RET Workbook PDF
RET Workbook PDF
by Ranae Johnson
VISION STATEMENT
In a spirit of gratitude we call
forth lightworkers
NOW
who choose to enhance the
planetary evolution through the
gift of the
Rapid Eye Technology.
We provide an environment
for positive change through
unconditional love, honor,
education, and one community.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
We appreciate the many clients, books, and other trainings that have been our teachers. We
hope you will find this workbook helpful and inspiring.
You can copy anything in this workbook or you may buy additional copies from The Rapid
Eye Institute.
Written and edited by Ranae Johnson, Founder–Lynette Butcher and Lynell Beckstrom,
Research and Development Directors.
Introduction
This is a workbook designed to enhance self discovery. Inner work is a continuous life
process. The more you focus on knowing who you are, the better your life will work. This
workbook is meant to take you to the places where you might have trapped trauma and
unresolved emotions stored. This workbook will increase your knowledge and awareness of
why things show up in your life the way they do. Rapid Eye Technology sessions discharge
the old trapped trauma and greatly assists you in making the connections on all levels,
physical , emotional, mental and spiritual. Life Skills assist you in developing new ideas and
ways to create quality living.
The truth and awareness you will discover will be yours alone. Each of us in this world goes on
our own personal journey. We all have wonderful creative powers to discover. As we bridge the
belief in separation and connect to our source, we will discover nothing is out side of ourselves.
We begin to find a wonderful new freedom.
It contains exercises and study materials that Reading or hearing about anything remains
are best done in the life skills class or with in our intellect - we must experience or par-
your technician and this workbook or both. ticipate to gain experiential knowledge. It is
the difference in eating an apple or studying
It will help you to move beyond your old cre- what an apple tastes like. Truth is simple it
ations and create something new, instead of goes beyond words. You will find your own
returning to old familiar patterns. The rewards truth. Begin the following exercises to deter-
are new insights and connections about how mine insights about you. The workbook will
your life works - or why it doesn’t work. assist you in putting the puzzle pieces together
of a much larger plan that any of us have ever
As you proceed you will become aware of dreamed. What you get out of the life skills is
your own creative power, you will be amazed for you to determine.
at how the life skills work on physical, emo-
tional, mental, and spiritual levels. It is the It is your journey - make it a good one.
other half of Rapid Eye Technology.
THOUGHT
Thought
Think for a moment. Everything starts with a Thought is the principle that puts all other
thought. Your home was first a thought in principles into motion. Nothing happens with-
someone's mind. Your car started out in the out thought.
mind of a designer or engineer. Everything
that exists in the present moment was first a All our worries, woes, troubles, enemies, pov-
thought. erties, and griefs have all been created by us.
Though we may point the finger of blame at
Thinking is a creative force. We are always someone else, we are doing the thinking in
thinking. There is never a second when we our world. Perhaps it's time we took respon-
are otherwise engaged. Even in sleep or un- sibility for our thoughts and change our think-
consciousness we are thinking; muscles re- ing! “When I feel alone and separate, I have
quire sleep, yet thought processes require no failed to forgive.”
rest.
We can start by realizing that our thoughts are
Some thoughts create corporeally, others die free. We may think any thought we want to
in the realm of thought. Some thoughts are think at any point in time. We can choose to
meant to be created in our world and others imagine our world as perfect, just the way we
are meant to remain thoughts only. Our want it to be: safe, exciting, challenging, suc-
thoughts reside in a realm that is free of the cessful, warm, comfortable, peaceful, full of
limitations of this world; that is, we are free friends and loved ones. We can, if we wish,
to think anything. We can imagine anything. think of an enemy as a friend in our thoughts.
Since we can imagine or think anything we We can see our marriage as perfect in our
wish, we can also choose what you will think. thoughts.
We control our reality by controlling our We can imagine getting a raise, driving a new
thoughts. Our world is exactly as we have cre- car, buying a new house, or boat. We can imag-
ated it. Dr. Deepak Chopra refers to the space ine anything–without limits. We can choose
between each thought as “The realm of infi- to imagine life as we would like it to be and
nite possibilities.” then practice focusing our thoughts on that
image. Act as if or “Be” the part.
many directions at once, negating the effect Because the mind is the source of all of our
of focusing. Therefore, our desired thoughts experiences, we can always trace our life les-
never take form in this dimension and we feel sons back to a pattern of thinking. When we
frustrated. You are probably familiar with the discover the pattern of thought that needs to
feeling of working hard at something just to be changed, the physical symptoms or mani-
see it fall apart. Maybe it was a relationship festations will disappear, for their function as
or a project at work. It seems, at times, no the communicator of a lesson is no longer
matter what the work is or how hard we work, needed.
our expected outcome will fail to manifest.
Miracles are fruits of faith, or the process of
Traumatic memories are something else that acting as if. How do we act as if? We begin
can stand in the way of focusing thought. by modeling, or imitating, the way we would
When positive thoughts are negated with trau- behave if we had already achieved the de-
mas, the result is frustration. It is possible, sired result. If our desired result was to be a
however, to clear out the traumatic memories great chef, we would study cooking and use
in the realm of thought through high spiritual the same recipes that the great chefs use. We
experience. would never become a great chef by stirring
together the same old box of macaroni and
The RET process works in the realm of cheese every night.
thought. We work with thoughts, rather
than corporeal reality. RET is another way As we begin to practice acting as if, it becomes
to clear neural distortions. more readily apparent that every thought we
have makes up some segment of the world
Truth is positive. Truth is forgiveness and love. we see. It is with thought that we must work.
It is knowing we are loved and worthwhile.
We can free ourselves of the bonds of guilt Every thought we entertain contributes to truth
and fear, see our great worth, let go of guilt or to illusion. Either it extends truth or it
and learn to control our thoughts. When we multiplies the illusion! What is an illusion?
identify with the power of our own thoughts, Can we see our physical life as an illusion? If
there is nothing we are unable to do, no ob- we did, would it make a difference in our
stacles we will be unable to overcome. Faith thinking? No one can be a slave to two
is this power. It can literally move mountains masters. We must choose in which direction
- in thought and in our lives. If we fail to we want to send our thought energy. With our
change our thinking, the mountains remain. thoughts we give energy to the way our life
will be.
Getting Control of Our Most Correction happens only at the level where change
Powerful Tool is possible. Recognize it is unnecessary to feel
worried, afraid, or feel sorry for or be critical of
The mind is the world's most powerful instru- ourselves or others. Realize that doubting is the
ment. By using our mind in the way we primary cause of many of our troubles. Love is
choose to think, we literally create our own the way to correct our perception. We control our
world. If we change our mind, our behavior thoughts by controlling the focus of our attention.
will change and so will our reality, our world. “Love allows change.”
we have the ability to have our prayers (oth- continuing to unconsciously manifest things
erwise known as affirmations and visualiza- you don’t want.
tions) answered but also that our lives take on
greater grace and ease. We begin living in Think of your mind as a fertile field. Taking
harmony with the universe. The principles of control of your thoughts and beliefs makes
manifestation and their application become the difference between a garden that you cul-
clear, pragmatic guidelines for living our lives. tivate and a patch of ground that is left to grow
This continues to be the most powerful knowl- wild, whether cultivated or neglected, some-
edge we have, and we hold in great respect. thing will grow. If you don’t plant the seeds
of something you want to cultivate, then
weeds will grow and continue to produce more
The Three Principles of of the same.
Manifestation There are two parts to manifesting. First you
need to create a mental seed, which consists
of a directed thought called an affirmation and
• The Principle of Creative Thought: what
a specific image called a visualization. Then
we believe is what we create.
you need to cultivate and nourish this mental
• The Principle of Mental Clearing; we must seed so that it bears fruit - this is called the
clear our self limiting beliefs before we can energizing process.
manifest new beliefs.
coming up short. Their feelings of trauma may Describe the feelings you felt most often as
have gotten trapped. a child.
Your Feelings List: How You Feel Your Feelings List: What Others See
There are so many different kinds of feelings How does your feelings list look to other
you can experience. And often you mix two people? Which feelings do you show to oth-
or more of them together. You may experi- ers?
ence two opposite feelings about a single
event. For example, you may feel relieved Use this box to show the feelings you think
about not getting the new job you think you others see in you. Feel free to express those
wanted yet angry because you were passed feelings in pictures, doodles or words and
over. phrases.
Think about the ways you experience each Feelings Can Come in Combinations
emotion. Now write about a recent situation
for each emotion you have experienced. You don’t always experience one feeling at a
time. Two or more feelings can be experienced
Recently I felt angry when… at once and they may be at opposite ends of
the emotional spectrum.
__________________________________
My example of this is…
__________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Recently I felt guilty when… __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Feelings Don’t Just Disappear
__________________________________
If feelings are ignored, they don’t just go away.
Recently I grieved when… Feelings stick around and take other shapes
and forms. Often, they do damage to your
__________________________________ physical or mental health. Feelings buried
__________________________________ alive never die.
__________________________________ My example of this is…
What do you see yourself able to do to bring What are you hopeful about today?
greater happiness into your life?
__________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
What can you do to help make that hope be
Hope realized?
What can you do to lessen any of your present Be honest with yourself: “What am I really
day fears? feeling? Am I judging other people? Am I
angry because my will is not being met?”
__________________________________
__________________________________
Something To Consider
__________________________________
__________________________________ Anger is a strong feeling of displeasure that
can take many forms:
What can you do to lessen any of your present Place and X on the scale to indicate how
day angers? frequently and intensely you currently ex-
perience the feeling of grief. (10 is maxi-
__________________________________ mum and 0 is never).
__________________________________
Grief 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Values = Behavior ! Guilt belief that tells you that you are bad, inad-
equate, defective or unworthy. Shame is judg-
Values = Behavior ! Harmony ing yourself and giving yourself a failing
grade.
Place and X on the scale to indicate how
frequently and intensely you currently ex- Yet shame may be difficult to recognize in
perience the feeling of guilt. (10 is maxi- other people or in yourself. That is because
mum and 0 is never). shame often hides itself as other emotions or
behaviors. It can stay hidden as it gets bigger
and bigger.
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Self Messages
Make a list of situations and experiences for
which you are feeling guilty. Self-messages can either encourage shame to
grow or serve as a foundation for feelings of
__________________________________ self-esteem.
__________________________________ Shameful messages
__________________________________
• I must not let others know who I really am.
__________________________________
I must continue to fool them into believing
__________________________________ I am someone that I am not.
Make a list of resentments you are still expe- What self-pity thoughts or phrases do you use?
riencing today. __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
What can you do to “let go” of those resent-
ments? What do you need to tell yourself or do to get
__________________________________ out of a self-pity mode?
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Self-Pity __________________________________
Self-pity says, “I am more interested in feel-
ing sorry for myself than taking positive ac-
tion to move forward.”
Your emotions are a normal and important part
Self-pity paints a person as a helpless victim of your life. Because of the way emotions
of life; “Why should I like myself, when no- sometimes suddenly appear you may think
body else likes me?” they are automatic and that you have no con-
trol over them.
Three ways to free yourself from self-pity are:
You will discover that this is not true. In fact,
1. Take steps toward a solution, even if they
three important things to remember about
must be small steps at first.
emotions are:
2. Focus some of your energy on helping
1. The emotions you experience have a great
others around you.
deal to do with what is important to you,
3. Give yourself credit for where you are how you view yourself and the world
today, and your willingness to change. around you.
Place and X on the scale to indicate how 2. You can best think about an emotion as
frequently and intensely you currently ex- being a mini story within your life. It will
perience the feeling of self-pity. (10 is maxi- be helpful for you to figure out the plot of
mum and 0 is never). those emotions that cause you trouble.
So often people attempt to separate how they Being “judgemental” indicates how much
think (reason) from how they feel. It is im- personal pain we are in and how much shame
possible. Your feelings are not irrational. They we are carrying.
depend a great deal on how you think.
Labeling and judging are blocks to achieving
Therefore, when a feeling becomes intense healthy relationships. These prejudices inter-
and troublesome, it is helpful for you to think fere with the ability to see the healthy, whole
of it as a personal story or drama and ask, and divine in another.
“Why do I feel this way?” or “What are my
beliefs that cause this intense emotion? Some labels that I have overheard people use
include the following:
A Sporting Example
I can't sing, write, or dance.
If you are a fan of Team X that has just lost a
close game to Team Y, you may feel sad and You're so sloppy.
disappointed. However, if you are sitting next
to a fan of Team Y, she may feel happy and We are poor.
relieved. You both witnessed the same event You're always causing trouble.
but your emotional responses are totally op-
posite. This illustration represents the fact that He is too soft.
your feelings are not automatically based on
an even, but more on how you view yourself She is so overpowering.
(you identify with the success of Team X) and
how you view the world around you (you put I'm so accident prone.
importance on your team’s athletic success).
He's shy.
