Daily Positive Morning Affirmations for Personal Transformation

The English Prime Challenge

English Prime looks and sounds just like the everyday English language we use with family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and strangers, with one major exception, the verb 'to be' and all its variants, i.e., is, was, am, will be, etc., are removed. By using English Prime, often referred to as E-Prime, one can communicate more clearly and realistically than otherwise. The verb 'to be' creates the illusion of absolute certainty and unequivocal truths. Sometimes, this is appropriate, such as the statement, the flower is planted in the pot, or when describing certain properties or qualities, such as the dog is hairy. Even then, the word 'hairy' can have many levels of meaning and as such is not terribly clear. When used in the context of identity, the word 'is' becomes very problematic. For example, the simple sentence 'John is a troublemaker' would appear to suggest that John makes trouble all the time everywhere. Moreover, it suggests that one's own perception of the situation should be taken as truth, which it is not. Another person may perceive John as a goof off, but not a troublemaker.

A more accurate and realistic statement about John's behavior might be something like, 'the way I see it, John appears to behave as a troublemaker when at school.' This conveys a point of view, in a given context, not an absolute universal truth; it presents an appearance of behaviors which are interpreted by the observer as being that of a troublemaker, in a particular setting; it does not imply equality between John the person and a specific set of behaviors, in a specific set of conditions. John may behave in a very helpful and compliant way with friends outside of school. John is very helpful would contradict John is a troublemaker. Which one true? Which one false? It depends on the observer, and on the context, the conditions under which those behaviors are being observed.

Let's take another simple example: The sky is blue. Although this may seem the common experience, and does describe a property or quality of the sky, one would agree that the sky exhibits many shades of blue, at different times of the day; at night one would say the sky is black. E-Prime would remove the 'is' and replace it with something like 'appears as.' The sky does only appear as blue at some times, for many people, but not all people, at all times. By stating the sky is blue, the presumption becomes that it appears as blue for all people at all times, which it does not.

English Prime arose in the mid 1960's out of General Semantics. Here is the main idea of General Semantics: 'people can only know what they observe and experience when they see, hear, touch, taste, smell, think, and feel, and furthermore, that what they observe and experience can affect how they observe and experience in the future. Because each person has different experiences throughout their lives, they interpret their experiences differently' (wikipedia.org). This way of understanding semantics (i.e., the science of meaning in language) aligns with modern quantum physics, in that the observer and the observed influence each other, that which we perceive becomes colored by the very act of perception itself. We don't really experience an object as much as we experience our interaction with an object. Just about everything we call reality exists as a point of view, a perspective.

Another example, simple in structure and yet potent in effect, 'I am depressed' becomes 'I feel depressed.' There is a huge difference between being depressed and feeling depressed. In the former, we are identified as depressed; in the latter, we are experiencing a feeling or state of mind. Or, better yet, 'I feel depressed when I make a mistake' adding a context, a condition to that state of mind. And, even better than that, 'I experience feelings I label as depressing when I make a mistake.' The statement 'I am depressed' has an unrealistic absolute-ness about it. Some proponents of E-Prime have stated that improper use of the verb 'to be' creates a kind of 'deity mode of speech' which allows 'even the most ignorant to transform their opinions magically into god-like pronouncements on the nature of things' (wikipedia.org). Our point of view, our perspective, the ways in which we as an individual interact with our world, may appear to us as 'our truth' but, in fact, falls far short of Truth. Individual truth does not exist. Individual perception, interpretation, point of view and meaning does exist. Truth is; everything else: appears as. So, when you find yourself saying something like so and so is a such and such, or that I am such and such. Stop. Consider how you might phrase that using E-Prime. Take into account this idea of personal perspective, point of view, context and conditions, not an absolute, eternal fact. Up your game. Consider applying English Prime to your written and spoken words. It will require some rethinking, and rewording, of common phrases. The benefits include improved clarity of thought, speech and communication. It even has benefits in the realms of mental health.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9998495

Gaining Self-Confidence - How to Stop Thinking Like a Victim

When it comes to gaining your self-confidence it can be difficult to come by and easy to lose if not nurtured and worked on continually. Self-confidence is vital when it comes to feeling as if you are in charge of your of your life and with self-confidence, you will feel more like the victor rather than the victim in life.

The victim's mentality is the case where the individual does not take personal responsibility for their life and feels that the world is against them or that they need a lucky break to succeed in life. Whereas the self-confident individual understands that they are in charge and that if they are to achieve any goal in life they have the ability to work through whatever obstacles may stand in their way. And they learn to either find a way or make a way.

To avoid thinking like a victim, and to help you feel you are in control, rather than external forces, and avoid feeling overwhelmed when it comes to achieving your lifetime goals or taking on a project that seems insurmountable, begin by breaking down the steps that you need to take to become successful.

By breaking down your steps into smaller segments whether it is a daily or monthly goal, begin by working on one particular project at a time until it is completed then start another. By breaking down large projects or complicated ones, you begin to gain more self-confidence as it will grow with every successful completion and you begin to feel you have the upper hand in the situation rather than feeling like the victim, overwhelmed and defeated.

To avoid feeling like the victim in life and gaining more self-confidence with each passing day, you have to learn to adapt and expect the unexpected in life. Becoming self-organized and practicing good time management when it comes to completing projects or getting rid of unnecessary problems and time-wasting activities in your life will help you to learn to adapt and gain the self-confidence you need to be a victor in life.

Time wasting activities include staying away from negative thinking people who will try and tell you you cannot do something or that the system is rigged. People that buy into that philosophy end up living a life of victimhood and they love nothing more than to drag you down to their level.

