.. 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 choose to be peaceful inside, regardless of what is happening outside"
Peace of mind is an internal matter. It begins with our own thoughts and extends outward. During your quiet time today, notice any thoughts that come between you and a sense of deep inner peace. Identify them by saying something like "My thoughts about ____________ seem to separate me from peace." Then ask yourself, "Would I choose this instead of peace?" See if you can find a willingness, a desire for peace within your heart. Then say silently, letting the words fall gently into your heart, this phrase from A Course in Miracles: "The peace of God is shining in me now. Let all things shine upon me in that peace, and let me bless them with the light in me." [The phrase 'The peace of God' is borrowed from A Course in Miracles; if this makes you uncomfortable, say instead 'True Peace' or 'Love's Peace']
Remind yourself throughout the day, "The peace of God is shining in me now. Let all things shine upon me in that peace, and let me bless them with the light in me."
During the day, any time you find yourself in conflict, ask yourself, "Would I choose this instead of peace?"
Sometimes we struggle with the idea of forgiveness -- mainly when we insist on our (often limited) definition and perception of it. The judging mind insists that we decide what is right and wrong, good and bad, and force ourselves in the direction that the ego feels will most enhance its image of itself. There is often little room for 'not knowing,' or for taking 'baby steps' toward healing. Nevertheless, every step taken in the direction of peace, every decision to look for love, every choice to be willing to see things differently -- no matter how small they may seem -- is a step toward the opening of our hearts and the healing of the world. When we remember that forgiveness does not require analyzing, justifying, judging, behaving in a certain way, or even understanding, then we are more likely to allow something to rise in our hearts that longs for the freedom and release true forgiveness brings.
In your quiet time today, whenever judging thoughts arise, or issues (old or new) that seem to separate us from the Source of Love, say gently to yourself, "Now, let forgiveness rest upon all things." Give up trying to forgive, and let Something Else do it. Let Love do its work and trust in that. During the day, whenever judgment disturbs your peace, remember the Presence of Love, and say, "Now, let forgiveness rest upon all things."
During the day, whenever judgment disturbs your peace, remember the Presence of Love, and say, "Now, let forgiveness rest upon all things."
Consider the following Quotation:
"Happiness is easy. It is letting go of unhappiness that is hard. We are willing to give up everything but our misery. Although it is perhaps unconscious for many, we carry with us the sabotaging belief that we do not deserve to be happy. There is great fear that when we take time to be happy we are not guarding our own interests and certainly not doing all we could for the world. If we need a justification for feeling happy, we might ask ourselves what is the alternative, and what do we believe this other feeling will do to relieve the world's misery. My belief is that we will not lessen anguish by maintaining the very state of mind we wish to see others released from."Where do you cling to unhappiness? Consider some situation in your life in which it seems impossible for you to be happy or at peace. What if you could be peaceful here? Would you? What thoughts arise to demand that you be unhappy about this situation? Close your eyes and imagine being calm, at peace, and quietly happy in (not about) this situation. Say gently to yourself, "I choose happiness for myself and all concerned. May peace prevail within our hearts."-- Hugh Prather, How to Live in the World and Still be Happy
Whenever you encounter stress or difficulties today, remind yourself, "I choose happiness for myself and all concerned. May peace prevail within our hearts."
Part of what keeps us from experiencing happiness in our lives, is the wish for something else. We think we want happiness and peace, but our mind is primarily occupied with wanting a new material object, a new look, a new relationship, a new job, a new place to live, or for some other change in our external world. Often, we wish that somebody would be different than they are. Sometimes, we want ourselves to be somebody we're not. All this "wanting" distracts us from our deepest desire to be happy, and keeps us from focusing on what we need to get there. For five minutes at the beginning of your day, sit quietly in a quiet place. Spend the first two minutes reviewing all the things you think you want, and acknowledge this clearly and silently to yourself: " I think I want ______ (a new job, an new relationship, my spouse to be different, a new car, etc, etc)." Then spend the remainder of your time trying to feel the truth in this simple statement, repeated slowly and thoughtfully: "Above all else, I want to be happy."
