Are Spirit Guides the same as Totems?

The Shaman by Temari

Introduction by Michael W. Clark, Ph.D. » skip intro »

A good percentage of schoolchildren are taught that reality is about things we can measure and easily describe.

This tendency to study the outside world has obvious advantages. Bridges get built, science develops and economies thrive.

But a downside to our extroverted approach is that some highly introverted people suffer by virtue of being different and perhaps misunderstood. Whether these people are mentally ill (as defined by psychiatry) or just round pegs unable to fit into square holes is a serious and complicated matter that I can’t fully address here.

Suffice it to say that only a few extraordinary introverts develop inner abilities such as those recounted here by Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls. And sadly enough, some inner voyagers end up like the tragic Greek mariners of old, passing too close to a Scylla or Charybdis, or seduced by the sirens and strewn across the rocks and shoals of their own splintered psyches.

You’ve likely seen them in public streets, laughing at phantoms one moment and, the next instant, vigorously cursing at the air. Of course, we can never know for sure if these people are really mad or just privy to something we don’t know about.

And then there are those who combine a strange numinous power with authoritarianism. This is another type of madness, equally as tragic, where the deranged megalomaniac tries to use unconventional powers to oppress, exploit, cheat and besmirch others.

Indeed, most cultivated people realize it’s a fine line between madness and mysticism, and many of the great mystics have, at times, questioned their own sanity.

Perhaps that very spirit of questioning marks off the sincere seeker from the madman or madwoman. Passive and aggressive mad persons often share one common element: They’re always right. At least, that’s what they’ll say and no amount of reasoned argument or moral plea will shake them from their disturbing intransigence.

Because the cosmovision¹ of the shaman is, for the most part, unrecognized or devalued in the 21st century, practicing shamans tend to be cautious about sharing their inner experiences. They probably don’t want to hoard knowledge for themselves but, rather, have learned that Jesus was right–it’s unwise to cast one’s pearls before swine.²

For that reason I initially hesitated to post this article by Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls at Earthpages. It digs deeper into esoteric realms than other pieces submitted by the Shaman. But hopefully this introduction will facilitate the kind of open-mindedness required to appreciate such a rare, first-hand account.

In closing, I should add one last introductory point about animals.

For the most part, human beings tend to denigrate animals as if they’re somehow less than us and not of God. This arguably is a kind of anthropocentric projection where we attribute to animals our own cognitive biases, opinions and experiential limitations.

By way of contrast, countless historical cultures have envisioned God as interceding through animals–indeed, through all of creation. One only has to think of the Indian Hanuman and Ganesha for well known examples. And even in the Biblical tradition, one often held accountable for mankind’s low estimation of animals, it was a dove that signaled Noah when to leave the ark and step ashore.

— MC July 9, 2009

Shaman's Dream by Bob G

Are Spirit Guides the same as Totems?

Copyright © Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls, 2009. All rights reserved

Spirit guides may or may not also be totem animals. I have a spirit guide who comes to me as a white pelican. I have an elephant who is strictly a totem and not a spirit guide.

A spirit guide is a teacher with something to teach you. A totem animal is often a protector, a mate to travel the Inner Worlds with who knows its way around and can get you in, to your destination and out again safely.

I can ride my elephant right into the Under World and he will stop at exactly the place I need to be to effect someone’s healing. When I have the healing I climb back on and he brings me right back. If anything untoward appears he can step on it with out effort and so he protects me completely. That is a totem animal.

Why an elephant? If you look up elephants you will see, Elephant: Royalty, strength, ancient wisdom, patience, careful, confident, education. No wonder I have an elephant as a totem. He represents me. Notice too that he is not a Native American animal. That means something, too.

Your totems choose you as you are aware. You meet a totem animal, usually in the Inner Planes but sometimes it is an animal you have a special affinity for or have seen a lot lately. I prefer to meet them on the Inner Planes in meditation or such because sometimes those animals you see a lot of in this world are bringing you a message and are not totems for you. It is easy to confuse the two.

Your totem animal can change during your life. As you grow and change your totem animals may change as well. You may have several totem animals at once. But one is a life totem and represents your basic self or personality, your essence.

Spirit guides are teachers. They come to guide you in your education. They teach you things. They may have lived other lives. They may be “ascended” beings. They may be the wind or Father Sky or a guardian angel. They may be your higher self. They may be God. You decide. They can be animals or plants or trees or people. Here is another wisdom nugget, everything has three emanations or faces or appearances. We do and plants do and animals do and everything does.

When I go into the Inner Worlds for a healing for someone, I encounter some being there who is responsible for the sickness. The first face it shows me is really goofy, odd or weird and I know that is not what it really is. So I dismiss that face and ask to see its true face.