That's not for you, by learning to think for yourself and staying clear of negative influences you allow yourself to build your confidence by allowing yourself through decisive action to prove that you can succeed and become more than you ever thought possible.

So when it comes to avoiding thinking like a victim in life, stay proactive, learn to take action on your dreams, take the personal initiative to find ways to become successful and in control of your life through a desire to become unstoppable and a champion.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10032335

Jim Rohn - Habits To Build A Better You (Personal Development)

A Nonjudgmental Person Is Present-Moment Oriented

If you judge others, the entire chemistry of your body changes dramatically. You may start feeling angry or anxious. Your stomach hurts. Your back aches and you don't understand why. Your vision blurs. Frown lines furrow your brow. You start to feel burdened. You can't stop thinking about what the other person did to bother you. Chances are that this person isn't even aware of the effect he or she is having on you. This happens often when someone borrows money from and you don't know how to say, no. After giving the money to him or her, you can't stop worrying if this person is going to pay you back. Here you can apply the lesson. Don't judge. After all, everything is in the past. You already gave the money away. Let it go and enjoy the now.

The present is all you have. Stop judging. Stop judging others and stop judging yourself. Remember, the Universe is perfect and everything happens for a reason. God is teaching great lessons that if you see them in the events, you will grow spiritually. Relax, enjoy, grow and live always in the present. The past is gone, the future doesn't exist, all you have is the present, enjoy it, don't waste it. Your preoccupation with the future may be just a figment of your imagination. "No life is so hard that you can't make it easier by the way you take it." - Ellen Glasgow

Any time you get stuck in the past, ponder over the wisdom of Helen Keller's words: "When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us." When you live in the present, you never suffer for nothing. You are always happy because you know your mission here is to be happy and enjoy every single second of your life. You find God in every breath you take, in the clean smell after a summer rain, in the Good Samaritan who stopped to help change your flat tire. God is everywhere. Never ask, where is God? Be more objective and ask, where is he not?

You will discover that even those who offend you are angels of God. They are messengers of God to teach you to live a better life. You will discover that problems are illusions. Illusions your ego creates to take advantage of your lower levels of energy, that is to say, your lower levels of awareness. God is in you, God is you. God is everywhere. When you feel alone or separated from him, this is by your choice. You have chosen to behave in a way that differs from God's plans for you. But that's OK. Don't feel guilty. Everything is part of the perfect orchestration of the Universe. And when you finally understand the lessons, your only choice or reaction will be to enjoy life fully.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10073014

Emotional-Behavioural Patterns

Emotional-behavioural patterns seem, on the face of it, to bypass some important aspects of human psychology. Where are the mental, the energetic, and specifically the physical and will forces? Emotional-behavioural patterns seem to imply some emotion or feeling that plugs directly into a demonstration of some kind and describes some predictable line of repetitive unfolding, sounding mechanistic and negative.

So far so good, in our understanding of emotional-behavioural patterns. However, there is a place for thinking, for energy, as well as for the corporeal and motivational. Although these patterns are not a specialty in human psychology, our observation of human behaviour, both inner and outer, leads us, fairly soon, to observe the repetitive nature of human beings. Outwardly, facial expressions, bodily gestures, speed of movement, sequence of behaviour, standard of behaviour expressing values and preoccupations, predispositions, prejudices, and level of awareness are enough to have us throwing up our arms in dismay: how, in what way, and by means of what is the human animal differentiated from any creature whose consciousness emanates from and is dominated by the base chakras of fear, survival, belonging, and acquisition?

Mostly, by far, human beings live their lives in a state of emergency, under conditions of survival, fearing the worst, expecting disaster, dreaming of terrible violence, poverty, paucity, anticipating the ravages of time, the onset of distress, calamity, and failure -- in short, imagining a tragedy of life a million times worse than what will, in all likelihood, ever happen to them.

What are we to make of this? Do we genuinely live in a state of desperation anything like the one we fear? Is our state of terror in any way equal to the threat actually posed? Does our level of anxiety in any way represent a balanced response to what might happen to us?

The fear of poverty, I have noticed, is usually more prevalent in people who have access to more than average funds. The fear of death in those who are not even ill, let alone terminally ill. The fear of loneliness (in old age, for example) more present in those who seem, on the face of it, more attractive prospects for companionship. What do we make of this? Fear masquerades as panic, paralysis, and hysteria, among other emotions, hides in dread, desperation, intimidation, and hesitancy, and is thinly disguised in worry, jitteriness, and uptightness. People today are shy, distraught, contracted, agitated, tense, and apprehensive, which are all signs of fear.

The former psychotherapist, now writer, and spiritual and social commentator, Stephanie Dowrick, points out that the fear of death is part of the infant's early experience, according to Melanie Klein. Dowrick goes on to say:

This is the fear of 'nothingness,' against which humankind has throughout history woven stories to promise 'somethingness.' Heaven, reincarnation, the sphere beyond... let me know through my body that I am alive, because it is certainly my body which will be unequivocally dead. (Stephanie Dowrick, Intimacy and Solitude, p.157)

She goes on to discuss sex, drinks at the bar, and human contact as ways to avoid fear, loneliness, feelings of unlovableness, and abandonment... but the ultimate is the avoidance of death. Fear of death conceals a deeper fear, as I have written about before:

