You Have to Walk the Path Yourself

As I continue to explore the expressions of spirituality online I am struck by the abundance of quotes, texts and written discourses. Many quotes I read provide something for us to contemplate. Yet, as Krishnamurti once said, 'most of us live as mere technicians.'  For all the technical understanding of how to live consciously, even when someone points the way, we must be the ones who make the journey.  You have to walk the path yourself.

I once heard a story of a wise man that taught classes for seekers of Truth. Every day a young man would come to hear the master's discourses. He had listened dutifully for a couple of years. One day this same man came a little early and found the wise man alone. He approached him and spoke aloud a question that had been been forming for sometime.

"Master, I have a question that keeps arising in my mind, raising doubts."

"Oh? There should not be any doubts on the path; have them clarified. What is your question?"

"Master, for a couple of years now I have been coming to your classes, and I have noticed there are many different students, older and younger, who come to listen to you. Some of them, I can see, have certainly reached enlightenment or close to it. I can see that many experience change in their lives. They are better than they were before, although I cannot say they are fully enlightened. But I also notice that a large number of students, including myself, are as they were, or sometimes they are even worse. They have not changed at all, or have not changed for the better.  Why should this be, master? People come to you, such a great man and clearly a master of Truth, with such compassion. Why don't you use your power and compassion to guide them to enlightenment?"

The master smiled and said, "Young man, where do you come from?"

"Master, I was born in Bombay, India."

"I would imagine that you have thought about returning there. And if asked could tell people the best way to travel to Bombay?"

"Yes Master. I am sure I could."

"And having come from Bombay, having travelled and thought about this path many times, you must know it well?"

"Oh yes Master. I know the path very well. I might almost say that if I were blindfolded I could find it on a map."

"And your friends, those who know you well, certainly they must know you are from Bombay, or at least from India?"

"Definitely. I have even discussed my hometown with other students. And there's no doubt that in between my memory and research I can describe it as well as anyone else, perhaps better."

"Then I've no doubts that others have asked you about the path from here to Bombay. Do you hide anything or do you explain the path to them clearly?"

"What is there to hide, master? I explain it to them as clearly as I can. Very plainly, master."

"And these people to whom you give such a clear explanation, do all of them reach Bombay?"

"How can that be, master? Only those who travel the entire distance to its end, only they will reach Bombay."

"This is what I want to explain to you, young man. People keep coming to me knowing that this is someone who has walked the path from here to enlightenment and so knows it perfectly. They come to me and ask, 'What is the path to englightenment?' And what is there to hide? I explain it to them clearly: 'This is the path.' If somebody just nods his head and says, 'Well said, well said, a very good path, but I won't take a step on it; a wonderful path, but I won't take the trouble to travel it,' then how can such a person reach the final goal? I do not carry anyone on my shoulders to take him to the final goal. Nobody can carry anyone else on his shoulders to the final goal. At most, with love and compassion one can say, 'Well, this is the path, and this is how I have walked on it. You also work and you will reach the final goal.' But each person has to travel themselves, has to take every step, travel every step on the path himself. He who has taken one step on the path is one step nearer the goal. He who has taken a hundred steps is a hundred steps nearer the goal. He who has taken all the steps on the path has reached the final goal. You have to walk the path yourself."

***

The message of this story is obvious.  No one can quiet our mind for us.  We have to learn what is necessary to quiet the active mind.  No one can reveal Eternal Presence within us, we must reveal it within ourselves.  In my experience revealing Eternal Presence "comes only when the thinker and the thought are one, when there is no duality such as the thinker controlling thought." 

I will continue to explore such ideas over the coming months.  And yet I know that this blog, filled with words as it is, is a limited vehicle for such ideas.  And regardless of the eloquence of words, it is only when we walk the path ourselves that we can possibly hope to reach the destination.  Otherwise, all we will be is a technician of Love, not a Lover.

With the realization of the limitations of words alone to inspire and support you I have an exciting announcement.  As you may already know I have been working with a web designer to create a new home for this blog (currently planned for before the end of July). When the new site is released meditation podcasts will be available. 

