Intuition and the Skill of Interpretation

The skill of intuition is not really in the receiving. That part is easy Just close your eyes, take a few slow and deep breaths and draw your attention inwards. In that moment you will probably find that you are aware of something that you hadn't noticed before, even if it is only the sound of the beating of your own heart. When we drop inwards or tune-in, there is nothing we have to do in that moment to make the information "appear". The information is always there, just as the beating of your heart is always there (even when you are not thinking about it).

It is naturally easier to be aware of previously un-noticed information, or new information, if we draw attention away from what ordinarily captures our senses. This is partly why meditation and closing the eyes works so well for triggering new insights. Our consciousness and by that I mean conscious awareness, can only handle so much. In our day to day lives we are constantly being bombarded by sensory data, some putting it at the equivalent of 15 million bits per second. In comparison, what we can mostly consciously process and be aware of, amounts to between 15 and 40 bits per second. These figures vary in the literature but what doesn't vary is that there is a vast difference between what we receive and process subconsciously and what we process consciously. When we let go of some of what has been taking up room in our consciousness, we make space for something new to take our attention. This is really the first step of intuition.

On some levels, letting go of what normally takes our attention is easy. Turn down the lights, shut the door and shut your eyes and you have lessened the quantity of sensory input. If you are learning intuitive awareness as a new skill, all of this will help. These circumstances, however, aren't always convenient and even if they were, there is still the challenge of the thought processes and ways of thinking. Shutting the eyes, whilst calming the mind, doesn't necessarily turn it "off". Our patterned ways of habitual thinking can persist and often do, even if we are now applying that patterned way of thinking to another pocket of information.

The practice of intuition is primarily a practice in thinking differently;thinking more expansively and creatively. It is designed to move us forward in life, to step us into higher levels of creativity and consciousness. We are all inherently intuitive and everyone has moments of spontaneous intuitive awareness, but being intuitive on a conscious level requires practice. Why? Because receiving a different pool of information is just part of the equation. What is equally important, or even more so, is how the information is taken in and interpreted. As we practice, we become more aware of our thought patterns and perceptions and are more able to let go of the limiting ways we perceive and interpret information. We become more aware of our biases and when we are distorting the information to meet pre-existing agendas. We can appreciate something new and fresh; even when we don't understand it or necessarily agree with it (in our logical minds).

Living intuitively is fun. Living creatively as a consequence is a great joy. To be able to take any situation and create newness out of it is a great gift and one, in my mind, to be fostered and shared. It's certainly worth the practice.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Intuition-and-the-Skill-of-Interpretation&id=8610867

Letting Go of Shame

There is no such thing as shame. It is just an artificially inculcated thought, forcing us to wrongly believe that not disappointing others is more important than not disappointing ourselves. It is time to let this unuseful belief go.

According to the hierarchy of people around you, you should be at the top. Your own happiness is the most important one.

You can't make others happy unless you are happy with yourself.

That´s a simple fact.

Because your own happiness is the source of the happiness of others around you. Therefore, your own happiness is simply the most important thing in your life, which you need to take care of.

And shame is not part of happiness at all. It simply doesn't belong to it. It never did and never will.

Shame is just a toxic and totally useless feeling that has been implanted in you, "saying" that you have done something that you were "not supposed to", or that you haven't pleased somebody you were "supposed to", in the way she/he expected from you. Shame is a feeling that has been imposed on you, then not consciously chosen by you. Why on earth would you freely choose a feeling, which is one of the obstacles to your happiness?

And who would know, better than you, what you are supposed or not supposed to anyway?

Who would know the path towards your own happiness, better than you?

Shame has always been a great way for others (including institution, government, and many religions) to manipulate you. For example, it is in the highest interest of institutions like government to foster and increase the feeling of shame in you, so you can be easily manipulated and controlled.

It is time to let go of shame, and mainly of the thought of shame itself.

It is time to be free again.

Shame never helps you; shame only prevents you from becoming better, stronger and happier.

Shame is not meant to be part of your life and happiness. It never was and never will be.

The good news is that shame is just a feeling. And, because any kind of negative feeling (shame is one of the most negative feelings) can be let go, the same applies for shame.

I can't express strongly enough what a dramatic impact letting go of shame has on life. I can refer to my own experience. Once the feeling of shame vanishes, you immediately feel lighter, more relaxed and happier. It is very difficult to be controlled by others, because simply there is not any "leverage" that could allow them to control you anymore. It is difficult not to be happy when there is no feeling of shame and guilt anymore. And remember, it is just a feeling - we already know that any negative feeling can be let go, once and forever.

In general, shame has got many faces and we usually have so many different kinds of thoughts and memories connected to shame that might also be suppressed deeply in our bodies (it is one of the most suppressed feelings in general), which quite often requires many letting go sessions. But, it's worth every penny and the long term impact is life changing once we learn how to let go of the feelings of shame.

One of the best ways to start letting go of shame is letting go of the feeling of having shame because of feeling shame (it might sound a bit confusing at first glance, but when you really think of it, you will realize that this is the most common kind of shame - feeling guilt and shame because we feel ashamed).

All of that can, and should be, let go.

Here is the letting go process for shame:

1. Find a quiet place, where nobody can disturb you. Shame is a very intimately perceived feeling and it is important to be just with yourself when letting go of shame for the first time.

2. Close your eyes and bring up any recent feeling of shame, or feeling of being ashamed.

3. Start embracing and experiencing these feelings fully.

4. Sometimes, this can be really hard and unpleasant, but it is only for a while. It is important to continue. Also, there can be some stronger immediate emotional expressions as shame is being released. Dont block anything; it will last only a small moment.

5. Start surrendering yourself to these feelings; let them express themselves fully all over your body (or any other part where you feel them most intensively). Don't push them back; don't block them or act on them either. Just let them be in their natural way and instead, be an independent observer of them, as if they weren't even yours. Be an observer and let any emotions come out, as they want to.

6. Try not to connect these feelings to any stories or circumstances; try not to rationalize them. Try not to think about them at all. Just look at them as pure emotion, which want to be expressed and released. Don't judge them; don't push them back; just observe.