To live -- to truly live -- there is really only one fear to overcome. Only one fear because it is the one which comprises all the others. That is the fear of death. Within this mighty fear is our denial of life, our avoidance of life, our lack of courage in life, and ultimately our fear of life. Fear of death is fear of life and now you sense what the journey of self-discovery has been all about. It is the shedding of fear in the form of our obsession with survival, our terror of not existing, our urge to rise out of the ground of being and realize ourselves as (and here is the great point of choice) our individual, separate self or as the true Self. (Richard Harvey, Moksha Dawn, p.42)

The mechanics of the emotional-behavioural patterns are as effective and predictable as they are proscriptive and confining... we fear our death; we fear our fear -- but our greatest fear is our fear of life:

Emotional-behavioural patterns are the automatic ways in which we react to life-automatic because that's how we avoid risk and insecurity. We fear fear! We fear the unexpected. We fear uncertainty. Just look at someone walking into any new environment, because it's easier to observe others -- but better still look at yourself. You plan what you will say, how you act, and how you will relate. You have a repertoire of possibility and safety. You react within the parameters of these anticipated circumstances and your rehearsed "responses." (Richard Harvey, "Liberation from Conditioning: An Interview on the Sacred Attention Therapy Project")

Life is so nailed down for most of us, there is no room for the surprising, the spontaneous --for an eruption of the sacred. With regard to "the emerging sacred reality" the author Ken Carey writes:

Fear has a small role to play in Creation. It functions as a warning system, advising each creature of behaviour that might cause biological damage. Its role is to protect the physical body. It was never meant to motivate human beings. Where fear is honored as a source motivation, consciousness diminishes... The Fall occurred when human attention turned to fear... (Ken Carey, Vision, P.9, my italics)

We have arrived at a simple truth: the fear that underlies our selling-out our humanity and enacting our lives through self-imposed emotional-behavioural patterning was never intended to be our mode of living, hiding behind the anachronistic need for protection, feeling "safe" through repressing the life-force.

Fear of death is fear of surrender to Infinity.

Learn to surrender, to exist at Infinity while alive, and fear of death dissolves.

Fear of death is fear of the Unknown.

So says Adi Da Samraj in The Eating Gorilla Comes in Peace. The unknown awaits the one who sheds his emotional-behavioural patterns. It is something wonderful -- what Rumi might call "a surprise of roses" -- but then it is utterly ordinary and quite mundane. Life itself flows very close to you and when you are released from your patterning, it pours through you like a great refreshing torrent.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10079716

Dr. Romance on Winning the War Within

Do you sometimes feel locked in a struggle with yourself? I know I do. Why is it that we know what we want to do, but it's such a struggle to actually get it done? Even Saint Paul writes, in a letter to the Romans, "I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do." Even the most successful people wind up struggling with procrastination, overeating, overspending, drinking too much, saying things you don't mean, or getting involved with the wrong people. As I work with my clients, the issue of internal struggle comes up over and over again. #0160; What's going on? It's inner warfare: a fight with yourself.

Internal warfare produces a constant noise in one's mind, as the voices of opposing thoughts become locked in never-ending argument, which makes clear thinking almost impossible. Whenever the inner war rages, you will use poor judgment in the important decisions of your life, because a substantial part of your thinking ability is hampered. Just imagine trying to think in a room where two people are arguing about everything, most of the time!

When you can't think clearly:

* You are not able to understand the intuitive information you are receiving that could tell you who is trustworthy and who is unreliable;

* You are not able to evaluate all the options available to you and make clear decisions; and

* You cannot sort out the difference between realistic options and options that are too pessimistic or too optimistic to serve as the basis of a good decision.

In addition, the exhaustion resulting from constant turmoil causes you to "forget" or feel unable to think clearly about your circumstances and your actions, which leads you to be dependent on others to do your thinking for you.

As long as it goes on this way, the inner war is unwinnable, since all sides feel equally right, and equally powerful. Even if one side could win, you'd be operating at half power, unable to think clearly, or unable to feel feelings; which is what happens to many people. Just as in wars in the external world, both sides inevitably pay a heavy price.

When you learn how to manage your thinking and get all sides to negotiate and work together, you create a problem-solving team that is both intuitive and rational, creative and practical. Only when your internal war is settled, and both sides form a working partnership, can you use the full power of your thinking ability.

To achieve this inner teamwork, take small steps in the beginning:

* When feelings of embarrassment, unworthiness, shame, or fear arise, just slow down and give yourself a chance to relax.

* Don't push or criticize yourself, but reassure and encourage yourself past the problem.

Discussing issues with yourself, asking yourself questions, and comforting yourself are hard concepts to understand, because part of you is focused on others, not on yourself. Even once you understand how to confront your inner feelings, you may resist at first, because you feel confused, ashamed or embarrassed. Old, ingrained subconscious beliefs that your feelings are frightening, and that you're unworthy of attention are fighting with your new, rational adult knowledge that you are important to you.

Once you negotiate an internal truce, you can become a new kind of person, within whom both the intuitive, feeling part and the rational, acting part work together for the common good, without a "good guy" or "bad guy", or winner and loser, but seeking to solve problems so that both sides are satisfied. Negotiation, communication. and partnership become an integral part of your relationship with yourself, producing a sense of wholeness and power that give you the confidence to take risks and the motivation to get things done. It truly takes the self-image of a warrior, at times, to continue the hero's journey toward fully living life.

I wish you peace: within yourself, within your family, within the world.

