thought gardening

Interest rates are low. But credit is unavailable. Companies are eliminating operating costs by slashing jobs. Meanwhile, your rent/mortgage and other bills remain constant.

Set your fears aside. Money is still flowing. People still need things. They just won't be thinking they need the same things. Companies like Walmart and Campbell's Soup do well in times like these because families are re-prioritizing their incomes and buying low-cost items. The jobless need new jobs so resume writers can help jobseekers look their best on paper.

What will you do?

Decide to live your ideal life. Then decide what actions will provide you with the means to express your ideal life.

Be relentless. Never give up.

Anatomy Of A Resolution
by Rebbie Straubing

 


There are few things more enjoyable than a clean slate. When you sit to write your new year’s resolutions, all past indiscretions get the go-ahead to pale, diminish and fade from view. You peer into your intention like a child approaching a telescope. Nothing in this room matters. You turn the crosshairs of your attention to what is out there in the distance waiting to be discovered. What is it that you see?


Scale. If things have been going smoothly for you, broad new goals may “dance like sugarplums” calling you toward them. Your dreams may be big, ambitious, adventurous, tantalizing.


If you have been steeped in struggle – physical, emotional or financial – your dreams may be modest and small. You may look into yourself and find only the slightest belief in a next baby step.


Do you dream big or do you dream small? Some will encourage you to dream big. Others will judge those who dare to dream big.


Some will encourage you to be humble. Others will criticize those with “no drive.” If you are trying to please others, you will distort your desires and sabotage your joy.


When considering the scale of your resolutions, the first thing to do is to lead everyone and their opinions out the door. Sit with yourself free from judgments and feel for just the right desire. It’s the one that lights you up when you think of it. If you start to feel overwhelmed and pressured by your resolution, you went too big. If you fall asleep with your pen in your hand, you went too small.


Direction. A goal or resolution can point in infinite directions but all these directions boil down to two categories: inward and outward. Be sure to notice which direction your goals are calling you. If after you’ve written out your declaration, you find yourself looking at a shopping list of outer accomplishments, ask yourself this question: What inner qualities can I cultivate to nourish these goals? Then put those on your list.


If your list of resolutions ends up looking like a catalog of vague inner states (your goals are to be happy, to know yourself better, inner peace, etc.) see if there are any outer forms you would like to experience as the expression of those qualities. Keeping some balance between inner and outer goals moves you forward. They nourish each other’s fulfillment and by taking the extra time to balance out your list, you’ll always have a soothing intention to return to no matter your mood.


Essence. Looking into the essence of your resolution tells you what you truly desire. As you become familiar with your desire’s unworded essence, all the stories drop away and you instantly receive the feeling you were asking for. By feeling this essence purely and often, the resolution will manifest quickly.


Texture. We don’t often think of goals having a texture but if you look into the fabric of your desire, you will find a variety of coarse and smooth, simple and complex goals. As you think of them, some will feel like velvet while others feel like sandpaper.


If a goal feels uncomfortably scratchy, this is a good time (before it manifests) to smooth it out by tweaking its scale and direction. This is also the time to double check that you truly desire what is at its essence.


Breadcrumbs. Once your spirit has blazed a trail through the unlived future, marking out the accomplishments you desire, now you can joyfully follow its track on your human legs. Watch for its trail of breadcrumbs in sweet moments letting you know you are still on the path. Watch for the signposts and indicators that tell you to stay cheerful. They come as moments of inner knowing and involuntary smiles.


By feeling your way through this process, customizing the scale, direction and essence of your resolutions, you vastly increase your likelihood of fulfillment. The more closely you can articulate the aspirations that match your inner truth, the more swiftly you glide toward their manifestation. In this way your list of resolutions and goals morphs into your day-to-day reality.

Going Supernova
By Colleen-Joy Page

One of the most violently destructive cosmic events is the death of a star. When a star goes supernova it first collapses in on itself and then explodes, casting its torn body into the void of space. I'm sure that most of us can identify with life experiences that feel like supernovas - spectacular in their destructive impact. When an aspect of your life goes supernova it is a dying experience, but there is nothing graceful about the death. We feel as if we have been scattered to the void, lost entirely to a moment of destruction and pain.

