Spiritually, anger is not our friend. On the animal plane, it has its value, but if our goal is to embody and radiate spiritual energy and principles on the Material Plane (the Third Dimension), then anger is something we need to master. In the spiritual world — the most peaceful place that we can access within — anger doesn't exist. It is an illusion that no one on the spiritual plane can experience. So if our mission is to express divine emery and we express anger, then we are not doing our mission. Or at least, not doing it as effectively as possible.

Sometimes we fall off our spiritual path. We make mistakes; we "sin." Maybe we're stubborn, maybe just ignorant. Whatever the case, if we are sincere about our path, and we catch ourselves "dive off the cliff," we direct our anger at us because we fell. But anger is anger, no matter who or what it's directed at.

Love every moment...a good mantra: "I love this moment." Once you can do this consistently, you are happy, grateful, growing, and are love.

This is also an excellent to remember when you are going through a rough time. Just by saying it and focusing on it can lighten your mood.

If you want to master something, then that has to be your focus. Jimi Hendrix was a master guitar player. He made Eric Clapton want to quit playing guitar! Hendrix didn't become an excellent musician by watching movie all day; he was focused on his art. He would practice all day. He'd practice while he was walking around his house and even fixing breakfast. He said, "Music is my religion."

Buddha, after he left the security of his father's palace, was focused on spiritual truth. Jesus left home for spiritual instruction at the age of 12 and didn't return to public life for almost three decades. So, what do you want master? Focus on it, then notice all of the distractions!

Anyone can commune with nature. That can have many meanings, but the one I'm referring to is making a connection to any particular entity. This could be an animal, tree, stone, or whatever you like. When communing with a tree, for example, we would focus on it and "share" some internal feeling, appreciation, or understanding with it, or maybe be at one with it. The energy flow between us and the object of our attention does not travel in a straight, visual line though. Rather, it travels in an upward reaching, spiraling arch. Through this energetic pathway, we connect energetically.

Another way to connect is more direct, but is non-spatial. That is the connection through our heart center, which connects to the "heart" of the object that we are focusing on.

THE COURAGE PRAYER

“Allow me to live courageously —
without fear —
naked to the world,
in full faith in God
and all His Emanations.”

explanation:

To "live courageously" means to act consciously and unflinchingly to whatever life sends our way.

"Without fear," which intuitively is the opposite of courage, means to live beyond the limitations of security, sex, power, possessions, and the need for the acceptance of others. It's not that these things are limiting in themselves or are actually bad in any way. It's a matter of who has what: do we have power or does power have us? Do we have money or does it keep us imprisoned? Fear equals attachment; attachment equals limitation. In fact, fear generates karma in each moment we are feeling it.

"Naked to the world" means living without psychological armour, and it implies innocence and pure intentions.

"In full faith in God" gives us a foundation on which to live courageously. If we look at the world, we notice that greedy, power-hungry people exist, and these traits are directly related to violence — violence against nature in all of her forms. Without the internal support of God (a master, spirit, etc.), it is normal to be terrified to discover that you were born into such a primitive world.

"His Emanations." First, unfortunately the English language lacks a non-gender-specific personal pronoun for anything animate. In other words, there's no pronoun for God: God is not a He, She, or an It. This has created an intellectual push-pull contest between the traditional Western male perspective (that uses "He") and the (re)emerging Goddess culture (that uses "She"). Symbolically, both male and female labels can be seen as either right or wrong, depending on how we're defining God. For obvious reasons, few people use the label "It." In any case, I use the male version because, culturally, it flows easier for me.

"His Emanations" is based on the picture of reality that God created not only humans, but other intelligent beings as well. Additionally, some of these other beings are vibrationally higher than humans and have light bodies. Some have incarnated on Earth, and many people had and has labeled the more famous ones "God." These are the awakened beings, and have mastered limitation. Jesus was one of the most famous, and his disciples called him "Master," because that's what he was. "Emanations" also includes our own spirit, which is enlightened as well. Having full faith in these manifestations (God, and those who have embodied God) gives us the foundation on which to stand securely.

Almost every knows the proverb, "Nobody is perfect." This simple saying is a helpful tool for anyone who suffers from intolerance. We're all human; we all have faults. (I'm writing here within the context of everyday human life, where intolerance can be a factor in our experience.) No one is all bad, and when we give others slack — the benefit of the doubt — both parties benefit. Similar to intolerance are the separative psychological states of being judgmental, impatient, unforgiving, and uncompassionate. The truth that "Nobody is perfect" can weaken these limiting states as well.

