Recently I was experiencing some negative energy that was not moving through me. Nothing that I did helped me to let go of it. I tried feeling through it, witnessing it, letting go of thoughts that were contributing to the feelings... I prayed about it and asked God to guide me.
I then decided to focus on my heart. As I breathed into my heart and reminded myself of my intention to live with an open heart in each moment regardless of what was happening in my life the negative energy began to pass.
Different tools work for different situations.
In each moment I will choose to do whatever it takes to let go of that which blocks me from being aware of my connection with God.
God and I are One. My heart's desire is to be fully aware of this Oneness and to live as God intends for me to live.
Thank you for reading this blog and sharing this experience with me. Peace to you!
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
tuning into an inner expansiveness
In chapter 5 of Falling into Grace, Adya talks about being present with feelings and letting go of the conclusions that we draw about what is, what was (what should have happened that didn't or what shouldn't have happened that did), and what will be as a way to free ourselves of suffering. Living in the present moment can feel uncomfortable however, and Adya suggests the following:
"In your willingness to pause during a moment or difficulty, to take a few breaths and tune in to all that is there, you may notice that a comforting presence starts to arise. It's by allowing yourself to feel and experience this presence that you can open yourself more and more to what is revealing itself in this moment. Even if it feels frightening, there is an underlying sense of well-being that is always with you and fully available even if you don't feel well." (Falling into Grace, pp. 117-118).
Adya goes on to say that this presence is the "foretaste of another state of consciousness." (It is the neutral Self that Michael Singer would label as the Observer or Witness.)
"By giving your attention to it, by becoming aware of this inner presence and stillness, even in the midst of activity, you make yourself more and more available to the dawning of this vast expanse where you can awaken out of the belief and experience of separation. You realize yourself to be a deep well of awareness-an inner expanse that's always there. You just have to open to it." (Falling into Grace, p. 119.)
My intention this week is to give myself permission to stay present with whatever I am experiencing, let go of thoughts and conclusions about what is happening in my life, and tune into a deeper presence in the stillness of the moment.
"In your willingness to pause during a moment or difficulty, to take a few breaths and tune in to all that is there, you may notice that a comforting presence starts to arise. It's by allowing yourself to feel and experience this presence that you can open yourself more and more to what is revealing itself in this moment. Even if it feels frightening, there is an underlying sense of well-being that is always with you and fully available even if you don't feel well." (Falling into Grace, pp. 117-118).
Adya goes on to say that this presence is the "foretaste of another state of consciousness." (It is the neutral Self that Michael Singer would label as the Observer or Witness.)
"By giving your attention to it, by becoming aware of this inner presence and stillness, even in the midst of activity, you make yourself more and more available to the dawning of this vast expanse where you can awaken out of the belief and experience of separation. You realize yourself to be a deep well of awareness-an inner expanse that's always there. You just have to open to it." (Falling into Grace, p. 119.)
My intention this week is to give myself permission to stay present with whatever I am experiencing, let go of thoughts and conclusions about what is happening in my life, and tune into a deeper presence in the stillness of the moment.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
embrace the moment
This week I've been noticing when I am feeling stressed and I have been saying to myself "I give myself permission to fully feel this." Somehow this statement helps me to really accept what I am experiencing. I stop resisting the feeling.
There are many stressors throughout each day and there is a tendency to skip over many of the little ones or try to handle the situations instead of being with the feelings. For example, worrying if the weather is going to be good for the beach party on Friday might prompt me to check the weather forecast instead of sitting with the feeling. I can't control the weather. I can't predict the weather. When I stop resisting the feeling I am free to actually deal with the situation instead of having to deal with the discomfort about the weather.
Being concerned about how my kids are going to do on their final exams may cause me to tell them to study (which may or may not be the best thing to do) instead of staying centered and deciding how to handle the situation wisely. If I don't accept that there is inner discomfort about their final exams, I will be acting in ways that take care of my discomfort instead of acting in ways that take care of the situation (e.g., my kid's study habits).
Most of us experience inner discomfort often throughout each day. If we don't accept the discomfort we will be trying to make it go away...in essence we are reacting to our discomfort instead of reacting to what is right in front of us. This is what The Untethered Soul is all about.