The stars have guided ancient mariners, inspired great poets, dazzled lovers and comforted lonely hearts. But it is the supernova, the death of a star, which carries a very special insight for us. At first we may consider the death of a star to be a tragic event, but when we look deeper, we see that within every supernova is an opportunity.

Every cell in your body, every known planet and galaxy, your entire physical existence is there because of stars that have given their lives to the universe. What looks at first to be one of the universe's most violent and tragic events - the death of a star - is in fact the most creative act imaginable. Through dying, stars seed life. Death is the creative force behind the existence of the entire universe.

Stars create the elements for life - they are creation factories. It is through their violent deaths that they literally seed creation. With their last breath, they give their blood to the universe and the shattered stars offer the elements needed to build planets, galaxies and universes. What can your life's supernovas seed? What creative acts can the pain and destruction in your life begin? What is being born in the heart of that which has died in your life?

The Cosmos can be studied as pure empty theory, or it can be used to inspire and expand our sense of who we are in the greater scheme of things. Allow yourself to be inspired and to experience the grandeur of the universe around and within you.

It seems as if creation and destruction are truly sides to the same coin, a polarity that is inescapable in the physical universe. And even as too much yin becomes yang, destruction life experiences can provide the fuel to begin the creation of great things - not the least of which is a greater version of who you are.

Who hasn't been touched by pain and tragedy? Thinking that pain only comes to a few people is naïve. Thinking that pain only comes to people who have something to learn or who have done something wrong is misguided. Pain and destruction are as much a part of life as birth and beauty are. Even our entry into this world is a painful one - there is nothing pretty or pleasurable about being born. Our first initiation into this world is an initiation of blood, shock and pain. Many deaths are less traumatic to the human body than a natural birth.

Those who deny their mortality and pretend that life goes on forever never really take life with both hands to truly live. And those that face death and equal themselves to it really engage in the experience of life, living it consciously and to the full. Imagining that pain is a universal punishment and pleasure a reward is a conditioned idea that leads to judgment and a life of fear. Souls know the risks when they incarnate, they understand how hard it is to be on earth. Souls know that pain and death are not punishments just as pleasure is not an earthly reward. Souls know that pain is a part of the earth experience. Yes we do learn while here - but not because we have to pass some kind of spiritual graduation. We learn because we are creatures of learning, we absorb, gather wisdom and empathy wherever we go and through every experience.

After surviving an armed robbery and only months later having the same friend who stood by my side during that robbery be shot and nearly killed in a 2nd robbery - eventually losing his leg to the experience, I was asked by many what the significance of the events were. "What were we supposed to learn?" I was asked. Along with, "How could such awful things happen to such kind and spiritual people?"

A part of my healing involved going to my higher wisdom for understanding. The simple concepts that I unearthed became anchors in the storm. Firstly I understood that I had lived through another life supernova - the supernova did not come to teach me, but if I wanted to take learning from the experience I could. Secondly and most importantly was a simple series of questions that deepened my understanding of the courage and honor of souls. The questions were:

"Do you have any idea how much courage it takes to be physical? Do you have any idea who you must be as a soul, how incredible you and all souls are that you know that you had what it took to survive the inevitable supernovas of life on earth? Who must you be as a being that you knew before incarnating that you were EQUAL to these experiences?"

Who are you as a soul that you knew you could stand as an equal to the magnitude of life's pain? Cry, grieve and let yourself honour your pain and suffering, but when you are ready - look deeper into the essence of who you are. You are a being of great honor and dignity. Wear your earth scars proudly - be they emotional or physical - for they are the result of walking the earth as a warrior spirit. They are marks of your life's supernovas.

When you witness your own or another's supernova, give great respect and homage to the souls who have the courage to bring such precious gifts of creative potential to the earth. How many incredible acts of creative power, the kind of power that changes entire collective mindsets - have occurred through destructive and traumatic experiences, through the supernovas of incarnated souls.

Instead of seeing pure pain and destruction look for the seeds of life, the seeds that can birth new. Love your body in its service to your soul - be tender with yourself and others. Let yourself grieve and feel - but know yourself as a dignified soul. Reach deeply into your heart to find the warrior spirit that you are - the soul that is equal to anything earth has to offer the human experience.