7. After a while, make a decision about letting the feeling of shame go once and forever, and then let it actually go and disappear.

8. Because the amount of negative feelings related to shame can be quite often pretty intense and deep, you will probably need to repeat steps 1-5 several times. Also, make this a daily practice if any kind of other feelings of shame come up anytime soon. Shame sometimes requires some time (weeks and months) to be completely let go.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Letting-Go-of-Shame&id=9472450

Letting Go Of The Fear And Trusting Again After A Serious Heartbreak

At some point of our lives, we experience hurt that we fear to trust again. Our fear of betrayal. Take baby steps day by day to become open and trusting within the very little things. The more we think over our past heartbreak, the more it lingers in our hearts. But if we just let it go naturally, our pain will heal naturally and will barely leave a scar.

We trust somebody in terms of perceiving that in spite of appearance they're decent persons with good intentions and with integrity. However, look can be very deceiving. Our previous experience affect our current relationship if we let our negative experiences destroy our reserve until such time when we become open enough to be vulnerable and trust once more.

We appreciate that every now and then things are going to be powerful. That's life and that we are going to be tested. However, keep in mind that our emotional heartbreak is not the end of the world. We need to let go of the past and move on forward. Our past won't define our future. It does not mean that if we are hurt in the past, we will also have a similar experience in the future. In other words, we've been hurt once doesn't mean that it's likely to happen once more.

What you pay most of it slow wondering becomes your reality... the very fact that it's laborious to trust someone? If it keeps happening to you, stop and reflect where did you go wrong, Love yourself foremost. When we love ourselves, it begets love. Knowing that no matter what happens we need to bounce back from our failures. That what resilient people do.

Yes, in fact we're invariably stricken by rejection because it happens as a part of life. We have a tendency to didn't get what we wished. But what's important, to learn from that negative experience to prevent us falling taken with once more.

Use rejection as a springboard to search out more about yourself, what you learned, why you are feeling the method you are doing, what you're permitting to urge within the method, wherever you're maybe sabotaging yourself. Use it to explore your values and what you actually wish in life.

Learning to trust somebody once more once is very troublesome... however, it's not possible.Your past doesn't equal your future. I learned this idea from the people I met in my field of work from different walks of life. It's not because we've been hurt within the past doesn't suggest we will get hurt once more.

So, let go of your fears and start trusting once more. This is actually the key to make a relationship work. No two people are the same. Just trust in your own judgment. However, if you retain distrusting yourself, you may keep distrusting others, that creates a positive feedback.

Part of building your confidence is to seem once yourself and understand that simply because you understand that somebody has done one thing nasty to you, you'll be okay. You'll cope on your own.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Letting-Go-Of-The-Fear-And-Trusting-Again-After-A-Serious-Heartbreak&id=9992831

Why You Need to Forgive Even If It's Hard - Letting Go of Anger, Resentment and Grudges

"In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves." ~ Buddha

What if you found out that a trusted school teacher abused your child? How do you prevent anger from overtaking you and destroying everything beautiful in your life like weeds suffocating the flowers of our gardens?

In the post "How to Control Anger in Under One Minute" we looked at three simple steps to prevent ourselves from bursting into the incredible hulk when conflict arises. We examined everyday annoyances such as traffic and the weather.

But what about the deep seeded anger that courses through our veins for years locking us in an ugly prison of resentment, grudges and hate?

If we are honest don't we all have some deep seeded grudge towards someone or something? A heavy heart, lost loved one, or a belief that we have been treated unfairly? If you do, you need to hear this, your family needs you to hear this.

"Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned." ~ Buddha

There are a lot of quotes floating around such as this, but we rarely hear WHY anger isn't good for you, just that's its bad. Do you ever just want to say to whoever "they" are, "OK I get it, anger is like a poisonous snake, now tell my why it's bad for me and how I can fix it."

WHY IS ANGER HARMFUL

1. Health problems; anger can cause the following:

•Headaches and chronic pain

•Insomnia and a higher tendency for alcohol and drug abuse

•Stress, depression and anxiety

•High blood pressure, heart attacks and stroke

•Skin problems

•It also leads to diminished friendships

2. Unhealthy outbursts:

Anger can consume you to the point that you have explosive episodes. You may hurt your loved one with physical and verbal abuse and isolate yourself from friends and family. This can lead to low self esteem and manipulation in our relationships.

3. Bottled Repression:

Bottled anger turns to depression and anxiety. It can also lead to venting at innocent parties such as your children, spouse or pet.

There is no question anger is only harming you and your family. Dwelling on past injustices have no effect on the present other than causing you pain. Being angry will not bring back a lost loved one or mend your broken heart. If you can't let it go you might face these undesirable consequences for the rest of your life.

Meet Jane Doe. She is a friend of mine who recently discovered her husband had been cheating, in an instant her dreams were snatched from her.

On the outside she seemed to be coping but on the inside she was consumed with fury and rage. At the age of 36 she was nearing the end of her fertile window and she blamed her husband for her broken life, she was now alone and childless. This blame kept her locked in her present misery. Her negative thoughts crowded out any positive ones until she was swallowed up by bitterness. She was left an empty shell.

Jane was consumed with thoughts of revenge, resentment and hurt which seeped into her new relationships. She didn't take the time to ask her mind what is the real problem here? Why am I really angry? What am I afraid of?

Jane had the mistaken notion that happiness was dependent upon her husband loving her. Once he was gone Jane didn't think there was anything left, her entire self identity was wrapped around him.

Attachment will only bring us suffering because all things we are attached to we can and will eventually lose.

My Buddhist teacher is always saying: "May you be happy." If you truly love someone you will recognize they aren't your property, one day you will have to leave them. If they choose to leave you before death arrives, you can feel saddened by the loss but you won't crumble because you know that happiness comes from yourself.

This may be difficult but you can still wish someone happiness, even if they hurt you.

Some of you may be ready to debate that some forms of anger are healthy. So a valid question to ask: Is Anger Healthy? Pop psychology suggests bashing your fists into pillows may be beneficial but Buddhist teachings consider that even that is feeding your emotion of anger. I can hear you saying c'mon; I can't even take my frustrations out on a pillow?