Tina B. Tessina, Ph.D. is a licensed psychotherapist in S. California since 1978 with over 30 years experience in counselling individuals and couples and author of 13 books in 17 languages, including It Ends With You: Grow Up and Out of Dysfunction; The Unofficial Guide to Dating Again; Money, Sex and Kids: Stop Fighting About the Three Things That Can Ruin Your Marriage, The Commuter Marriage, and her newest, Love Styles: How to Celebrate Your Differences. She writes the "Dr. Romance" blog, and the "Happiness Tips from Tina" email newsletter.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10083397

7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Self Improvement by Stephen Covey

The Universal and the Particular

When you write or speak about personal growth you encounter two jostling rocks which you need to negotiate your way through. On the one hand, in your attempts to systematize or plot a course in order to give some form to the inner journey, you specify and simplify elements and sign posts. On the other hand, you must never lose sight of the individual's uniqueness. So for almost every generalization you recognize that what you propose as the rule to follow may just as easily be broken and prove to be the exception. Generalization versus uniqueness! Yet it is just this point that distinguishes authentic art and real creativity from mere daubing, hack art, and empty contrivance.

The great books, paintings, sculptures, and dramas tend to have this single point in common - they express the universal through the particular. The impersonal appears out of the personal! And this is how it should be, because in the deepest darkness of the human mystery known as the psyche an impersonal seam of truth lies awaiting the convulsions of the land of the soul and spirit, an earthquake of the power and magnitude of those that erupt and reveal mighty huge crystal caves that lay for thousands of years beneath the earth's surface.

Deep within us are the luminous, crystal caves of the soul. Reaching into them is a journey of daring. Not all receive the call to this adventure. But for those of us who are called there is an intense rightness about the path to the core of ourselves, an intense and growing realization that, without the discoveries the call yields, we remain unborn and denied the fresh vistas of life's treasures, which are so expansive, so deep, that our previous life pales in comparison.

It is as if we are waking up - and must wake up -- to some new dimension of life and, as with all calls to new life, the process begins with an invitation, a gateway, to change and transformation. This gateway is an archetype - recurring patterns in human behavior, universal symbols and motifs. But the reward demands a certain effort.

Let us draw on the myth of the heroic journey that essentially is comprised of these three elements: the call to adventure, the adventure with its trials and initiatory events, and finally the return with the gift for collective society. The journey requires willingness, receptivity, courage, resilience, faith, and surrender.

For many however, resistance or refusal to hear the call is the first challenge. For human beings are prone to delusions of safety and security. These delusions stand between them and the adventure of change and transformation. The more radical and great the adventure they are called to, the more resistance and struggle they are liable to experience. Psychologically this is known as attachment. Our first attachment is to our mother and the dynamics of the relationship and the narrative of how that evolved in our early lives comprises the familiar and "safe" holding pattern that is likely to preside over our lives.

We are shaken out of our attachment to our ordinary world. The life we have structured and scheduled around this familiarity is our comfort zone and our comfort zone can easily become the stagnant pond of our lives. We may fear the call to the unknown, hesitate at the risk involved, grow fearful of what we must give up and leave behind, feel apprehensive about what others might think of our reckless behavior, and falter at the perceived cost to ourselves and the life we have known. As we track back we can see the times in our lives when we were called to new adventure to change, to the new gateways of developing life. Perhaps a letter or an email, reading an inspiring passage in a book, or hearing a catalytic speaker who opens us up, the sight of a person we haven't met before, a challenging job offer or a promotion, the chance to move to another country... or of course starting therapy.

For those of us who persist in to the further reaches of personality work we encounter the ultimate call on the childhood egoic level that call is to finally release all.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10083934

The Conundrums of Most Religions That May Provoke Profound Periods of Perplexing Ponderance:-O

For the ever-Deepening Path of my non-denominational Ministries,I have studied many theologies; some with very in-depth passion.

Although I was born, raised, baptized and even Catechism'd a Catholic:-O

My inquisitive nature, asked too many questions of:

Why some of our Irish church folks were inspired to fight and bomb other Irish Christian folks...

often praying for 'God's' blessing to bomb thy neighbor, "HIS" children.

During my youthful Catechism schooling...

It was bad enough when I asked if there was an adult version of these mythic "stories".

I told the nun that:

"Wow! 'God' was really upset with those ancient men from Babel,

Threatening 'God Almighty by building a tower of sticks & stones to reach 'Heaven'.

Surely 'He' must be extremely mad at the tall buildings in New York! :-O

As a child, I pondered:

"How many more 'fibs' will they make me believe or else face eternal damnation?"

After a meeting with the catholic school principle nun to further understand the deeply spiritual and philosophic concerns of an innocent kid...

I never again had to invest my time in 'such studies' during the otherwise endlessly fun summers.

There is a very long list of reasons that so many other folks have thrown out the 'Spiritual Baby' along with the dirty dogma bathwater of un-transcended traditional religions.

A tragedy that is beyond measure.

Everyone born has a natural inclination to connect 'themselves' to something that is bigger and more meaningful than life as it typically appears with all its struggles and challenges.

The lack of answers by the nuns & "adults" fueled my inquisitive inquires further into 'seeking', searching, and pondering the philosophical questions 'Life', the Bigger Picture, and

'my' place in the 'Timeless Wonder of it All'.

Father Thomas Keaton, a recently Transcended Roman Catholic monk and Abbot of St. Joseph's Abbey,

stated that:

"All the world's religions combine, is at best...

A bad translation of God.

His Deeply contemplative, full immersion of really connecting personally with Spirit was a major breakthrough for progressive Catholics, Christians and even 'seekers' from many diverse theologies with his famous 'Centering Prayer' mediation.

