Life is Supposed to be Fun...Suffering is Optional

The other day I was thinking about life, which I often do. How to make it better, make it richer (in all areas) and experience the things I want to experience. Then I thought to myself, why am I not living it? Certainly, there are things that I want to do that will require certain resources, like money, but there are ways to enjoy life that I can enjoy right now.

So, why can't we have fun? Why are we always worried? Especially when worrying is non-productive.

There's a song by Trooper called We're Here for a Good Time; it goes like this:

We're here for a good time

Not a long time

So have a good time

The sun can't shine everyday

"But," you say, "but, I have this going on and this and this...I can't have fun! Life is serious. Life is unfair. My life sucks! If only I had this and this and the other thing. And if he/she would do this for me or say this, then things will be better. But till then, I can't have a good time!"  

But. But. But...you could but yourself to death...it still doesn't change the fact that Life is Supposed to be Fun.

I love the following excerpt from an Abraham-Hicks workshop. It puts into perspective the belief system of most of the planet:

"We love the feeling of this stream. So many humans--you take your boat down to

the river's edge and you point it upstream and you begin paddling very hard. And

we say, "But wait! The stream's going thataway. Why are you trying to go

THAT-a-way?

And you say, 'Everyone virtuous and hard working does this. We go

this way. It's hard. Of course, it's hard, but nothing good is easy.

  

You have to pay a price for everything. And so, we're really good at it. Look

how good we've become at struggling against the current.'

And then you go on to explain all of the reasons that you do it, all the

monuments, and trophies are given to those who try really, really hard. And,

'After we die,' you tell us, 'AFTER WE DIE, that's when the REAL reward for this

struggle kicks in.' And we say, 'NO IT DOESN'T. NO IT DOESN'T.' There

is not a reward later that is different than the reward now. There's not a

punishment later, that's different than the self-punishment you are applying

NOW.

There's you becoming, and you going with who you've become, and not. And that's

all. And you don't even need to worry about it."

Basically, the only struggle, the only suffering is what we put on ourselves. Either we like the negative attention, or we feel it's karmic payback for a past life we don't even recall; or we feel if we work hard enough, we will get our reward; or we enjoy the victim mentality; or someone instilled this belief system into us and that's the way it's supposed to be; or....well, fill in the blanks.

Photo credit: Tamara Hanson

So, how does one let go and have fun? Here are ten ways that Abraham-Hicks suggests:

• Seek joy --- first and foremost.
• Seek reasons to laugh.
• Seek reasons to offer words of praise --- to self and others.
• Seek beauty in nature, beasts and other humans.
• Seek reasons to love. In every segment of every day --- look for something that brings forth within you a feeling of love.
• Seek that which uplifts you.
• Seek opportunity to offer that which uplifts another.
• Seek a feeling of Well-being.
• Know that your value can only be measured in terms of joy.
• Acknowledge your absolute freedom to do any of these things or to not do any of these things --- for it is, without exception your choice in every moment of every day.

"That is the recipe for eternal joy. And it will provide a format for a life of dramatic, magnificent creating also. That feels like the "bottomline" to you: "How much success, or how much acclaim...how much value can I offer here and now?" And we are wanting you to understand is that your value can only be measured in terms of joy."

Fact is, Life is Supposed to be Fun!
Suffering, of course, is always optional.

Vibrational Alignment--What's That About?

When people talk Law of Attraction, or LOA, they usually are confronted by many different responses, including: People cringing because this LOA stuff is not proven. Oh, and it sounds airy-fairy, too. Or, blank stares because some people have no idea what in tarnation you are talking about.

At its basis, law of attraction is really about vibrational alignment.

But, what does that mean?

Everything, yes, EVERYTHING is energy. One more time: EVERYTHING IS ENERGY. Energy is vibrational; it gives off a signal. We’ve seen this with radio waves, satellite waves, and even our bodies.  Animals can hear different frequencies… energy, signals. Bats are visually challenged at night and, therefore have sonar, receive information from their high pitched squeaking sound when it bounces off objects around them.

Because everything is energy…wait, one more time: EVERYTHING IS ENERGY… it is attracted to a like energy. Like attracts like, as they say. Birds of a feather flock together. “That which is like unto itself is drawn.” But, wait, what about opposites attract? Well, that typically applies to magnets. But, if it has to be explained, they are basically the same thing just a different ‘degree’ or ‘type’ of the same thing… so, they aren’t so different after all. Kind of like light and dark. Dark is just a different degree of light. Hard is a different degree of soft…etc.