Don't Feed Anger

The only neutralizer for anger is compassion; verbal or physical violence only feeds the seeds of anger, it doesn't get it out of your system it creates a stronger emotion.

Wouldn't it be a relief to break out of stressful prison anger keeps us bound to?

Do you sometimes feel like you're on a revolving wheel repeating the same habits, thinking one day you will change? The truth is that we all have the ability to experience inner peace; with psychological counselling on mindfulness, meditation and reflection we will learn valuable skills of mindful awareness.

I read this quote, and my apologizes but I don't have the source. I still want to share it because it really stuck with me. "The recognition that a person can choose emotional well being - even when things don't turn out the way we want it - is the cornerstone of mental heath."

Forgiving is hard but it can be done. Identity your feelings, what you were attached to and what you lost.

Peaceful mind, peaceful life. Anger will stomp all over you if you let it. Life doesn't always turn out the way we want, it can be really tough, but we must choose acceptance. In a small ship rolling across a violent storm, anger will make you seasick. Accept the storm and you will find peace amidst even the strongest waves.

HOW TO FORGIVE EVEN WHEN IT SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE

Forgiveness can change your life. It doesn't mean you have forgotten the past. It doesn't mean you have to keep someone in your life. It just means that you have decided to move on that you are ready to be happy.

1. Explore your emotions of hurt and the underlying fear attached to them. Anger stems from a sense of helplessness. Commit to change

2. Seek professional help - You don't have to do this alone. There are many professionals who are trained to help you overcome these difficult emotions.

3. Develop empathy - if someone you love was abused or hurt can you try to put yourself in the violator's shoes?

4. Forgiving is not forgetting - remember it and then let it go. Its about acceptance of what is.

5. Think about your family. Consider the negative effects anger is having on your loved ones.

6. Rely on facts. - The fact is that being angry cannot change the present situation.

7. Write down three good things that came from the negative situation. From every situation you can find some positive outcomes. Whether it be you made a new friend or learned something new about yourself.

8. Acceptance, acceptance, acceptance. Let it go

9. Live in the moment. Practice mindfulness - be continually present with whatever experience you are having. Mindfulness will bring you into the present moment and away from the mind's incessant chatter. Don't give yourself an opportunity to dwell and exaggerate.

10. Take up a meditation practice; visualize anger leaving your body and being replaced with a peaceful white light; imagine the healthy effects this will have on your health and relationships.

Please read this excerpt fully, it is one of the most empowering things I have ever read: This is from the Bill Clinton story about Nelson Mandela:

"Mandela made a grand, elegant, dignified exit from prison and it was very, very powerful for the world to see. But as I watched him walking down that dusty road, I wondered whether he was thinking about the last 27 years, whether he was angry all over again. Later, many years later, I had a chance to ask him. I said, 'Come on, you were a great man, you invited your jailers to your inauguration, you put your pressures on the government. But tell me the truth. Weren't you really angry all over again?' And he said, 'Yes, I was angry. And I was a little afraid. After all I've not been free in so long. But,' he said, 'when I felt that anger well up inside of me I realized that if I hated them after I got outside that gate then they would still have me.' And he smiled and said, 'I wanted to be free so I let it go.' It was an astonishing moment in my life. It changed me."

If Nelson Mandela can let go of years of unjust imprisonment, we can all work towards living a more peaceful life.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Why-You-Need-to-Forgive-Even-If-Its-Hard---Letting-Go-of-Anger,-Resentment-and-Grudges&id=7930342

How to Tame the Beast (Anger) in You?

"Anger is the wind which blows out the lamp of the mind." (Bodie Thoene, a historical fiction writer from USA)

But the irony is that when in a fit of anger, one does never care whether the flame is alive or dead. Again, those who often get angry for petty reasons are lovelorn and need more love, so goes a popular quote. But that hardly is a solution. And if that is considered to be one, then we are doomed. Think if such a person gets so angry at the drop of a hat that they kill you in that fit of anger! You must be alive and kicking to make love. The coincidence is that each one of us has a bit of anger somewhere within us. At a peculiar situation when we lose our patience to tolerate their anger, we too might get angry and react. A mishap cannot be written off in such cases. So is there a way to tame this beast 'anger' in us? I wonder if any external force can ever do that.

Look inward, you might get a way out. And as you do that, see if you can follow an agenda like this:

1) Realize that your anger is a weakness which you are unable to overcome yet. And it is quite natural to have many such weaknesses as human beings. Indian-American author and public speaker Deepak Chopra says, "If you try to get rid of fear and anger without knowing their meaning, they will grow stronger and return."

2) Look for ways to tame it from all sources that you can access - a good book, a psychology expert or a friend who has successfully dealt with it.

3) Shed all your ego and inhibition, and raise your hand up for help. Someone from your family, a sincere friend or your teacher might come forward to help.

4) When you are receiving the inputs that might help you in getting rid of the beast, listen to the counsel and believe that it helps. There is no scope for your intervention. Do as directed if you are serious about letting the beast go.

5) Be patient and know that time heals too. Continue to practise all that you have been preached. Just know what the Buddha's teaching says, "Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything - anger, anxiety, or possessions - we cannot be free."

6) After a while, maybe after a couple of months, evaluate yourself in terms of how you react to certain things that you don't like. Compare and see if the magnitude has come down. If you have been honest in practising the ways to control your anger, you shall see a positive difference.

Do you remember what the famous English Poet of 16th Century, John Milton, says about human mind in his magnum opus Paradise Lost? "The mind is in its own place, and in itself can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven."

https://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Tame-the-Beast-(Anger)-in-You?&id=8758739

The Art of Being Original and Letting Go of the Ideas to Evolve

I often wonder why we hate reading other people's writing. Early in my academic life I realized that most of the human beings do not have staying power to finish reading other people's writing. I thought that this was weaknesses and that it must be embarrassing to people. I would therefore force myself to finish reading the prescribed materials. When I have finished reading something I will celebrate. But I am always disturbed. I would not be able to reproduce the content. I would not be able to figure out what I had learned from the text or the book. So, I concluded that we are doing this for the wrong reason. We are not necessarily inspired at all by the ideas that are not ours.