Like the Theravada Buddhist meditation of Vipassana, typically a 10-day mediation focusing on the direct experiential perception of our True Nature, integrating, Morality, mindfulness of breathing, and reflection.

Father Thomas helped create his famous 'Centering Prayer' that had a similar approach to contemplating profound scriptures...

(as opposed to the man made up myths, magic and miracles and other dogmas.)

The Tao states that:

Anything that can be read or written...

Is NOT the Tao.

Father Thomas states that:

Silence, is the language of God.

My personal Transcendence of the man made up myth, magic and miracles that are required to be taken as 'God's' unquestionable word, or face eternal damnation, was beginning to broaden my path or personal Spiritual growth.

'Personal' Spiritual growth was very much not encouraged within most traditional doctrine.

It was more of, "Don't experience spirit yourself, just take our word for it."

Again, with the insistence that myths were to be taken, not usefully and metaphorically, but to be taken unquestionable as the word of 'God'...

or suffer eternal damnation...

Well, with this 'self-defeating Modus Operandi'...

It keeps getting harder to tell young, post-modern rational folks to abandon their rational intelligence and dive mindlessly into an un-rational belief of man made up myths, magic and 'miracles'.

Never mind the absolute power created by the corruption of church and state, and the countless 1000's of innocent folks tortured to death in hideous 'evil' fashions, including academics like Bruno. Copernicus had to wait until on his death bed before he dared published the work that changed everything we knew about our relation to the universe.

Galileo dared prove that our narcissistic, power driven self-absorbed concepts of 'Us', God's chosen planet to be the center of the universe... was simply not true,

"Here! Just look into my telescope!"

Galileo was stripped of all his privileges, exiled by house arrest and by threat of death was told never look into that evil telescope again!

But yet, at the same time they were shaming Galileo...

the Pope finances one of the world's largest telescopes of the times and have maintained the most extensive observatories privately owned for over 500 years. At least they finally pardoned Galileo nearly 500 years later:-O

At the core contemplative aspects of all spiritual Practices and even the dominate religious traditions, there are many commonalities of moral, virtue and a non-distracted mental space.

The deeply connected Christian scholars and mystics brought forth the basis of the most prolific religion in history, but those in power created the dogma and indoctrination attached to many religious traditions that were born of an insatiable power-ego-driven drive for domination capitalizing on the most powerful military weapon and political tool...

Never before was it conceived that without much funding, a huge army could be assembled and make their own way, way over to 'god's' enemy and kill everyone there; the church pulled this off by allowing this mob to rape and pillage anywhere along the way and back.

Brilliant, if not diabolical... The combination of 'church and state'.

Absolute power corrupts, absolutely.

Again, the 'church' atrocities are not 'evil'!

Sadistic ego driven torturing of others in the name of 'God', back in the good 'ol days, was perfectly normal during that embarrassing time of our human evolution.

Almost all religions today have transcended this embarrassing unevolved trait.

Those that still continue the atrocities the Christians were doing 1000 years ago are still embracing the traditions of their mislead father's, father's mis-perception of their religion.

Traditional religions that don't allow the scrutiny of review by a group of qualified peers, Is ultimately keeping the flock in the dark ages.

By not progressing, not transcending with the evolving world views...

Only empty rituals are left to be indoctrinated into a deaf, dumb and blind-faith for the ones that inherit their father's, father's outdated religion, unquestioned.

Along a Path of Deep Spiritual pursuit...

One begins to learn that the eternal nature of our Being is inseparable from all others, yet...

Most religions will insist that 'we sinners' are separate, not only from the un-reachable holy heights of 'God', but also separate from every other human spirit... particularly the ones that don't worship like 'they' do; a mentality of divide and conquer that perpetuates the illusion of being separate from 'God' and all others.

It's curious that it is believed that 'God' Himself infallibly wrote the words of the Bible by His own hand, yet:

There are over 33,000 denominations of Christianity that just about each one has a slightly different spin on the infallible word of 'God':-O

The progressive human element strives for perfection in ever increasing stages of 'transcend and include'.

All successive achievements since the 'Big Bang', from subatomic particles to our own evolved body and triune brain, and the integration of post-modern societies that have evolved along with our collective world view.

In all aspects of life, it is advisable to 'do one's own due diligence'.

In fact, that very phrase is included in the forms to sign when buying a house.

And...

No one buys a new car without at least some basic comparisons with the competitors.

Yet, we tend to not bother with the Divine Right of our Free Will to use our due diligence when committing the perspectives of our Eternal Nature to the most profound aspect of our earthy and Spiritual existence...

It's at least a wee bit more profound than investing in a car or house!

It's your Life - Do your due diligence!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Just because your parent's, parent's, parents were indoctrinated into the power of 'church and state' or succumbed to the fear of a made up 'satin' or the fear of 'god' HIMself.

It's OK to make a sensible search into the True Nature of our Being.

Shop around and find your own 'Way'!!

It seems fairly universal in the less dogmatic contemplative traditions

that 'the True Nature of our Being':

Is not the 'story of our life', our body, brains, mind, egos, emotions, the work we do or the things 'we' like or dislike...

So much so, that even if it were possible to meet 'ourselves' after 'we' die here...

We would not even recognize 'ourselves' without the veils that obscure the True Nature of our Being by the mistaken identity that 'we' typically project 'ourselves' to be.

In the Tibetan Bon traditions, which integrated Buddhism along the way, evolved it is said for over 18,000 years in an unbroken lineage that inspired many profound teachings including the Practices of the 'Great Perfection' - Dzogchen, and profoundly what became a collective body of work referred to as:

"The Book of the Dead", regarding the Bardo state between death and rebirth.

