I just finished reading a wonderful book called “Absolute Knowledge that Liberates Consciousness” by Roy Eugene Davis.  One statement that he made in the book really hit home: “The real problem is their (individuals that want to change part of their lives) is their inclination to want results without having to change their thinking, feeling, or behaviors.  What an insightful statement.

The reality is until I changed my beliefs, thinking, and behaviors, I was merely relying on willpower to arrest my addiction.  As you have probably surmised, I was destined for failure and failure came with a price.  It cost me everything I thought I ever wanted.  Finally, I ended up in an intensive nine-month long inpatient rehabilitation program.  There I learned be objective, accept I could be wrong (up until now a completely foreign concept to me), and empathy.  My beliefs changed at the core of my being.  There were times, and still are, when I was forced to look at myself and recognize that my thinking was off.

Once this transformation took place, my view of my addiction and how I related to it changed, and that allowed me to stop.  I no longer saw solutions to life issues in continuing the addiction.  Urges still present themselves at times, and may for the rest of my life, but they are infrequent and not strong.

Change is not easy and doesn’t take place in a vacuum.  We all need people in our lives to guide us, listen to our stories, share in our successes, and be our friends.   We need to be honest, open-mended, and show willingness to accept help.   I also believe we need spirituality along this journey of transformation.  For me, it’s a journey worth travelling.

So what causes us to make such irrational decisions? It is the ego. The ego causes us to view any contradiction to our beliefs as a threat to ourselves. It is only by preserving the sense of right that the ego feels safe. Try this. Imagine participating in a conversation with others and everything you contribute is declared as wrong by the others. How do you feel? Anxiety will likely climb in many of us. Keeping in mind that your thoughts are your thoughts and are neither right nor wrong it is difficult to understand why we feel threatened by subjective analysis.

Being right is often viewed by the ego as part of who we are. Sometimes it is easier to understand how being right or wrong is no more part of an object than it is a part of who we are. As an exercise imagine trying to open your neighbor’s front door with the key to your front door. After a failed attempt or two many people would say “this is the wrong key”. I prefer to say “this key does not open this lock”. The key is still the same key only without the judgment placed upon it. As we learn to separate our view of ourselves from the judgment placed upon us by ourselves and others we move closer to freeing ourselves from the clutches of the ego.

To learn more about the CSA go to http://www.csa-davis.org/.  If you want to take advantage of the lessons click on the membership tab and follow the instructions.

Enjoy!

You may have answered “society”, “my employer”, or “I decide what is right for me” all of which would be correct. The simple answer is that people decide what is right and what is wrong. They apply labels to behavior and things. How many times have we heard someone say, “What she did was wrong”, “This is the right tool for the job” or even “He is the wrong person for the job”? Can a person actually be wrong? Can a tool be right? People things and even behaviors are what and who they are.

People create the concept of right and wrong in their minds and categorize the things they see, hear and experience. A concept by definition only exists in the mind. A tool is a tool. Spanking a child is an action. Even after things or behaviors are deemed to be right or wrong they do not change. A tool is still a tool and spanking a child is still spanking a child. The categorization of right and wrong exists only in a person’s mind just as a child’s imaginary friend only exists in their mind.

Part two of this article will examine why people feel the need to categorize things and behaviors as right and wrong.

The book explains some of the whys of why people struggle with any kind of change.  But it also tells us we can be inspired and highly self-motivated to live with a clear sense of meaningful purpose.  As a novice in the spiritual realm, I must say the book answered several questions I had regarding balancing material wants versus spiritual growth.  The techniques shared in the book have also been very helpful in moving me along on my spiritual journey.  The book is only about 100 pages, but don’t be fooled, it is jam packed with information and is an intense read for lack of a better term.

 Mr. Davis has taught these philosophical principles and spiritual practices all over the world for more than 50 years.  He studied under Guru Paramahansa Yogananda and was ordained in 1951.

A couple weeks ago our discussion group watched Louise L. Hay’s“You can Heal Your Life” DVD.  Visually it’s a beautifully designed movie with a comfortable, empathetic, and warm feel to it.  We followed the path of a young fictional woman; she could be anyone, man or woman, you or me, embarking on a journey to make sense of her life.  Initially, she is depressed and unhappy, wondering if life doesn’t have more to offer than the grind of daily life. Her life is saturated with fear, uncertainties, and self-doubts.  

The message we got is that there is a major connection between our thoughts and beliefs and how we experience our lives.  Ms. Hay, a pioneer in the self-help arena, stated that “if you change your thinking, you can change your life”.  She continued on by saying that one way to do this is by using positive affirmations.   These affirmations may not initially be true, but by sticking to their use, we can experience gradual positive improvement in our lives.  As an example of the power of positive affirmations, Ms. Hay shared her story of applying this method in her documented and successful fight against cancer.

In the commentary section of the DVD, Louise L Hay has assembled other prominent spiritual teachers like Wayne W. Dyer, Ph.D., Cheryl Richardson, Doreen Virtue, Esther and Jerry Hicksand Gregg Braden.   They all echo the belief of the power of the mind and possibilities for change displayed on the DVD.  We definitely recommend viewing this part.

In conclusion, our group felt this DVD provided a life lesson worth sharing with others.  Get the DVD, and if you can afford it, buy the accompanying book with the same title, we did.  In the book you can lookup whatever problem or ailment you have, and get the corresponding Positive Affirmations to correct the situation.

The concept of positive affirmations is that our beliefs and thoughts can dramatically change our lives.   With continuous application of the affirmation, a person will change in their lives.  At times the change is gradual, other time almost immediate.  They can also be designed specifically to help with whatever ails us whether it is emotional or physical.

As we move forward on our personal spiritual journeys, we are with out question incorporating positive affirmations into our exercises. 

Along these lines, a friend of mine sent me a movie clip that really made me feel good.  I liked enough to forward it to all me friends AND purchased a copy to show at a conference I am attending this weekend.  It’s called the Blue Ribbon Movie and here’s the link:

http://www.MakeADifference.com/U/?19067

Twenty years ago the spirituality and self-help sections in most bookstores were almost non-existent.  Today there is an abundance of information.  Our approach is pick two or three “approaches” or authors at a time.  In reality many of them take us to the same destination, they are merely different paths to get there.  A route that may work for me may not fit another, but it does not diminish its validity.  So as we work our way through the various spiritual texts, we expect to learn from all of them which in turn will move us forward on the spiritual journey.

Now we also want help spread the information as we continue on our journey.  The intent is to provide reviews of the material we come across, keep you informed on upcoming events, seminars, book releases, etc.  There will also be links to sites we have found to be spiritually beneficial and enlightening.