I have already begun recording guided meditations.  For those who prefer a shorter time in sitting I shall be publishing two to three 30 minute meditations.  However, I am most excited about the series of 1 hour guided Revealing Eternal Presence Meditations, designed to be followed in order and guiding you from the very first steps of this approach through to a fully established meditation practice.  You will be able to download these audio files for yourself and be guided by me in the technique of Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation (an e-mail subscription option will allow you to be automatically notified when a new podcast has been published to KnowTheFlow). These meditation podcasts will be yet one more instance of someone pointing the way. However, maintaining a daily meditation practice is a very meaningful step in making your own way toward the destination.  More details will be provided once the site is launched.

The goal of making these meditations available freely on this site is to offer you an opportunity to be guided in practicing quieting your mind.  Whilst these blog entries are intended to inspire and support you, it is my experience that sharing my meditation practice is a more a more significant contribution than words alone.  It is my deepest hope that you are inspired by such offerings and if the time is right embark upon a most wonderful journey with me.

Know the Flow and be happy my friends.

"Thank You for Noticing" - Accepting a Compliment with Grace

A couple of years ago I was on a retreat and had the delight to spend some time with a teacher called, Kabir Helminski.  Along with participating in a Zikr led by Shiekh Helminski I also had the opportunity to sit with him for over 90 minutes as he dissected some of Rumi's passages. 

To this day I remember his insightful and loving stare, his gentle passion and eloquence as he explored the inner meaning and mysteries contained within Rumi's prose and poetry.  Like a master locksmith he was unlocking hidden meaning for us, bearing the mechanics of the lock and its' secrets, and expressing living evidence of the product of decades of studying and contemplating Rumi's Divinely inspired poetry.  And that is what a teacher can be; a key to a lock within life.  However, even in such moments of teaching it is for us to turn the key.

At the end of the session I went up and thanked this teacher.  In a few words I noted how much I had enjoyed his clarity, the benefit of his contemplation that had laid bare such hidden meaning for me and the joy he clearly had for his task in this lifetime.  When I was done he bowed his head, touched his hand to his heart and said, "Thank you for noticing." 

We parted ways and I have not seen him since.  But above and beyond all of the teachings and sharing of that day, the manner in which he acknowledged my compliment has had the most profound impact on me.  I shall explain why.

At the time I was struck by the profound quality of such a response.  In contemplating the choice of these words I have come to deeply appreciate their beautiful truth and elegance.  I realized that in the past I have tried to deflect or lessen a compliment when it has been shared.  I might have said something along the line of, "it wasn't a big deal", or "it was nothing."  But in truth, these statements were, I believe, my way of averting taking ownership for my part in the events leading up to the compliment.  I believe that in the past I had less than a sense of perfect self-worth, and when using a deflecting statement I was unconsciously putting up a block to fully owning my part in the exchange.  I may even have been influenced by a cultural belief that we should be modest in the face of compliments lest our head become so big that we cannot get through doorframes.  But regardless of the cause of such responses, by trying to deflect a compliment I was in effect averting a wonderful recognition of my worth in that moment.

My contemplations also revealed another aspect of truth.  When he said, 'Thank you for noticing', I believe that Kabir was also acknowledging that in being able to observe his clarity, his expression of Truth and his joy, that I, as the observer, must also have a conscious grasp of these qualities.  In effect, he was subtly paying me a compliment.  Have you ever heard, 'if you spot it, you've got it'?  Have you heard of the idea that what we see in others is a reflection of what is in us?  Thus, when we observe truth, joy and clarity in others, that must mean we have a conscious grasp of these qualities.  By saying, "thank you for noticing" he was acknowledging in some way that in order to have observed these wonderful qualities in him that I too was embodying these qualities at some level.

I was changed by this event.  Since that exchange and my subsequent contemplation I have found myself responding to a compliment by saying, 'thank you for noticing.'  What a wonderful subtle practice of Truth this is!  When I speak these words I am both consciously claiming the work that I have done to reveal this Truth as well as acknowledging that the other person also has these qualities.  With such an awareness I am equalizing the exchange.  For in spite of being the one receiving the compliment, I am paying one in return.  I am acknowledging that the person offering the compliment must have the awareness to appreciate what is within me and thus is my equal.  How could it be otherwise? 

This is a subtle practice.  With a conscious and deep understanding I can accept a compliment without inflating the ego because I am clearly establishing the value of everyone in the exchange.