When destruction, pain or death (literal or symbolic) enters your life, say "My life has gone supernova!" and look for the potential to create anew.

3-D Gratitude
by Rebbie Straubing

If you’ve ever seen a school of fish swim right past your 3-D
goggles through the cool dry air of a movie theatre, you know the
impact of 3-D technology. It makes your moment more vivid. It
places you deep at the heart of things.

Adding a 3-D effect to your moments of gratitude can pop you right
into a wonderland of day-to-day life.

The 3 dimensions of gratitude function as a mantra that goes like this:
“I thank you. I thank Me. I thank God.”

Each segment of the formula serves a function. By feeling deeply into the meaning of
each statement, you can soak your senses in the richness of the 3-D present moment.

Thanking Others

“I thank you.” Here’s a commonplace phrase that finds itself tossed about mindlessly
on the waves of conversation. Sometimes it barely skims the surface of the deeper
issue. And yet, the words, “Thank you,” when spoken from the heart, satisfy a need in
the sender and touch the soul of the receiver. These words, when truly uttered and
openly received, birth a river of relationship that needs no further embellishment.

Structure: Thanking others gives us the first dimension of gratitude. It ranges from
thanking a stranger for picking up the pen you just dropped, to thanking the unknown,
unseen planners of your city for the convenience of your streets and sidewalks, to
thanking your mother for nurturing you through your infancy.
You can thank those you know and those you don’t for good things large and small.

Function: Practicing thanking others cultivates relationship. It heightens your sense of
interconnectedness with your world. It strengthens your awareness of the whole of
which you are a part.

Try This: Revise the words, “Thank you,” in your internal dictionary. Call upon these
words to establish deep awareness of how your spirit touches others and how the good
intentions of others stream energy into your experience.
Wake up every time you say, “Thank you.”
Say, “Thank you,” often.

Thanking Yourself

Here’s a less used phrase. Saying, “I thank me,” to yourself means, “I thank myself.”

Although you may not be in the habit of acknowledging your own efforts with gratitude,
it strengthens your energetic field when you do.

Structure: Thanking yourself gives you the second dimension of gratitude. It may take
the form of coming home tired and thanking yourself for having made your bed in the
morning. If you are a student and you create study sheets for yourself, you may want
to thank yourself when you prepare for an exam and your previous efforts speed up
your study process.

You can thank yourself for things you did, thoughts you pondered or any efforts you
made, this morning or during childhood, that benefit you in your now.

Function: Practicing thanking yourself cultivates centeredness. It expands your
energetic field and fortifies your spirit. It fosters independence.

Try This: Embrace the words, “I thank me,” as a new addition to your phrase
vocabulary. Call upon these words to deepen your roots and heighten your reach.
Close your eyes and say, “Thank you,” to yourself. Or say, “I thank me.”

Thanking God

If you spend all your time thanking others and yourself, you can paint yourself a pretty
good life, but it won’t pop into 3-D until you include the Infinite in your scheme of
appreciation. Nurturing a sense of awe deepens your capacity to authentically thank
God.

Then you thank God, you must consider who or what God is. Doing this, you realize
that God is impossible to comprehend. As you feel the incomprehensible nature of your
relationship with your Source, your own gratitude blankets you with the same divine
love for which you are grateful.

Structure: Thanking God shifts your gratitude into 3-D. It takes you from flat,
textureless tedium into grace.

You can thank God for anything and everything.

Function: Practicing thanking God cultivates your relationship with the Source from
which you flow. It relieves you from the burden of thinking you must control
circumstances. It inspires you to thoughts, words and deeds that harmonize with your
heart’s intention.

Try This: When your mantra takes you to the phrase, “I thank God,” release all tension
in your chest and abdomen. As you thank God for the blessings already apparent in
your life, open to allow in even more. Let your thanks act as a vortex through which
even more good can flow to you.

Release some tension, let go of some holding, open your spirit every time you say, “I
thank God.”