But this is not absolutely true. There are some people who enjoy reading other people's ideas and taking them forward to implementation phase. That is why some of us are writers and others are readers.

I am glad that I found the secret! And the secret is that those of us who are writers, we are inspired by being original. In fact this is the most important characteristic of writers. Writers love coming up with their own ideas. They are transformational in their writing. Why do I say so? What they write about is what they applied their mind to and it makes people take action. People embark on actions as a result of having read about the idea.

So, as a writer, reading someone's text is limited to us getting the intent of the author, and once we got it, even if we have not finished the entire text, it is sufficient to stop reading and move on to creating our own original ideas. This is not arrogance, but nature of authors.

How does this relate to our big life ideas? We have big life ideas that are truly original.

Original ideas grow inside us as a result of us nurturing them. These ideas are often related to our calling in life.

I grew up knowing that one day I would have to work. But I always knew that I wanted to do something of my own. It took me ten years struggling to establish what kind of a project I was to embark on in my private capacity. I tried too hard and would not get it. When I ultimately cracked it, a penny dropped.

When you are forcing original idea or life purpose to reveal itself to you, you are not being original and realistic. The best way to discover your purpose is to be original, allow the idea to grow over time, be flexible, and let go as the idea evolves. It will lead to the discovery of your life purpose.

When we become generous with our particular idea we reach the stage where the idea no longer belongs to us. All our stakeholders and mirrors become the owners of our idea. They grow into a bigger phenomenon and in that way the universe acknowledge us as having contributed to the betterment of humankind.

https://ezinearticles.com/?The-Art-of-Being-Original-and-Letting-Go-of-the-Ideas-to-Evolve&id=9759963

Letting Go of the Fear of the Future

In the future, there is a true hope. In the future, there is a reflection of the abundance and gratitude of today.

Letting go of the fear of the future means, in general, letting go of most of your fears.

Just think about it: 99% of all of our worries and fears are connected only and exclusively with thoughts about the future:

• What will tomorrow bring us?
• What if it were something highly unpredictable, or even painful?
• Will I be able to handle it?
• Am I ready for that?
• How will I protect my family?
• How will I deal with that?

But, what happens when we let go of all these fears?

What happens when we surrender ourselves to the uncertainty of the future, letting ourselves experience all the feelings that lie behind, and letting them simply go, once and forever?

Can we even do that?

Can Letting Go take us so far?

After several Letting Go meditations related to the uncertainty of the future, some interesting revelations came to me when all the negative emotions behind these fears were surrendered, released, and let go.

The most surprising one was the realization that there is not such a thing as a future.

Any moment of our life we live at is defined by being in a state of a clear presence. We simply can't live in the past or future; we can only live in the present.

So, all we can really be fearful of, is just our presence, as this is the only state that we are actually experiencing. Yes, we can also think of extensions, multiplication or variations of the presence, which are often falsely altered with the word "future", but it is still just another form of the presence.

Now, this is great news.

Why?

Because the good thing about the presence is, that we can shape it and define it exactly as we want to - in any given moment. We can instantly decide if we want to be joyful or fearful right now, if we want to be exuberant or impoverished. We have the power of the full choice about the presence, about the actual, instant moment.

But, because the future is, in fact, just an extension or multiplication (or variation) of the presence, by shaping our presence, we can then immediately shape our future as well:

If we feel true hope today, we already create it for our future too.

If we feel abundance and gratitude today, we already create it for our future as well.

I admit that this concept can be a bit difficult to understand for most of you right now. However, after several letting go of these future related issues, you will start seeing it clearer.. This concept needs to be fully experienced (by letting go of the barriers for this experience) first, in order to be able to absolutely understand it, accept it and take great advantages of it.

So here is letting go process of the fear of the future:

1. In a quiet place, close your eyes and think of any of your recent fears about the future.

2. Start noticing the feelings (as they will start coming up) behind your thoughts.

3. Don't try to label these feelings in any way, rationalize or analyze them. Just let them come out and express themselves.

4. Start surrendering yourself to these feelings slowly, let them express themselves fully all over your body (or any other part where you feel them most intensively). Don't push them back, don't block them or act on them either. Just let them be in their natural way and instead, be an independent observer of them, as if they weren't even yours.

5. After a while, make a decision about letting them go once and forever, and then let them actually go and disappear.

The process above will probably need to be, in the case of many people, repeated during the following days, or even weeks, to start experiencing the new, clear perception of the concept of the future (anxiety about the future is in general quite a strong issue) and to start experiencing how worries about the future begin to vanish.

Remember that, with Letting Go, we can't control the moment of the revelation. All we can do is to let go and then let the revelation come to us in the moment it is ready to come. I can guarantee you, that sooner or later it will come, if we let go and surrender ourselves properly. There is no other way.By letting go and surrendering ourselves, we clear the path ahead of us; we clear the vision, and we only need to wait for our own conscious and unconscious mind to adjust to this new reality. Paradoxically, our own brain is quite often the weakest link in our growth!

http://ezinearticles.com/?Letting-Go-of-the-Fear-of-the-Future&id=9472432

A True Story On Letting Go Of A Confused Mind And Rising Above To Finding Peace Within (By James Nussbaumer)

How to find peace within yourself even when you're always asking yourself things like, "What to do when you hate your life, or asking, "Why is this happening to me", can feed a confused mind.

It really isn't that easy when the jail cell is only six feet wide, with a concrete bench about a foot from the floor that held a torn, thin foam mattress, or what was left of one.

You 'd find that the steel bars and concrete that surrounded me securely didn't at all help me to answer how to find peace within yourself if this were you. Being dressed in the rags they called an orange jumpsuit, I was not going anywhere.

A Course in Miracles teaches that, "Perception always involves some misuse of mind, because it brings the mind into areas of uncertainty."

A small window was positioned near the top of the high block walls within inches of the ceiling. That window reminded me of the window in the fruit cellar of the basement in my grandparents' old house.