Claim your Divine authority!  In changing your awareness, accept that there will be times where you will have a positive impact on the world around you.  When someone in the apparent reality compliments you, accept these words with a knowing that, even though they are responding to the Eternal Presence expressing through you, you were the one who did the work to reveal the Eternal Presence.  And as you accept the compliment be aware that the one paying the compliment must embody these qualities by being able to recognize them in you.

Know the Flow and be happy my friends.

Meditation - Neutralizing Negative Reactions

When we are ready to hear (or read) a message it will make itself apparent.  When the student is ready the teacher will appear.

I am going to assume you've heard these cliché’s before.  Before I get to an announcement I'd like to make, I wanted to share a story I heard on Sunday while at a party.  A friend of mine was on a cruise with her husband and two daughters.  During the trip she had the opportunity to hear Dr. Michael Beckwith speak.  Apparently, during this talk Dr. Beckwith suddenly went on a tangent of topic and started talking about what drinking soda does to your body.  My friend's perception was that it was clear that Dr. Beckwith was obviously channeling truth, and even though the tangent lasted some 10 minutes or so it had a profound impact.  So much so that her daughters got out the 'soda tokens' they had purchased and gave them to their mother, indicating that they had no use for them.  Their mother's smile shifted when a woman behind her, obviously present to the very same message, asked if she could have those soda tokens since her children could use them. 

Obviously, there were different levels of awareness unfolding in that exchange.  Her daughters were ready to hear Dr. Beckwith's message and make a choice accordingly.  The mother sat behind them was not.  This is not to pass judgment, rather to provide a concrete example that relates how our present level of awareness has a great influence on our choices.  And when I consider my own personal experience I am often struck by how much my awareness, and consequently the theme of my choices, has changed over the years.

As a part of being a Teaching Assistant for the Centre's current Spiritual Practices class for these past 10 weeks I've been re-reading, 'Can we Talk to God?' by Dr. Ernest Holmes.  I've read this book before (or at least, thought I had read it before).  However, this time around the experience has been substantially different.  Apparently, I am now ready to appreciate messages that passed me by before.  How do I know?  Well, not only am I highlighting new sections but there are some instances where it takes me several days to get through a page or two.  It's taken me about a week to get from page 85 to 91!

I wanted to highlight a few passages that have really resonated with my current focus, and with Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation in particular.  On page 87 of the 1992 edition, Holmes writes:

"It is not our spirit that needs to be made whole; it is our mental reactions to life that need healing.  These mental reactions are both conscious and subjective.  Successful mental treatment must neutralize negative reactions on both the conscious and subjective planes.  Proper teaching does this for the conscious mind, and proper mental treatment will do it on the subjective side of thought.

Mental healing is not accomplished through a coercion of the consciousness, but through it's illumination."

This passage jumped out me because I have decided at some point to grow at that inner level of Intelligence.  I wasn't ready for that passage a couple of years ago.  But as I read it now it jumps off the page.  How we react to life, to the sensations that surface from beneath the surface of our consciousness, is central to our experience.  Every reaction is a thought.  Every thought is a prayer.  The Buddha taught that the blind reaction to a sensation is how we condition the unconscious (or what I call subjective) mind.  In my experience meditation is the ideal vehicle to practice being aware of sensations and practicing not reacting blindly to them.  During meditation if I have an itch, I do not scratch it.  If I have a pleasant memory, I do not crave it residing.  If I have a pain I objectively observe it, not wishing it would go away.  And so on, until I have practiced such a balanced reaction to the point that equanimity (or balance of the mind) becomes a habit.

And at this time, and during the re-reading, a beautiful yet subtle wisdom is becoming apparent for me.  If one looks at mental treatment as being meditation (and not just prayer, of Scientific Mind Treatment) then suddenly what was a mystery to me is decrypted within the passage.  What I read in this passage is that Dr. Holmes is telling me to use meditation as a vehicle to neutralize negative reactions to what I experience, both consciously and subconsciously.  And he's also advising us that proper teaching will be very important to master this consciously. 

It seems like common sense, and yet it took me over two years from reading this passage for the first time to begin to delve into the deeper mysteries of this particular snippet of wisdom.  This approach has yielded great illumination for me and requires no coercion.  It is no coincidence that after having stepped up to claim a new idea for myself recently that this passage should take on such significance. 