Astrology can help us to not judge others, or at least to reduce the severity of our judgments. Judgements are labels. Ironically, astrology is basically a symbolic language where each symbol is a label. So how is that supposed to help?

Most judgements are based on limited perceptions of another person. The mind latches on to a specific trait that it considers a fault, and then applies it to that person. "He drives badly. What a jerk." So, the person is reduced to a sub-creature of sorts. In terms of the mental body, no one is perfect: all minds have a mental structure that determine what is right and what is wrong, and no one can live up to its ideal. The mind is dualistic by nature and changes over time.

Astrology works by giving us insight into a more complete person. In human form, we are beings with hundreds (maybe thousands) of traits, quirks, opinions, and the like. The study of astrology shows us that. It does so by expanding our understanding of human capacity, capabilities, and complexities. I'm not talking about newspaper or Sun-sign astrology, which offers only a glimpse of what's going on with a person. It's little better than a judgement, although possibly more objective.

Studying your birth chart can be an ever-unfolding discovery of the many aspects of who you are as a human being. Astrology is not the Answer To Everything, of course, because there's genetics, spiritual evolution, and other factors that shape us well. It is, though, a rich field that, when explored openly, can provide us with deep insight to our nature and, consequently, we can appreciate the depths, skills, goodness, and challenges of other as well.

The "problems" with life are not problems with life itself, but with the way our mind interprets it. We have "good" days and "bad" day; happy times, sad times; fortunate experiences, unfortunate experiences. It's easy to tell that these are alldualistic interpretations of our experiences. Life is not dualistic. It simply is. If we interpret life through mind, which is dualistic by nature, we will experience and identify with duality. If we interpret it from the Heart, we will experience and identify with oneness. So the spiritual work then is to identify with and act on Heart reality.

Occassionally, we all feel "bad energy" in our body. Maybe we're angry, depressed, being judgmental, or any number of unpleasant feelings. They all agitate the mind and produce unwanted sensations in our physical body. To resolve these feelings, we often get trapped in lengthy mental-emotional loops: we focus on who or what is to blame and try to figure out how to fix it. When we are stuck in these loops we usually miss something: that what we are feeling is happening in the Eternal Moment — not when we plan to fix the situation.

We can look at this predicament another way, through the lens of unconditional love; that we can love everything unconditionally. Here, what we need to love unconditionally is our bad feelings. The time we spend trying to fix the problem only distracts us from the real problem. And the real problem is that the feeling and its source lies within us, not "out there" somewhere.

So, what does loving our suffering do? It takes us out the of the imagined future or non-existent past that we are grappling with. It allows us to drop our resistance to the feeling that we are experiencing in the moment. We can sit with it. We can accept the reality of the moment and stop blaming others. In short, we focus on our feeling without fighting. From a peaceful place inside, we experience the feeling-sensation without blame or any attempt to ease it. After a while, the intensity of the feeling's "badness" decreases, because we are no longer in resistance to it. And it is precisely the resistance that creates and sustains that negative feeling/energy. "Resistance is useless." Acceptance is useful.

It's not the ego that makes us feel bad; it's our identifying with it.

Our level of consciousness determines what we value. It also determines how we deal with others and, ultimately, how we live our lives. Some people, for example, treat others as a commodity: they determine a person's value in dollars — "human resources." Yet, after we leave this life — just as while we are alive — we are not judged so much as how much money we've made, but how we have treated others. Did we make the world more hell-like or more like Heaven? In the Heart of hearts, everyone knows this, although bringing this knowing to the forefront of consciousness is not always easy. Waiting until the end of our life to change is, of course, too little, too late to make much of a difference. And very few people know when that end will be.

Having money can be a good thing, as long as it doesn't have you. If your heart is in the right place — in the forefront — then everything will work out fine.

Do you ever carry on conversations with other people in your head? The person you are "talking to" isn't around. It's just the brain, creating thoughts in the form of a conversation. Usually we are defending, proving ourselves right, cool, spiritual, or whatever our particular ego needs are. I think most people do this. At least, I do. I also believe that these conversations are totally unnecessary. It's a waste of life.

"Love ... God ... and ... love your neighbor." (Matthew 22:37-40).

I believe this is the essence of Christianity. The rest is dogma, much of which causes division.

Life is extraordinary. You can look over your life and see suffering, injustice, and missed opportunities — a whole array of ideas, judgements, and emotions. Some can strike at your heart, wounding you deeply. Yet, if you can see the picture of your life holistically rather than in isolated events, you can see that it could not have unfolded in any other way. Your life is perfect.

