.. leave e-mail .. (for Monty or Carolyn)The difference between theory and experience generally lies in practice, and this is certainly true of Attitudinal Healing. Try to do one of the following personal practice exercises each day (but not more than once per waking hour). Most are five-minute exercises, but you may extend them to 15 minutes if you are comforatble with them. Try not to judge yourself for failing, or for doing them imperfectly, or for being distracted while doing them. Nevertheless, be willing to make an effort, and give them enough priority in your day to make the practice effective. In fact, it is your own "little willingness" that sparks the changes we come to know as "healing".
Practice Exercises:
"We Can Let Go of the Past, and of the Future"
As a tool for organizing our life, "control" is a useful thing. But when we use the past to "control" our life, we often block our own healthful growth. "Letting go" is the antidote to unhealthful control, and hence we get the principle: "We can let go of the past, and of the future." For five minutes at the beginning of your day, sit quietly in a quiet place. Think about ways in which you feel "blocked" in your own life. Say clearly and silently to yourself, "In this situation regarding …(fill in the blank)…, I sometimes feel blocked." Then, thoughtfully consider whether some preconceived idea you have, based on past experience or habit, keeps you from moving beyond that block. If so, say silently, "My preconceived ideas about …(fill in the blank)…, keep me from my full potential." Now, as honestly as you can, be willing to "let go", and affirm this by repeating the following thought slowly, again and again, "I can let go of the past, and let go of control, that I may reach my full potential."
Throughout the day, whenever you find yourself blocked by ideas from the past, say quickly and silently to yourself: "I can let go of the past, and let go of control, that I may reach my full potential."
Our usual orientation to "learning", is to learn from our past experiences, and approach life from that perspective. Sometimes, however, we have a tendency to give the most weight and attention to unhappy experiences, and little or none to happy experiences. If this becomes a habit, such "learning" prevents us from living life happily "in the moment." When we "guard" against Life, based on our unhappy experiences of the past, we close our eyes to Love's unending Presence. Therefore, we need to find new ways of "learning", based on our own inherent trust in Life's ongoing process. For five minutes at the beginning of your day, sit quietly. Consider ways in which you "guard" against life. Acknowledge these clearly, saying silently to yourself: "I seem to be guarding against …(name the experience…)". If this is based on unhappy experiences of the past, add, "and I seem to have learned this from my past experience of …(name the experience…). " After a moment or two of acknowledgement, reorient your mind, by coming as fully into the present moment's experience as you can, letting the heart lead the way. Say silently to yourself, again and again, "Let me now learn truly: Life is Love's process; and I can trust It now."
Throughout the day, whenever you feel your peace being threatened by past learning, say quickly and silently, "Let me now learn truly: Life is Love's process; and I can trust It now."
Two habits most often block our mind from being open to the experience of Love now. First, we occupy our mind by reviewing the present experience in terms of our past. In doing so, we color the present experience with a perspective which may not apply to this moment, now. Secondly, we try to think of ways to defend our future, in an attempt to make it safe from a possible unhappy experience. Both habits encourage us to pass completely over the present-moment experience, closing our mind to the ever-present experience of Love in our lives, now. For five minutes near the end of your day, sit quietly in a quiet place. Briefly, watch your mind. If you find your mind is preoccupied with thoughts of the past, or plans for the future, acknowledge this clearly to yourself: "I seem to be preoccupied with thoughts of the past", or "I seem to be preoccupied with planning the future." Then, repeat silently to yourself five times, slowly, "I can let go of the past, and of the future. I am willing to be happy now." Then, sit silently, letting the mind be quiet and open. If you get distracted by "thinking", don't beat yourself up. Habits are sometimes not easily dismissed. Instead, gently repeat the phrase, "I can let go of the past, and of the future. I am willing to be happy now," and try again.
When we defend against Life, we sing this dirge: "I do not trust Life to lead me, and so I order my life based on my own perspectives of what the past was, and what the future should be." But those perspectives are limited by our own inability to see the unfolding process that is our own life. Based on such limited views, how can we order life correctly? To be open-minded is to be completely defense-less to Life's offering for us, trusting it now, in this moment. For five minutes at the beginning of your day, sit quietly. Slowly and deliberately, look around the room, letting your eyes rest briefly on whatever random object they are drawn to. As you look at it, say silently, "I do not know what this …(name it)… means to me." After about ten or twenty seconds, move on to some other random object in the room. Do this for about 6 or 8 objects, then close your eyes and sit quietly. Think of two or three people in your life, and in a similar manner say, "I do not know what …(name of person)… means to me." Finally, place your hands over your heart, and rest gently in the present moment. Repeat five times, slowly, "In my defenselessness my safety lies; I am willing to trust Life, now."
Throughout the day, whenever you find yourself feeling defensive, remind yourself silently, "In my defenselessness my safety lies; I am willing to trust Life, now."
Gerry Jampolsky (the founder of the first Attitudinal Healing Center) says, "It is possible to focus on peace for just one instant..." As you sit quietly for a few minutes, notice where your thoughts are taking you. Are you concerned about what is going to happen later in the day? Do you find yourself replaying some past event, making it turn out different, saying what you wish you'd said? Just notice whether each thought is oriented to the past, present or future, then ask yourself, "Would I choose this instead of peace?" Let your attention come to the quiet in the center of your heart. Allow an image of peace to come to mind (whether that is a place, a person, an experience, whatever) and hold the image and feeling of peace within your heart. Notice how it feels to be at peace. Each time another train of thought chugs by, note its orientation to past, future or present, and return your attention to peace.
Whenever your peace is challenged during the day, remind yourself: "Would I choose this instead of peace?"
In your quiet time, imagine that you have amnesia -- you have no past that you remember. What would the people around you tell you about your life? How would they describe you...to you? What would be important to you to know about your past? Why would you want to reclaim it? Would it be possible to love people without really "knowing" them? What might you notice about your loved ones if the past were wiped out and you looked at them with new eyes? What would you notice about the world around you? about your home? about your priorities? about your relationships? Remind yourself silently, "This moment is the circle of grace around me. This moment is an invitation to love." Sit quietly and reflect on these questions, and end your quiet time by slowly repeating the phrase above several times to yourself as you open your heart to this moment, and the next, and the next.
Throughout the day, once per hour if you can, remind yourself silently, "This moment is the circle of grace around me. This moment is an invitation to love."
There is a lesson in A Course in Miracles that says:
"Let all things be exactly as they are… In Love was I created, and in Love will I remain forever."Sometime during the day, sit quietly. Notice any resistance you may have to the first part of the statement "Let all things be exactly as they are." Notice any tendency to think we have to change things externally in order to make them better. Now consider looking more deeply into this moment; to look for the Love that is always present, in all circumstances. This does not mean we cannot take external action; it simply means we want to recognize the Presence of Love and seek its guidance before we take the world into our own hands. When we say "Let all things be exactly as they are," we really mean, "Let Love be evident in all things. Let me see and experience my deeper nature. I am willing to let go, so that I may learn and live directly from the Heart of Love." Sit quietly with this thought for several minutes, and end by repeating slowly three times: "Let all things be exactly as they are… In Love was I created, and in Love will I remain forever."
Three more times today, sit quietly for one minute, and repeat the thought: "Let all things be exactly as they are… In Love was I created, and in Love will I remain forever."
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