The next face it shows if it is a not nice being is some ferocious, grizzly, nasty, scary being who tries to bite me or otherwise scare me. But I am not scared because I know that is not its true face. I may have to fend it off or punch it or step on it or catch it but I am not scared of it. I dismiss it and ask to see its true face for the third time.

The third time I see what it really is and if it is a not nice being it usually looks weak and small and very lacking in every department. This is the being I negotiate with.

So I know that everything has three faces. Another example is when I sit with a rock and it turns into a lily and then it becomes a butterfly and flies away. When I sit with a river and it becomes a meadow and then it is a bear walking away.

So my totem is an elephant, a white elephant and it does not change its face around me. Why? Because it represents me! It is one of my own faces! How cool! A totem is one of your own many faces. That is why some people call them “familiars”.

Can we have more than three faces? Yup! Some people have hundreds of faces. But everything has at least three. And usually the three represent a plant, an animal and a sky creature.

Your spirit guides will help teach you intent, emotional control, knowledge and impeccability if you allow them. Remember it is always your free will to learn or not to learn. But don’t travel to the Inner Worlds if you have not mastered the skills necessary to be safe there and to do your work there. And never go there just out of curiosity. There are too many discarnate beings waiting for you to come there unaware so they can get what they can get from you. They can be tricky and sly and even devious. Even one bee is enough to stay away from. It doesn’t take a pack of grizzly bears to kill you.

Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls has been a practicing Shaman for over 50 years. She recently received a dispensation to reach out to those who have a desire to learn about a Shaman’s path and now offers an online course at www.shamanelder.com. Many people on this earth have been Shamans in other lives and only need to reconnect with their lost knowledge and skills to bring shamanic healing back to Mother Earth and its peoples. This is Shaman Elder’s goal. Please visit her website at www.shamanelder.com or write her an email for a free consultation at shaman@shamanelder.com

Notes

¹ Cosmovision is a term used by David Carrasco and others to denote a worldview where cultural, environmental and spiritual elements exist in an integrated whole. Because cosmovision involves an intertwining of various modalities of space and time, it includes sentiments such as “tomorrow I will experience some of yesterday.”

² ”Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces” (Matthew 7:6)

FBI investigates time, mind warp in new TV series ‘Flash Forward’

Time on my hands by Temari

By Steve Hammons
May 13, 2009

A new TV series at ABC will explore human consciousness, weird physics and the mysteries of time.

“Flash Forward” is based on a 1999 novel by respected Canadian science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer.

Sawyer’s novel and the TV series seem to explore fascinating topics that are actually being investigated by serious scientists and researchers.

The series begins on a seemingly average day when every human in the world has a blackout of some kind mixed with altered consciousness for two minutes and 17 seconds.

As a result, there is widespread loss of life, injury and damage.

In addition, during this strange event everyone seems to have had individual visions of their lives on a specific day several months into the future.

It turns out that some physicists were conducting experiments that warped time and human consciousness.

An FBI agent, played by Joseph Fiennes, is one of the people we see having the blackout-premonition flash. Later, he and other FBI agents investigate the phenomena.

FACT-BASED FICTION

Is it just a far-fetched sci-fi plot or is there a basis in current knowledge about a scenario like this?

Extrasensory perception (ESP), anomalous cognition, remote viewing and other phenomena associated with human perception and awareness have been investigated by credible scientists and found to be something other than science fiction.

The physics of time also seems to be a topic that is much more mysterious and uncertain than we generally believe.

When we combine some of the current investigations into unusual human consciousness and research about the nature of time, it becomes evident that “Flash Forward” is not so far-fetched after all.

Elements of U.S. intelligence community and military conducted decades of research and operational activities in Project STARGATE using unusual human consciousness approaches.

In these activities, certain personnel were able to use a specific technique called remote viewing to perceive people, places and things at a distance using only their consciousness.

These kinds of perceptions reportedly were not limited to the here and now, but could reach out into the past and future.

Another aspect of “Flash Forward” that has a basis in theories from psychology and physics is the idea that a common field or common consciousness, at some level, connects us all.

REAL MYSTERIES

There seems to be very rich material for this new series, based on real developments in scientific discovery.

In addition, there appears to be widespread recognition among the public, both nationally and internationally, that things like premonitions, the human sixth sense, anomalous cognition and ESP are actually real phenomena, although we don’t quite understand them completely.

This would seem to help provide a solid audience for “Flash Forward,” if the writers and actors can convey these concepts in ways that take viewers into a real investigation, like the one FBI agent Fiennes and his fellow actors portray.

When the first episode airs this fall, viewers will have a chance to explore and ponder these kinds of unusual aspects of human consciousness, time and the nature of reality.