This, perhaps, you might say, would give a glimpse how to find peace within yourself.

I found that by lying on the floor and positioning my body against the wall of that cell, I could look up and through the window to see the sky, finding peace within.

My hopes were to try anything, however slight, to strap onto some sort of sanity of peace and harmony.

My anxiety and depression, along with a confused mind told me there was nothing to see out that window anyway, and the numbness I felt only added to the confused void that held me about: why is this happening to me?

What to do when you Hate your Life:

The jail cell was cold, and darkness was the view through the window, just as my depressed thinking said it would be. It was like; how to find peace within yourself?

I did notice a hint of the glow from a nearby moon.

The noise around me, and up and down the long corridor of double bunked jail cells, was horrendous, louder than a crowd in a sold-out arena. My numbness almost managed to block it out as I half-heartedly thought of ways to end my life.

A recurring set of thoughts that haunted me was, what to do when you hate your life, or, how can I live with myself?

Suddenly I became aware of what an odd thought that really was: Am I seeking for and think I am finding peace within by trying to be one being, or two?

My supper of beans and rice on a plastic tray was slid into the cell through a slot in the bars at floor level.

I left it untouched on the floor until lights out, like you 'd perhaps think, "How to find peace within yourself."

When I awoke from a brief nap to clammy darkness, the guard came by to nab the food tray-- well, at least I thought she did.

Can we begin Finding Peace Within?

The moon had changed positions and was now squarely framed in the tiny window, which my eyes grabbed onto in peace and harmony.

I now had a companion; that wonderful moon, and it remained in the window for what seemed to be a few hours.

Even after it moved its position, its glow was still apparent, with a backsplash of stars filling the sky.

I remember the calming, peaceful sight as I lay on the floor against the wall to gain the only available view. Maybe, I 'd relay this one day to people who are thinking, "How to find peace within yourself."

With my body still numb, that sky seemed very friendly.

My mind would vacillate between "thinking" and "no-thinking," or the "I" and "self." My "no-thinking" was merely a fixed gaze through the window and into the sky, nothing more, but with thoughts of why is this happening to me.

The "thinking" part of me continued its questions on "how to live with myself," or mostly like, how to find peace within yourself.

This side of me was getting weaker and more frightened as I began to recognize that there was nowhere as a body that I could hide or go to begin finding peace within.

The more I remained on the no-thinking side, the less fear I felt, and the more peace and harmony entered my psyche.

I remembered a thought, or a willingness, perhaps, which I had: to never feel the need to hide anything. It said to "let go" of whatever held me to the habitual thinking that had consumed me for so long.

More Peace and Harmony

I began having more thoughts, telling me that, although I was heading off to prison now, there was nothing to be afraid of.

Still there were sustaining fears and self-pity I could not get a grip on, such as, "Why is this happening to me?", and "What is going to become of me?"

As I continued to focus through the window, an additional, brand-new thought came clearly through my mind: "Nothing you see from this jail cell means anything."

It was my thought, my own, for sure; but I "heard" it as though it was talking to me.

Or maybe I can say it was thinking for me. This one thought persistently hounded me through my numbness.

My eyes opened widely as I suddenly realized the window was gone. It had simply vanished, along with the cell, the bars, the concrete floor, walls, and bench.

The entire building was gone.

There was nothing, only me, now sitting up in an Indian-style position with arms crossed over my legs. I was still staring at the moon and stars and even noticed how calm I was, and yet amazed.

I thought, "Is this how to find peace within yourself?"

How can you Live with Yourself?

Next, the darkness of the sky faded quickly away.

Yes, I mean, no sky, but oddly all its glory, had and remained merged together, and I felt held by it.

The stars had gathered into dense groups and attached themselves to the outer edges of the moon.

Now the moon was centered in an endless array of sparkling clusters, lighting up my view of the magnificent sight that welcomed me.

I looked down at my legs and feet, and they were gone too. I raised my arms and hands, and they were gone.

Since I had no hands to feel my face, I was convinced it no longer existed either.

My entire body was gone.

I was still there; I existed, feeling a sensation all around me as the most peaceful I've ever experienced. It was like anyone can see how to find peace within yourself.

I thought to myself, How can I see and feel all this beauty and the light without having eyes to see with?

Why is this Happening to me?

Another sensation or thought entered my mind that said, "It's okay, relax, you are already being taken care of.

Plans are made.

Events and things are being arranged at this moment, getting things ready for you. You're going to do well."

Next came a thought that told me all my errors were not real, so not to worry-- that at that very moment from many places, forgiveness was shining on me.

It also said to "let go."

The emptiness and numbness were gone, along with everything else that had faded away.

I've heard and read about people who have said they hear voices talking to them; for example, people who say, "God spoke to me."

With me, here, this was not the case.

This was pure thought, rather than a voice. Pure of a thought that there was no doubting or questioning it whatsoever. Real that it is unexplainable, but is certain.

A thought with "no-thinking."

I said to myself, "So this is what everything is all about. I am real, regardless of my body.".

I went on to consider that this is what the Bible really means by "There is no death," and why Jesus demonstrated "There really is no death." I had always felt deep down that I was fooling myself or allowing the world to fool me.

Letting go of the Confused Mind.

Now I was able to see how I had deprived myself by allowing my mind to buy into this "fire in hell" concept claimed by the world, and the devil below. There is no such thing.

A Course in Miracles states that, "Consciousness, the level of perception, was the first split introduced into the mind after the separation, making the mind a perceiver rather than a creator.".

Next, all of a sudden, the moon and stars grew so bright with light that my eyes blurred, watery with tears.

As I raised my hands to wipe them, I realized everything had reappeared as if nothing had ever happened. I was sitting there, cross-legged, with all my body parts, and inside the jail cell.

What I experienced was not a dream and was real, however so brief-- maybe an instant.

Time seemed to have suspended itself, so it didn't matter how long the experience lasted. I looked up to see the tray of food was still there.

The guard had not yet picked it up.

You, as well as others, have had similar type experiences about how to find peace within yourself, perhaps only to quickly dismiss them as a daydream or your imagination running away. Who knows how real your own experiences might have been?