One of the classic arguments against the idea of "life is perfect" is this: "How can life be perfect with all the suffering in the world? How about all the starving people in Third World countries?" The fault with this reasoning is that each of us can only see the perfection of our own life. If we were suffering and starving, only we could see how it made sense in relation to our life as a whole. We can't expect others to see it or see it in others. This perhaps is the most personal perspective we can have and is awesome in its scope, depth, and revelation.

An exception to this rule is an awakened being. By definition, he or she is consciously at one with the universe and, consequently, is at one with you. While awakened beings cannot see through your eyes, they can see the wholeness of your life.

If my life is like a sailboat crossing the sea of life, I want to leave a wake of beauty as I sail.

"A lifetime is not what is between
the moments of birth and death.

A lifetime is one moment
Between my two little breaths.
The present, the here, the now,
That's all the life I get.
I live each moment in full,
In kindness, in peace, without regret."

Chade Meng, Taoist poet

Look outside, dream; look inside, awaken.

When you are traveling a spiritual path, sometimes you feel as if you are doing great: you are making good progress, your understanding of life is deepening, your behavior is improving, etc. However, you inevitably go through times when your dark or imperfect side shows itself (unless you have fully awakened). If you are dedicated to your path, this can be frustrating. You can feel guilty, like a schmuck, a hopeless case, or unworthy. These ideas and feeling are simply more obstacles on the path. This is where strength of resolve (or Will) comes in. By this I mean that you catch yourself feeling and thinking negatively about yourself, you acknowledge it — which is a spiritual discipline in itself — and then you let it go and move on. This practice builds strength and self confidence, and it allows you to progress more rapidly along your chosen path.

As people advance spiritually and the noise of their ego quiets down a bit, they can sometimes "hear" the thought forms of others. This ability comes naturally to those who are born empathic or are just very sensitive. There are two points I want to discuss about this.

First, if this happens and the person is not aware of what's going on, he or she may think that (1) he is crazy, or (2) they are his own thoughts. In the first instance, if he thinks he's crazy, this can lead to an unpleasant assortment of experiences. For example, if he seeks help from materialistic sources, he could end up in therapy for years, be sedated by dangerous psycho-drugs, or at worst, be institutionalized.

In the second instance, thinking these are his own thoughts, this can be very confusing. It can also cause a lot of guilt, because it's often easier to pickup other people's negative judgements that they are projecting. This is true because judgmental thought forms are a bit more charged than regular ones.

However, it appears that some people do suffer from brain damage or have a chemical imbalances in the brain, and this may cause audible hallucinations. This can be a source of torment, but it is not the case we are discussing here.

If on the other hand you are aware of what's going on,, then reading other's judgements can be quite enlightening. For instance, you could be talking to a few friends and say, "It sure takes Jim a long time to do that work." What you meant — but were not exactly clear about — was that he was attending to all the details of the project, so it took longer, and you are implying (unsuccessfully) that admire him for his dedication. You immediately hear, "He shouldn't criticize him for being slow," which is something that never crossed your mind. You get to see into other people's thought processes, which could lead you to the conclusion "It's none of my business what other people think of me."

And here's a related issue: if you hang around with people who bombard you with negative judgements, you will be affected negatively. Simple, yet we often ignore it. These relationships do not support spiritual growth, except in the sense that perhaps you are paying off a karmic debt. I find it best to be with those who love me and think I'm wonderful, yet aren't afraid to tell me (out loud) when I'm out of line.

One of the best comparisons that I've heard of Jesus and Buddha is this: They are each separate rays of Light from the same Sun. You can use the analogy to say that their presence lights up planet, maybe even the planetary consciousness. While these two beings represent two of the most popular and evolved visitors to this planet, all awakened beings qualify as the Truth, Light, and Way. They are the Truth because they shine the undistorted Light of the Creator through the filter of their human form. They are the Light because they can dispell darkness. They are the Way, because they are doorways to the Divine.

Any awakened being will tell you that everyone has this potential, and we do. It's all part of the magnificent play of life. May we all be blessed with this Light.

One of the "secrets" of life, if you will, is to recognize the intrinsic goodness of existence. And by this, I don't even mean the enormously mind-blowing, infinitely expansive nature of the Creative What-It-Is/Be. Just how good life is. Of course, bad things happen too. (I know I'm talking in dualistic terms ["good" and "bad"], but that's the level at which I'm sharing this.)