In published reports, ABC’s Suzanne Patmore-Gibbs, executive vice-president of drama development, described the pilot episode this way: “Our FBI agent, played by Joseph Fiennes, appears to be in an FBI chase. You think he has a car crash. He has a flash of all sorts of things and he wakes up on the freeway and subsequently discovers that everybody else in the world has had a blackout that lasted the same amount of time. This resulted in a lot of devastation across the world.”

“Everybody talks about their flash and they realize they were all dreaming of the same day – which is a day in the future. You can identify with the different people and have that sense of global import – we’re all in it together …”

Yep, we probably are in it together. But what are we in? What is the true nature of human consciousness, time and the realities around us and within us? These remain evolving and emerging mysteries.

Other “Flash Forward” cast members include Sonya Walger, John Cho, Jack Davenport, Brian O’Byrne, Courtney B. Vance, Christine Woods, Zachary Knighton and Peyton List.

The show’s executive producers and writers are David Goyer and Brannon Braga.

ABC Studios has ordered 13 episodes. The series was developed at HBO, but after vigorous bidding with a competitor, ABC obtained the show.

Steve Hammons writes on many topics. For more information, visit these websites: Joint Recon Study Group, Transcendent TV & Media and American Chronicle.

Review – Archetype of the UFO (DVD)

Reality Films

The psychiatrist Carl Jung once said that UFOs might be real but a good portion of eyewitness accounts may also be psychological projections from the collective unconscious.

Jung was writing in the 1950s during a veritable UFO craze, a time when most UFOs were depicted as disc shaped flying saucers. So Jung felt that many UFO reports were projections of the archetypal mandala, an ancient Sanskrit word for “circle” with profound spiritual and cosmological connotations.

Archetype of the UFO clearly borrows from Jung. For Jung, the archetype points to the interface of genetic, cultural and spiritual aspects of the human self. And as an archetype of wholeness, the self is often portrayed as the center and circumference of a circle.

As Jung put it:

The self is not only the centre, but also the whole circumference which embraces both conscious and unconscious; it is the centre of this totality, just as the ego is the centre of consciousness (CW 12, par. 44).

Archetype of the UFO, however, isn’t just a wrap up of Jung’s views. Rather, it extends Jung’s theory to the world of contemporary UFO theory and evidence.

The DVD offers a penetrating and intelligent analysis of diverse metaphysical issues often passed over by lesser lights within the realm of ET, UFO and paranormal debates.

While emphasizing the possible misinterpretation of so-called ‘physical’ sightings, Archetype of the UFO concedes that in many instances there may be no difference between inner and outer ET and UFO encounters. That is, the very notions of reality and truth are questioned.

Most of the DVD features an interview with Nick Pope, a respected figure in UFO lore. Pope and interviewer Philip Gardiner probe deep and compel us to think for ourselves about ETs, UFOs, mysticism, YouTube videos, disinformation, acclimatization, social power and the role of individual interpretation.

Many say it’s time for a collective course correction to save our planet at the advent of the 21st century. If so, Archetype of the UFO should be standard-issue for every seeker on the brink of making exciting discoveries about self, society and the beyond.

–MC

Inner Peace Tip – Taking Responsibility..

Inner Peace by d0.0b / yop

by Catherine VanWetter

I don’t follow the news much these days, partly because I have been aware of how I am affected by all of the negative spin that has been put on what is happening globally. With that in mind, I have made a conscious choice to be very deliberate in what I do watch, learning to put everything into perspective.

My attention, however, has been caught with the recent death of Michael Jackson. I learned about his death through a friend and also saw coverage of it while working out at the gym I belong to. Day after day there has been something about Michael and the wonderings of what happened. I became curious as to how it was that so much attention was put onto his life and death. How is it that so many can die, yet there are a few who have the limelight put onto them after departing?

I happened to catch an interview of Deepak Chopra as he spoke of his long time relationship with Michael. The major point that he emphasized was that throughout Michael’s life those around him enabled him. That is, people took care of him and to some extent protected him from harm’s way.

What I was struck with by this comment was how, perhaps, as a nation we have been enabled by those around us to not be accountable or responsible for decisions or actions that we have made. I look at my own life and realize how I have relied on forces outside myself to keep me safe and to take care of me. When I allow myself, without judgment, to look at different aspects of my life, I realize that in some areas, I have perhaps been taken care of too much.

As a nation, many of us have lived in a pseudo wealth mentality thinking that it bought us happiness. Having easy access to whatever we have wanted to purchase or what we thought would bring us fulfillment. In the past, it was easy to get multiple credit cards and spend money that perhaps we didn’t have.

Now that the paradigm or reality of over-consumerism is cracking, folks who have been used to having so much, are finding that they are having to cut back. What was so easily purchased or obtained is now not as readily available. As a result, many folks are experiencing fear that their needs will not be met or that they will be able to take care of themselves.