Once an hour throughout the day, remind yourself : "Above all else, I want to be happy."
The "Heart" may be thought of as that conceptual place inside us that is perfectly connected to the true Source of Love. As such, we may look to it to discover, uncover, and recover our deepest desire. For five minutes at the beginning of your day, sit quietly. Place your hands over your heart. Think of something you want. It's not important what it is whatever it is, it's a suitable starting place for the exercise. Then say silently to yourself: "I think I want (name it) , but my Heart knows better. Perhaps, I more deeply desire (let something come up in your mind) " Now, repeat the exercise, using the desire you just uncovered: "I think I want (name it) , but my Heart knows better. Perhaps, I more deeply desire (let something else come up in your mind) " Give your mind the opportunity to go deeper and deeper toward your Heart's deepest desire. Perhaps you will reach it, perhaps not, but you will move closer to it. At the end of your quiet time, say five times, slowly: "The Source of Love is within me; my Heart will lead me to happiness."
Throughout the day, whenever you find yourself ruled by trivial desires, remind yourself, "The Source of Love is within me; my Heart will lead me to happiness."
Consider the following quotation:
"There are alternative responses to pain other than resistant reactivity. We can cease resisting and begin to open; we can introduce some space between the pain and our reaction. Whether the pain is physical or psychological, the fist that is tightened around it can loosen. As we gently open, acknowledge and allow our pain, the suffering diminishes. If we let ourselves enter into the pain, we can see the possibility of going beyond it to where the heart is freer. We've never been so vulnerable, so defenseless, and yet somehow so safe. As understanding of our own suffering deepens, we become available at deeper levels to those we care for."Let yourself be aware of some person, incident, or situation where you can feel the tight fist of judgment wrapped securely around your perceptions. Where do you feel the tension of judgment in your body? Locate any point of discomfort and ask yourself if this is where you are holding on. Perhaps your stomach knots up; maybe your chest feels tight, or your shoulders tense, or our jaw is clenched. Imagine this discomfort or tension like a clenched fist.-- Ram Dass & Paul Gorman, How Can I Help?
Now imagine that this clenched fist begins to loosen. We are not going to try to change our thoughts or feelings; we are not going to try to figure this one out. We are simply trying to allow what is, to be there, and to begin to relax the tightness we feel in our bodies. Realize that this fist may be been tightly closed for a long time, and it may take some patience and loving attention to allow it to begin to loosen. Very slowly and gently, imagine the fingers uncurling, releasing their grip. With infinite tenderness allow the hand to relax, to open. Finally the fist has become an open hand; the palm is revealed. Within it sits our judgments. Let them float. Slowly let the hand fall away and let the judgments float in this open space of awareness. Allow whatever feelings arise, to do just that -- arise and float. Make even more room, opening that part of your body to great space. Let the space continue to enlarge; let everything float. This is all we will do today. Whenever we feel a tightness in our mind or body, we will imagine that fist, and begin to relax it, to let it open, to allow some space in which all things can exist. No resistance; no pushing away...just allowing, relaxing, and opening.
We all make decisions about our Life all the time. Often, these decisions are based on a complex network of judgments and desires, that we have woven out of our pleasant and unpleasant experiences from the past, and our firm belief that we must manipulate life in order to get what we want. In spite of this, Life continues to present opportunities for us to "choose once again". In fact, to "choose once again" may be our greatest personal power. Clearly, if our life is not filled with peace, and if we truly want to be happy, we must learn new ways to make choices. For five minutes at the beginning of your day, review the ways unhappiness comes into your life. Say silently, "Sometimes, I am unhappy about (name the situation) " , or "Sometimes, I am unhappy when (name what happens) " Dismiss any temptation to find a "reason" for the unhappiness. Dismiss also any temptation to analyze or make new judgments about the unhappy situation. After a few minutes of acknowledgment, place your hands over your heart, and affirm your willingness to choose differently, using this phrase, repeated again and again: "Life is Love's process, and worthy of my trust. I need do nothing but choose Love now."
Sometime midway in your day, sit quietly for two minutes, and remind yourself: "Life is Love's process, and worthy of my trust. I need do nothing but choose Love now."
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