One thing for sure that we do know, though, is that the world is always at our side, ready and vigilant to quickly dismiss them as fantasy or delusion.

To tapping into your true reality within you!

http://ezinearticles.com/?A-True-Story-On-Letting-Go-Of-A-Confused-Mind-And-Rising-Above-To-Finding-Peace-Within&id=9822135

How Letting Go Will Make You Totally Free

In the complete freedom from negativity, there lays the ultimate happiness. Once all negativity is let go, there can't be anything else but bless, abundance, happiness, health, love and joy.

Until now, we might have believed that negativity is not a choice.

We might have believed that negativity is a result of circumstances completely out of our control, a result of our surroundings, society, work environment, government, world events, economy, money, or anything else.

We might have even believed that there is nothing we can do about negativity and negative events and that we just must take them as part of life.

BUT THAT IS ALL COMPLETELY WRONG.

Let me repeat it:

THAT IS SIMPLY NOT TRUE.

The truth is much simpler, but also much more profound:

Any negativity in our life (including lack of manifestation of abundance, toxic relationships and health issues) is simply a result of suppressed negative feelings stored deeply within our body, which have never got the chance to be let go.

That's all it is.

... an unwanted accumulation, which has never got the chance to be let go.

Just think of it:

I think that you would all agree with me on the fact that we all experience unpleasant, emotionally challenging situations every single day, and that we all experience many (daily) situations resulting in anxiety, bad mood, low self-esteem, physical illnesses, or even depression.

Why?

Because nobody has ever told us how to handle all these omnipresent emotional challenges.

We don't know what to do about them.

We don't know how to behave.

We don't want to be embarrassed by a socially unacceptable behaviour or reacnegative feelings, tion.

So, we suppress feelings.

And we suppress more.

And more.

And even more.

Until our body is full of negativity, which we are not even aware of, because we have wrongly believed until now, that once any negative feeling is forced and hidden somewhere inside, it doesn't affect us anymore.

But it DOES.

And it does in a big way.

It is a hidden enemy, growing, taking control of our life, and attracting even more negativity, which we tend to wrongly interpret as "bad luck" (once you learn the letting go technique, you will quickly realize that there is not such a thing like bad luck).

So, the question is:

WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THAT?

And that is a very good question, indeed.

I have been looking for the answers for many, many years. I have been experimenting with such a huge amount of techniques, principles, meditations, and other stuff, that I wouldn't be even able to name them all.

But, after many years, I have finally found something that completely changed my life.

The truth.

The truth that any negative feeling can be simply experienced and let go.

ONCE AND FOR EVER.

Yes, it sounds too good to be true.

Sounds like it can't be that easy.

BUT IT IS.

And once you start practising the Letting Go technique yourself, you will very quickly confirm my statement.

And the best thing is: it will cost you nothing.

Everything you need to start with is already here.

So, let's get to work.

Letting go will make you totally free.

TOTALLY.

Here is the letting go process for being totally free:

1. Any negativity is just a feeling.

2. Any negative feeling is just negative energy stored in your body.

3. Any energy can be released.

4. That means that the stored negative energy in our body can be released too.

5. And once released, it can be consciously let go - once and for ever.

6. Once tons and tons of negative blocks are gradually, deliberately released and let go, they are immediately substituted by positive energy, which is our only natural source. That´s what we all really are; and after certain periods of letting go, we will get the positive energy again.

7. The more negative energy is let go, the more positive energy comes up.

8. The positive energy represents a high vibrational state of mind and body. This high vibrational state of mind and body will start having an immediate positive impact. A HUGE impact.

9. That negative energy attracts more negative energy and positive energy attracts more positive energy, MUCH more positive energy - a HUGE amount of positive events.

10. Therefore, while you keep letting go of negativity, you start experiencing more positivity expressed through joy, abundance, attraction towards positive events, better relationships, love, more opportunities in your life and work, better health, more happiness.

And that's really all it is!

You can start even today, now, right at this moment.

All you need to do is to make the decision and take action.

It costs you nothing; yet it can change your life completely.

I know that for sure.

Because, without letting go, I would have never been able to start this movement and provide these amazing, limitless tools to the rest of the world.

Take it, use it, get the most of it, and mainly: smile, laugh, and start enjoying your life fully once and for all.

It is your full right.

http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Letting-Go-Will-Make-You-Totally-Free&id=9472489

How To Manifest Your Desires Through Personal Initiative Of Thought Manifestation

Every sensation, thought or doubt, no matter how minor is vibrated throughout the interlocking chain of minds-- which is the real universe. You can fool people, but you can not deceive the inner depths of thought manifestation.

Recently as I was swimming at my local health club it dawned on me, how swimming has keen parallels with the personal initiative of how to make things happen in one's life.

I was baffled by the reality how beginners have trouble keeping their head above water, while experienced swimmers don't have such an issue. They swim easily while a beginner seems to want to force the issue of the swimming stroke.

That's because, "The reason they sink is because they don't rely on the water to keep them flowing.

The beginner seems to fear releasing, and so flowing can't happen.

And then it struck me. It is the very same with manifesting your desires!

No trust, no flowing through life while you manifest anything you want.

It's just when you totally and unquestionably trust that your desires are as great as having already been provided, that your personal initiative will simply flow.

The proof of your total trust is when you reveal your gratitude and currently start celebrating, in spite of your present truth which may be the specific opposite of what you proclaim.

Simply as it is with swimming, how to make things happen and to manifest your desires does not occur overnight.

We first need to release our fears which is a wrong-minded ego-based thought our past experiences.

Until we decide to change and do things differently, we will continue to get the things we've constantly gotten and never learn how to make things happen in our life.

In short the answer to the concern, how to manifest anything, is to just rely on it happening.

Trust that the Universe/God desires exactly what's best for you and is totally capable to provide exactly what you desire.

The Course in Miracles states, "The laws of the universe do not permit contradiction. What holds for God holds for you."

Trust that if you follow the laws of the universe and the power of attraction in a reflective state of mind, you will certainly be leading a life where you know how to make things happen and to manifest your desires.