What if, what we are looking for, is slumbering quietly within us? That it isn’t out there, it is inside of us.

What does that mean? It means that what we may have been illusively searching for, that thing out there to make us happy, is only a temporary fix to a feeling of emptiness within. Perhaps looking within to what we really want is what we are all being called to explore.

I can recall countless times that if I misplaced something, I simply went out and bought another one. Now, I have the acute awareness to be grateful for what I have taken for granted in the past. As a result, I look around my surroundings and notice how truly blessed I have been over the years with everything that I been given. Noticing this, I am releasing that which no longer serves me and finding that life is becoming less complex and fulfilling.

I am reminded of people in other countries who, according to our Western standards, have nothing compared with what we have. Yet, they are the ones who seem the happiest with what they do have. They enjoy the simple pleasures of being with family and friends. Of being grateful for the water they drink and the fruit from which they harvest.

Somehow many within the US have forgotten these simple pleasures. In the big pictures, perhaps we are all being reminded of what truly fill our hearts from the inside out.

Catherine VanWetter is a Holistic Family Healing Practitioner trained in a variety of healing techniques that help people find Inner Peace Through Generational Family Healing. She invites you to be gentle, compassionate, and courageous as you put down your weapon of choice and step into a field of Grace.

Catherine invites you to a complimentary copy of her Morning Meditation, Welcoming A New Day, http://www.ToTheHeartOfTheMatter.com.

Additional information on this and similar topics are available at Catherine’s website, blog and radio program “Inspirations of the Heart”. All may be found at http://www.ToTheHeartOfTheMatter.com.

Connect with Catherine: Twitter: @SouloftheHeart Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/catherinevanwetter

Related Articles – Holistic Family Healing, Soul of the heart, family healing, Generational Family Healing Inner Peace, finding peace, world peace

Source: amazines.com

Alchemy, Egypt and Shamanism

Copyright © Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls, 2009. All rights reserved.

In alchemy, or the changing of one substance into another, there are seven steps.

1. Calcination – the heating of a substance in a crucible over an open flame until it is reduced to ashes.

In Shamanism we have calcination as the destruction of our ego and our attachments to the physical world. We take the challenges and experiences of life and learn humbleness as we ignite the fire of self introspection and burn away those elements that never worked for us anyway.

The fire of Calcination tunes the body, burns off excesses from overindulgence and creates a lean mean fighting machine. First chakra, Fire, Red.

2. Dissolution – it is the dissolving of the ashes from Calcination in water. In Shamanism is is a further breaking down of the artifical beliefs we have been given or have adopted by opening the floodgates of new energy and new concepts, new beliefs and ideas, allowing new energy to enter our systems. Dissolution can be felt as the bliss of being well used and actively engaged in creative acts without traditional prejudices, personal hangups or established hierarchy getting the way.

It is the opening up of the kundalini channels in the body to elevate every cell, second chakra, water, blue.

3. Separation – it is the isolation of the components of dissolution by filtration and removing any unworthy material.

In Shamanism this is the rediscovery of our essence and the reclaiming of dreams and visions previously rejected by imposed beliefs that this was somehow irrational. Separation is letting go of self inflicted restraints and allowing our true selves and our true experiences to shine through. Separation is controlling the inflow and the outflow, the body and the breath to give birth to new energy. Third chakra, air, orange red.

4. Conjunction – it is the recombination of the saved elements from Separation into a new substance.

In Shamanism it is the empowerment of our true selves. Walking with one foot in this world and one foot in the Inner worlds, finding ourselves in a new belief system or causal consciousness. Alchemists call this the Lesser Stone and with it the adept is able to clearly discern what needs to be done to achieve union with the Overself. Often synchronicities begin to occur showing that the path is correct. Using the body’s sexual energies for personal transformation takes place in the heart. Earth, Green, hearth chakra.

5. Fermentation – is a two stepped process that begins with the Putrefication of the “child” from the Conjunction resulting in its death and resurrection to a new level of being. In alchemy it is the growth of a ferment, (bacteria) in organic solutions such as fermenting milk to make cheese.

Egyptian alchemists created a drink called “Liquor Hepatitis” which means Liquor of the Liver. They beieved the liver was the seat of the soul. It exudes a wonderful fragrance and the alchemists made a perfume of it called “Balsam of the Soul”.

In Shamanism the fermentation process starts with the inspiration of spiritual power from Above that re-animates, energizes and enlightens the seeker. Out of the blackness of putrefication comes the yellow ferment, the golden wax flowing out of the foul matter of the soul. Its arrival is seen as a display of bright color and meaningful vision called the “Peacock’s tail”. Fermentation can be achieved through impeccability, through practice, experience with awareness. Fermentation is living inspirations from something totally beyond us and yet deep within us. Fermentation is the rousing of chi, living energy, in the body to heal and unify. It is expressed as vibratory tones and spoken truths through the fourth chakra the throat, It is the base of mystical awareness. Throat chakra, sulfur, turquoise.