Look at lightning. Lightning is energy, and when it hits, it has been attracted to that which is on the same frequency as it is.

Let’s bring this back around, shall we. Law of Attraction is just that…like attracting like. Humans are not exempt from this either…but many of us think we are and that we have no control over anything and the world is a terrible place.

But, we do have control…over our own vibration and over the signal that we are sending out. You can either create by default or create deliberately—the choice is yours.

Many people find this hard to believe. “What? I create my own life? Rubbish! Why would I create that!?” Well, because most of us don’t clean up the vibration we send out. We are so accustomed to the signal that we think it’s normal. However, the things we want to change stay unchanged because we don’t take responsibility for our own energy.  So, it’s not really about the specific thing you created, but about the vibration you were offering.  Vibrations based on lack, limitations, negativity, illness, anger, sadness, etc, will continue to create the same thing.

And, it's not a matter of switching your vibration in a second and all is well; you still have built up a ton of stuff that needs to be cleared out. If things don’t turn around in that moment, you have to keep working at it. You can’t expect a broken arm to heal overnight…well, I guess you can because anything is possible…but, typically, our belief system doesn’t always allow for it and most of us have to really focus. But, how do we focus? We use our minds. So, not only do we alter our vibration by how we feel but we also alter our thoughts.

So, focus on feeling better. Focus on happiness, joy, abundance, contentment and peace. Think thoughts of beautiful things, beautiful moments, and wonderful experiences…anything that will get you into that good feeling place. When you begin to change your thoughts and, most importantly, vibration, you will begin to create what you want to create.

In the words of Yogi Ramacharaka

"We wish the student to particularly understand that when we say "Thoughts are Things," we are not using the words in a figurative sense or in a fanciful way, but that we are expressing a literal truth. We mean that thought is as much a "thing" as is light, heat, electricity, or similar forms of manifestations. Thought can be seen by the psychic sight; can be felt by the sensitive; and, if the proper instruments were in existence, could be weighed… It is like a thin vapor (the degree of density varying), and is just as real as the air around us…

It may be necessary for you to fix this fact in your minds by picturing the mind as sending forth thought emanations… think of thought emanations as akin to the steam being projected from a boiling tea kettle”.

Makes sense to me!

Namaste!           

Arguing for Your Limitations

Contrast helps you to identify desire. Desire is summoning. It's always flowing through you. You have the opportunity of opening to the harmony of the vibration of your desire or not. As the desires are being summoned through you, and you go with the flow, you thrive, but if you use things to be your excuse for not going with the flow, you are arguing for your limitations. We want to show you how to go with the flow. Which means nothing more than finding vibrational harmony with your own desire, and letting the Universal Energy that your desire is summoning to it flow to it through you. It is optimum creative experience.--Abraham-Hicks

Are you arguing for your limitations? Are you putting up a fight to defend those limitations that hold you back from achieving what you want out of life? The question you have to ask is: Why? Why are you arguing for your limitations?

You are a limitless being. You are the creator of your own experience. You can be, do, have whatever you want. So, why put up a fight?

Here's another question: Has arguing for your limitations gotten you anywhere? Has it produced a positive result? What has arguing for your limitations done for you lately?

When you begin to really understand your power as a creator of your own experience, you suddenly see how the Universe is trying to help you. When you realize that you are not a puppet on a string, then you finally trust, have faith, believe, and KNOW that all is working out perfectly.

One of the best things you can do is open your eyes to the beauty of the perfection of the path laid out before you. Just because it's not how you envisioned it doesn't mean it's the wrong path. The Universe is a better organizer than you and, once you let go and trust the process, everything will fall beautifully into place.

However, you need to let go of a few things first, like: Ego. Victim mentality. Unworthiness. Negativity. Limitations.

And, you have to reach for: Your higher self. Love of self. You have to realize you are the Universe and the Universe is you.

There is a great quote from the book/movie Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert:

"God resides in me as me."

Another appropriate quote from the same book:

“Imagine that the universe is a great spinning engine. You want to stay near the core of the thing – right in the hub of the wheel – not out at the edges where all the wild whirling takes place, where you can get frayed and crazy. The hub of calmness – that’s your heart. That’s where God lives within you. So stop looking for answers in the world. Just keep coming back to that center and you’ll always find peace.”

There really are no limitations. And, if you think there are, let's consider the fact that, at one time, people never believed flying was possible....until someone broke past limitations and made it possible.