Trust that just as the water raises you up and lets you float, deep thought manifestation shall keep your head above the tides of life, irrespective of how fearful things may seem right now.

Read this if you are asking yourself often, how to make things manifest and happen anything.

Learning how to make things happen is similar to learning to swim.

How is swimming similar to manifesting your desires?

Both manifesting and swimming need total trust, i.e. letting go.

You have to let go of your need to manage the result and trust that you will receive that which you are seeking when it comes to manifesting anything.

The Course in Miracles teaches us that the ego in us all tells us to "seek but do not find."

In the case of swimming you have to trust that you will float and not drown.

Everyone who has actually learnt how to swim will agree that worry causes you to sink. Absence of fear enables you to flow brilliantly., if you go down it will be short-term and you'll naturally rise to the surface.

It's truly no different than, how to make things happen in your life with attempting to manifest your desires.

Accept your desires as already having actually been fulfilled.

Like I 'd already noted, everyone who has ever first learned to swim will say and agree that fear triggers you to sink. If you go down it will be short-lived and you'll quickly bob back to the surface, and even.

It is the very same with how to make things happen and to manifest your desires.

Accept your desires as already waiting for your own personal initiative of inner deep thought manifestation to reflect it into your outer material world.

If you have any fears and doubts, whatsoever, holding you back, that this is not so, you will not shift forward to realizing how to make things happen in your life.

To manifesting anything you want in your life!

http://ezinearticles.com/?How-To-Manifest-Your-Desires-Through-Personal-Initiative-Of-Thought-Manifestation&id=9826131

Message From the Universe: Do Not Make a Mountain Out of a Molehill!

"From here, of course, all earthly problems appear small - really small. That's because we know they're fleeting, they prepare you for the "best of your life," and you chose them, not wanting to obtain their rewards in any other way.

But from where you are, of course, they can look gigantic. That's because they're often seen as permanent, limiting, and imposed upon you by chance, fate, or circumstance.

Get real. See them from our perspective.

To the best of your life starting right now,

The Universe"

There are as many grains of sand in all the deserts and beaches in this planet as there are stars and galaxies. So just pick up one grain of sand, carefully look at it, analyze it for what it is, and imagine yourself INSIDE that little grain of sand, in a quantum level, as this is who we are when we compare Earth with all the rest of galaxies, planets and stars in our Universe. We feel that our problems are monumental when we face them today, but the reality is that these problems are given to us because the power from above knows you can handle it. We deal with issues daily, some small and other pretty large. We focus on looking for a solution to alleviate the gravity of that problem. Once solution is found, we move forward. Ideal situation isn't? For most, it is but others have the difficulty in understanding the letting go part and moving on. They let that issue ponder and consume the energy they have left to move forward to bigger and better things. They feel and stay trap on that issue, gravitating around it like the moon with our planet. They feel like no solution can be the best solution and keep on feeling sorry about themselves and their situation.

Learning to let go and finding A solution, and NOT the best solution is necessary for you to learn to move past that issue and focus on more productive aspect of your life. No need to worry as many more problems will arise in your lifetime but if you get into the habit of solving problems and learning to move forward, the rest of your issues will seem pretty easy to overcome. There is no unique solution for all your problems, and even if you do find one, you might come across another solution that may be better. Do not regret anything and just learn from all the lessons life is giving you. You are a smart person and you need to stay positive and on track to reach your dreams and goals. We all want to be the best we can be and strive for excellence. However, make sure to not let excellence become an obstacle. There is no such things as perfection, so learn to live with that.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Message-From-the-Universe:-Do-Not-Make-a-Mountain-Out-of-a-Molehill!&id=9549853

Letting Go Of Self-Limiting Beliefs - Things Will Be Okay

Self-limiting beliefs are the untruths many of us use to give us direction in life. Until you begin changing core beliefs, finding happiness and being successful certainly will be limited.

Belief may release you from self-imprisonment, like the belief from the heart you are protected by your true free will.

The Course in Miracles teaches us that, "It's the plan of the Universe."

In previous articles I told you about my feeling of being trapped and how to escape the darkness I was in while waiting to be arrested for felony charges.

It was over a foolish securities violation, a line I crossed in my practice as a financial advisor of 25 years. I 'd be sentenced to a 10 year prison term.

How to Just Let Go

After sitting there a while, watching the sun reflect on the water, I realized that I had been my own prisoner and that I needed to changing core beliefs that were self-limiting.

I saw that changing core beliefs was necessary, because it was as though I had believed all along I was sentenced to my body, as if it were a prison cell.

The only thing that had bound me was my self-limiting beliefs that the prison door was locked, and that a frightening guard was stationed there, making sure I didn't rise up and leave-- and that I must remain this way until I died.

I thought to myself, Man, all I need to do is begin changing core beliefs in these things, and the door swings open.

I have never really been under guard and bound at all.

I couldn't believe that all my life I 'd been allowing my body to be a self-imposed limitation that kept me from who I am truly meant to be-- more so, who I need to be.

Before I opened the door to go inside the house, I looked back over my shoulder for another glance at the beautiful lake.

By changing core beliefs things and events were going to happen that simply had to be, but you will be OK, the voice within assured me.

I went into the house, put on some clothes, made a pot of coffee, and sat for a few minutes while contemplating changing core beliefs, and then decided to take a walk around the lake.

I admired the gracefulness of the deer as they leaped into the wooded acreage adjacent to the lake.

I believe because I decided to begin changing core beliefs I found this awe of nature to be an excitement on that particular morning, I guess because of my lifelong fondness for these creations of God.

Now about forty or fifty yards or so from my house, I noticed a county sheriff squad car sitting at the end of my driveway.

He gently and politely handcuffed me, guided me into the back seat. This was the last time I would ever see my home on the lake.

To letting go of false beliefs!

http://ezinearticles.com/?Letting-Go-Of-Self-Limiting-Beliefs---Things-Will-Be-Okay&id=9811302

The Concept of Letting Go

So what does the concept of "letting go" mean and why can it be so hard to do. The reality is most things take time and we can not make ourselves feel a certain or different way even if we wish that we could. I believe there are some things that happen in our life that are sometimes deeper than we realize and that once we can figure out what that is or why it is that we are holding onto something we can not "let it go" completely.