6. Distillation – the boiling and condensation of the fermented solution to increase it purity, such as the distilling of wine to make brandy.

In Shamanism it is the agitation and sublimation of psychic forces that is necessary to ensure that no impurities from the ego or id, no valueless beliefs are incorporated into the next and final stage. It is using introspection to weed out any last misbeliefs, any preconceived notions, any persevering thoughtforms that are not for you. It is raising the content of your psyche to the highest level possible, from sentimentality, totally in control of your lower bodies, free from their controlling you, cut off even from one’s own personality or personal identity. It is the purification of the unborn self – all that we truly are and can be. It is raising the life force from the body into the brain, known by Oriental Alchemists as the “Circulation of Light” where it eventually becomes a solidifying light full of power. Distillation is said to culminate in the Third Eye Chakra. Mercury, deep blue.

7. Coagulation – the precipitation or sublimation of the purified ferment from distillation. Alchemists called this final product, “Powder of the Sun”.

In Shamanism, coagulation is first sensed as a new confidence that is beyond all things, a Second body, an oversoul, a permanent vehicle of consciousness that embodies the highest aspirations and evolution of mind. Coagulation incarnates and releases the Ultima Materia of the soul. The alchemists referred to this as the Philosopher’s Stone. Using this stone, alchemists believed they could exist on all levels of reality. Could this be your atmic self?

In Shamanism it is the release of intentions for healing into your body, brain and psyche. And yet it is more than intention, it is like a brain ambrosia or heavenly food that nourishes and energizes the cells without any waste products being produced. It is both physiological and psychological as a process that creates the Atmic body which emerges through the Crown or gold Chakra. It is the living wisdom in which everyone exists with the same light of evolved consciousness and knowledge of the truth. It is the return to the Garden of Eden.

According to the Emerald Tablet, “Thus you will obtain the Glory of the Whole Universe. All Obscurity will be clear to you. This is the greatest force of all powers, because it overcomes every subtle thing and penetrates every solid thing.” Crown chakra, salt, violet.

Write me your thoughts on alchemy and Shamanism. How do they correlate to the system of chakras as you know it? How is it that the Emerald Tablets, written over 3,500 years ago show us the same things Shamanism does? Is that just a coincidence? Can your atmic self be realized in this lifetime? What is required before you can reach your atmic self?

*****

http://www.shamanelder.com
Copyright 2008 Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls.
Write me at shaman@shamanelder.com

Re-member the old ways with a Shaman Elder. Shaman Elder Maggie Wahls offers an introductory course starting with the history of Shamanism around the world. We learn about healing herbs, finding your totem, what Shamanic ecstasy is and how to achieve it without drugs, how to meditate and many actual visualizations to help improve one’s skills. You will build a medicine wheel, meet your totem animals and spirit guides, create a place for visions, learn to interpret your dreams, learn ceremonies for celebration and healing and so much more!

The Healing Power of Love and Good Relationships

Photo credit: TimOve

Author: Roseanna Leaton

You know what it feels like when love is first blossoming; you find that it is almost impossible to not smile, you feel as if you are walking on air and you wake up early each day feeling fantastic. To be in love feels good. Having close relationships and intimate ties to other human beings is not only good for our mental and emotional health; it is also good for our physical health as well.

This is a fact which nobody can deny; there is too much evidence which proves the point. There have been many different types of studies conducted, in communities all over the world which indicate the healing powers of love and friendship.

One study which is often cited relates to the town of Roseto in Pennsylvania, which was up until relatively recently inhabited by immigrants from a small town in Southern Italy. This community of Italian-Americans in Roseto remained very close in terms of family ties and traditions, maintaining their cultural values and religious beliefs through several generations. The inhabitants of this small town experienced significantly less heart disease than in either of the two similar sized neighboring tons. They also lived significantly longer.

When scientists began researching the Roseto phenomenon they could not find anything significantly different in terms of diet, exercise or work which could account for this community’s good health. The only thing which was different was their social cohesion and supportiveness. Researchers began to suspect that it was Roseto’s stable structure which could have protected the inhabitants from heart disease and also led to longevity.

These suspicions turned out to be well-founded, as was evidenced by the dramatic increase in heart disease in the 1960’s and 1970’s as the previously close and cohesive community began to fragment and become more isolated. Many different studies have ensued and each supports the basic belief that when we feel isolated or unsupported, our health is endangered. By contrast, when we are involved either in an intimate and loving relationship, or in a supportive community our health tends to be a whole lot better.