At one time, indoor plumbing, electricity, and cars were a far-fetched idea...until someone went beyond the box and made it happen.

People who were told they wouldn't be able to walk again....have walked again. People on the verge of death, and told they only have hours to live, make a complete turn around and start living. (see Anita Moorjani's beautiful story!)

When I worked at a bank (many moons ago), we were told that the ability to access someone's bank account (that was located in another city) through the computer would never happen. Well...it did, because someone made it happen.

Anything is possible.

So, find that peace, that love, that centre of calm. Find your knowing and your belief.

There are no limitations.

You Are the Supreme Reality

Photo credit: Tamara Hanson

Adapted from ‘I Am That: Talks with Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj’ Maurice Frydman, 1973

Stay silent and attentive. Be earnest about it.

Just be aware of your being here and now.

 Reality will find you.

Just live your life as it comes. Keep quietly alert, inquiring into the real  nature of yourself. Perception is based on memory and is only imagination. The  world can be said to appear but not to be. Only that which makes perception  possible is real.

You agree to be guided from within and life becomes a journey into the unknown.  Give up all names and forms, and the Real is with you. Know yourself as you are.  Distrust your mind and go beyond. Do not think of the Real in terms of  consciousness and unconsciousness. It is utterly beyond both. It gives birth to  consciousness. All else is in consciousness.

 Nothing you can see, feel or think is so. Go beyond the personal and see. Stop  imagining that you were born. You are utterly beyond all existence and  non-existence, utterly beyond all that the mind conceives. Question yourself:  Who am I? What is behind and beyond all this? Soon you will see that thinking  yourself to be a person is mere habit built on memory. Inquire ceaselessly.

 How can Reality depend on experience when it is the very ground, the very basis  of experience, the very fact of experience? Just be aware of your being here and  now. There is nothing more to it. In reality you are not a thing nor separate.

You are the infinite potentiality, the inexhaustible possibility. Because you  are, all can be. The universe is but a partial manifestation of your limitless  capacity to become. You are neither consciousness nor its content. You are the  timeless Source. Disassociate yourself from mind and consciousness. Find a  foothold beyond and all will be clear and easy.

You are the Supreme Reality - all there is. Just trust and remember that. Wisdom  lies in never forgetting the Self, the Supreme Absolute as the ever-present  Source of both the experiencer and the experience. I am beyond consciousness and  so in consciousness I cannot say what I am. Yet I am. The question “Who am I?”  has no answer in consciousness and therefore helps to go beyond consciousness.  Remember there is no person, only a mental picture given a false reality by  conviction. All you need to do is to cease taking yourself to be within the  field of consciousness.

You are free of being a percept or a concept. Abandon all conceptualization and  stay silent and attentive. Be earnest about it and all will be well with you.  Give up the idea of being what you think yourself to be. Let go of the idea that  you are not aware of yourself as the ever-present, changeless inexpressible  Reality. Just let go.

Your difficulty stems from the idea that Reality is a state of consciousness.  Essence is independent of consciousness. Self-knowledge is a new dimension  altogether. Pure, concentrated longing will take you speedily to your goal. If  you could keep in mind what you do not know, it would reveal to you its secrets.

When you want nothing, seek nothing, expect nothing, then the Supreme State will  come to you uninvited and unexpected. Stop making use of your mind and see what  happens. Do this one thing thoroughly. That is all. Your weakness is due to your  conviction that you were born into the world. In reality the world is ever  recreated by you and in you. Once you realize that the world is your own  projection you are free of it. You need not free yourself of a world that does  not exist except in your own imagination!

Realize that you are the Eternal Source. There is no reality but That. So how  could you be “other?” And accept all as your own. Such acceptance is true love.  Don’t try to understand! Don’t rely on your mind for liberation. Go beyond it  altogether. Be aware of being aware. Broaden and deepen the field of awareness.  You are beyond space and time, uncaused, the very matrix of existence, the  Supreme Absolute, the Noumenon- not unknowable, but unperceivable, un-objectival,  inseparable, neither material nor mental, neither objective nor subjective- the  Source of being, life and consciousness.

You are the all-pervading, all-transcending Reality. Behave accordingly. The  actual experience will dawn upon you in no time. No effort is needed. Have faith  and act on it.

All will happen by itself: You are the subtle cause of the entire  universe. All is because you are. Grasp this point firmly and deeply and dwell  on it repeatedly. To realize this as absolutely true is liberation. What you  need will come to you.