The following is a summary of a negative out of thought every man knows who has for
thinking process and the results of this label- any length of time practice self control . . .”.
ing:
In “The Magic of Believing”, Claude Bristol
(1) We label someone or something because again speaks of the mind’s power to attract.
of what we know or perceive from expe- “Our fear thoughts are just as creative or just
riences, or from hearsay. as magnetic in attracting troubles to us as the
constructive and positive thoughts in attract-
(2) We use this label and control or manipu- ing positive results. So no matter what the
late people or events to make it true. character of the thought it does create after its
own kind. When this sinks into a man’s con-
(3) We disregard evidence that suggests the
sciousness, he gets some inkling of the awe-
label is inappropriate, dismissing it as
inspiring power which is his to use.” He later
accidental or mistaken. Denial.
says, “What may appear as coincidences are
(4) The result becomes a pattern that we trust not coincidences at all but simply the work-
and set up. ing out of the pattern which you started with
your own weaving.”
(5) We expect this plan to work and create a
belief system to sustain it. We enlist oth- In offering some explanations of the mind’s
ers to support us, too. power to attract, Bristol makes the point that
radio waves pass easily through wood, brick,
6) If our expectations are unfulfilled, we steel and other so-called solid objects and sug-
blame the guilty other who caused the gests that we might see thought vibration in a
failure, seek ways to change their think- similar light. He asks the question, “If thought
ing, or eliminate them so we can be right. waves, or whatever they are, can be tuned to
even higher oscillations, why can’t they af-
In his classic bestselling book, “Think and fect the molecules of solid objects?”
Grow Rich”, Napoleon Hill wrote, “ . . . our
brains become magnetized with the dominat- I quote Shakti Gawain, author of “Creative
ing thoughts which we hold in our minds and, Visualization” on the same theme. She says,
by means with which no man is familiar, these “Thought and feelings have their own mag-
“magnets” attract to us the people, the circum- netic energy which attracts energy of a simi-
stances of life which harmonize with the na- lar nature . . . This is the principle that what-
ture of our dominating thoughts.” ever you put out into the universe will be re-
flected back to you. What this means from a
James Allen wrote in “As a Man Thinketh”, practical standpoint is that we always attract
“. . . a man sooner or later discovers that he is into our lives whatever we think about most,
the master-gardener of his soul, the director believe in most strongly, expect on the deep-
of his life. He also reveals, within himself, est levels, and/or imagine most vividly.”
the laws of thought, and understands, with
ever increasing accuracy, how the thought- Richard Bach wrote, “We magnetize into our
forces and mind elements operate in the shap- lives whatever we hold in our thoughts.”
ing of his character, circumstances and des-
tiny.” He added, “That circumstances grow
• Stated as it already exists: The affirmation I am saying is false.” This is where faith en-
will manifest in the time frame that you ters in. One definition of faith is a hope for
create in your mind. If you state you things unseen. That is the value of stating the
affirmation as something that will happen affirmations in the present tense: rather than
in the future it will always be in the future. faking it, we are faithing it.
“I AM” or “I HAVE” acknowledges it as a
present reality. We need to see the future The body must have a pattern to follow. By
“being” what we are working for first; our
in our mind as if it already exists. Don’t
bodies will do what is needed to have what
worry for the moment about not knowing
we want. The Universe supports us when we
how you will get from here to there.
flow in our lives from being to doing to hav-
• Include You in it: Use “I”, “me”, your ing–with being happening first.
name, or any other method of allowing you
to personally identify with the affirmation.
Some ideas for positive affirmations:
• About Changes for Yourself, Not Others:
The primary thing we always have control “I love and approve of myself now.”
over is our attitude and behavior. If you
“I see the divine in every situation now.”
direct your affirmations to bringing about
changes in yourself, you will be surprised “I have an abundance of all things good
by how much this actually begins to affect now.”
your relationship with other people. The
most effective and enduring way to change “Everything I eat turns to health and
a situation is to change yourself. (This beauty now.”
doesn’t rule out speaking to and working
with the other person to resolve the “My actions serve the highest and greatest
problem.) good now.”
Some people have said, “I can't do Make your own list of affirmations that work
affirmations. They feel like a lie because what for you. Look at the areas of your life that you
want to have healed, or characteristics you want • Evoke Feeling: your mental image should
to develop. State them in the positive, in present evoke feelings of excitement so that you
tense, and focus on them daily with faith. want to bring it into your life immediately.
The more emotionally appealing the
Two affirmations for myself: picture, the more enthusiasm you will have
to create it.
__________________________________
__________________________________ • Use a Single Image: create a simple mental
picture that is meaningful to you. It should
be like a snapshot capturing a moment in
Visualization time.
A visualization is a mental image or picture. • Include you in the Image: you are the star
Affirmations and visualization used in tandem of your life drama. See yourself enjoying
create the best results. Like a movie, images
whatever it is that you have mentally
and narration together have the maximum
created. Allow yourself to feel the
impact.
satisfaction and fulfillment of your
Visualization is a process of creativity and accomplishment.
imagination rather that an optical technique.
• Be Literal or Metaphoric: If you are
In order to visualize you need to think of an
image that represents the thing that you want. working on something to manifest
If you want a car, begin to think about how physically, you might create a literal
you want that car to look? What make or mental picture. If you are working on an
model is it? What color? Convertible or hard attitude, you might create a metaphoric
top? Standard or automatic? mental picture.
As you develop a state of knowing you will the more you will gain from doing “your
start performing with the actions that will as- story.”
sist manifestation. You are committed to a
vision you believe will manifest, so you do Don’t rush through this activity. Relax, close
what it takes to make it happen. your eyes for a few minutes and put yourself
back into your past. Remember how you felt
about important events and people in your life.
Relationships
We can redefine ourselves and others with our Tips
thoughts. It is in our thoughts that we experi-
ence everything. All our feelings come from • Let your mind relax
our thoughts. The feelings or emotions that
we generate are the connections to other • Think about your past before writing.
thoughts or people. Most of us never consider • Allow yourself to feel the emotions of that
the great power we have in our ability to think. time.
All of our relationships are connected by in-
visible thoughts. What you think about ex- • Don’t be concerned about neatness,
pands, and your thoughts originate within you. handwriting or spelling.
Our relationships reflect how we relate to • Let your thoughts and feelings flow on the
ourselves. What you experience inside you page.
gets there by thoughts. If we can look beyond
the lesson that we or others are in and see the • Reread each journaling section before
perfect spiritual being within, then we can love moving on.
and lose the need to be controlling.
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Feelings I had as a child _______________
__________________________________ Feelings I had as a preteen _____________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Losses I experienced as a child__________
__________________________________ Losses I experienced as a preteen ________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
My Preteen Years
My Teenage Years
Important people _____________________
__________________________________ Important people _____________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Important events _____________________ Important events _____________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Feelings I had as a teenager ____________
__________________________________
__________________________________ My Adult Years
__________________________________ Important people _____________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
Losses I experienced as a teenager _______ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ Important events _____________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Important things about school I have not __________________________________
mentioned __________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ Feelings I had as an adult ______________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
Important things about my home life I have __________________________________
not mentioned _______________________ __________________________________
Today I will…
Give Yourself Credit __________________________________
__________________________________
You deserve a personal congratulations for
__________________________________
your commitment to building a positive life-
style. __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
Additional Activities:
1. Write down on a piece of paper something
you want to create in your life. Spend ten
minutes per day imagining what you
would do with what you created on a
spiritual level, mental level, emotional
level, and physical level.
PERCEPTION
Perception
The story is told of a philosopher who stood Perception can make whatever picture the
at the gate of an ancient city greeting travel- mind desires. This is especially important to
ers as they entered. One of them questioned remember in the way we perceive others.
him: “What kind of people live in your city?”
Whenever we judge anyone negatively, we are
The philosopher met the question with a really judging those aspects in ourselves. It is
counter question: “What kind of people lived impossible to see something in someone else
in the city from whence you came?” unless we perceive it in ourselves on some
level of experience. “What we resist persists.”
“Oh, they were very bad people,” answered
the traveler, “cruel, deceitful, and devil-wor- Instruction in perception will help us realize
shipping.” there is always another way to look at any situ-
ation. With improved perception we can avoid
“That's the kind of people who live in this judging others. “The prize of experience is
city,” declared the philosopher. perspective, everything else is information.”
Another traveler came by and asked the same Perception is a mirror not a fact. What we look
question, to which the philosopher replied: on is our state of mind, reflected outward.
“What kind of people lived in the city from
whence you came?” We are affected only by our thoughts and per-
ceptions.”
“Oh, they were very good people, answered
the second traveler, kind, and truthful, and
God-loving.” Five Blind Men
The philosopher replied, “That's the kind of There were five blind men who were asked to
people who live in this city.” give their best judgment of an elephant, based
upon the perception of their experience. One,
Perception is, in a nutshell, our beliefs based
after feeling the elephant's tail, declared that
on our experience. The way we perceive our
certainly an elephant was like a rope.
present-day world is based on how our world
has been in the past, and the meanings we The second protested, having touched the
put on those experiences are based on that trunk and concluding the elephant was un-
perception. doubtedly like a snake.
There is no right or wrong in perception. Per- The third man bumped up against the
ception simply is! It is made up of either illu- elephant's tusk and stated conclusively that
sion or reality. Illusion is defined as anything this animal was like a spear.
that is temporary in nature, that was thought
up by man, and had a perception placed on it. The elephant flapped his ears and the fourth
When two or more people agree on this illu- was assured that the elephant was like a fan.
sion, it then becomes their reality.
The fifth man wrapped his arms around the List six things you believe about relationships
elephant's leg and tried to lift it. He was fully in your life.
convinced that this was like a tree.
1. _________________________________
When circumstances seem to move against us,
2. _________________________________
it is because we are looking at events through
our natural eyes, rather than the eyes of faith. 3. _________________________________
We are unable to distinguish between advance 4. _________________________________
and retreat. Some of our greatest advances we 5. _________________________________
have judged as failures, and some of our deep-
est retreats we have evaluated as success. The 6. _________________________________
insignificance of the present moment, with its
seeming failures, contains within it the seeds
List six things you believe to be true about
of triumph. What seems to be, may conflict
money.
with what is. Sickness or suffering is usually
a problem of guilt in the mind, changing our
1. _________________________________
perception.
2. _________________________________
There are as many perceptions of what truth 3. _________________________________
is as there are people on the planet. Wars have
4. _________________________________
been fought because we forgot our “truth”
wasn’t the only truth. Each of the blind men 5. _________________________________
in the story knew he was right, and quite a 6. _________________________________
melee could have broken out had each man
decided to battle for his version of what was
right. The next time you encounter a similar List six things you believe about your life’s
situation, rather than fight, ask yourself if you work.
would rather be right or happy.
1. _________________________________
(1) To determine if beliefs you hold are fact 2. _________________________________
or perception:
3. _________________________________
List six things you believe about yourself that 4. _________________________________
are truth to you.
5. _________________________________
1. _________________________________ 6. _________________________________
2. _________________________________
3. _________________________________ List six things you believe about health and
4. _________________________________ healing.
5. _________________________________
1. _________________________________
6. _________________________________
2. _________________________________
3. _________________________________
4. _________________________________ ing for other actors to play with us. That is,
we perceive how others will act for us, too.
5. _________________________________
We are literally creating our own world around
6. _________________________________ us with our perception and faith. It is true that
List six things you believe about your future. whatever the mind can conceive and believe,
it will achieve. Put that powerful faith ma-
1. _________________________________ chine to work now to consciously create what
2. _________________________________ you choose.
3. _________________________________
4. _________________________________ Projection Makes Perception
5. _________________________________
What we have inside is what we project. Con-
6. _________________________________
sider looking at your perceptual world as a
mirror of what's going on inside you. Fear will
(2) After each belief , write whether it was cause us to see the world as threatening and
your truth or if someone else has hostile, with anger and attack as its expres-
suggested it to you as their truth. sions. Joy within will cause us to see the world
as safe, beautiful and helpful to us, with ex-
citement, wonder, and gratitude as its expres-
We are the creators of our worlds. We get to sion.
choose the foundation we build our life upon.
To affect a change, choose to see only good
Universal truth is self evident. If you wonder
in yourself, others, and the world. It may take
if what you perceive is truth–go inside and some practice. Begin today to love.
ask yourself, “Does this acknowledge and
support the magnificent being that I am?” Never allow fear, misunderstanding or a lack
of forgiveness to block your way. The next
Faith is the exercise of the “Act as if” prin- time you feel angry with someone, stop for a
ciple. In other words, we become what we act. moment, retreat to a quiet place, and see if
Acting is a great profession and we pay highly you are also feeling some guilt or anger at
those who become really adept at it for our yourself. If so, choose to forgive yourself and
entertainment. Consider for a moment that we let the guilt go.
are all actors on our perceptual stage. We act
out our perception of who we think we are Learn from it and send it along its way with
constantly. When we perceive ourselves as in- gratitude for its service to you. See then if you
adequate, foolish, or unworthy, we tend to “act still feel angry. Letting go of guilt will free
as if” and model those qualities, becoming you to see and enjoy truth rather than give
more inadequate, foolish, and unworthy. Since you license to hurt yourself or others.
we are always completely faithful to our per-
formance, we become what we act, thereby We often fight life because we fail to perceive
fulfilling our perception of ourselves. What's our own best interests. It is rare that we can
more, we even have the faith to create script- know how any particular experience will fit
into the whole plan for good in our lives. And
often there is a difference between what we
LIFE SKILLS WORKBOOK 37 8/00
Rapid Eye Technology (RET)
think is good for us and what really is good We can choose to stay focused on what we
for us. are for, or what we are against. It is impos-
sible to teach by criticism because criticism
We come to realize that we only need to let focuses on what is not or areas that are lack-
go of our attachment to people or things to ing. Only by love, firmness, acceptance, and
make life change. We can physically remove seeing the good in others can we see the good
ourselves from people and things, yet if we in ourselves.
keep mental ties to them, we will attract a simi-
lar lesson somewhere else. We might consider Consider for a moment that we are already
keeping the attachments only until we’ve got- perfect, just as we were created. We must do
ten the learning and then let them go. nothing more to become so. What we require,
however, is to become aware of our perfec-
So long as we seek anything, outside our- tion.
selves, we will never have complete peace.