A little later he writes:

"There is a subtle element here - that of knowing the truth and then letting go so that the truth may demonstrate itself. Perhaps this is one of the most difficult things to understand in spiritual work. Our thought is creative, but we do not make it so; it was so before we realized it - not will but willingness; not coercion but conclusion."

The theme for meditation continues. We must let go of any knowing we think we have of the truth and allow the truth to demonstrate itself. Certainly, we must aspire and be ready to hear the message, but we must not crave hearing a message either. And this is indeed one of the most difficult things to understand in our spiritual work. Truly letting go, neither craving nor averting, is to surrender. Yet, how hard is it to fully surrender? Think of something you care deeply for. Now consider that if the object of your caring is a thing or relationship that exists in this apparent reality then how ready are you to surrender should it pass away? And as you contemplate this consider that the Buddha taught that, suffering results when we wish things to remain unchanging in the constantly changing apparent reality.

Dr. Holmes continues:

"Conviction compels the attention of the intellect; it is Reality which floods it...The Originating Power descends into the consciousness that meditates upon It and receives It."

And with those two sentences I knew I had to blog about this.  One of the central purposes of Meditation for me is to practice being aware of Eternal Presence, or 'Reality'.  It is inspiring to hear Dr. Holmes confirm in his experience that, if I meditate upon the Eternal Presence, then I will reveal Eternal Presence.

I want to acknowledge that one of the challenges with communicating such ideas in this blog is that unless you directly experience this for yourself then these are just words.  Until you make something your own it cannot become your wisdom. 

To that end I am delighted to make a few announcements. I am currently having a new site for http://www.knowtheflow.ca/ built.  This will be a new incarnation of this blog, with a much greater degree of organization as well as the ability to subscribe to the content that most appeals.  And, perhaps most significantly, I will be incorporating podcasts as a part of this site.  What does this mean?  Well, I plan on recording some of the Revealing Eternal Presence meditations I lead.  If you are unable to meditate with me, either in real or second life, then you will be able to download some of these meditations to play on your iPhone, computer or any other suitable audio device.  It is my vision that by recording these meditations that I will be able to support you in discovering one potential of meditation for yourself.

In the meantime, here's the new logo for the site. Know the Flow and be happy, dear friends.

Purpose, Excitement, Revelation and Authority

Sitting in the presence of someone who is Divinely inspired can be likened to being a tree in a forest fire.  It doesn't matter how big the space is between you, what may physically be in the way to break the fire's progress, if the fire is intense enough sparks will reach and ignite you in turn.

Last Sunday was like that for me.  In this case, Reverend Patrick Cameron, Senior Minister of the Centre for Spiritual Living Edmonton was talking about purpose. From the moment he started to speak I could tell he was on fire.  That passion and sparks of Divinity caught my attention as he explored the idea of purpose in our lives.  Asking what you want was one thing he said, but it's more profound to ask, "What do I get excited about?" His reasoning, inspired by Tim Ferris, was that this trumps working out 'what do you want to do.'

As I considered this question I felt a feeling of certainty.  In my mind my purpose statement of, 'inspiring and serving the transformation of knowing Love' came to mind and I felt excited about it.  I still do. In fact, in many ways I will restate my purpose statement at least once every day.  And after a few years of doing this I am probably more excited today than I was the day my purpose became clear to me.

However, he didn't stop there.  Patrick also suggested that we not only set a purpose that excites us, but that we also set unreasonable goals for ourselves.  These goals should be extreme, stretch us, and definitely require help.  If you can do it alone it's probably not a big enough vision.

In my mind I realized that the work I am doing to build a spiritual platform through http://www.knowtheflow.ca/ excited me.  The next thought that came to mind was in response to setting an unreasonable goal.  I immediately knew that my goal was to build a platform that touches over 1,000,000 people.  That's right, one million.  I know what I'm doing is oozing with Truth and Love.  I know that I am deepening in awareness of the Eternal Presence.  And so, surely building a platform of over 1,000,000 people is unreasonable.  Such a goal stretches me and I cannot do it without help.  With the mental certainty that I'd need help to accomplish this goal I realized I could turn to those who I've already connected with and share this goal.