Whatever you come across, go beyond. Paramakash, your Self, is the timeless and  spaceless Reality, mindless, undifferentiated, the infinite potentiality, the  source and origin, the substance and the essence, both matter and consciousness,  yet utterly beyond both. It cannot be perceived, but can be experienced as ever  witnessing the witness, perceiving the perceiver, the origin and the end of all  manifestation, the root of time and space, the prime cause in every chain of  causation.

Your idea that you were born and that you will die is absurd: Both logic and  experience contradict it.

Behave as what I say is true and judge by what  actually happens. I know the Source of all experience. From moment to moment the  little I need to know to live my life I somehow happen to know. The Supreme  Absolute, the Self, is at the root of and utterly beyond all. You are That.  Don’t you see that the Self, your Self, the Supreme Reality, is what makes  everything possible?

Know life as pure radiation from the inexhaustible Source. There is nothing to  practice. To know yourself, be yourself. Stop imagining yourself to be this or  that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge.
Don’t disturb your mind with  seeking. The very absence of obstacles will cause Reality to rush in. You will  know the Light of Absolute Awareness in all its clarity and the world will fade  out of your vision.

Awareness takes the place of consciousness. In consciousness there is the “I”  who is conscious, while awareness is undivided. Awareness is aware of Itself.  The “I am” is a thought, while awareness is not a thought. There is no  “I-am-aware” in awareness. Awareness is not an attribute. One can be aware of  being conscious , but not conscious of awareness. Awareness is not a form of  consciousness.

One who is aware is beyond every experience, utterly beyond awareness itself.  The fundamental Reality is beyond awareness, beyond becoming, beyond being and  not-being. Give up all idea of the person , of personal attainment. Find out  what you are.

There is no effort in witnessing. You understand that you are the witness only,  and understanding acts. If in the state of witnessing you ask “Who am I?” the  answer comes at once, wordless and silent. You find yourself utterly beyond the  subject and the object. Both exist in you, but you are neither. You, the Supreme  Absolute, are the very source of reality. Collect your energies in one great  longing. My words are true and they will do their work. Enlightenment is a  certainty. It is your destiny.

Discard every self-seeking motive and Reality will find you. Who am I? Go into  it deeply. Find out your real being. You are the beingness of being, utterly  beyond the universal even. You are the non-dimensional Source of all dimensions.  As you keep on giving up, you grow spontaneously in intelligence and power and  inexhaustible love and joy. The Absolute can be reached by absolute devotion  only. Don’t be half-hearted.

The “person” is a shell imprisoning you. Break the shell. There is nothing you  need. Nothing perceivable is real. Even space and time are imagined. All  existence is imaginary. Only the Unlimited is real. Question the limits. Go  beyond. Set yourself tasks apparently impossible. This is the way. Look at  consciousness as something alien, superimposed. Then suddenly you are free of  consciousness. Whatever you feel needs to be done happens unfailingly. Selfless  and intelligent, all the powers of the universe are for you to command: You are  the Source Absolute. This is your natural state. Believe me, you are the Supreme  Reality. You are the fullness of perfection here and now.

Investigate what you know to its very end and you reach the unknown layers of  your being. Go further and the unexpected will explode in you and shatter all.  The crucial question is: “Who am I?”

 Just see the person you imagine yourself to be as a part of the world perceived  within consciousness; and look at consciousness from the outside; for you are  not the consciousness. You, the Supreme Reality, are utterly beyond.

It's Not Rocket Surgery

“Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around. As you focus more on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you would rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present. Then, as you move around, try new things, and meet new people, you carry that sense of inner peace with you. It's absolutely true that, "Wherever you go, there you are.”  
-Richard Carlson

This whole 'changing-your-life-having-your-dream-life-getting-what-you-want-manifesting-your-desires-living-the-good-life-being-happy-healthy-peaceful-loving-yourself' thing....It's not Rocket Surgery.

But we make it a big deal. We really just need to feel good, be happy, trust the Universe, trust in ourselves, trust in our emotions, feelings, realize that things can and will unfold perfectly.

But we don't believe in ourselves/trust ourselves to be who we already are: Creators. Pure source energy. The Universe. Gods and Goddesses. We are not separate but part of the Whole.

Actually, we are more non-physical energy than we are physical energy. Because of the 'stuff' we are made up of, we are more 'nothingness' than 'somethingness'....We are made up of cells, which are made of molecules, which are made of atoms, which are made of subatomic particles which are primarily composed of energy. So, 99.9999999 percent of each of us is composed of energy..ie: the non-physical.