Life is constantly presenting to you a mirror This is a matter of a perception change, or, in
of what you are feeling and experiencing other words, a paradigm shift to viewing
within yourself. All our answers, therefore, things in a different way than perhaps we have
must come from within ourselves. Fulfillment ever done before.
comes only through the real self within.
It's fun to practice and see our perfection. Each
Negative circumstances will fail to survive time we overcome, release and forgive, we
when you refuse to sustain them with your become stronger and improve our ability to
emotional energy. Learn from the mirror of imagine ourselves as perfect and joyful. It is
life, including people and things, reclaim your our birthright as humans to be joyful.
own light from within, and awaken to your
own powerful self within. If we wish to grow and heal, it means self
transformation will happen on all four levels:
physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.
Perception and Criticism Choosing to rid ourselves of our obsolete con-
ditioning is the first step.
We are on our life's journey. It is unnecessary
to reuse and regenerate old lessons or thoughts Desire is the first and most important ingre-
and perceptions. We can create new tools that dient to healing. People who really want
serve us better. growth and freedom from pain come into a
RET session eager to let the past go. They
If we call ourselves negative things, our mind make their growth and healing a priority. What
and body will honor that. It will send the sig- is put into this effort comes back compounded.
nal out through our bodies to create what we
have thought and said. If we want positive to Once we have experienced growth we will
expand in our lives, we must speak it, think discover that we are unwilling and unable to
it, and act it. go back. We will continue the process of
broadening perceptions, and eventually per-
ceive beyond our normal sensory parameters.
The ability to filter input from the senses main in our painful habits once we rid our-
through past experience is perhaps the most selves of our conditioning because positive,
marvelous function built into the mind. whole, unconditional love is our natural, spiri-
tual state.
When we receive input from our senses, our
mind compares the present image with a simi- Additional Activities
lar incident from our perceptual past rather
than recreate the entire image from scratch. It
merely compares and notes the differences. (1) Write your own story in the positive. If
Differences are much easier and faster to pro- needed create a new family or people to
cess than complete recreations. create positive memories. Create what
you want, observe how wonderful this
When you walk into a room, you receive sen- makes you feel.
sory input from your eyes that take in every-
thing you see in the room. If the image of the __________________________________
room as you see it appears similar enough to __________________________________
rooms you've seen in past experience, you feel
all is right or normal. If one of the chairs has __________________________________
a red rubber ball on it, however, you would __________________________________
notice the ball right away. __________________________________
Your mind might perceive that the ball is out __________________________________
of place or inconsistent because it fails to com- __________________________________
pare with your past experience with chairs. If __________________________________
a mouse were to run across the floor, you
__________________________________
would notice that right away, too, because it
is in motion while everything else is still. __________________________________
__________________________________
The images your mind uses for comparison
are perceptions stored in memory. When those __________________________________
images are traumatic memories, they have pri- __________________________________
ority over all others because those memories __________________________________
are associated with survival. They are highly
__________________________________
distorted by pain, so the filtering (perceptions)
may become distorted, too. __________________________________
__________________________________
We can greatly facilitate our own growth by
__________________________________
avoiding attachments to our flawed percep-
tions and letting go of addictive behaviors __________________________________
based upon those perceptions. __________________________________
By quieting the mind we can emancipate our- __________________________________
selves from our habits. People often perceive __________________________________
this to be difficult or impossible. Our experi- __________________________________
ence has been that it is very difficult to re-
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
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__________________________________
CHOICE
AND
ACCOUNTABILITY
In learning to understand the principle of you may feel sad. By choosing to feel joyous,
choice and accountability, it is important to the universe will account to you with situa-
remember that this principle is universal. On tions that provide you with that feeling. What
every level of learning we have the ability to a gift!
choose. Sometimes we are unaware that we
can choose or that we have alternatives avail- It is the way of the natural world to be obedi-
able to us. Sometimes we get so involved in ent to our thoughts and feelings. This may
the results of our choices that we lose aware- provide us some insight into why co-depen-
ness of the power we have to choose again dency can be so debilitating to relationships.
and provide a new result. Until we recognize When we attempt to save people from the
our responsibility for our choices and the re- natural consequences of their actions, we seek
sults they provide, we limit our power to to replace the universe and its infinite wis-
change the things in our lives that we desire dom with our limited understanding. We seek
to change. In other words, we limit ourselves to take away someone's accountability, and
with our limiting choices and limited aware- therefore, the arena for their learning and
ness. growth. This will result in a cycle of creation
and reaction for us that repeats itself over and
Let's talk about responsibility as it relates to over again, until the lesson is learned and the
choice. To be responsible is, literally, to be cycle is completed.
“able to respond” to our choice. Responsibil-
ity is occasionally perceived as blame or guilt. Our choice is the cause, the thought, the be-
Consider for a moment how unable to respond ginning of the cycle, the alpha. Accountabil-
you become when filled with guilt or blame. ity is the universe's response to our cycle, the
Responsibility has been defined by some to have, the result, the omega. The cycle returns
mean that you follow a course of action that again to another choice, the universe is ac-
they approve of. True responsibility is to act countable to provide us yet another result.
appropriately for you in consequence of your
This is the eternal balance of life, the
choice.
ancient law of the Two Ways.
Accountability is the ability to balance the
books. It is the ability to balance the choice
with its consequence. In other words, we make The Formation of Patterns
the choice and the universe balances the books
To really be at choice we must be as awake as
by providing us with a consequence or result.
we can be as to how we create what we do in
Nature is truly our best friend, keeping us
our lives. We are really pretty amazing. Let’s
constantly abreast of our choices by provid-
take a look at our minds. When we walk
ing us a sensory extravaganza expressing even
across the street, do we have to concentrate
our deepest thoughts. Life is a constant and
on each step? Do we have to think about how
eternal round of thought, image, action, re-
to chew gum? Do we have to work at digest-
sult. We choose and the universe provides us
ing pizza? Do we have to concentrate to keep
experience. For example, if you choose to feel
breathing? No.
sad, the universe will account for that choice
by providing you with a situation in which
We do these things with our subconscious Victim Pattern: “People are nasty; “life is
mind. Our subconscious mind is responsible horrible; “Why is the world doing this to me?”
for a large portion of the results we get in life. Pattern. This one is really no fun!
When we find history repeating itself in our Lack Pattern: There’s only enough to et by.
lives, it is our subconscious mind that is re- It doesn’t matter how much money comes in,
sponsible. Many of us have recurring limit- it always ends up gone.
ing patterns that keep on cropping up.
Then there’s all those patterns around loss,
Do you know someone who is always late? abandonment, rejection, not good enough and
You set the time to meet at 7:00 am and sure so on and so on.
enough they’d arrive at 7:15 am. There are
always many reasons; “I could only find one EXERCISES
shoe;” “The goldfish was sick,” or “I couldn’t
Identify 3 limiting patterns you have noticed
find my keys.”
in your life:
This person thought that the world was
sabotaging him. He was not trying to be late __________________________________
consciously, but on his subconscious he had a __________________________________
program that said, “You are always running __________________________________
behind” and that program was running his life.
__________________________________
There are many types of patterns we run: __________________________________
Drama Patterns: Life is a long drama. Some
What are the core beliefs that keep creating
crisis is always happening. Whenever their
these patterns?
life threatens to go smoothly, a little subcon-
scious voice says, “Hey, this can’t be right!”
and very soon another drama emerges. The __________________________________
job is lost, have to have another operation, get __________________________________
arrested...and everything returns to normal. __________________________________
Accident Patterns: Some people spend life __________________________________
falling off ladders, off bicycles, out of trees, __________________________________
having car accidents.
What are some of the things you can do to
Sickness Patterns: Some people get sick counteract the patterns results?
twice a year. Some people get sick every time
__________________________________
a big opportunity comes along. Some people
get sick every Monday morning. __________________________________
__________________________________
Mess Patterns: These people don’t con-
sciously try to do it but everything’s a mess __________________________________
and if you straighten it within twenty minutes, __________________________________
it will be a mess again.
We begin to form patterns right from birth. • We attract partners who resemble our mother
This is why they are persistent and tenacious. or father. This we may do, not once or twice,
For example, let’s look at eating patterns. but repeatedly. This can be because we form
When we were babies, we cried for many a subconscious picture from a young age that
different reasons; we were thirsty, hot, cold, says, for example, “real men are tall and dark
lonely, frustrated, wanting a cuddle, exercising and silent” (like my Dad) or “a woman should
our lungs, wet, wanting a toy, wanting be short and well mannered,” (like my
attention and so on. When we did cry, on mother). Totally unaware of this on the con-
many, many occasions, we were fed. Thus scious level, we may then go looking for the
the association was formed that the solution partner to fit the picture.
to any of the above was to put something in
Also, the quality of our relationships with our
our mouths. So if you smoke, drink or overeat,
parents creates its pattern. If, as children, we’d
you don’t need to look very hard to see where experienced guilt or disapproval then we will
some of your programing comes from. continue to attract and associate with people
who treat us as “bad” people. Similarly, if we
For similar reasons, many of our other cur-
experienced love and approval as children,
rent characteristics result from early childhood
then, as adults, we will gravitate toward people
experiences. In early years we are open-
who treat us with respect. In short, we attract
minded and empty–headed: we absorb infor-
what we expect and the world treats us as we
mation like a sponge. Since our first relation-
believe we deserve to be treated.
ships are with our parents, their influence on
our later lives and our later relationships is We are never stuck with patterns. Old nega-
huge. Partly consciously and mainly subcon- tive patterns may be tenacious but they are
sciously, we create patterns in our lives which not invincible. Always think positively about
reflect the experience we had with our par- yourself and your condition. Mental disci-
ents. For example, we–– pline in this area may not be easy but the re-
wards are great. Always speak well of your-
• Establish relationships with people who re-
self and consistently visualize your life work-
semble our parents. We may find ourselves
ing as you want it. You will be creating new
working for bosses or establishing friendships
happiness patterns.
with people who resemble our mother or fa-
ther. Listen to motivational cassettes and read
books on success. Use affirmations, sublimi-
• We establish relationships with other people
nal tape programs and spend time with people
that mirror our parents’ relationships with oth-
from whom you can learn. You can rewrite
ers. If our parents were loving and gentle, so
your patterns to become what you choose.
will we tend to be. If they spent time abusing
people, we pick up that initially. In addition, use the Rapid Eye Technology to
systematically release the things from our life
that hold you down, and consolidate the pat-
terns that can push you ahead.
defense. To commit means, “to entrust into Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary
the care of another, to do, to give in trust.” It Unabridged (second edition), Collins World,
would appear from these definitions, that com- 1978.
mitment deals with trust, whereas defense
deals with fear. When we choose, we have the To choose and commit is to select with power,
option to choose again. When we decide, we and trust life to accomplish it. With RET one
solidify ourselves into one option to the ex- has the opportunity to release the frozen
clusion of all others. thought forms created through decision and
defense. This allows, in the present moment,
To decide and defend is to solidify, separate, a new point of power through choice and com-
and die: mitment into accountability. “Whatever we
choose, we give attention to. Attention like
Decide, v.i.; gravity, holds things in place by drawing it to
its source. The character of what is attracted
1. to pass judgment.
is of no concern to either.”
2. to make up one's mind; to form a definite Looking at the words choose and decide in a
opinion; to come to a conclusion. biblical sense, we find it interesting that the
de-, [L. a prefix signifying separation, cessa- word decide fails to appear in the Bible, while
tion, intensification, or contraction; also, from the word decision appears only once (Joel
Fr. d+, from L. de or OFr. des-, from L. dis- , 3:14,15 [speaking of the valley of decision
dis-.] a prefix meaning: (a) away from, off, as where “the sun and the moon shall be dark-
in depilate, detrain; (b) down, as in depress, ened, and the stars shall withdraw their shin-
decline; (c) wholly, entirely, as in defunct; (d) ing”]).
undo, reverse the action of, as in defrost. The word choose appears over 50 times. (See
-cide, [from Fr. or L.; Fr. -cide; L. -cida, from Deuteronomy 12:10 - 12).
cµdere, to cut down, strike mortally, kill.] a Notice that with choice there is rejoicing,
suffix meaning killer or killing, as in homi- while with decision there is depression. It is
cide. the difference between life and death, liter-
Choose, v.t.; chose, pt.; chosen, pp.; choos- ally. While that which you choose can be cho-
ing, ppr. [ME cheosen, chesen; AS. ceosan, sen again because there are other options.
to choose.] Consider how you choose. Do you choose
from available alternatives through preference
1. to pick out by preference from all available; leaving yourself open to new alternatives, or
to select; as, to choose a wife. do you decide upon the only way because it's
“right”? Consider possibilities.