But like any forest fire, once a tree catches fire it explodes into flames at some point and keeps smouldering long afterwards.  This week has been a cascade of wonderfully synchronous events, the Divine exploded through and around me in a dazzling display of light.  On Monday I was reading a book by Ernest Holmes called, We Can Talk to God.  On page 85 I read a sentence that talked about finding the peace and stillness when we slow down and commune with Eternal Presence.  That got me to thinking.  Over the past 6 months I've been piecing together an idea I'm now calling Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation.

I set the book down and leaning back I felt a sense of restlessness.  I knew I was close to finding the next piece to the puzzle I had working on for the past 6 months.  Fortuntely, I had enough awareness to set this down and release it to the Universe.  But as I released this knowing a realization came to mind that I had a blog to write on Tuesday.  I didn't know what about, but I knew I would write one.

If you read my last blog then you surely know what came of that.  The idea for 'Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation' jumped in my mind during my Tuesday morning meditation.  I had a powerful realization emerging and felt an exquisite certainty.  With the blog published I set about posting about it through Facebook and Twitter.  I also sent out an email to those friends I had in my address book (something I rarely do).  Out of curiosity I took a look at the blog stats and observed a spike of 5 times the typical visits following a post.  I realized that whilst I hadn't hit the 1,000,000 visitors it was certainly a move in the right direction.

The next day I received a completely unexpected email from the Centre for Spiritual Living, Edmonton, asking me if I'd like to teach a meditation course in September.  At first I thought they were asking me if I'd put together a little course on meditation.  It turned out that they were asking me to teach the 200 level meditation class (an accredited course with ICSL).  Not only was I surprised from the perspective that Staff Ministers are normally the teachers of such courses, but it struck me that being asked to teach meditation really lined up with the vision and purpose of 'Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation'.  Within a day of claiming my authority on this I was getting yet one more sign.

However, it didn't stop there.  On Thursday, I was speaking with a friend of mine who also happens to be an amazing musician.  We chatted for a while about him coming to Edmonton to play in September and after suggesting a couple of places he could play he said that an idea had just jumped into his mind.  What would I think about doing a night of meditation and music with him?  With a big smile on my face and in my heart I let him know that would be a fabulous idea.

And finally, at the end of Thursday I led a group of 5 people at a friend's house through Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation.  The experience was beautiful.  Everyone had their own perspective to share and the discussion that ensued was wonderfully inspiring.  There was even encouragement for me to record these meditations (which is something I plan on doing and serving up on the knew rebuild of the soon-to-be revamped version of this website).  In closing, we scheduled the next night for July 19 and I came away with the sense that this was yet one more sign.

I have shared this story of my week as both a chance to journal my gratitude and to offer inspiration.  It is a powerful practice to journal gratitude.  However, when our awareness and consciousness are ignited by the Divine Spark from others I believe we should stop, take note and share such stories.  I am so very grateful for the various signs that have shown up this week.  And yet I know that this particular phase of my journey has only just begun.  I have shifted this week.  I have discovered a deep sense of Divine Authority in this week, a clarify that I have never had with this intensity.  I have an unreasonable goal of building a platform of over 1,000,000 people, and I'm letting you know that I need your help to do this.  If you know someone that you think would enjoy reading this blog then please forward this to them.

And yet through it all, from the fire in Patrick's belly to the ignition of my spirit I have constantly been blown away by the sense of humility and peace, the revelation of Eternal Presence in my life.  Indeed, revealing eternal presence is more than just 2 hours of meditation a day.  It is a constant practice now.

Know the Flow and be happy, dear friends.

Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation: A Practical, Relevant and Simple Spiritual Practice

It is my experience that I am surrounded by people with intelligent and enquiring minds. It is also my experience that there is a growing realization that simple faith and worship are no longer enough in this day and age. There is an increasing intensity of enquiry when it comes to spiritual teachings that are relevant to daily life. The typical process of enquiry for me runs along the lines of: Is it relevant, is it practical, is it simple? If these three questions of enquiry yield a 'yes' for me then I will invariably dig deeper into said teaching. And I suspect that, even if many people are not aware of this kind of process going on within their minds, any teaching that is relevant, practical and simple will find significant appeal to our present-day society.