The Ultimate goal of Enlightenment is the objective nature of Dzogchen - The advanced teachings of "The Great Perfection", with the Bardo described as a sort of final check point for Enlightenment in which different approaches to Enlightenment can possibly be experienced, with the 'Rainbow Body' enlightenment achieved while still alive, thus, never physically dying.

(Similar to the 'concept' that: 'Christ became a body of light and transcended without physically dying)

Then during Bardo, various opportunities for Enlightenment can possibly manifest during the up to 49 days of Bardo.

And, if ya can't achieve Enlightenment within those 49 days, perhaps a 'favorable rebirth' might be 'your' 'ticket'...

And that's where the philosophic conundrum blossoms into these 'inquires' :-O

The Buddha taught the doctrine of Anatta, which refers to the doctrine of "non-self", that there is no unchanging, permanent self, soul or essence in living beings.

Buddha taught that Anatta does not mean there is no afterlife, no rebirth or no fruition of karma.

It's not a bitter pill to swallow to consider trading the belief in 'a' soul, eternally separate from 'God' and all others...

Vs.

Being an inseparable aspect of all 'souls' and everything there is.

Not only 'at One with God', but 'at One with everything there is'.

I'll choose Boundless spaciousness instead of the limited 'self' we often mistake for our True Nature.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Here within lies the conundrums of Buddhism...

If there is Anatta - no self & no soul, then: Who is it, that can be re-born or if well along 'The Path',

what 'individual' gets a favorable rebirth?

The Buddha asserted that there is no soul, but there is rebirth, for which karmic moral responsibilities are necessary, along with 'right view' and 'right actions' for 'one' to gain liberation.

The 8-Fold Noble Path is the Buddha's 'road map' to Enlightenment, but he also encouraged others stating: 'by any skillful means' that leads you to liberation.

All slopes lead to the mountain top...

The path one takes can take anywhere between an instant or eons.

That's what Siddhartha did as he went from Guru to Guru,

Searching for the insights of his own skillful means to manifest.

Your Path is paved by personal 'experience', so...

Do it your 'Way'!

Or at least realize that contrary to what the 'church' projects that there is only one way to eternal bliss, and that's 'their way'...

There are as many 'ways' to eternal bliss as there are beings born.

Personal 'experience' is an essential centering aspect of all transcendence.

During Buddha's time and back around when heaps of religions were forming...

Survival of the fittest mindsets were not nearly transcended yet, especially in societies that bred competitiveness in a 'dog eat dog' viscous cycle that was so prevalent back then...

and still perpetuated to this day, if not on a wee bit less barbaric fashion, but spiritually and personally self-defeating non the less.

It was imperative to integrate some insistence on morals and virtues on a society that struggled for survival with very meager opportunities.

A time when the world view was such that it was universally understood:

The world is flat Slavery was perfectly normal and women were not even considered fully human, only a property of a man.

Still to this day, outdated traditions inspire 58% to go along with this male short sided un-evolved view.

Just before Buddha's time, Confucius & The 'Tao' presented insights, primarily based on the morals and virtues of the:

Harmonious integration of Families, government and the collective societies.

The slow evolution of human kind, as we climbed down off the trees and began the 'prehistoric man' stage.

Chimps fight each other to gain the dominate of the clan.

The clan fights other clans to take their foraging grounds.

Bigger monkeys fight any other clan for the survival of their species.

Man evolved from that survival trait burned into our DNA programming.

Some overzealous religions would insist that 'man was born a sinner',

Naturally inclined to be 'evil'.

When it was not 'evil', a term some religions inventeed and depend on to scare you to worshiping their way...

But simply our human evolution.

We started out in the animal word of survival of the fittest.

That's not evil, it was what was required then.

There is no 'sin'...

That too was conspired by the hand of man during the earlier stages of our evolution.

We can now look back and see how morally repulsive our collective atrocities have been all along our evolutionary path.

And let those reflections inspire a wider circle of embrace today, until a Transcendence that Includes the sensibilities of everyone, and every 'thing' that we are custodians of, are fully integrated into our collective world view.

------------------------------

With countless 10's of 1000's of various religions, in which nearly all of them have their own version of the 'after life', based on biased projections of man's archaic world views...

Despite the fact they all consider their version to be the only way to avoid eternal demotion...

It is evident that - No one really knows 'what comes next'.

So far...

My thoughts on 'after this life' seems to resonate with the description Philosopher Ken Wilber writes of so eloquently, based on his ambitious research of all the known theologies possible and expresses those Wisdoms of... What comes next... about, 'Becoming at One with it All'...

Kosmically connected to the whole of Everything in a 'Holographic like Sacred Synchronous Universe of a Collective Consciousness' sort of way.

A 'non-duel' perspective that we simply have no way to relate to or conceptualize of...

'Being at One with it All'.

But these are some ways to feel a wee bit of that experience.

'Your Transcended loved one is now the radiance of every beautiful sunset'

'The sparkle of a sunlit dew drop on a morning flower... '

You become an inseparable part of everything there is.

Allow that Blissful Reverie take you away for a Timeless moment, whenever you just...

'Let yourself Be'.

Consider that:

One does not need to fully understand everything there is to know about

'gravity', in order stay firmly on the ground...

It happens naturally.

Birth and Death happen naturally, and whatever follows is natural as well.

Perhaps there is a special place in a 'hell realm' for those that really mess it up here and die not learning a thing about anything...