2. to prefer; decide; think proper (with an
infinitive object.) If we’re unhappy, it’s because life is not as
we want it. Life is not matching our expecta-
3. to desire; want. [Colloq.] tions of how it “ought” to be and so we’re
unhappy.
Being happy is not always easy. It can be one Napoleon overcame his considerable handi-
of the greatest challenges that we face and can cap, his tiny stature, to lead his conquering
sometimes take all the determination, persis- armies across Europe.
tence and self-discipline that we can muster.
Maturity means taking responsibility for our Helen Keller refused to allow her blindness and
own happiness and choosing to concentrate her deafness to prevent her from spending her
on what we have got rather than on what we life helping those less fortunate than herself.
haven’t.
Abraham Lincoln failed in business aged 22,
How often, though, do we do the opposite? lost a legislative race at 23, again failed in
How often do we ignore the compliments that business at 25, had his sweetheart die when
are paid to us yet dwell on unkind words for he was 26, had a nervous breakdown at 27,
weeks afterwards? If you allow a bad experi- lost congressional races aged 34, 37, and 39,
ence or nasty remark to occupy your mind, lost a senatorial race aged 46, failed in his ef-
you will suffer the consequences. Remem- forts to become vice president of the USA
ber, you are in control of your own mind. aged 47 and lost a further senatorial contest
at 49.
Most people remember compliments for a few
minutes and insults for years. They become At fifty two years of age, he was elected presi-
garbage collectors, carrying around trash that dent of the USA and is now remembered as
was thrown at them twenty years ago. Cindy one of the great leaders in world history.
may be heard to say, “I still remember how
Anwar Sadat started his life as a peasant boy.
he said that I was fat and stupid back in 1963!”
Any compliments Cindy received even yes- Menachim Begin was a street urchin in a Pol-
terday will probably have been forgotten but ish ghetto.
she is still carting around the 1963 trash.
Winston Churchill was a poor student with a
speech impediment. Not only did he win a
Nobel prize, but he became one of he most
inspiring speakers of recent times.
(1) Can be done with or without your RET E. What proof do they have that your belief
technician. is truth?
__________________________________
A. Identify a situation you would like to
__________________________________
change.
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
(2) To rebalance an issue, identify an issue,
__________________________________ imagine you could take it out of your head
and put it in your hand. In the other hand
B. Identify the underlying belief that cre- imagine what you’d rather have, the
ated the situation opposite. Now imagine that you are
__________________________________ relabeling both energies “ it just is” and let
__________________________________ the energy go back and forth between the
hands like you were doing a slinky. Energy
__________________________________
is energy until you put a perception on it
__________________________________ and make a new choice.
__________________________________
(3) Visualization: “Shut your eyes and imagine To bring this into this dimension:
a column of light in front of you, move the
light inside your body feeling the light Draw an imaginary circle on the floor and
flowing up and down your spine.” build a hologram of “I am” positive
statements about what you want for you.
“Now imagine the light expanding until it When you have all of your “I am”
fills your whole body.” statements in the circle with passion and
excitement, physically move into the circle
“Feel the light come out of every pore of
and pull the circle up around you. Breathe
your body and spread to the space you
it in and put it out in the universe to begin
occupy, now imagine the light spreading
to create for you.
and filling up the whole town.”
(1) STOP ALL CRITICISM. Criticism never (6) SUPPORT YOURSELF. Find ways to
changes a thing. Refuse to criticize your- support yourself. Reach out to friends and
self. Accept yourself exactly as you are. allow them to help you. It is being strong
Everybody changes. When you criticize to ask for help when you need it.
yourself, your changes are negative.
When you approve of yourself, your (7) BE LOVING TO YOUR NEGATIVES.
changes are positive. Acknowledge that you created them to
fulfill a need. Now you are finding new,
(2) SWITCH SCARING YOURSELF TO positive ways to fulfill those needs. So
LOVING YOURSELF. Stop terroriz- lovingly release the old negative patterns.
ing yourself with your thoughts. It's a
dreadful way to live. Find a mental im- (8) TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY. Learn
age that gives you pleasure and immedi- about nutrition. What kind of fuel does
ately switch your scary thought to a pleas- your body need to have optimum energy
ant thought. and vitality. Learn about exercise. What
kind of exercise can you enjoy? Cherish
(3) BE GENTLE AND KIND AND PA- and revere the temple you live in.
TIENT. Be gentle with yourself. Be kind
to yourself. Be patient with yourself as (9) MIRROR WORK. Look into your eyes
your learn the new ways of thinking. Treat often. Express this growing sense of love
yourself as you would someone you re- you have for yourself. Forgive yourself
ally loved. looking into the mirror. Talk to your par-
ents looking into the mirror. Forgive them
(4) BE KIND TO YOUR MIND. Self ha- too. At least once a day say: “I love you,
tred is only hating your own thoughts. I really love you!”
Don't hate yourself for having the
thoughts. Gently change your thoughts. (10)LOVE YOURSELF... DO IT NOW. Don't
wait until you get well, or lose the weight,
(5) PRAISE YOURSELF. Criticism breaks or get the new job, or the new relation-
down the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. ship. Begin now - and do the best you can.
Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell
yourself how well you are doing with LOUISE L. HAY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE, creating a
even little things. world where it's safe for us to love each other. (C) 1987,
1988 Louise L. Hay
CAUSE
AND EFFECT
“Success is simply a matter of luck. Ask any by others as you treated them. You will get
failure!” –Earl Wilson back what you put in.”
Newton discovered the law of cause and ef- On an Egyptian tomb dating back to 1600
fect: in other words that for every action there B.C., are written the “words”: “He sought for
is an equal and opposite reaction. We only others the good he desired for himself.”
get back if we put out. If we plant tomatoes,
we don’t reap thistles. It is important to re- Confucius said, “What you would not want
mind ourselves that this principle affects ev- done to yourself, do not do to others.”
erything we do and every experience we have.
Aristotle said. “We should behave to the world
We can’t beat the law. Our physical health, as we wish the world to behave towards us.”
our mental health, our business success and
In the bible we read, “Do unto others as you
our personal relationships are each governed
would have others do unto you.”
by the same equation which requires us to
“pay up front”. The fascinating thing about These principles apply to our relationships and
the law is that we never know quite when we they apply equally to what we reap in the other
will be rewarded; when we will receive the dimensions of life. Some will stand by ob-
dividends on our time and effort. But the re- serving those who are outstanding and remark,
wards always come and the uncertainty of “I wish I had his talent!” or “I wish I had her
their time of arrival only serves to make life luck”, and they never see the months and years
more exciting. of effort that molded that person’s success.
How often do we read about the “overnight
In addition, what we have in our lie at the
success” in show business and find that this
moment is a result of the sowing we have been
new superstar has actually been slogging away
doing until now. If we currently enjoy warm
for fifteen years!
friendships and loving relationships, it is be-
cause we have prepared the ground and The wonderful thing about nature is that it
planted the seed. If our business is currently gives us back much more than we put out.
flowering, it is because we’ve expended the When you plant a pumpkin seed, you don’t
effort to get the results. just get back one seed! Otherwise, why
bother? Nature is very generous. Plant a few
If we talk about others, we’ll be talked about.
seeds and you may end up with a truckload of
If we speak well of others, they will speak
pumpkins. Again, this principle works with
well of us. If we rip people off then we will
everything we do, but first we need to get out
be ripped off. If we rejoice in the success of
in he fields and dig!
others, we will be more likely to enjoy suc-
cess ourselves. If we tell lies, we will be told “It costs so much to be a full human being
lies. If we criticize, we will be criticized. If that there are very few who have the love and
we love, we will in turn receive love. courage to pay the price. One has to aban-
don altogether the search for security and
Historically, we can see the Golden Rule has
reach out to the risk of living with both arms.
been expressed in many different ways and
One has to embrace life like a lover”.
the principle is constant– “you will be treated
––Morris West
LIFE SKILLS WORKBOOK 53 8/00
Rapid Eye Technology (RET)
The principle of cause and effect is known by lives confused and jumbled because we are
many cultures and by many names. It is called unable to focus our emotions due to our past
Karma, “what goes around comes around,” traumas and limiting beliefs. One way we have
The Law of the Harvest, or “As a man soweth, found to refresh our emotional body and re-
so shall he reap.” The concept is the same, gain its powerful focusing effects is with RET.
regardless of the name. It is Cause and Ef-
fect. “What you send out - comes back to you Our physical body is, in a word, obedient. The
multiplied.” “As you give - so shall you re- entire physical dimension is designed to be
ceive.” obedient to our desires. When the body dies,
when it is vacated by the spiritual, mental, and
CYCLE OF THOUGHT emotional bodies, we become starkly aware
of the weakness of the physical body.
Consider the cycle of creation each thought
goes through as it passes through the realms Our spirit provides the power; our mental body
of mental, emotional, and physical develop- directs that energy; our emotional body fo-
ment. cuses our energy into this dimension and an
effect is then produced. This is the trail of
The spirit body contains the power that cre- cause and effect. We are the cause as well as
ates our existence and all things we perceive the effect. We literally are Alpha and Omega,
in it. It's a little like electricity in that we fail the beginning and the end, the first and the
to perceive it until we notice its effects. We last.
call these perceptual awarenesses “miracles”
because we fail to detect how normal they are. We are infinitely powerful in the spiritual state.
The spirit body is the source of all power and When our mental and emotional bodies come
creative force or the life force we experience into alignment through awareness we find
in this dimension. profound creation and peace. We will bring
great power into our lives just by becoming
Our mental body is the directive body. The aware that our other bodies exist. Our aware-
job of the mental facility is to make choices. ness of options from which to choose seems
It is the home of our ego and as such has the to increase. Since growth is our natural state,
capability to view itself as the source of power, anything we choose to experience in our men-
the creative force. Unlike the spirit body that tal and emotional bodies will appear abun-
enjoys all experiences, the mental body is dantly in the physical.
concerned with our level of physical and emo-
tional safety. The mental body thinks its job The energy we direct and feel, will by design
is to protect us and defend us from potential come back to us multiplied. This is the action
attack. Nevertheless, the true function of the of choice and accountability. It is the process
mental body is to direct energy. of our universe to provide us with ample op-
portunity to awaken to who we really are: the
The emotional body performs the necessary creator and the created. Creations tend to re-
work of focusing our directed energy into the turn to their creator multiplied. Consider what
physical dimension. How we feel about our this may mean to you.
choice will largely determine the form in
which it will manifest. Many of us find our
“Experience is not what happens to a man; a useful role our self-talk plays in our creative
it is what a man does with what happens to flow. Developing an ear for self-defeating lan-
him.” - Aldous Huxley guage can be a useful skill.
At first it may seem difficult to live in aware- Consider the following words or phrases go
ness of this principle. Consider that difficulty out and create for you, ask yourself whenever
is a perception, a choice of thinking, and can you make a statement (Do I really want to
be changed. When you change your percep- create this?), if not then replace it with a posi-
tion you enjoy putting this principle to work, tive “I AM” statement.
perhaps even a more enlightened, peaceful
manner. Understanding you are the creator of (1) “I would like to welcome you here,” (“
your own universe can have profound conse- but I'd rather not”)
quences in your relationships and in your own
(2) “I'll try to...” (giving myself an instant
personal growth;
excuse for failure)
“I am responsible for what I see, I choose
(3) “I am [negative feeling, like sick, or an-
the feelings I experience, and I decide upon
gry, or sad]...” (I AM is your highest state-
the goal I would achieve. Everything that
ment about yourself. Consider how this
seems to happen to me I ask for and receive
statement could limit you.)
as I have asked.” - Course in Miracles
(4) “I don't get angry anymore” (represents
statements of negation where the focus
Cycles of Creation of the statement is on the negative behav-
ior. Because you are giving energy to the
Let's look at some cycles of creation (cause
negative behavior, it will grow [Principle
& effect): “When events repeat themselves,
of Abundance])
look for the lesson.” Consider Cause and Ef-
fect like a cycle of creation. We initiate a (5) “... but ...” (negates or invalidates all that
thought in the mental body which directs the has been said before the word)
infinite energy source, the spiritual body. Early
on we put some sort of image to that thought You may ask, “ How can we talk?” What can
so it becomes a thought-form. We may then we say that would be more in line with what
put speech to that thought-form aloud or in- we really mean? Consider the following in-
ternally. “When I am quick to correct others, stead:
I have failed to correct myself.”