And so like many others in this world that have encountered a personal moment of profound spiritual transformation, I've been seeking teachings to help me understand what is going on and what my purpose in life is. I've been a seeker of Truth for about 15 years now. I wanted to use this blog to introduce an idea that has come to mind that I have called, the Revealing Eternal Presence (REP) Meditation. But before I share more about REP Meditation I will provide the necessary context for this idea that comes in the form of two teachings that I've been working with for a while.

The first of these teachings is one I've been studying for the past 6 years. Arguably the most notable of Dr. Ernest Holmes prolific writings was a book he authored in 1926 called, the Science of Mind. The Science of Mind is both a philosophy and a way of life. After much contemplation, reading of spiritual texts, and building upon the ideas of great thinkers before him, Dr. Holmes presented us with a number of significant ideas, a few of which I would like to introduce.

Firstly, he proposed that there is a Power for Good in the Universe that is always contemplating and expressing. You might call this Power God, Spirit, the Cosmos, Oneness, or whatever label that best defines the idea of Creator to you. Secondly, that within this Infinite expression known as Spirit is the Creative Medium, or Soul. And Thirdly, that Form results when an idea is impressed upon Soul by Spirit. One of the more common analogies is that when I think or feel, I plant a seed (thought) in the soil (Soul), which in turn manifests as a sprouting plant (Form).

To put it more simply, Dr. Holmes proposed that effects are what we see around us. Thoughts and feelings are what cause effects, and because we are an individualized aspect of God our thoughts and feelings are the cause of effects. And the Law is always obeying us by making manifest our thoughts and feelings as forms. The idea of Spirit, Soul and Form were not new, but what Holmes did do was to get very clear about a process called the Affirmative Prayer, that one can use to repeatably manifest through conscious and intelligent use of Soul, or as he called it, the Law.

The second teaching I've been enquiring about of late concerns the Buddha. Specifically, I've been studying Vipassana meditation. It is argued that the Buddha had no interest in a religion (that would go on to be called Buddhism) but focused on a process for enlightenment, that he called Vipassana. Vipassana is about observing the sensations that arise in our body. The central idea of Vipassana meditation is that if we can learn to observe sensations, know them for what they truly are and neither crave or avert those sensations we will become liberated. In other words, we come to know true peace, where we are liberated from attachment to sensations and break the cycle of suffering.  This is what the Buddha meant by the 'middle way', neither craving nor averting sensations, being liberated from the apparent reality and thus being able to know the Ultimate Reality.  I like to think that this is what Jesus meant by, being in the world but not of the world.

Obviously, both the teachings of Ernest Holmes and the Buddha go well beyond what is practical to cover in this blog but I did want to share my experience around them. When I discovered the Science of Mind it struck me as practical, relevant and simple. If I can change my thinking I can change my conditions. So much so that through the use of a tool called Affirmative Prayer, I can repeatably demonstrate changes in my conditions. This is extremely relevant and practical (although not, in my experience, always simple).

When I discovered Vipassana meditation I was immediately struck by how compatible the Buddha's ideas were with the Science of Mind. I was deeply moved by the idea that by observing sensations that arise in my body, old mental conditionings (or Sankhara as they are known) would be released.  And Vipassana meditation is also a repeatable process that is simple and realistic (although going on a 10 day course to discover this is not necessarily practical). I realized that the potential of this idea given the creative process of Affirmative Prayer was huge. In short, a repeatable process that will inevitably help one clear away the old stock of conditionings (or what I consider to be beliefs, values, attitudes that no longer serve me) would be invaluble, particularly to a Practitioner of Affirmative Prayer.

For you see, after some 6 years of study of the Science of Mind and its related teachings I had never encountered any reference to a repeatable process for clearing the old 'stuff' out of the way. Of course, through various techniques and tools for self-enquiry we could reveal old causal beliefs but the process is lengthy. It is not simple. And there's certainly no page or chapter in any book that I've read that has really shown me how to shift into a feeling of complete and total peace. That is until I discovered Vipassana.

And what is the idea I promised to write about earlier? Well, it goes along these lines. We can use meditation to be aware of the effects, the sensations, that arise in our experience. At the same time we must be aware that they are caused by the Eternal Presence, Spirit (this is where my idea begins to diverge from Vipassana). In this state of awareness we can know that effects pass away because they are effects in the changable, apparent reality. We must be aware that effects are the product of the Law and ultimately of the Causal Spirit that created them. In short, we can use meditation to practice being aware of both the Cause (Spirit) and the Effect (sensations and feelings).  This approach results in a most complete Revealing of Eternal Presence.