The thing to bear in mind is that it does not matter what type of supportive relationship you are involved in, so long as it provides you with a feeling of being cared for. For some people their religion is what provides them with this feeling, this perception of being part of something bigger and being cared for as an integral part of that community. For some this may take the form of going to church and being an active part of a church group; for others it may be a perception of our spiritual nature which provides a feeling of cohesion and connectedness.

Everyone is different in how they perceive their world and a major key to good health is to feel cohesion and connectedness. Many people may on the face of things live a life with lots of support, family and friends around them, but they might still feel a sense of isolation, and this feeling is one of the strongest predictors of heart disease. It is a matter instinctive importance to the human soul to feel supported as opposed to isolated. Yet it is not what is happening around you that matters so much as how you feel about it. One person may be alone, bur feel spiritually connected, whilst another could be surrounded by many and still feel alone.

I am reminded of a quote by Viktor Frankl which loosely runs along the lines of “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing; his ability to choose his thoughts in any set of circumstances”. This quote is very empowering. This gentleman very elegantly describes how we do in fact choose our thoughts and it follows that we can change our thoughts should we wish to do so. If for any reason you are feeling isolated or alone, you can change this feeling. It may take a little effort on your part, but never the less, you can change how you feel, and you will find that hypnosis mp3 downloads are very helpful in your desire to feel a greater sense of well-being.

This is a huge topic and I am only scratching the surface here. The risk factors predicted by a sense of isolation do not just relate to heart disease and an earlier death. The whole spectrum of disease comes into play.

In a community where social cohesion has been left behind, it is important to seek new ways in which to provide yourself with a feeling of togetherness and support, to encourage the belief and understanding that you are not alone. A journey into spirituality may be just what you need.

Roseanna Leaton, specialist in hypnosis mp3 downloads for health and well-being.

About the Author:

With a degree in psychology and qualifications in hypnotherapy, NLP and sports psychology, Roseanna Leaton is one of the leading practitioners of self-improvement. You can get a free hypnosis download from http://www.RoseannaLeaton.com and peruse her extensive library of hypnosis downloads for hypnosis empowerment.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – The Healing Power of Love and Good Relationships

Review: Reality UFO Series Volume 2 (DVD)

Reality Films

Reality UFO Series Volume 2 takes the viewer into the strange world of UFOs and extraterrestrial intelligences, probing deep into largely unexamined mysteries of the body, mind and beyond.

This film features four speakers.

First, Dr. Richard Boylan talks at length about the Star Kids, those supremely gifted children said to have a host of paranormal powers at their disposal.

Dr. Boylan comes across as a pleasant, sincere individual who’s merely saying it like it is. During his presentation he recites e-mail correspondences with a mother of a Star Kid, whose incredible stories will make even the most open-minded investigators rethink human potential and what, in fact, it means to be human.

Boylan also presents an alternative history of the human race, suggesting that we’re being monitored by well-intentioned and compassionate ETs whose only goal is to get things right in the universe.

His premise is that all intelligent life is intricately connected, making our Earthly actions perceptible to the far reaches of the cosmos. No wonder, then, he claims we’re being watched.

To illustrate this idea he sets up an analogy: Just as developed countries are concerned about violent activity in unstable global regions, Boylan says ETs are keeping an eye on us—especially since we’ve learned how to harness the power of the atom.

Next, Freddy Silva talks about crop circles and their transhuman possibilities. Silva is a well known expert who left everything to immerse himself in the study of the circles. He believes their odd but beautifully symmetrical designs are cosmic signs and perhaps sentinels beckoning us to respond to our inherent spirituality and greater purpose within the expanded multiverse.

Reality Films

After that, Peter Khoury gives a detailed and highly personal first hand account of his unconventional experiences, including an encounter with a female ET, one tinged with erotic elements.

Khoury’s candid presentation adds to his credibility. He seems like a regular guy who didn’t ask for what happened to him. Essentially, he tells of a series of UFO-related and possible abduction experiences beginning when he was 6 and a half years old.

Finally, Keith Basterfield lectures on links between UFO encounters and psi abilities. Competently covering the area, Basterfield recounts the main trends and figures through 1975 to 1999. Like all the other presenters in this film, he gives the impression of a well-rounded individual with feet planted firmly on the ground.

Altogether, Reality UFO Series Volume 2 provides comprehensive coverage of documented cases and leading theories about UFOs, ETs and the paranormal, the respective talents of the four presenters serving up a good blend of anecdotes and reported evidence.

Unlike other Reality Films, this production doesn’t use flashy graphics. But those wanting to settle in for several hours to get the facts should come away feeling like experts in the field.