(1) “Welcome!” (with feeling - without quali-
“A lie is an attempt to experience something fiers)
other than what you are creating,” - Course
in Miracles (2) “I will do it!” (with conviction and com-
mitment)
Because speech arrives so early in our cycle
of creation, it can be used to quickly identify (3) “I feel [negative feeling like sick, angry,
our hidden, underlying intent that may con- or afraid].” (A description of feelings
flict with our conscious desires. Consider what rather than a description of selfhood)
(4) “I express peace in all my doings,” (a state- If we become oblivious to the return of our
ment of fact yet to be experienced [faith]) thought in a physical form, we will give it
energy into another cycle of creation. This new
(5) “... and ...” (or rephrase to omit the word cycle will be energized with a greater image,
but) stronger action, and larger results so that when
it returns to us we might notice it this time.
Simply cleaning up your language may put
This cycle continues until we “get it”“ or we
you on the path to cleaning up your life. Con-
give up all our energy and leave this dimen-
sider how powerful the spoken word is and
sion. Consider that we could get the message,
how easily it can be changed.
reclaim our energy and live again!
Continuing our journey around the cycle of
This is the meaning behind the Living Cycle.
creation we next experience some action (like
We often find ourselves caught up in the Vi-
speech). This action is natural because it fol-
cious Cycle instead and discover that we blind
lows the flow of our thought. We are always
ourselves to our own power and choice. Our
doing and acting upon some intent. The next
bodies play out the part by creating toxic
stage of the cycle of creation will assist us in
chemicals and disease. It is our own cycle of
discovering our own hidden (subconscious)
creation and we can choose to change it.
intentions and the patterns we've developed
around them.
With chemical dependency, denial can be- • People with heart disease often ignore
come more complicated because of the mind warning signs and fudge on exercise and
altering nature of alcohol or other drugs. You diet recommendations.
can lose your ability to accurately judge sim-
ply day-to-day situations. • People with diabetes fail to follow life-style
changes that promote good health.
Denial Says
Facts About Denial
“I do not have a problem.”
• Denial impairs judgement.
“Everyone behaves the way I do.”
• Denial is a characteristic of the disease.
“Things will get better tomorrow or next
year.” • Denial distorts the truth.
Describe one way your own denial may have • Denial grows in strength as the disease
distorted they way you viewed your life is- progresses.
sues:
• Denial cannot be overcome until you face
__________________________________ what’s not working.
__________________________________ One way of looking at denial is to see how
__________________________________ you use a number of nonfeeling defenses to
__________________________________ make up your Wall of Denial. These defense
mechanisms keep you from seeing the truth,
__________________________________
and often keep others away from showing the
truth to you.
In order to make the positive life-style changes
you will need to recognize and work through By building a wall of isolation with your de-
the system of denial you have built up to pro- fenses, you can hide where no one can get at
tect your patterns. you. You may protect yourself so well that no
one can even get through to help you.
It won’t be easy because your denial has
grown deep roots in your daily life. You prob- MY WALL OF DENIAL - Circle any you
ably have developed a strong group of de- have used.
fenses that surrounds and protects you.
Rationalizing
Blaming List the three defenses you use most often and
give a specific example of how you have used
“My problems are because I am stuck in a dead each one.
end job with a jerk of a boss.”
1. _________________________________
Intellectualizing
Example ___________________________
“Two ounces of alcohol a day is recommended __________________________________
by health experts.”
__________________________________
Threatening __________________________________
__________________________________
“I’d like to see you try to make me stop.”
__________________________________
Minimizing __________________________________
“I only get high on special occasions.” __________________________________
Switching
2. _________________________________
“You always seem to be in a bad mood, what Example ___________________________
is bothering you?”
__________________________________
Hiding __________________________________
__________________________________
“If I hang low for a week, no one will give
me static about last night.” __________________________________
__________________________________
Generalizing
__________________________________
“We all have a bad habit or two.” __________________________________
Projecting
3. _________________________________
“John really has a problem with anger. I’m Example ___________________________
glad I’m not like him.” __________________________________
Agreeing __________________________________
__________________________________
“Yes, I think your right. I should cut down on
my compulsive spending.” __________________________________
__________________________________
Joking
__________________________________
“If you think this is bad, you should see me __________________________________
when I really get going.” __________________________________
The Two Roles of Denial Another aspect of denial that may trouble you
is how easily it can find supporters among
Denial can be misunderstood because it plays your friends and family.
both a good and a bad role in most people’s
lives. It may be your spouse or parent or son or
daughter who want to believe that you have
Denial the Friend had a brief problem. Or they may wish to com-
pliment you on your recent changes in your
Denial has protected you from facts and feel- behavior.
ings that you may not have been ready to ac-
cept. The pain of the truth may have been too Any of these circumstances may play into
overpowering. Denial was your shield that your own pattern of denial. You might be
allowed you to continue functioning from day thinking: “If she thinks I am doing so well,
to day. maybe I don’t need to be so strict with my-
self” or “If he didn’t recognize how bad things
Denial the Enemy were last Christmas, maybe I overplayed the
problem.
Denial has not allowed you to accurately view
the pain your issue have caused you and those One helpful tool to recognize your own de-
around you. Without fully recognizing your nial and begin a more open and honest way of
uncomfortability, you have not felt it neces- sharing with others is the Johari Window
sary to change. This has allowed your denial works has helped many to change for the bet-
to continue to grow. ter.
Describe one way your denial has served you The window’s four panes represent four as-
as a “good guy.” pects of you total self. The entire window rep-
resents you. The top two panes are visible to
__________________________________ you but the bottom two panes are hidden from
__________________________________ your view.
__________________________________
Myself
__________________________________
__________________________________
Secret
The secret pane stores things you know about
yourself but do not want to share with others.
This pane increases as your addiction or prob-
lem progresses. Perhaps you are jealous of a
friends promotion or had an affair. You have
many secrets centered around your pattern.
Blind
The blind pane houses aspects of yourself that
you do not recognize but which are easily seen
by others. For example, you may think of
yourself as a giving person, yet others see that
My Open pane is this size because… _____
you have become very self-centered.
__________________________________
__________________________________
Potential __________________________________
The final pane is potential, which is informa- __________________________________
tion stored in your subconscious shows four __________________________________
panes of equal size, they could be very differ- __________________________________
ent. The open pane may be very small if there
is little the person is willing to share. The se-
cret and blind panes may be enormous. My Secret pane is this size because… ____
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
My Blind pane is this size because… _____ To Level is to respond openly and spontane-
ously about your feelings. When you level –
__________________________________
that is, when you reveal a feeling – the feel-
__________________________________ ing usually becomes less intense and easier
__________________________________ for you to handle.
__________________________________
__________________________________
Additional Activities
__________________________________
(1) List three situations in which it is difficult
for you to confront.
Confronting and Leveling 1. ______________________________
As you build honest relationships, through 2. ______________________________
confronting and leveling, your Johari Window 3. ______________________________
changes. By sharing your secrets, you shift
some of your Secret pane to the Open pane. A. What thoughts/feelings get in your way
As you learn to accept words you hear about
of leveling with those closest to you?
yourself from friends and peers, your Open
pane grows and your Blind pane shrinks. _______________________________
_______________________________
Leveling and confronting are healthy ways
_______________________________
you talk with others. This helps you discover
your Blind and Secret self. It takes courage to
level and confront. It is so easy to act in ways B. What value might you create by
that develop honesty. leveling with others?
_______________________________
Peer One–Confronting
_______________________________
“You don’t appear to be willing to talk about _______________________________
your feelings about your children.” _______________________________
Peer Two–Leveling
C. When I am my authentic self I feel:
“It’s still difficult for me to accept how my _______________________________
drug use has hurt them.”
_______________________________
To Confront is to present a person with him- _______________________________
self/herself by describing how you see him/ _______________________________
her. This is sometimes called “Mirroring.”
Confronting is factual. It is not criticizing or
advice-giving. (2) Addictions or compulsive behaviors are
caused because the body craves attention.
To overcome this spend 15 minutes touch-
ing each part of your body lovingly, while E. What am I committed to in my life right
thinking thoughts of gratitude to your now?
body for the service it performs.
What about that do I enjoy? How does that
Example: Do with an oil massage before make me feel?
your bath or in the shower using soap.
F. What am I committed to in my life right
(3) Our life experience is based on what we now?
focus on. The following questions are de-
signed to assist you to experience more What about that makes me committed?
happiness, excitement, pride, gratitude, How does that make me feel?
joy, commitment, and love every day of
your life. Remember, quality questions G. Who do I love? Who loves me?
create a quality life. Come up with two
or three answers to all of these questions What about that makes me loving? How
and feel fully associated. If you have dif- does that make me feel?
ficulty discovering an answer simply add In the evening, sometimes I ask the Morn-
the word “could”. Example: “What could ing Questions, and sometimes I ask an ad-
I be most happy about in my life now? ditional three questions.
ABUNDANCE
AND
GRATITUDE
Abundance is merely the universe's response You are always doing what you love most at
to our thoughts and emotions. We think it and that given moment. Now the word “most” is
feel it and the universe provides experience a subjective call and comparative in nature. If
or form in abundance to assist us in thinking you found yourself in the jungles of a far away
and feeling. place, like a soldier in Viet Nam, for instance,
doing what you love most might be running
Consider that it is what we focus upon that like a rabbit away from incoming fire. Doing
will grow. We live in a dimension of fluid cre- what you love most to a battered wife might
ation. It is full of energy. Some energy is ki- be escaping the blows of her husband, or it
netic, like movement and form (chairs, tables, could also be in another view, taunting him
bridges, people's bodies, etc.). Some energy so he will abuse. It's all a matter of perspec-
is potential, awaiting instructions. Potential
tive. Nevertheless, we are always doing what financial security. If they don't hear from any
we love most at any given moment. one of us, they call. Few others we know will
express that much interest in us.
“Man is not the creature of circumstances;
circumstances are the creatures. - Benjamin
Disraeli Release
This is the point of awareness that we can Things being in a constant state of change,
change the manifestation of our abundance by we need a healthy attitude toward letting go
changing the focus of our gratitude and love. of old things and embracing the new. One
When we focus our attention and our grati- thing is always replacing another. In getting
tude toward what we don't want, we tend to rid of the old and the unnecessary, we create
get that. When we focus that same attention a vacuum and we draw to us new and excit-
toward what we do want, we tend to get that. ing things.
It all comes down to choice.
When we hang on to the old and the outmoded,
That which you choose and focus upon tends we create blocks, stagnation. This applies to
to grow abundantly. The connection this prin- habits, old clothes, junk in he closet, in the
ciple has with all the others is a demonstra- attic, in he garage and so on.
tion of the interconnections we all have to our
abundance. We must be prepared to let go of things. If
you have loved people and you never actu-
“If you could only love enough - you could ally let go of them in your mind, no one will
be the most powerful person in the world.” come along to replace them. The minute you
truly let go of those people and release them,
- Emmett Fox
and look toward new possibilities, you will
have new relationships.
Attraction Our body can teach us lots about the value of
elimination. It has no fewer than six ways
As we do what we love, we direct energy into
aside from the skin as a whole, which it uses
the creation of high quality products and ser-
to et rid of unwanted material. What a disas-
vices. The people we attract are the ones who
ter area we would be if our bodies never elimi-
will help us by buying our products and ser-
nated! From the same point of view, we need
vices and recommending them to others.
to eliminate mentally.
Here's another point of view pertaining to
Whenever we let go of our attachment to
those we owe money to: as we open the mail-
something, it returns to us again multiplied.
box each day, look at the letters received. Who
What we are unwilling to let go of becomes a
are the people we hear from the most? Our
source of anxiety and threat. A relationship
relatives or buddies from college? Month af-
based upon clinging, possessiveness, or un-
ter month, it is our creditors who write to us.
healthy attachment will fail. There is constant
They keep track of us when we move. They
worry and fear. It is only when we hold people
are concerned about our well-being and our
and things lightly that we can enjoy them fully.
People come into our lives to teach us and to “Wealth is the product of man’s capacity to
learn from us. Sometimes they stay for a mo- think.” - Ayn Rand
ment, sometimes for a lifetime. When they go,
we often feel sad because we cling to a pic-
ture of the past or what we think might have Another View of Lack
been. The key to happiness is to allow the
person and the relationship complete freedom Lack of any kind in life is a direct message
to evolve unfettered by fears. that we are failing to love ourselves. Loving
ourselves will heal and change our lives. It
Clinging never feels good. It brings hardship will also allow us to consciously direct tre-
to the one who feels the need to possess and mendous abundance in our lives. Gratitude is
to the one he or she would possess. When we the key to directing abundant energy. So be-
cling to someone in resentment, we bind our- gin now to consciously express gratitude for
selves to that person by our thoughts and your world, your creation.
memories. The metaphor of seeing life as a
river is an apt one. The river of life would To experience the total abundance in our lives
have us flow to the ocean; instead we would we must think and feel abundance all around
rather cling to the rock upon which we dashed us, becoming aware through conscious grati-
our foot. tude moment by moment. The past is an illu-
sion. The future a vision. We have the gift of
It is impossible to change the events of the this moment. That's why we call it the
past. We can, however, change the way we “present”. When we select peace, joy, seren-
feel about those events. Those people who ity, love, we manifest it in abundance. Be in
seemed to bring us pain and hardship were alignment with life. Withhold love from no
our teachers presenting us with challenges that one, yourself or others. Love is the principle
helped us to grow. of abundance.