Dr. Joe Dispenza says in his book Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself, "Isn't it ironic, then, that we keep all of our attention on the 0.00001 percent of reality that is physical? Are we missing something? If this nothing consists of energy waves that carry information, and this force organizes our physical structures and their functioning, then it certainly makes sense to refer to the quantum field as an invisible intelligence. And since energy is at the basis of all physical reality, that intelligence I've just described to you has organized itself into matter."

Simply put, whatever you call this Intelligence, we are extensions of it. We are part of it. We are made up of it and, therefore, can create our lives the way we want to.

All that needs to be done is to think and feel, think and feel, think and feel....match the feeling to the thought and you have a winning combination.

Pay attention to what you are thinking and feeling because, as you are thinking and feeling, you are also creating.

Fake It Till You Make It

Fake it till you make it! What does that mean. There is a lot of confusion surrounding this statement, and sometimes people get very uptight about it.

In my assessment, there are many interpretations depending on who you are, what you've read, and who you've spoken to.

Some think that it means just pretend you are the person you want to be and eventually you will become that person. All you need to do is forget everything that that isn't working in your life and pretend that everything is sunshine and lollipops. There may be a little truth in that, but, you certainly can't go around spending money you don't have because you are 'pretending' you are a millionaire. That's not how it works and this isn't what it means.

A little demonstration:

When I was younger, like 12 (I'd like to say it was 10 years ago, but it wasn't.), I would go to sleep by visualizing myself on The Love Boat. Sometimes I would be Julie McCoy, Cruise Director, and sometimes a passenger. This was a great way to fall asleep because it made me happy and I would have a peaceful sleep.

Seriously, I think we would all have excellent sleeps if we envisioned ourselves on a beach, a boat, a train...whatever, as long as we were having a relaxing time on our imaginary vacation.

So, what Fake It Till You Make It means is to visualize what you want. THINK and FEEL it... just like I did visualizing and feeling what it would be like on The Love Boat as Julie McCoy. This is how you create your life; this is the fake it part. This is the part where you go within and have fun, no matter what is happening. Although I didn't manifest being on The Love Boat (because that wasn't the point of the exercise when I was 12), what did manifest were peaceful sleeps. I remember waking up one morning and I felt awesome! I even looked like I had a restful sleep.

Once you are in your conscious state and moving through day to day life, you take that feeling wherever you go.  The point of life is to feel good!

Still unsure about this Fake It Till You Make It business? There have been studies demonstrating that thought and feeling will produce similar or close to similar results. For instance, studies show that when athletes visualize running and training for a race, their bodies go through the same processes as if they were physically doing it.

Why? Firstly, thoughts and emotion are energy. We are all just a bundle of energy! Secondly, your brain doesn't know what is real or what is imagination. When you throw feeling into the mix, you can tell your brain anything and it will believe you.

Therefore, tell it you are rotten and FEEL it....and it will believe you. Tell your brain you are wonderful, and FEEL it....and it will believe you. Whatever you tell it, it will believe you and create more for you. It is at your beck and call.

Be mindful of your thoughts and feelings! They are extremely powerful!

Three Magic Words

Twelfth Meditation - I Am God

from the book "Three Magic Words" by Uell S. Andersen

I turn away from the world about me to the world of consciousness that lies within.
I shut out all memories of the past, create no images of the future. I concentrate on my being, on my awareness. I slide deep into the very recesses of my soul to a place of utter repose.

Here I perceive fact in the making, am conscious of the one being from which all beings spring. I know that this is immortal Self, this is God, this is me.
I am, I always was. I always will be.

All men, all things, all space and time and life are here in the depths of my soul. Smaller than small, greater than great meet and unite in me.

That which I thought I was, ego, I never was at all, for it was a changing thing, mirroring the seasons and the tides, a thing to be born and grow and die. I am not a thing of time or circumstance. I am spirit, pure and eternal, birthless, deathless and changeless.

I am patient, for I am all time.
I am wise, for I contain the knowledge of all things.
I know not pain, for I see there is no beginning and no end, and who suffers pain must see begining and end.
I am rich, for there is no limit to the abundance I may create from my very Self.
I am successful, for I need only think to achieve.
I love and am beloved, for all things are myself and I am all things.

I unite, I fuse, I become one with Universal Subconscious Mind. The mask of vanity and ego I shall never wear again. I perceive the magnificent Dweller at the centre of my consciousness, and I know Him to be my very self.

Time and space, shadow and substance,
what matter these ?
I am God.