OR NOT

:-O

Considering that most contemplative spiritual traditions point out that the True Nature of our Being is not our egos, emotions, nor our dirty or divine deeds...

so therefore, from their collective perspectives:

There would be no 'one individual' that goes to an afterlife that can be punished.

~ ~ ~

I spent the first few decades of my 'cognitive' life convincing myself that,

like the life I know, surly 'we', our soul, must evolve in stages...

so rebirths must be how 'we', our 'soul', evolves...

yet,

In my early 20's, after a few years of focused meditation practice,

I attended a series of workshops that accumulated into an opportunity

to experience a guided past life regression with an expert in that field.

I experience numerous lives... very vivid. Very much like:

Going through one's own memories of something profound that just happened last week.

As 'real life' as real life gets, just like playing back one's own profound memories...

but, what surprised me the most was...

that I came away from that experience with a completely new perspective on past or future lives...

As much as I expected to witness 'my' past lives...

I came away with the strong feeling that I was merely (or profoundly) tapping into some sort of 'collective' consciousness.

The thinking that 'We' evolve in stages and rebirths must be how our 'soul' evolves...

This tends to waste a bit of time on "one's" Path.

If even for a brief ponderance here & there...

To even consider that a "you" can just pick up 'spiritually & or intellectually' where "you" left off and continue to complete 'your' mission...

this is not just a delusion and a waste of time...

It solidifies the misplaced notion of being a 'self' that stays intact eternally as who 'you' currently mistake the true nature of your Being.

Whatever it is, that is the 'Eternal' Nature of our True Being...

Was never born, will never die, is changeless and inseparable from all that there is...

A far cry from the boundlessly limited 'self' 'we' mistake 'ourselves' to be.

Our True Nature is not the 'story' of 'ourselves' we project ourselves to be.

Those so Inspired can experience the True Nature of one's Being with a personal Practice.

In meditation, develop a deep sense of focused, relaxed concentration on pure emptiness.

You will eventually be aware of an 'Awareness'.

It is always present.

This non-distracted Clear Light of Awareness will illuminate the essence that is

our True Nature of our Being.

Once experienced, spend more time just 'Being', fully present in the moment...

And each moment we can turn off our super computer brain from it's useful when needed but endless thoughts spawning new thoughts, judging, comparing, calculating, adding 'our' biases...

Abiding within our Inner Stillness, Silence and Boundless Spaciousness, will increase the sense of our True Nature.

The perspective of one who exudes the virtues of 'Enlightenment', sees the perfection in the 'ever-present' moment.

That trait can be learned by anyone.

However...

The 'non-duel' inseparable connection to all there is... well,

that typically takes up most of one's Path...

yet...

It is Always Already Alright and Within 'us'...

once we peel back the veils we've projected that blinds 'us' from our True Nature.

Once it is realized that 'the True Nature of our Being', Is not our:

Body, brains, mind, egos, emotions, the work we do or the things 'we' like or dislike...

The more we can experience the perfection in everything that 'Is'.

Starting with deep mediation, the experience of one's 'Inner Stillness, can open a door to one's 'Inner Silence'.

Then, Awareness of the Union of Inner Stillness, Silence and Boundless Spaciousness of our Being reveals a perpetual Bliss beyond measure.

Regarding the conundrum of Buddhism...

As much as my empirical thinking mind wanted to project it's perspective on an evolving soul...

My experiences were leading me to feel otherwise.

In the last few years of deepening Practice, my 'empirical thinking mind' has caught up to what my experiences feel.

It is quite liberating just to have come to this perspective, at least intellectually.

Even just a toe in the pond of liberation is enough to feel the Bliss and perfection of the Ever-Present Moment...

at least for longer and longer periods of Pure Awareness.

Most traditions support the notion of:

'do good or your soul will pay in the afterlife'.

Without a soul & karma to scare people into being good, tt was apparently a big concern of the times to really drive home the moral issues.

The Buddha asserted that there is no 'self' no soul - Anatta, but there is rebirth for which karmic moral responsibility is a must.

In the Buddha's framework of karma, right view and right actions are necessary for liberation.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

The more I look into this conundrum,

the more the so called 'failure' is exposed.

With the conclusion of the Tibetan perspective of Bardo, and the insistence on an individual & or person to ether 'go to' nirvana or return to Earth for the endless samsara and rebirth cycle...

The logical view of Anatta with respect to:

'Who is it that obtains 'Enlightenment'?...

When the True Nature of our Being is Always Already Enlightened.

'Who is it that returns for an endless cycle of samsara and rebirths?

Since there is nothing about the actions of our material body and it's egos, emotion and deeds done to or for others that 'we' take with 'us' to wherever 'we' go from here.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Regardless of whether a 'being' has a soul or a self that continues on with rebirths until 'they' finally get it...

The Tibetan tradition of Practicing Bardo Yoga throughout one's life to help one stay fully aware during the transcendence of this life, has some enduring merits.

The inspiration when dying - to remain fully aware, for as long as I can recall, feels like a natural inclination to me, as this was the case when I nearly drowned to death while cartwheeling along the bottom of the Missouri River, caught by a massive undertow...

When it felt I'd pass out any moment...

I stopped my vigorous 'swimming for life movements' and just...

let it be...

I had the very strong desire to witness fully aware, whatever mystery was to come...

There was an astonishing sensation of Bliss beyond measure, as I drifted along in a reverie in the completely black depths of this muddy river...

Then I met with the bottom firmly and finally realized where 'up' was and pushed off the bottom with all my might...