Once we realize the problems existed because “When I have forgiven myself and remem-
of the way we perceived them, we free our- bered who I am, I will bless everyone and
selves to learn the lessons, and move on. Re- everything I see.”
lationships can heal. Growth can happen. Love
can replace fear. The principle that we always receive what we
believe is relentless. It is in constant opera-
It is time to enjoy our Journey of Abundance! tion whether we notice it or not. A related is-
sues is one that many people have trouble
We all deserve the great abundance in our
with. It is a superstitious belief that in order
lives; An abundance of health, happiness, love,
to have some things in our lives that are good
money, friends and intimacy. Look at our lives
and positive, we have to be willing to accept
and our bodies - we have spent our lives cre-
things that are bad and negative to attain a
ating both of them. It may be time to change
balance. This creates a continual block to pro-
the lesson and move on! It's a matter of choice.
gressing in any real way with the quality of
our lives.
“The best thing you can do for the poor is (IN ORDER TO MAKE MONEY OR SAVE
not be one of them.” IT, YOU NEED TO BE COMFORTABLE
WITH IT. If you are uncomfortable with it,
Many people believe that when it comes to you will subconsciously, if not consciously,
money and prosperity, all the positive think- arrange for you to end up not having it.)
ing, hard work and right attitudes will never
make a difference to their ability to pay the Situation B
bills at the end of the month.
You are out shopping with a friend and you
The fact is that your conscious and your sub- find that you have left all of your money at
conscious thoughts are always creating results home. Your friend has sufficient to loan you
in your life INCLUDING determining how some cash for the afternoon. How would you
much money you have in the bank. Your pros- feel about asking to borrow fifty dollars?
perity or lack of it is a result of your thinking. Would you prefer to go back home and pick
Your mind and your belief system are what up your own money?
hold you right where you are, and your mind
will keep you right or poor depending on how (It is important for your own prosperity that
you train it. What you think is what you get. you feel that you are worth helping out. IT IS
Think poor, stay poor., Think rich, stay rich. IMPORTANT THAT YOU FEEL YOU DE-
SERVE HELP, (AND MONEY) AS YOUR
Many people are uncomfortable with money ABILITY TO RECEIVED DETERMINES
for various reasons and hence they keep them- YOUR PROSPERITY.)
selves poor. Imagine yourself in he follow-
ing situations to see how comfortable you are Situation C
about having money.
Many people associate poverty with spiritu-
Situation A ality. Their idea is that it is virtuous to be
poor.
You have just been to the bank and collected
$5000 in cash to buy a second hand car. On How do you think God would feel, on find-
the way home from the bank you meet a friend ing out that you are making half a million
and stop for a coffee. While you are paying dollars per year? Do you think he would say,
for the drinks, your friend notices that you “What a greedy pig!”, or do you think He
have a wallet stuffed full of money. would say, “Good luck to you! You must be
doing something right.”
Would you be embarrassed and hastily explain
to your friend why you have so much money, PROSPERITY AND FREEDOM FROM
or would you feel perfectly comfortable in WANT DEMONSTRATE THAT WE ARE
carrying the money and explain nothing? BALANCED AS INDIVIDUALS. The spiri-
tual texts encourage us to give to the poor,
not join them in their poverty.
would have the things that a great musician The Perfect Day Affirmation starts out with a
would have. good positive statement. To make your own
statement, use the following example:
To put it another way, rather than first build
our house (create it physically), draw up plans (Notice that each sentence includes feelings,
(create it on a mental level), or determine what rather than details. Use this statement at the
it will look like (create it spiritually): we be- beginning of each day and whenever you feel
gin with a feeling or idea of the type of house less than peaceful. It is a great way to expand
we would like, then we draw up the blueprints, your mind and see the joyfulness around you.)
and then create the house on a physical level.
“I awake feeling grateful for the wonderful
Consider how easily things would go for you rest.” (a statement of gratitude)
as you do things, if you first had an aware-
ness of what you want to do and a strong will- “I notice a calm and peaceful feeling in my
ingness (emotion) behind that action. It's so body.” (maybe an exercise of faith)
much easier to become a veterinarian, for in-
“I feel eager and grateful to start the day.” (a
stance, if you started out being a veterinarian
statement of gratitude)
as a child. It's the principle of faith, acting “as
if” or “being the part”. “I feel centered and balanced from doing what
I love.” (Harmony)
Realizing how creative we are, as we think
about the things we want, we will get more “I look forward to all the new experiences I
wanting. We must affirm and think as if we shall have and all the love I shall give and
already had what we want. Living in grati- receive.” (Practicing my perfection)
tude that source has already given it to us is
called faith. “I realize that everything in the universe is
perfect, and only perfect things happen to me.”
(Negative and positive are for my growth -
Exercise: gratitude)
b. Spend more time doing what you love. What you feed - will grow!
Express and develop your talents, and share
them with others. (2) Many people have developed negative
attitudes toward money. Most of us need to
c. Constantly reaffirm to yourself that you develop a more positive relationship with
deserve abundance of all good thing. money. We live in an abundant world and
money is simply a form of energy that we re-
d. Build a support system to help you late to along with many other life involve-
develop new habits. Ask for assistance, ments. Money is simply energy and by creat-
knowing how to ask for help builds our ing a more constructive relationship with it
ability to receive. we increase our manifestation of abundance.
Abundance is not just money, but money is a You know it’s time to say goodbye, so you
constructive way of practicing abundance. are going to recognize these obstacles and
beliefs and tell them goodbye in a letter.
Sit quietly for a few minutes with pen and
paper. Let thoughts come to you, in a natural, You take the steps toward creating a better
unforced way, with money. Speak to money relationship with your abundance and realize
as if it were a person and let it speak to you. money is your friend. Money wants to get un-
Hear money respond to your thoughts about blocked in your life. You begin with: Dear
it. Let money tell you how it operates in your Obstacles, Dear Poverty Attitudes, Dear Lack
life; let it have a voice so it can speak to you and Limitation, however you wish to address
and tell you what it has to say to your so it them.
can help you. Think of money as a friend who
wants to relate to you positively and write Release the letter in anyway that appeals to
down its messages to you. you. Some save the letters in journals to chart
their progress, others burn them in a final ritual
__________________________________ letting go, and others even mail the letter to
their lack with no return address so it can never
__________________________________
find it’s way back to them. Burning the let-
__________________________________ ters seems to work the best.
__________________________________
(4) Shifting A Lack Paradigm
__________________________________
Objective: To assist in shifting any negativ-
When writing is finished continue with this ity connected with creating abundance - from
meditation: the old way of thinking to the new way of
thinking. This pencil and paper game assists
(3) Visualization: us to see the distinction between the old way
Become more aware of wanting to let go of of lack thinking and the new way of abun-
the obstacles to your living a more abundant dance consciousness. Engaging participants
life. Through the dialogue you had with in analysis and choice regarding both the old
money, you have become aware of some of and the new helps them realize what the shift
the attitudes that need to be changed. You are to an abundance paradigm means. When a per-
aware of how letting go of some of these atti- son exercises choice, the paradigm shift be-
tudes and becoming aware of them is a new comes easier to understand. Seeing the com-
beginning to a more prosperous life. posite “old” and the composite “new” helps
to reinforce the comparison and clarify the
You have been so accustomed to these new way of thinking being, and manifesting.
thoughts and beliefs that these obstacles have
become a part of your inner landscape, but
now you are doing some digging out of en-
trenched ways of living and clearing them out.
Procedure: __________________________________
__________________________________
Pick the terms below that fit you now, un-
scramble the terms, placing each term in the __________________________________
appropriate column, Old Way or New Way. __________________________________
Suggest that they cross out each term they’ve __________________________________
placed as they complete the game. There are
the correct choices. __________________________________
__________________________________
low trust high trust __________________________________
wanting “being the part”
__________________________________
lack gratitude for all
__________________________________
things
life is a struggle do what you love __________________________________
hate to pay bills grateful for credit __________________________________
worthless I deserve __________________________________
confusion and alignment and re- __________________________________
sentment peace __________________________________
helpless empowered __________________________________
__________________________________
Notice where these are for you, or write
__________________________________
in your own words.
__________________________________
YOUR INTENTION IS EVERYTHING. __________________________________
__________________________________
OLD WAY NEW WAY __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
HEALTH
AND
HEALING
The idea that energy follows thought becomes feel hurt, let down or dumped by someone in
readily apparent in the study of the Principle our life, the message may be, “Love those in
of Health and Healing. Stated simply: the your life without expectations. Accept them
mind directs the body; you direct your mind. as they are and take what they want to give
without judgement.” Alternatively, the mes-
Recently the field of knowledge about health sage may be, “Don’t let the actions of others
called psychosomatic medicine has experi- destroy your own self-esteem.”
enced growth and acceptance as more people
have become aware of the mind/body connec- If your house burns down or someone steals
tion. This knowledge states that many or most your car, you may well experience emotional
of our troubles manifesting as physical symp- upset. This is human. If you choose to learn
toms have their origin in mental or emotional from the situation you may well discover that
disturbance. you can live happily without the things to
which you were so attached. The emotional
All illness has its primary origin in the mind upset may cause you to reassess your priori-
rather than in the body. Although a person's ties. I don’t mean to say that we should live
physical health can be imperiled by certain without houses and cars. The point is that
emotions, this concept goes beyond the physi- successful people learn from such experiences
cal level. and adjust their values so life’s hiccups be-
come less painful.
Pain results from an imbalance somewhere in
your being. It is the evidence of some form of Emotional upsets generate powerful and le-
toxin. It may be toxic food, toxic emotions or thal toxins. Blood samples taken from per-
a toxic relationship. Physical pain warns that sons experiencing intense fear of anger when
something is toxic in the body. Symptoms can injected into guinea pigs have killed them in
include headache, diarrhea, constipation, less than two minutes. Imagine what these
colds, allergy, indigestion, and weight prob- toxins can do to your own body.
lems.
Every though that you have affects your body
Physical pain has its valid, positive point. It chemistry within a split second. Remember
is continual feedback to tell us what to do and how you feel when you are barreling down
what not to do. the highway and a big truck suddenly brakes
twenty meters in front of you. A shock wave
Whenever we eat too much or we don’t get
shoots through your whole system. Your mind
enough sleep or a part of our body is getting
produces instant reactions in your body.
worn out or something is broken and needs a
rest, our marvellous automatic alarm system The toxins that fear, anger, frustration and
lets us know. stress produce not only kill guinea pigs, but
kill us off in a similar manner. It is possible
Our experience of emotional pain operates
to be fearful, anxious, irritated and healthy at
along the same lines. If we are hurting emo-
the same time. It is not just difficult, it is im-
tionally, it is a message that we need to change
possible. Simply put, your body’s health is a
our approach or see things differently. If we
reflection of your mental health. Sickness will
often then be a result of unresolved inner con- ignored and disappointed” or “I’ll just sit here
flicts which in time show up in the body. with a smile on my face and stew inside” is
the beginning of disaster. To be healthy and
The mind-body connection is such that if, for energetic, we must maintain positive emotions
example, we want to avoid something, very and we must be expressing our feelings. It is
often our subconscious mind will arrange it. also very important to believe we DESERVE
Once we recognize that these things happen to be healthy. If we harbor any subconscious
to us, we are half way to doing something feelings like, “I’m not a nice person” or “I’ve
about them. done a lot of bad things” or “I deserve to be
punished,” then a classic way to suffer is
Our belief system and our expectations can
through ill health - sometimes for a lifetime.
keep us sick. If our sister says, “I’ve got this
horrible cold and you’ll probably get it and If we are not doing he job or leading the life
feel horrible,” then we become susceptible to we enjoy, our mind is constantly holding the
the illness. We get sick in part because we thought, “I wish I wasn’t here.” As our body
expect it. is a slave of the mind, our body will then start
getting us out of whatever we want to get out
There is also evidence to suggest that we may
of. The first step is illness. The more perma-
get a disease because our parents had it and
nent solution of death.
we think it is inevitable. We carry subcon-
scious patterns or programs around on our In looking at the mind--body connection, it is
brain cells that keep us either healthy or sick. easy to see how much our body is affected by
Some people say “I never get colds” and never our mental state. Our subconscious mind is
get them. Others say “I always get at least monitoring our healing processes every sec-
two colds per year” and they succeed. This is ond of the day. Your body is continually re-
not coincidence. building and its rebuilding blueprint comes
from your mind.
As children, we learn quickly that being sick
is one of the most effective ways of getting When your wounded finger heals, what con-
attention. For some of us it is the only way. trols the binding of the new cells? What in-
When we become sick, our friends and fam- telligence is it that ensures that when you lose
ily rally around and immediately we feel more a finger nail, it is another finger nail you grown
loved and reassured. Some people never break on the end of your finger, and not a bladder?
this pattern and for a lifetime manage to fall Something has to be controlling all these
ill, fall off ladders and break legs whenever things! Let us not take the miracle of our
they feel ignored or unloved. Clearly, this is physical being for granted!
much more an unconscious than a conscious
behavior. However, the fact remains that those Your mind is the architect of our body and
people who feel loved and secure have far less your body is a reflection of your thoughts. If
illness and “accidents” than those who don’t. you are consumed by fear and anger and un-
expressed emotion, your body will reflect it.