–MC

Space interest, activities span NASA to UFOs

Image credit: Markus Ram

By Steve Hammons
June 25, 2009

When we think about space travel and activities in space, two general categories may come to mind: the conventional and unconventional.

In some ways, these two categories seem to overlap when it comes to certain scientific studies and speculation.

In the conventional category, we often first think of NASA – the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

A long series of NASA projects and endeavors over the decades has been followed closely by many Americans and people around the world.

Private companies with communications satellites in Earth orbit also come to mind when talking about conventional space activities. And now, some companies are involved in Earth-to-orbit space planes, orbiting space stations or habitats and a variety of other commercial and scientific space activities.

Unconventional space-related ideas and discussions may include theories about UFOs and intelligent visitors from other worlds.

There is also speculation that secret U.S. space activities might be much more advanced than what appears on the surface in NASA missions.

COMMON DENOMINATORS

What are useful and constructive ways to reconcile and integrate the conventional and unconventional elements of our perceptions about, and the realities of space-related operations?

It is probably fundamental to accept the fact that there are U.S. space activities that are secret and will remain secret. It is likely that many advanced technologies, aircraft and spacecraft have been developed and these will remain classified.

The idea that the U.S. might have advanced aircraft and spacecraft is not much of a stretch. In fact, if we see a UFO, it might be one of ours.

When we take this a step further in a certain direction – such as ideas about the integration of extraterrestrial technology and knowledge in secret space programs – we seem to be firmly on the unconventional wavelength and really thinking outside the box.

It may be helpful to remember that even without advanced knowledge from exotic visitors, our own human scientific knowledge, including in the aerospace field, is most likely decades ahead of where the general public thinks it is.

Advanced technologies and knowledge might be common denominators that link speculation about things like UFOs and advanced secret U.S. space activities with more conventional space projects.

These kinds of discussions touch on issues such as anti-gravity technologies and exotic methods of space travel and propulsion.

Further ideas from the unconventional realm include theories about multiple dimensions and a multiverse around us, as well as mysterious energies and forces that we do not understand.

Our scientific understanding about gravity, dark energy, wormholes, zero point energy and similar phenomena appears to be making progress, but is still quite incomplete.

Investigations into these areas of study also seem to straddle the conventional and unconventional in certain ways.

NEW ENDEAVORS

The emergence of commercial space enterprises by private companies is sure to add exciting and innovative new aspects to our perceptions about space.

One day soon we may be able to buy a ticket to depart from a commercial spaceport on a space plane that will take us into that magical area where Earth’s atmosphere merges with space.
In addition, scientists and others may be able to stay aboard commercial space stations or habitats in Earth’s orbit for weeks or months.

The evolution of these and similar efforts will likely provide valuable spin-off benefits for many aspects of our technological and economic development.

Diverse kinds of space activities by governments and private industry will probably yield all sorts of new knowledge, some of which we might have difficulty wrapping our minds around.

Some of this new understanding might have to do with the human race, human consciousness and the human condition on Earth.

Other knowledge might be gained about the possibility of intelligent civilizations from elsewhere in our galaxy or even further away.

Or, we may learn about surprising phenomena and realities very close to home.

Steve Hammons writes on many topics. For more information, visit these websites: Joint Recon Study Group, Transcendent TV & Media and American Chronicle.

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Review – Ancient Code: The Movie (DVD)

Reality Films

First we had The Bible Code, then The Da Vinci Code and now Ancient Code: The Movie.

Skeptics who haven’t seen this film might hastily dismiss it as a jump on the bandwagon, the word “code” having a good pretty track record for New Age marketing.

But this movie speaks to a code far deeper than mere opportunism and the writers, artists and thinkers involved in its production are passionate about their beliefs.

The film revolves around several themes found in other Reality Films, such as the divinity of nature and interconnection of all life by virtue of the concept that, at bottom, we’re nothing more than nested patterns of light and dark energy.

It’s a compelling position, one prefigured by Baruch Spinoza’s naturalistic pantheism and later nuanced by the likes of C. G. Jung and Carl Sagan to portray spirituality as the human response to a numinous power that isn’t out there but, instead, exists inside oneself.

Even if one doesn’t entirely agree with this view – and some do not – those open to learning will find a variety of stimulating ideas that some traditional religious and scientific frameworks may overlook or, at least, underemphasize.

By way of example, Ancient Code questions the entire notion of progress, not denying that humanity has made great technological strides but asking if we’ve really developed as a sentient species located within the greater cosmos.

Excessive Western greed, individualism and cultural fragmentation are also addressed, in contrast to more holistic Eastern paradigms sharing a deep appreciation of the old rule–for every action there’s a reaction.