I feel nothing but gratitude at this moment because I had an epiphany the other day and was able to understand what I was doing and why? I have always known on some level but emotionally I still felt the need to hold on even though it was negative and not good for me. The problem was I couldn't make myself change these feelings until enough time had passed and I healed from what happened. I am not sure if that made any sense and I hope that it does for you. What is interesting is that I have been talking about it, praying about it, writing about it and living my life the best I could. It took me watching two different movies to realize what I was doing and that I needed to "let it go". It was an extremely powerful and empowering experience. Once I made the decision and talked about it with someone, the very next day I felt better and no longer was carrying those negative feelings around. I know this may sound kind of crazy but for those that work a program or are spiritually connected I am sure get this concept.

For several months all I have been saying is that I am not myself that this experience changed me some for the positive but some for the negative which is what I was holding onto. I am back to feeling like myself. I don't feel so stuck anymore. I feel amazing. I feel nothing but relief and joy. It felt like such a huge burden had been lifted. And although I have been working on letting it go, I knew that one day everything would fall into place and I would be free!

The key I believe is that I was always open to the process and I trusted and believed that eventually I would feel better and truly be able to "let it go". It is funny not really but one of my closest friend would say to me just let it go but I kept saying it wasn't that easy and if I could I would but I just couldn't and it would happen when it was supposed to happen.

Letting go is a gift. As long as we want to be well and we want to be free of what is holding us back we will be able to be as happy as we want to be and for me it is about being balanced! So I am more happy again. Despite this experience I was still happy with things in my life and how things were going I was just little "off" per say. As I said earlier, Nothing but Gratitude. Letting go allows so much more good to fall into my life. So whatever you do: Do not give up on feeling better and letting go because eventually your time will come! Trust me!

Part of letting go has to do with the concept of patience. Patience is defined as the state of endurance under difficult circumstances. It is the level of endurance we can take before a mindset of negativity sets. It is a person's ability to wait for something without overreacting and getting too upset about it. Patience is truly a virtue, which basically means if you possess it you are doing very well for yourself. Patience requires an understanding of your situation and that you know how to handle it in a way that is responsible, caring, sympathetic and respectful of yourself and of others' feelings. It is important that you learn to take your time and to listen for you can teach a valuable lesson to yourself and to others about the importance of patience. We live in such an impatient time, where everyone wants their needs met now that it can be hard to not react to others impatience.

Having patience means you can remain calm, even when you've been waiting forever or dealing with something painstakingly slow or trying to teach someone how to do something and they just don't get it. It involves acceptance and tolerance, and is usually easier to have when there's something in it for you at the end. Patience is about trusting the process. Sometimes when we are struggling with wanting a specific outcome to a situation we tend to want to control that situation by fixing it. Meaning if someone is upset with you and you don't know why. Do your best to be patient with them to come to you in their time not your time. By contacting them more than once you are inevitably trying to control it and not being patient and not trusting the process. This by no means is easy for anyone, not even me. We all have things in our life that require patience. The trick is to know when to reach out more than once and when to let it go and give the person or situation the space that it needs.

The more patience and acceptance that you have with the things in your life that you need to "let go of" the more you will be able to let go and move forward with your life.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Concept-of-Letting-Go&id=9752964

Letting Go of Physical Pain

Any kind of pain is, in fact, just a feeling. And because any feeling can be let go, then even any pain can be overcome.

One of the greatest advantages of the letting go process is its full capability to heal almost any physical issue.

In its essence, any kind of pain is just another variation of a negative feeling. This must be quite obvious for everybody - we don't usually think about our pains as something pleasurable - but rather quite the opposite.

As a negative feeling is just another form of negative energy, and as we, humans, are in general wrongly taught to suppress our negative feelings, we are, from the nature of our habitual way of treating our emotions, prone to physical pains, which are just another manifestation of suppressed negative feelings.

The good thing about the Letting Go process is that, in fact, we don't need to know what exactly the foundation of our pain is. It can be any suppressed negative feeling from our (even very recent) past; it can be a suppressed memory with a strong negative emotional charge, or anything else. The point is that it is all irrelevant in the moment we decide that this suppressed, negative energy finally releases and lets go. What really matters is to understand that the pain itself is a form of negative emotion and that any negative emotion can be let go once and forever.

So, in general, the process of letting go of physical pain is quite simple:

1. Isolate the exact place in your body, where you feel the pain.

2. Stop looking at it as a pain (which is just labeling a feeling). Accept it instead as another form of emotion, or, more precisely, as a feeling.

3. Get any labeling of this feeling out of your head, especially that one connected with any description provided by formal medicine (this labeling is completely useless and many times rather an obstacle when letting go). Don't think about this feeling as a pain or sickness; just try to avoid any kind of labeling. Instead, try to look at this emotion in the particular part of your body naturally, as an independent observer trying to locate and observe a certain feeling (don't name it; don't label it) in your own body.

4. Start surrendering yourself to this feeling slowly, let it express itself fully. Don't push it back;don't block it or act on it. Just let it be in its natural way.

5. After a while, make a decision about letting it go once and forever, and then let it actually go and disappear.

As usual, it will require some practice and repetition.

Some pain and health issues will disappear immediately.

Some will need more letting go sessions.

Some might still return after a while just to remind you that there is still more to let go, and then they will gradually disappear forever.

It can be applied on anything.

My own experiences started with my spine. For my height (192 cm = 6′4″), I used to go to my chiropractor regularly. After 3 months of letting go my spine and pelvis problems, the necessary frequency of the visit has changed from once every week to approximately once a month (on some sessions there was hardly anything to fix) and the frequency of necessary visits keeps decreasing. Ultimately, this physical issue will disappear completely (still some more letting go obviously needs to be done - which is quite usual with more serious, long term issues).

This is just one of the real examples based on my own positive experience with Letting Go.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Letting-Go-of-Physical-Pain&id=9472444