Repressed feelings and emotions affect our The “disease” of the mind becomes “disease”
health. The victim pattern, “don’t worry about in the body.
me. I’m not important” or “I’m used to being
Our Health is Our Responsibility misperceptions and return to you the respon-
sibility for your own health.
What we focus on expands. Visualize our
perfect, healthy self on all levels and act “as We heal ourselves by recognizing our own
if.” Having good physical, emotional, and worth; we heal others by recognizing the
mental health gives our spirit a more powerful, wholeness and divinity within them. When we
energetic place to dwell. Our entire being acts perceive health in another we heal ourselves.
as a unit. The health of one level influences We make health real in others by believing in
the health of the others. It is a system of their health. This is the basis for healing in
operations, each affecting the others. any mode or model. Faith healing, the curing
of disease by supernatural means, might be
considered the natural means of healing re-
To heal any disease, whether mental, emo-
gardless of the method. In other words, it is
tional or physical, go to the source of the con-
our own innate process that creates the health
dition and change the perception. By our be-
we experience.
coming quiet, (meditation and listening), the
spirit can assist us in changing the perception Letting go of our perception of what health
that is creating the disease. looks like can be very healing to our own be-
ing. Many of us spend our energy looking
Consider that when you give your illness en-
outward to see if those around us are healthy
ergy, it will grow. Consider, further, what you
or ill. By doing so, we exert our energies in a
may be doing to yourself by “owning” an ill-
process called judgment and labeling. Con-
ness: i.e., “my ulcer,” “my liver condition,”
sider what might happen to you if you were
“my manic depression,” etc. By owning an
to release this pastime and begin to perceive
illness, you feed it, give it energy and make it
those around you as whole and complete, full
real. A change of perception might rid you of
of love and light.
the illness and return you to health. Perhaps
if you called the illness a condition of your
body, a manifestation of your process of
Stress
thought: “My body has experienced a liver
condition in the past and now I choose to get Stress is a physical and emotional reaction to
the message it has for me and move on.” This change – whether positive or negative. The
statement accurately describes the situation fight of flight reaction kicks in, preparing your
without attachment, puts it into the past where body for action: your muscles may tense, your
it belongs, takes responsibility for the emo- heart may “race,” you may breathe more rap-
tional condition causing the physical malady, idly, and sugars and fats may be released into
and exercises faith to heal. your bloodstream for quick energy. At the
same item you may experience a wide range
To begin the healing process, avoid squelch-
of feelings, from anxiety and worry to excite-
ing or hiding emotions and feelings. Reclaim
ment and anticipation. Your actions may also
your health by being responsible for it. Rapid
reveal telltale signs of stress: fidgeting, rac-
Eye Technology is one quick and effective
ing around, snapping at others, or eating more
method to discharge pent-up negativity and
than your body needs.
Stress vs. Distress The events that trigger your stress and reac-
tion to stressful situations are unique to you.
Not all stress is bad. In the short run, stress
can help you be more alert, efficient, and pro- The following checklists may help you better
ductive. How negative your stress reaction is understand your stress triggers and reactions.
depends on many things: how often it occurs, Simply being aware of them may lower your
how intense it is, how long it lasts, and most stress by helping you identify changes you can
important, how you perceive the stressful make.
event.
Check those on the list that have caused stress
Short surges of stress can add zest to your life, for you in the last six months.
helping your body mobilize to meet specific
demands.
Daily Hassles
When you don’t have a chance to recover from
stress, your physical, emotional and mental $ Misplacing or losing something
resources become depleted, leading to illness. $ Getting caught in a traffic jam.
$ Waiting in line
Why Manage Stress? $ Oversleeping
$ Disagreeing with a co-worker
You can’t eliminate stress all together. But you
can manage it. You can do this by taking time $ Running late
out from tension and with relaxation tech- $ Missing the bus
niques. Listening to how you communicate $ Forgetting your purse or coat
with yourself and others and using social and
$ Coming home to a messy house
physical buffers against stress can also help.
Some of the payoffs of managing stress are: a $ Having car trouble
stronger immune system for fighting disease, $ Getting a traffic ticket
lower risk of heart disease and other chronic $ Having argument with spouse or child
illnesses, and overall better health. Other ben-
efits include improved relationships and re-
duced burnout in both your work and personal What have we missed that is on your list?
life. __________________________________
__________________________________
How Stress is Unique __________________________________
__________________________________
Public speaking may be thrilling for you, but
for the next person, the experience may be as __________________________________
terrifying as standing in front of a firing squad. __________________________________
$ Headache $ Irritability
$ Muscle tension or cramps $ Anxiety
$ Dry mouth or bad breath $ Forgetfulness
$ Racing heartbeat $ Depression
$ High blood pressure or heart burn $ Apathy
$ Cold or flu $ Nervousness
$ Diarrhea $ Worry
$ Clammy hands $ Confusion or spacy
$ Constipation $ Excitement
$ Teeth grinding $ Hopelessness
$ Skin rash $ Cynicism
$ Back pain $ Resentment
$ Stomach ache or vomiting $ Fearfulness
$ Chest pain $ Hostility
$ Laryngitis $ Difficulty concentrating
$ Shaky hands $ Racing of obsessive thoughts
$ Blurred vision
$ Insomnia What have we missed that on your list?
$ Fatigue __________________________________
$ Dis-ease in the body. __________________________________
__________________________________
What have we missed that on your list? __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ Your Actions
__________________________________ $ Withdrawing from close relationships
__________________________________ $ Snapping at others
$ Overeating or under-eating
$ Being accident prone
$ Completing tasks with difficulty
$ Trying to do several things at once
Example: __________________________________
1. Car trouble __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________ __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ Stressors you CAN’T Control
__________________________________ Now list the stressors in your life that you
__________________________________ think you have no control over. You may find,
however, that you can move some of these
into the first category: stressors you can con- 2. Can spend more time with my children.
trol. For example, you may feel helpless to
do anything about a bad relationship, but, in 3. Can take a class during the daytime.
fact, you can always end or change the rela-
tionship. __________________________________
__________________________________
Example:
__________________________________
1. Being laid off. __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________ Talking Back
__________________________________
You’ve read about a few different types of
__________________________________ negative self-talk and begun to counteract one
specific type: black-and-white thinking.
What’s your negative self-talk? Listen to your-
Thoughts You CAN Change self over the next week, and write down what
you’re saying. Give the voices a face. Do you
Generate new ways of looking at these prob- recognize anyone else talking besides your-
lems. At first glance, the stressful event may self? Your parents, your spouse, your boss?
have no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Next, do your best to swap the negative self-
Think again. Is there anything to be gained talk for positive self-talk.
from this experience?
__________________________________
If you’re telling yourself…
__________________________________
__________________________________ “I never do anything right. I’m such an idiot.”
__________________________________
“I can’t believe this is happening!”
__________________________________
__________________________________ “This always happens to me.”
__________________________________ “If only I would have…”
__________________________________
“There’s no point in getting my hopes us.”
__________________________________
__________________________________ “Why don’t they understand me?”
__________________________________ Then substitute with…
__________________________________
“So, I’m not perfect! I do lots of things right,
__________________________________
and some things very well.”
__________________________________
“If I can do something abut a problem, I do it;
otherwise, I try not to worry.”
passive style of communication. An assertive out flinching, and more often see the results
style of communication creates less stress. of your actions.
__________________________________
Assertive
__________________________________
This is the ideal: expressing your rights and 4. “I can’t believe he’s treating me like this.
feelings without infringing on the rights of How do I deep ending up with these guys
others. When you believe you’re equal to oth- who thing they’re God’s gift to women?
ers, you can disagree openly, say ‘no” with- Did I tell you how his last relationship
ended…?”
5. “I really think it’s time to disclose the isolation, or lack of purpose, and improve your
proposed merger. Now, I know you self-esteem. Taking good care of your body
disagree, so let’s talk about it some more.” can create better protection against the physi-
cal assaults of stress.
__________________________________
__________________________________
Create a Balance In Your Life
Putting all your eggs in one basket is usually
6. “Where did you learn how to drive, you
a big mistake. It only increases the strain on
idiot! Go take a remedial driving class!”
you. But varying your activities and interest
helps fulfill your many needs for achievement,
__________________________________
recognition, creative expression, and emo-
__________________________________ tional support. And when one area of your life
isn’t going well, you have other areas to fall
back on.
7. “Because I said so!”
Spiritual Involvement
Fitness
Whether you define it as belief in a higher
power, connection to the earth, or simply a Aerobic exercise such as biking or jogging
moral consistency in what you think, feel, and offers many stress management benefits. It re-
do, spiritually can provide a sense of mean- leases pleasure-producing hormones,
ing and purpose in your life. strengthens and relaxes muscles (much like
progressive relaxation), and gives you more
energy. The rhythmic quality of many types
When Work Takes Over of exercise, such as biking, walking, or swim-
ming, also can produce a type of meditation
Work can be gratifying, and usually it’s a fi- in motion.
nancial necessity. But it can take over your
life. If you’re putting all your eggs in this bas-
ket, take another look. You’re not working; Food
your job is working you.
Balanced meals provide the energy you need
to meet the day’s physical and mental chal-
lenges. High-energy foods include complex
Try this…
carbohydrates, such as potatoes, rice, and
• Take breaks, get away from the workplace whole-wheat bread, and fresh fruits and veg-
during your lunch hour, and don’t put off etables. Limit caffeine, a stimulant that inten-
taking your vacations. sifies the stress response, and sugar, whose
quick-energy fix backfires, making you more
• Learn how to ask for help. When you tired.
delegate, be sure to give up both the
responsibility and the authority for carrying
out the task.
Pets Keep You in the Pink wouldn’t you? Building stress management
skills also requires practice, so be realistic
They purr, sing, hop, dance, or wag their tails about setting goals. To ensure success, make
with unconditional joy. Who can resist that a commitment , try new techniques, and prac-
animal magnetism? Pets are often a saving tice, practice… and practice some more. Also,
grace in the face of stress. In fact, they may try the tips below for a more “polished per-
even lower your blood pressure or decrease formance.”
your number of doctor visits. They provide
emotional benefits, too, often giving uncon-
ditional love. If you can’t have a pet of you Commit to Change
own, volunteer for someone who needs help
with one, or pay regular visits to a petting zoo Making changes in your stress habits is simi-
or pet store. You may find that caring for plants lar to making any other change: you have to
can provide many of the same benefits. really want to do it. Commit to making a
change. Don’t try to do everything all at once,
though. Prioritize, focusing on those skills you
Fun want to build first, and give yourself credit
for even the smallest of changes.
Don’t feel guilty about having fun. Just enjoy
yourself. You can justify having fun for fun’s
sake: it’s usually good for you. Diving, card Try New Techniques
games, gardening, puzzles, artwork, bowling,
music–whatever you enjoy–can provide a tre- by now, you may know which stress manage-
mendous physical release. And creative ex- ment techniques work best for you. But try a
pression–whether it’s artistic, musical, or ath- technique for at least a week before giving it
letic–can bolster your self-image too. up. It may take that long to get comfortable
with something new. For extra help on sharp-
ening your technique, refer to this workbook
Forty Winks (or more) as needed, check out other resources, or work
with a mental health professional.
To ensure good rest and revitalization, go to
bed at a regular time each night, don’t drink
caffeine or alcoholic beverages before bed- Practice, Practice
time, and don’t exercise at the end of the day.
When you can, take naps for quick, midday As with building any skill, you need practice
refreshers. And when under stress, get an ex- to become proficient. Recognize that every-
tra hour of sleep at night. one learns at a different rate, so give yourself
plenty of time to improve. And remember that
improvement usually comes in spurts. Be as
Setting Realistic Goals
If you wanted to play the piano, you’d accept
that some time and effort were required,
consistent as you can, but don’t “beat your- That’s how it usually feels when you’ve had
self up” if you miss a “practice session.” That a bad day. The situations below are typical
undoubtedly will defeat your whole purpose! scenes from a day in the life of a stressed-out-
person.
• When your faced with a task you dread, 3. My boss seems to think I’m Wonder
get it over with early in the day. Woman. I don’t want to be uncooperative,
but she just keeps giving me more work.
• If world events are interfering with your What should I do?
sleep, avoid the news, especially at night.
4. There’s never enough time to do the things
• Prepare for the next day by planning I want to do. But I can’t give up anything.
breakfast, making lunch and ironing your
clothes the night before. 5. As I stood to make my presentation, my
mind went blank and my eyes glazed over.
• Keep duplicate house and car keys in your All I could see was my job going up in
wallet for those stressful times when you smoke.
lock yourself out.
6. Is it too much to ask? All I want is to leave
the house once without having to go on a
Stress Buster Exercise scavenger hunt for my keys.
Here’s a chance to practice solving stressful 7. I’ve got a deadline tomorrow. I know I’m
problems. For example, if your goal is to quit not going to meet it. There’s a lot riding on
feeling rushed on your way to work, you can this. I don’t want to turn in a half-baked
prepare for work the night before or leave for project, but I can’t get it done. Help!
work 15 minutes earlier. Pretend you’re a con-
testant on a game shoe, and play the follow- 8. Can you believe it? They just showed up
ing game, matching solutions to the stressful on my doorstep unannounced –and I didn’t
situations at the left. This game may give you have one free minute to spare.
some ideas for handling your next stressful
day.