Observations on the roots of crime, a live pagan Horn Dance and a psychological interpretation of the Grail Quest make this DVD a veritable smorgasbord of alternative perspectives about the essential connection and need for balance among body, mind and spirit.

–MC

Spiritual Enlightenment and the Use of Affirmations

Image credit: Cornelia Kopp

Author: Evette Gardner

Affirmations form the basis of our perceptions. They are defined as the things we state to be true. But notice how there’s nothing in this definition which claims that an affirmation must, in reality, be true.

Affirmations are merely declarations of truth, but these declarations can be any degree of true or false. Nothing shows up in your life experience which you have not invited into it by affirming it. And you affirm any statement, whether based on an essential truth or an essential lie, into your life experience which you accept as true and real regardless of whether or not it is actually true and real. Acceptance is a prerequisite to demonstration. What you accept you manifest. The legitimacy of the affirmative statement itself is irrelevant; and (while we are on the subject of irrelevance) so are the words. I know this may sound counterintuitive but just as affirmations have nothing whatsoever to do with Reality, affirmations are not really about words. Words are merely symbolic of something deeper. It’s the feeling evoked by the words used in an affirmation which reveal what’s really being asserted.

A statement may on its face seem positive, even though it may actually be interpreted negatively by the one stating it. For example, I am beautiful seems like a positive enough statement. But what if in stating I am beautiful you believe your beauty to be based solely on your looks and so you become obsessed with keeping up physical appearances. I am beautiful can be interpreted in any number of ways, just as any statement can. That’s why it’s not the words of an affirmation that matter, but the way the words are understood by the person stating them. The real story of an affirmation is revealed through your emotions. For an affirmation to be constructive, the emotions inspired by the affirmation must be positive. And even more than that (as previously stated) in order for an affirmation to actually be demonstrated in your physical experience, you have to accept whatever idea you are affirming in your thoughts to be absolutely credible and true; because any idea which you deem to be incredible at the point of contemplation has no chance of developing beyond a mere mental musing. You can go around making all the declarations you want, this is not what brings thoughts into fruition. It is your belief in your thoughts which create your reality. This is the basic lesson of the law of attraction. “All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” – Matthew 21:22. Only what you accept as true (whether it is really true or not) can become a part of your actual experience.

Acceptance (as it is used here) means to let be; to receive just as it is offered; to not merely be tolerant of whatever is before you, but to be completely objective and impartial about it. Acceptance means to receive without conditions. Until you can truly say about something or someone, “no matter what, I receive you just as you are,” then you are not truly accepting of whatever or whomever that something or someone is. The problem many of us have is that we too often choose to receive (just as it is) affirmations which are empty and unsatisfying to us. We are too often accepting of perceptions which make us feel bad, and are way too quick to be dismissive of perceptions which make us feel good. We deem the good feeling perceptions to be incredible and the bad feeling perceptions to be the way reality is. And because we have accepted that which we do not want and doubted that which we do, what we affirm into our life experience is that which we do not want even as we deny that which we do want from occurring. Is it really any wonder then why we so often feel frustrated and dissatisfied with life?

You must be diligent about only affirming those perceptions which will bring about the most joy in your life experience. How do you know which affirmations will accomplish this best? Don’t focus so much on the words you are reciting in an affirmation, but the feeling you get when you recite them. Always remember, it is your emotions which reveal the real story of an affirmation. If you are entertaining a perception which feels good to you in imagination, this is a perception which will feel good to you in actual practice (just as the contrary is also true). And the only thing you need to do to actually demonstrate that perception is to give yourself over to it. Accept it. That’s it! It doesn’t matter how often you repeat an affirmation, repetition will not lead to fruition. Only acceptance can do this. You could declare a thing one time, and as long as you then accept the declaration you just made it will instantly be demonstrated. The only power inherent in repeating an affirmation is the power of persuasion. The only reason an affirmation ever needs to be repeated is because you are still trying to convince yourself to let go of the doubt which is hindering your ability to demonstrate it.

The real scarcely recognized secret? We are different expressions of the same identity. And there is unlimited greatness within each and every one of the infinite expressions of The One. The deliberate use of affirmations is merely one tool we may use in order to realize this Truth. The point of it all is to get you to first imagine and then accept something greater, something more wonderful than what you have up to this moment allowed of yourself until finally you are able to appreciate the boundless magnificence of All.

You must not be afraid to feel joy – know that you are deserving of it. You must not be suspicious of what, at the point of contemplation, feels good (or rather too good to be true). Know that the very basis of Reality is All good. So go ahead… Affirm your way to this realization.

About the Author:

Evette Gardner is the author of the self realization / advaita ebook Divine Heritage. She currently resides in Boston, Massachusetts. You can read more of her articles on her web site and blog.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Spiritual Enlightenment and the Use of Affirmations