In my personal experience as well as in my work with clients I have found that one of the best ways to let go of feelings is to stop resisting them. The nature of feelings is to move through us, but we need to stay with the feelings in order for that to happen.
Stay tuned for my next blog post about how this state of acceptance leads us towards an awakened consciousness.
There are many stressors throughout each day and there is a tendency to skip over many of the little ones or try to handle the situations instead of being with the feelings. For example, worrying if the weather is going to be good for the beach party on Friday might prompt me to check the weather forecast instead of sitting with the feeling. I can't control the weather. I can't predict the weather. When I stop resisting the feeling I am free to actually deal with the situation instead of having to deal with the discomfort about the weather.
Being concerned about how my kids are going to do on their final exams may cause me to tell them to study (which may or may not be the best thing to do) instead of staying centered and deciding how to handle the situation wisely. If I don't accept that there is inner discomfort about their final exams, I will be acting in ways that take care of my discomfort instead of acting in ways that take care of the situation (e.g., my kid's study habits).
Most of us experience inner discomfort often throughout each day. If we don't accept the discomfort we will be trying to make it go away...in essence we are reacting to our discomfort instead of reacting to what is right in front of us. This is what The Untethered Soul is all about.
In my personal experience as well as in my work with clients I have found that one of the best ways to let go of feelings is to stop resisting them. The nature of feelings is to move through us, but we need to stay with the feelings in order for that to happen.
Stay tuned for my next blog post about how this state of acceptance leads us towards an awakened consciousness.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
taking the struggle out of letting go
Adyashanti says the following about meditation:
"In order to let everything be, we must let go of the effort to control and manipulate our experience-which means letting go of personal will. This cuts right to the heart of the egoic makeup, which seeks happiness through control, seeking, striving, and manipulation." (The Way of Liberation, p. 20)
"As you gently relax into awareness, the mind's compulsive contraction around objects will fade. Silence of being will come more clearly into consciousness as a welcoming to rest and abide. An attitude of open receptivity, free from any goal or anticipation, will facilitate the presence of silence and stillness to be revealed as your natural condition." (The Way of Liberation, p. 22)
I find the above quotes to be useful in meditation as well as in daily life when I am trying to let go. Some situations are difficult to let go of and this can lead to an inner struggle...not wanting to have the thoughts and feelings but being unable to let them go.
Having "an attitude of open receptivity" means I give myself permission to have the thoughts and feelings no matter what they are...I do not try to control my inner experience...I let whatever is present be as it is. Then, as I gently move my awareness to the neutral observer (or to the experiencer) I find that the thoughts and feelings move through me.
Practicing this in meditation has helped me to do it in my daily life (off the cushion as they say). It takes some effort to stop and do this when discomfort arises but what could be a more valuable use of one's time than transcending the limited egoic self?
"In order to let everything be, we must let go of the effort to control and manipulate our experience-which means letting go of personal will. This cuts right to the heart of the egoic makeup, which seeks happiness through control, seeking, striving, and manipulation." (The Way of Liberation, p. 20)
"As you gently relax into awareness, the mind's compulsive contraction around objects will fade. Silence of being will come more clearly into consciousness as a welcoming to rest and abide. An attitude of open receptivity, free from any goal or anticipation, will facilitate the presence of silence and stillness to be revealed as your natural condition." (The Way of Liberation, p. 22)
I find the above quotes to be useful in meditation as well as in daily life when I am trying to let go. Some situations are difficult to let go of and this can lead to an inner struggle...not wanting to have the thoughts and feelings but being unable to let them go.
Having "an attitude of open receptivity" means I give myself permission to have the thoughts and feelings no matter what they are...I do not try to control my inner experience...I let whatever is present be as it is. Then, as I gently move my awareness to the neutral observer (or to the experiencer) I find that the thoughts and feelings move through me.
Practicing this in meditation has helped me to do it in my daily life (off the cushion as they say). It takes some effort to stop and do this when discomfort arises but what could be a more valuable use of one's time than transcending the limited egoic self?
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