As you practice recognizing the emotions in you - just like a musician practices musical scales and an artist practices mixing paint - you can begin to use this awareness in an empowering, life-changing way. You are no longer at the whim of whatever emotion arises in you. You can determine what you feel, and when. Why is this so valuable? Because what we are feeling emotionally is a direct reflection of what we are thinking. And Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #17 – Being / Is / Enlightenment
Enlightenment is a word more and more frequently used in our society. For many of us who 'contemplate it', we assume that it is an endpoint. In fact, it is a doorway. Through the doorway of enlightenment we access realms of experience - and of consciousness - that we can barely dream of now. Enlightenment is the beginning of our rediscovering - who we truly are. For a brief instant, step into the energy field of enlightenment - of just Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #16 – Peace
Peace is a state of being. We use it so freely as a word - in contrast to war, to upheaval, to unrest. Yet so few of us have 'tasted' it. For a brief instant, step into the energy field of peace. Memories may flash in you, like snapshots on a movie screen. You may feel sensations in your body or hear inner voices. Notice how your body responds. How does it feel? How does your heart feel? What do you notice about your breath? Be Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #15 – Joy
Joy is a realm of existence rarely experienced by humans thus far. It is like rarified air, high up in the peaks, the farthest altitudes accessible by humans. And yet it is within our grasp, now. As we learn how to navigate this 'Map of Emotions', we discover that Joy is our birthright. It is our origin. It is our natural, innermost state. We are Joy. For a brief instant, step into the energy field of Joy. Memories may flash in Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #14 – Love
Love is an energy field. As humans we get caught in an 'idea' of love. We think we know what it is. What we typically deem 'love' is a fleeting moment of good feeling dependent on an outside source. True love - the energy field - is a radiant glow. It holds us in its warmth. It nourishes us. It reminds us, eternally, of who we really are. Love feeds our spirit. It is the beginning of our living as a spirit … in form. For a brief Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #13 – Reason / Understanding
Reason/understanding is the springboard, the gate that our current society sits perched at. Our greatest thinkers have historically arisen to reason - and been stuck here. Reason ultimately gives way to spirit - to the awesome recognition that our ultimate evolution takes us beyond the reasoning of our minds. In its healthy state, understanding opens the door of willingness and acceptance to even greater human potential. It is as if Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #12 – Acceptance
Acceptance is the end of suffering. It is the final stage in grieving. It is the readiness to move on. When we are in acceptance we are out of control - out of our attempt to dominate our own outcome. The energy field of acceptance - just like all of the human emotions on this 'map' - is far more vast than the word suggests. When we are in acceptance, we are in a state of trust. We are in a state of willingness to participate and do Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #11 – Willingness
Willingness is the first sign of 'spring' - of the maturity of the human mind/ego. It is the transition from mind/ego driven living to soul guided living. As we enter the energy field of willingness, we are open to ease, to synchronicities, to flow. We are open to 'miracles'. As we become willing, there is little to 'do'. We are less driven and more inspired. We shift from mind domination to a trust that something greater than us is Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #10 – Neutrality
Neutrality is like sitting on a mountaintop. For a moment, it seems there's nowhere to go. All is bliss. Neutrality is the rare experience of unattachment - neither here nor there. From neutrality we collect our inner resources and wisdom for the ascent to the top. For a brief instant, step into the energy field of neutrality. Memories may flash in you, like snapshots on a movie screen. You may feel sensations in your body or hear Continue Reading
The ‘Map of Emotions’ – #9 – Courage
Courage is the tipping point. It is the eye of the needle, the fulcrum point between the downward suction of debilitating emotional states and the upward spiral of life. If you were to ask people randomly on a street corner if they are familiar with the experience of one thing going wrong and then a 'mud slide' of things in their life falling apart, most people would immediately, triumphantly list to you a litany of examples. If you were to Continue Reading