Select Your Solutions
It was the worst of times…
Harmony
and
Rhythm
is a vibration we radiate in our energy field. ral forces which begin a tumbler-like action,
It's a little like a call to others to come and a turning of the tide in the lives of people.
play with us (something akin to “choosing up
sides” in basketball or some other team sport). Research into the science of sound, or vibra-
The signals we emit are received, processed, tion, helps us understand that creating music
and reacted upon by those seeking that signal; requires the interaction between the right and
they are tuned in to our broadcast, our left brain. In a very real sense, music tran-
vibration. scends the mind and goes directly into the
heart!
This ability to draw conditions to us has
Music is an integral part of RET processing
tremendous practical implications. It means
as well as the cognitive work. It can be a pow-
we can use our thoughts to create the life we
erful way to access the ability to feel in cli-
want. It means that we can really change for
ents who have endured so much pain that they
the better. It means that things no longer have
have dissociated from life and become “past
power over us, for we realize that they are
feeling.”
just the manifestations of our thoughts, and
nothing more. They are thought forms While listening to music can penetrate even
reacting to the signals we project. the hardest heart, the activity of creating mu-
sic, expressing oneself through music, devel-
The principle of Harmony and Rhythm is per- ops a person's ability to organize creative
haps best expressed in the magic of music! thoughts and to express them effectively. It
Music is a powerful influence in our daily doesn't seem to matter whether that creation
lives. There are three basic ingredients of of music is in the form of humming a tune or
music: melody, harmony and rhythm. Melody in performing in a concert. Feeling will hap-
and harmony are universal in nature. The so- pen!
lar system maintains its order because of the
vibrations of each individual planet. They Researchers have studied Baroque music to
comprise a chord of music which is unique to discover why it is so powerful in assisting in
our place in space. learning. The combinations of notes, and the
patterns of the music create order in the brain
Rhythm belongs to the earth. It is the method in much the same way a computer formats a
whereby a song is broken up into measures diskette to implant a grid or map which will
and notes are assigned different values of time. allow information to be stored in a location
It is the rhythm or beat of a song which invol- where the computer will know precisely where
untarily sets your toe to tapping. It is the in- to go to retrieve it.
gredient of time.
Why is order so important? To create is to
There is another ingredient of music which is organize that which is unorganized. There is
absent in some music. When it is present, it no judgment between order or chaos, both are
changes lives. Even plants and animals re- necessary to the process of growth and cre-
spond to it! What is this fourth ingredient? It ativity. To make use of the information we
is LOVE! When music contains this element, accumulate throughout our lives, we need to
it performs miracles! It sets into motion natu- be able to retrieve it. If there is no order, no
system for storing and retrieving that infor- need time to rest and recuperate, as do all other
mation, it is much like a file cabinet with no living things.
separate folders, just piles of stuff. We know
it's in there, yet we aren't able to find it. TAKING TIME
People with Alzheimer's disease are losing this Nature always takes her time. Great oaks
grid pattern, this map for how to store and don’t become great overnight. They also lose
retrieve information. Remarkable results are a lot of leaves, branches and bark in the pro-
being achieved with Alzheimer's patients cess of becoming great. Diamonds aren’t
through the use of music technology. formed in a week either. Everything of value,
of beauty, of majesty in the universe took time
An interesting phenomenon is occurring. The to become so.
elements of the earth, the minds and hearts of
the people on the planet are beginning to po- So it will be with our own growth and devel-
larize. There is a gathering of order, a gather- opment. Let us recognize the way things work
ing of those who follow the principles which down here, and so be gentler on ourselves
created our universe. There are multitudes of when assessing our own progress. It takes
people making a choice for order. time to build confidence, to build a healthy
body or a positive outlook. It takes time to
build a business of value or to create our own
What is left is chaos; that which is in conflict financial independence. In the real world there
with order. Each person is responsible to make are very few instant, overnight successes.
conscious choices about the level of vibrations Inner work is a life-style.
which influence them.
CYCLES
When all our levels are in alignment (physi-
cal, emotional, mental and spiritual), we are As sure as the earth revolves around the sun
in tune. We will feel in alignment with the and winter follows the spring, so must our life
universe and the principle of harmony and move in cycles. So there will always be easy
rhythm. We have once again aligned with the times and there will be hard times, as sure as
“one song.” one season follows another. One of the great
challenges of life is dealing with the winter
“You are a part of the universe, no less than while you are waiting for things to et better.
the stars and trees, and you have a right to Things will get better. They always do. The
be here. And whether it is clear to you or trouble is hat many people give up and go
not, no doubt he universe is unfolding as it home too early. The tide will always turn.
should . . .”. --Desiderata
REST
We are part of the universe and our lives are
governed by he same laws that govern the rest Nature has a rest from time to time. The soil
of the cosmos. We need to keep a balance as needs a rest, bears and snakes hibernate; even
does the rest of nature. We take time to grow fish sleep with their eyes open. We can learn
and time to heal. Our lives will always move from this approach. We need to take time out;
in cycles because that is the universal law. We to rest, to review, to ponder, to be.
If you decide that you are indispensable and comes into balance; our blood pressure drops,
that you must always have your nose to the our breathing becomes deep and easy, and the
grindstone, then you can live your life like organs in our system work harmoniously.
that. Your belief that you can never rest will
be your reality until such time as you decide On a broader scale, the same picture emerges.
differently. We get the best results in our lie when we are
prepared to go with the flow. This means find-
When we do make rest a part of our life-style, ing the delicate and elusive balance between
like the soil we become so much more pro- effort and relaxation, between attachment and
ductive when we work. Having said this, I letting go. It is no simple thing to achieve!
believe that as humans we are engineered for
enterprise and activity. Again, we can take our lead from nature. The
birds and the animals work, but they don’t
work day and night. Even the soil needs a
Relax and Let Go rest every so often. That one gets us into
trouble too! We plant beans on the same plot
Have you noticed what happens when you are for twenty three consecutive years, we cram
trying really, really hard to remember some- the earth with chemicals to keep them pop-
thing or to hit a base ball just right or solve a ping up, and wonder why the beans taste worse
problem? Invariably, you don’t get the results than the fertilizer. Everything needs a rest.
you want. Everything takes time to regenerate, to have
an ebb and flow.
In their search for ideas and solutions to prob-
lems, most people note that they have their Benjamin Hoff wrote a wonderful book, “The
greatest success while they are engaged in ac- Tao of Pooh,” in which he expounds the East-
tivities where they are naturally relaxed. ern philosophy of “Tao”, as intuitively applied
Hence they have their brain gems in the by Pooh, the all time favorite “bear of little
shower, in the bath, in bed, in the toilet: places brain”. He suggests that we can learn much
where we relax easily. from Winnie the Pooh’s easy, accepting, un-
complicated philosophy--”while Eyeore frets,
To understand the scientific angle, when we and Piglet hesitates and Owl pontificates . . .
relax, our brain rhythms move into a slower Pooh just IS.”
mode--the alpha mode--where we are far more
able and creative. Results come easily. When Hoff writes: “When we learn to work with
you step into a warm shower, you naturally our own Inner Nature, and with the natural
relax. In bed, the same happens; and so you laws operating around us, we reach the level
will find you get ideas in bed! You can be of Wu Wei. Then we work with the natural
very creative in the bedroom. You are open order of things and operate on the principle
to ideas in the toilet, because you have to re- of minimal effort. Since the natural world
lax in there just to get the job done! follows that principle, it does not make mis-
takes. Mistakes are made--or imagined-- by
Of course, physical relaxation is equally im- man, the creature with the overloaded Brain
portant for peak performance. As we relax who separates himself from the supporting
our physical body, our whole metabolism network of natural laws by interfering and try-
ing too hard.”
LIFE SKILLS WORKBOOK 98 8/00
Rapid Eye Technology (RET)
We love Pooh because he doesn’t try too hard. Work _________ __________
He lives in the present moment. He just is.
Volunteer activities _______ __________
3. _________ _________ __________ How could you bring these aspects of your
_________ __________ life into a harmony and rhythm that works
_________ __________ for you?
_________ __________ 1. ______________________________
_________ __________
2. ______________________________
3. ______________________________
Additional Activities 4. ______________________________
1. _____________________________
4. _____________________________
5. _____________________________
6. _____________________________
1.
2. _____________________________
3. _____________________________
4. _____________________________
5. _____________________________
Journey Drumming
Why is it that indigenous cultures rely so Beta waves at 13 Hz or higher are associated
heavily upon drumming? Virtually every with active attention and focus on the exte-
American Indian tribe, nearly all African rior world. It is also present during states of
tribes, most South American Indian groups, tension, anxiety, fear and alarm.
and the Australian Aborigines include drum-
ming in their most sacred ceremonies. Even Research has confirmed that such spiritual
in modern Western society the drum is im- practices as yoga and meditation produce
portant in music. It seems to do more than changes in the electrical activity of the brain,
hold the beat of the tune. It is as though it gets leading to an increase in alpha and theta
into our very being. We feel the beat. Indig- rhythms. Theta is found to be a characteristic
enous cultures utilize the drum to enter altered brain wave pattern of long-term meditators.
states of consciousness (ASC) in order to do Further, shamanic drumming, in the majority
work of a spiritual nature. Is there something of cases, consists of a steady, monotonous beat
in this drumming that can be used by the tech- of 3 to 5 beats per second, or at the frequency
nician? Could this be a tool overlooked be- of theta waves.
cause of its origin in “lesser” cultures?
Dr. Maxfield's research supports the theories
Melinda C. Maxfield, Ph.D., in her 1984 doc- suggesting the use of the drum by indigenous
toral dissertation, Effects of Rhythmic Drum- cultures in ritual and ceremony has specific
ming on EEG and Subjective Experience, in- neurophysiological effects. Drumming has the
troduces us to The Journey of the Drum. Jour- ability to elicit temporary changes in brain
ney drumming consists of a regular drum beat wave activity. Thereby facilitating imagery
of a pattern that duplicates a certain brain wave and possible entry into an ASC especially the
frequency. The brain waves sought for are: Shamanic State of Consciousness (SSC). Here
are her subjective results:
Delta waves at 4 Hz or 4 beats per second.
This wave is associated with sleep or uncon- A pattern that incorporates approximately 4
sciousness. to 5 beats per second is the most inducting for
theta gain.
Theta waves at 4 to 8 Hz or 4 - 8 beats per
second (a fast drum beat) are associated with Drumming in general, and rhythmic drum-
states of reverie and hypnogogic dreamlike ming in particular, often induces imagery that
imagery. is ceremonial and ritualistic in content and is
an effective tool for entering into a non-ordi-
Alpha waves at 8 to 13 Hz or 8 - 13 beats per nary or even when it is extracted from cul-
second are associated with states of relaxation tural ritual, ceremony, and intent.
and general well-being. Alpha generally ap-
pears in the occipital region of the brain (the The pattern of the drumbeat as it relates to
visual cortex) when the eyes are closed. Con- beats per second can be correlated with
sciousness is alert and unfocused, or focused resulting temporary changes in brain wave
on the interior world. It is the world of RET. frequency and/or subjective experience,
provided the drumming pattern is sustained
for at least 13-15 minutes.
b) Movement Sensations:
c) Energized
e) Relaxed, Sharp/Clear
h) Images:
i) Vivid Imagery
Listening
Many years ago, a wise king set out to teach his son, the crown prince, the wisdom necessary
for him to become a great ruler. To do this, the king thought to send the prince to the forest alone
for one year. The instructions the wise father gave the son were to return to him in exactly one
year and describe the sounds of the forest.
The dutiful son did as his father bade him. He went to the forest and listened for all the sounds
he could hear. He returned in one year and happily told his father what he had heard: leaves
rustling in the wind, leaves falling to the earth, birds singing, bees buzzing, insects whirling and
chirping, small and large animals coming and going, waters gurgling up from crevices in rocks.
But the king was not pleased. He frowned and admonished his beloved son to go back to the
forest and listen some more, and when he had discerned the true sounds of the forest to return
home again to report his observations. So the boy went back to the forest.
He sat alone beside huge trees and lay in the forest grasses, pondering his apparent lack of
understanding. After many days and nights, the prince began to sense a strange awareness
about him. He knew that at last he could return to his father with honor.
So the young boy ran home, bursting with the excitement of his new learning.
He came to his father and reported that finally he had heard the leaves of the
trees awakening in the morning dew, the sound of the woodland flowers
opening and closing, the clamor of earth as it bared itself to the warming
rays of the noonday sun, the heartbeats of a thousand animals and birds.
His father was pleased.
“My son,” said the king, “to hear the unhearable is one’s best disci-
pline for being a great leader. The best rulers must truly hear
unspoken joys and pains of their people. It is easy to hear the
obvious and the superficial, but great kingdoms are built only by
hearing the secret sounds of those around you. You have learned
well the wisdom of the forest for your lifelong journey.”
Reading List
Bibliography