will grow spiritually, because less psychic energy will be used in coping with day to day events.
To become such a person you first need to be totally honest with yourself and identify where you currently lack control. There is no need to feel embarrassed about any areas in which you lack control for this scrutinisation is an entirely secret and personal matter. Once such areas have been identified you can then install new systems or routines which will enable you to restore control and this regain balance in your life.
In my next post I will discuss this process fully so that you can begin using it immediately…
Here are Ten Rules for a Happy Life that you can start using immediately to improve your sense of happiness…
Do not depend on others
As much as possible, have confidence in yourself and do not compare yourself to others. Try not to be in need of others’ compliments to feel fulfilled. Do not mistake dependence for love. True love allows our loved ones to be free. The only force you should be depending on is the Creative Force (or God-Power or any other term you wish for the seed of Divinity) within you.
Rely on the creative force
Pursue your path, but know that along your path the Creative Force may have planned things for you which you did not expect. Accept these gifts graciously. The more open you stay on your path, the more ‘miracles’ will happen in your life.
Create harmony in your life
Step by step, and starting today, create more harmony in your everyday life. The next time somebody in your close environment – a child, partner, neighbour, or colleague – upsets you, take a deep breath and re-act with love and understanding.
Listen
Dedicate a little time each day just to yourself. Shut out the noise of the world and listen to the still small voice within. It will guide you in all that you do if you allow it to.
Be one with the creative force
Realise the strength there is in silence and enjoy the company of the Creative Force within as often as you can. This is the best thing you can ever do for yourself and the more your spiritual growth takes centre stage in your life, the more successful, happy, healthy and prosperous you will be in other areas of life.
Realise ‘The Truth’
Realise that “The Truth” simply does not exist. What is true for you and me may not necessarily be valid for somebody else. In this regard, share your ‘truth’ with others, but do not judge them for sharing and enjoying different truth.
Live from within
The more inner strength you gather and the more you become one with being alone, the more will you live from within. Outward influences will have less and less effect on you and you will instinctively make the right choices in your life.
Take obstacles as opportunities to learn
If your life would take its course without any challenges to face, there would be no learning process. The more you are willing to see obstacles as challenges from which you can learn, the easier it will be for you to overcome the so-called obstacles and see them as new opportunities for growth.
Face difficulties
Delaying the solving of difficulties results in unnecessary fuelling of energy into the problem, which will not let you rest until it is solved. Better to face it at once. The more you cultivate the habit of seeing obstacles as opportunities to learn, the less difficulties you will experience in your life.
Use your time wisely
Live each day as if it could be your last. Do not delay things you can do today, but on the other hand be aware of the relativity of time. Do not put yourself under pressure, because there is still so much you want to do. Do it one step at a time, and stay focused on what you are doing. Live in the now.
I will discuss each of these ten rules for a happy life in more detail in future posts, but right now you have enough information about each rule to start lifting yourself to a higher level of happiness. Enjoy!
Until you design your future, you will never be able to take control and create it as you want it to be. Whilst many people allow their lives to unfold according to chance, the end result of such an approach is rarely impressive, and leads to a state of mediocrity at best. Just as a garden that is not maintained will eventually become overgrown with weeds, so a life that has not been deliberately designed will eventually become a pale shadow of what it could have been.
Clearly, if you want to live life to the full, you need to stop being a passenger and choose to jump into the driving seat instead. Designing your future isn’t particularly difficult, and once you have done it you will be able to quickly move on and start creating it just as you have designed. That said, here’s how to design your future…
Step 1 – Define Your Life
First, take a pad and pencil and write down six headings: Health & Fitness, Career, Finances, Relationships, Tangibles and Personal Development. If you wish to rename these headings or add/remove one or two, feel free to do so (for example, a retired person might not feel the need for a Career heading).
Step 2 – Imagine the Possibilities
Next, look at each heading in turn and decide what you want the area of your life to be like in the future. Don’t worry about what you currently think is possible or about how something might be achieved, simply identify what you want. For example, under the Personal Development heading you might want to have learned to speak a second language, and under the Tangibles heading you might want to be the proud owner of a particular sports car.
Step 3 – Write it Down
When you have decided on something, write down a brief description of what you want under the appropriate heading. Write in the present tense as if the future vision is already a reality. For example, under Personal Development you might write, “I can communicate fluently in Japanese.” And under the Health & Fitness heading you might write “I have a sleek, toned physique that makes me feel as good as I look.”
You should spend as much time as you want on this process of designing your future and have fun with it. However, do take it seriously, because when you follow through with the next few steps that I will present in my next two posts, the future you design will be transformed into an actual reality. So design something special!