Now, as you walk through your life, even though you have no special 3-D glasses on,
your world will be deeper, lighter, richer and a much friendlier place. Walk with this
mantra: “I thank you, I thank me, I thank God.” You’ll live vividly at the heart of things.
© 2005 Rebbie Straubing

Practice: To focus on the culture of thoughts, ideas, impressions that you allow into your mind.

For a moment, imagine that the music you listen to, the television you watch, and the conversations you entertain, are food items that you chose to consume.

Does your mental diet serve your health and well being?Please think about it some more.
Is Fifty Cent an apple, a carrot, pork rinds?
Is the evening news a crisp salad of mixed greens and tomatoes, or a Coca-Cola?
What type of food is gossiping with friends?

Observe how you feel and how your thinking is affected by your mental diet choices. Be aware of that which you allow entrance into the mansion of your soul.

Transforming Anger
By Nikhil Gangoli

All of us feel anger and hatred from time to time. Eastern meditation and mindfulness techniques can help us manage and transform our anger so that the energy contained in the anger benefits us, instead of spreading misery to others and ourselves.
It is important to note that although anger causes us pain we should not reject it or disown it. Suppose your stomach or legs or some other part of your body grew diseased and caused you pain. Would you for that reason try to get rid of your stomach or your legs? Of course you would not. Anger can be transformed and the energy contained in it can be of much use to us. The story is told of Angulimala - a famous armed robber who had murdered 999 people. Yet a meeting with the Buddha changed him and transformed the anger within him. If a legendary criminal can transform his anger then surely so can we.
Think of your anger as a farmer would regard organic fertilizer. A farmer with garbage and organic waste knows that he can use it to grow nutritious fruits and vegetables. So also we can use the anger within us to grow spiritually and become awakened.
We can care for and transform our anger the way a mother cares for her baby - by practicing mindfulness whenever we are angry. The effect mindfulness has on anger can be compared with the way flowers respond to sunlight. At sunrise the rays from the sun reach the flower. The photons contained in the sun rays penetrate the flower. After 15 to 20 minutes the flower can no longer resist and she opens herself to the sun rays.
In a similar manner we need to practice mindfulness at all times and especially when we are angry. Observe the breath entering or leaving the body when you are angry. At the same time observe the anger within you without judging or condemning or rejecting it in any way. After some minutes the anger will open itself to you and fade away. The cause of the anger will be revealed and the energy contained in the anger will be available for your use.
Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese poet and Zen Buddhist master, says that we need to care for our anger the way a mother cares for her newborn baby. The mother may be cooking in the kitchen and yet the moment the baby cries out she immediately goes to see what is wrong. Because she is a skillful mother she soon finds out what is wrong - whether it is that the baby is hungry or the nappy is too tight or whatever may be the case.
In the same way, the moment we feel angry we need to care for it by practicing mindfulness. We can observe the breath. We can go out for a walk and make the act of walking our meditation practice. Observe the sensations in the feet as they land on the ground one after the other. At the same time observe your breath. You will soon know how many steps you take for each in breath and out breath. Walk in this mindful manner for 20 minutes to half an hour and your anger will open itself to you and be transformed.
Anger, left uncared for, spreads a lot of pain and misery not only in ourselves but also in others that we come in contact with. There is a natural tendency to lash out at others when we are angry and this has the result of spreading misery. If we practice transforming anger through mindfulness, we will not only be much happier and more peaceful ourselves but we can also care for others and share our happiness and peace. In this way our meditation practice will help in making the world a better place.
Thich Nhat Hanh has written a very insightful book on this subject - "Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames." Many effective ways of dealing with anger are explained.

Copyright © 2005 Nikhil GangoliFor more articles in this series and a free report on the connection between Quantum Physics and Eastern Philosophy visit eastern-philosophy-and-meditation.com. Find out why it makes scientific sense to practice these methods.

I am committed to posting material that will help myself and others cultivate useful thoughts in our minds and weed-out useless thoughts. What is classified as useful and useless all depends on your purpose and your destiny in life. Thoughts that are in alignment and encourage your purpose are useful. Thoughts that discourage your purpose and your destiny are useless.

We live in a cacophony of information. Fortunately our minds filter most of it out. What remains is the information our attention is capable of metabolizing. However making sure our attention and our purpose are aligned is key. And this blog has been created with that purpose in mind.

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