I find it intriguing that with the Tibetan view of, 'remaining fully aware', is the imperative perspective of entering the Bardo and to wherever comes next.

We can't know everything, and if we could, we couldn't simply express this 'experience' to another.

It seems like it's a natural given that one should be moral and compassionate.

To assume all humans are born evil or sinners or natural assholes...

Is a wrong assumption.

Just because so many ignorant beings seem like this, it's all the cause and effect of one's upbringing and societal surroundings.

One shouldn't need the Buddha to tell ya to treat others well.

So if our parents couldn't express sensible morals into us.

And society fails to integrate a sense of communal 'Loving Kindness'...

Then those that are remain such slow learners, could be compelled to concern themselves with guilty thoughts of:

"Holy shit! I've been an asshole all my life!

What's gonna happen to Meeeeeee:-O

Any 'being' concerned with a 'Path' or the inspiration to 'seek' info & Insights...

just that wee bit of Awareness is usually enough to 'get' the basics of:

How to live their life with harmony, compassion, understanding and loving kindness.

Anyone can do this.

Those that are not yet inspired to 'Be' with 'the Way' of common sensitivities, are not my concerns, particularly if they are not concerned for themselves.

So whatever happens to those beings will, in a vague sense, be just like what happens to all us other sentient beings...

a return to the collective consciousness from which 'we' came...

"Where there's no more you & me, no more they & we, just unity."

Although we should all extend our intentions of good will to all sentient beings...

It's not 'Zenful' to be a 'goodie-goodie' and make your mission to make "them" 'get it'.

From my perspective:

The ignorant will cling to and grasp at whatever they are compelled to.

Their perspectives of hope & fear become 'who they think they are'.

You can't help those who don't even know they need help to realize 'they' are

something other than the limited 'self' they mistakenly take to be 'them'.

Their perpetual 'pain and suffering' is based on their own ignorance of the True Nature of their Being.

A subtle change towards a 'Right View' has profound benefits of liberation.

So then aside from those that have no inspiration to Just get along with everything...

Are the rest, that intrinsically feel what is right or wrong.

They instinctively know what good thoughts or bad thoughts are.

They understand that reactive egos and emotions are not part of their true nature.

For those, there isn't really a big concern for whatever comes next.

There is no fear of going to a man made up mythic 'hell' for being bad...

'cause that's not your nature, so the cause & effect of karma can never build up in this life, nor carry on beyond this life... even it was possible.

Then there is the common sense of realizing that,

Whatever is to come after this life, is beyond our ability to even comprehend,

even if it were laid out in perfect easily read 'words'.

There is nothing in this current existence that one could relate to whatever comes next.

All beings born have infinite potential... for positive or negative actions.

In a reasonable post-modern society, there is only the failings or the un-evolved nature of our collective societies that determine if the majority of us become inclined to 'get it'... or not.

When the person from 'tech support' fails us,

it not this employee's fault, it's the failings to

properly train and educate the working 'collective'.

There is a perfection in everything that 'is'.

If one has taken the effort to be mindful and compassionate with loving kindness.

There is a Bliss experienced in the ever-present moment.

Taking this Bliss through one's life, is the liberation.

Whatever comes next, will be, the natural perfection.

It will remain a mystery that is beyond our conception...

Until it is experienced, by

the fundamental Awareness that is our True Nature.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

All 'religious traditions' need to consider integrating the 'Ken Wilber' Transcend and Include evolution.

He also published a body of work regarding these and other yet to be transcended shortcomings of Buddhist concepts in:

"the fourth turning of Buddhists Dharma".

The bottom line:

Most well read, experienced, non-biased 'seekers' on a Path of Spiritual Insights can agree:

We just can't really know everything.

Regarding:

Understanding the full Truth of the 'Timeless wonder of it all'...

It's likely that most of us won't even realize a bit of this while here fully surrounded by the reinforced projections that perpetuate the mistaken sense of 'who it is we really are'.

Despite how many religions seem to have their own blue print of the hierarchies of 'Heaven'...

And they vary with every slightly different religion, some even have the details of 'Heaven' fine tuned to the exact amount of space they have before 'Heaven' is full.

(BTW, they say it's only 144,000)

'The Truth' about after this life...

Is that we just can't know it, until we fully experience it.

And that makes it impossible to come back as 'us' and tell everyone about it in mere words.

We can't know everything, or the Absolute Truth...

But we can be mindful of what is Not True!

Just as the mythology of the old Greek 'Gods' are obvious to us now as certainly not our real 'gods', but just the projections of the archaic world view of 18th century bc...

Be wary of dogmatic demands to fully buy into fear-based faiths of myth, magic and so-called miracles and abandon your 'Divine Right' of Free Will.

One should be free to choose openly, intelligently the philosophically sound perspectives of how to live your life, without fear of the 'man made up' concept of eternal damnation.

Religious traditions and stubborn family ways, often take away one's Divine Right of Free Will.

Be Mindful of your thoughts.

Are they of Unconditional Loving Kindness for all?

Or are they based on egotistical, self-serving bad intentions, envy, revenge or emotional reactions... ?

If one is Mindful of thoughts, only Unconditional Loving Kindness will be expressed in one's speech and actions.

Love feels better than hate, and giving properly feels better than receiving.

Be in Love with what 'Is', and you eternally have bliss.

Don't pine about the past or fret about the future.

All we have is this moment...

'Be' fully present and find contentment in the ever-present moment...

And you will be liberated.

It's not magic...

It's just the 'Right Perspective'.

Find yours today!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10086253