What stands out for me is that every effect, every sensation is a product of contemplation. In becoming aware of the Cause and Effect we liberate ourselves from effects, of attachment to them, particularly when we see Spirit as their Cause. When we tie together this realization we can more fully experience the Cause, we are practicing being attuned to Spirit and liberate ourselves from changing nature of Effect. It is my experience that this approach to meditation empowers Affirmative Prayer because, as a repeatable process, it clears the baggage beneath the surface that impacts our affirmation work. 

As you can imagine one blog entry is nowhere near enough space to fully explore this idea with you. I will be using future blogs to continue sharing my contemplations and enquiries about Revealing Eternal Presence. However, if you are in Edmonton this Thursday June 16 at 7pm, then I would like to invite you to come to an evening of meditation where I will be exploring this idea through guided meditation and discourse. If you would like more information then please email me at carmien_owen@shaw.ca.  You can also check out the event on Facebook event.

Ultimately, writing about Revealing Eternal Presence Meditation is like someone telling you the food is good.  Practicing this technique, like any spiritual practice, is where you get to know for yourself that the food is good.  If you can't make this event you can connect with me on Second Life where I lead meditation every morning and evening.  Alternatively you can connect with me and enquire further with me through Facebook.  So what are you waiting for?  Don't take my word for it; connect with me and experience this meditation for yourself!

Know the Flow and be happy.

U2 and their Platform: Please Remember the 3,000+ Non-Violent Protesters in Burmese Prisons

I had the joy to go to the U2 concert in Edmonton on June 1st.  I was aware of their activism but to see it directly in action was inspiring.  Through their talents and gifts they have built a massive platform that touches millions of souls.  And right in the middle of what will likely stand as the best concert in my life my heart was moved.

Towards the end of the concert Bono asked us to please remember the 3,000 plus non-violent protestors in Burmese prisons.  The dictatorship has renamed the country Myanmar but changing a country's name does not hide the truth.  And here U2 is using their platform to spread a vital message.  I wish the media would pick this sort of thing up but then I suppose that is not how news works.  And for those of you who weren't there I uploaded the song to YouTube below.  It was recorded in HD so you can switch to fullscreen for a clearer view.

Did you notice all those white lanterns?  Each of those had the Amnesty International sign on them.  And even now as I replay this video I am moved.  I may not have a massive platform in this lifetime, but I am delighted by U2's effort to make such a meaningful use of their influence.  Thank you guys!

It is possible that I might be in the uncertain land of copyright infringement, but I'm going to take a gamble and assume that U2 won't object to me forwarding this message.  This sort of message needs to be more broadly put onto platforms.  This world we live in may only be an apparent reality, but unwholesome actions warrant compassion.  And sometimes compassion involves standing up for what you believe in.  And raising your voice to defend others unable to defend themselves whilst you retain a balanced mindfulness and are centred in your emotions is, to my mind, a beautiful example of making the most of this life.  Those 3,000+ non-violent protestors have in effect been put in prison for the crime of 'democracy', punished for the desire to express freedom and support a duly elected leader.

Influenced by both Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy of non-violence and by more specifically Buddhist concepts, Aung San Suu Kyi entered politics to work for democratization, helped found the National League for Democracy on 24 September 1988, and was put under house arrest on 20 July 1989. She was offered freedom if she left the country, but she refused.  She was released after 20 years of house arrest, but over 3,000 more like her are still incarcerated.  More can be read about her here.

I would not consider myself overtly political.  I'm actually not interested in efforts to rule countries, where the focus is on power over things and people.  However, I've got a deep respect for people like Aung San Suu Kyi and Mahatma Ghandi.  To stand up for the unwholesome behaviour towards others speaks to selflessness.  And yet the 3,000+ non-violent protestors that are still locked up are just as prized in my heart.  I am adding them to my daily prayer list.  As Bono says in the video, please remember these victims, hold them in your hearts, hold them in your prayers.  3,000 souls...

Side note:  If you want to see a few other pictures of the concert I've uploaded them here.  4 of them were taken on my iPhone with a photostiching app.  This offers a wider field of view but may look a little fuzzy in places.

Know the Flow and be happy my friends.