Once you have a deep understanding of this intrinsic goodness, you become exceedingly happy for the joys and fortunes of others; there is no room for envy or selfishness, because the goodness of life includes you as well.

In our Light Body (or spiritual body), we don't eat food. Our spiritual form is sustained directly by the light of the Creator. In the human body, we must eat food. But the Creators provides that food as well? This is all obvious of course. The main difference is that the sustaining energy (in food) is encapsulated in separate forms (apples, rice, fish, etc.), and we have to ingest it.

We could say that another difference is that if we don't eat food, then we die. But all forms in the universe, including spiritual forms, must pass away. "If it has a beginning, it has an end." Only the Creator is eternal. To get around this, we can always identify with the Creator....

Masters: Spiritual masters, or enlightened beings, act as doorways to the higher realms. Because they are "ego deficient," they act purely, as ego distorts our connection to the divine. More accurately, perhaps, is that it's our attachment to the ego that causes the distortions.

I think the "Purpose of Life" is one of those eternal questions is because there's no set answer to it. I know people believes that the purpose of life is to make money. Other people believe it is to be independent, have power, to be accepted, and the list goes on.

In my case, I have gone through several, just in this lifetime! I remember in Seventh Grade, we had to write an essay, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" When we were done, everyone passed their paper to the front. I was sitting close to the front, so several ended up in my hands. I glanced at them: "Fireman," "Nurse," "Store owner," .... I panicked. My goal was "to be a good person."

Years later, I thought it was to spread the message of peace and love through music. Next was to "participate with others to co-create Heaven on Earth." That was followed by, "To be happy." These were the major ones — major in the sense that I spent several years exploring each as a possibility: Can I make this happen? Is it real?

My most recent purpose is simply, "To awaken, and dedicate the fruits of this to all sentient beings." Frankly, I can't imagine anything higher for myself. OF course, this doesn't make it right for everyone. If it did, the eternal question wouldn't be a question anymore.

Spring arrived, on time, at 1:32 PM EDT today. And all is well.

I've been thinking about approval lately. We don't need to seek other's approval about how we are. Seeking approval is related to many psychological complexes that fit under headings like, "I'm not enough," "I'm unworthy," "I'm incapable," Nobody loves me," "Something is wrong with me," 'I don't know what to do," and "Nobody likes me." These lead to behaviors that distort our true expressions. Once these behaviors become chronic, they reinforce our complexes.

While there may be no easy fixes, just being aware that we are manipulating ourselves and others to get attention sheds light on our particular situation. This opens the door for the problem to solve itself.

The ego is a thing. It is composed of a steady stream of thought forms that the brain produces, like a river. We are not this river. We are divine beings who have incarnated into these bodies to participate in the co-creation of a new civilization, one based on mutual love and respect.

What happens, though, is that when we are born and grow, the social conditioning is so intense that we eventually believe that this thing, this thought stream is who we are. Part of the work is to untangle ourselves from this debilitating misconception.

For a teacher or when we teach, I believe that the more positive attitude in which to act is not, "How can I help you?" but rather "How can we help each other?" The latter doesn't have to be spoken aloud of course, just approached that way. This may sound a little awkward, "Helping each other," but if you think it through, it actually helps balance the relationship.

The drawback of the former approach is that it's easy for the ego to get subtly involved when you are helping someone.

When something goes wrong, like say my computer hangs, instead of getting upset I think, "Ah the universe [or God] wants me to do something else." Of course, that something could be re-boot the computer. Or take a break. I sit quietly for a moment, go inside, and see what the next step should be. That way, I become much more tolerant of potentially stressful or negative situations, and often avoid them altogether.

Getting a divorce, becoming unemployed, losing possession (fire, flood, theft)...these are all sources of suffering and sometimes of great trauma. The reason of course is not the actual loss, but our attachment to those things and the fear of being without them. The suffering stems from the emotional body (in astrology, ruled by the Moon), whose tendency is to attach itself to externals.

Now, say you have a divorce but you separate on good terms, and you other people in your life – fulfilling relationships. You let go of the previous one easily, and no suffering. The same with the job. If you lose it, but have lots of money or have another lined up, no big deal. If we have a basic faith in God or the universe, then the loss of something shouldn't bring fear, because we know that God will provide something new. This isn't necessarily a belief, but a way to perceive life.

When it comes time to die, which is inevitable, we are confronted with the loss of everything in this world: job, all relationships, all possessions — everything. So, if we are in the state of trust in the universe, then that moment won't be so bad. We can say "Bye for now!" and see what lies ahead in the next adventure..