Meditation

In order to enhance personal transformation and spiritual renewal, this book provides practical, down-to-earth guidelines for newcomers on the spiritual journey. These insights are gleaned from the teachings of ascended masters, realized beings, and venerable teachers who walked the earth centuries ago and also some who are with us still.

One of these is the revered Indian spiritual teacher and philosopher, J. Krishnamurti, who teaches that what we are the world is and that without our transformation, there can be no transformation of the world. Spiritual practices such as meditation, reflection and contemplation provide the inner strength, clarity of mind, and emotional harmony that will allow us to find fulfillment in all areas of our life.

The spiritual practice of setting aside at least twenty minutes twice each day for centering and meditation will greatly help bring about the gradual renewal of your mind and healing of your heart that is necessary in order for the shift to a higher level of consciousness to occur both for yourself and our planet.

Krishnamurti explains that any deliberate attempt to meditate is not meditation. All the knowledge, the concepts, the examples have no place in meditation. Our goal then is to create a space of a few precious moments in our day when we let go of the past and future and can simply “be” in the moment with complete awareness and serenity.

Undertake your meditation session in a quiet, neatly organized, dimly lit room. Begin by simply becoming aware of your breathing. When you do this, you will automatically start breathing deeper and slower without any effort on your part. Then release all tension throughout the body starting with your face and ending with your feet. When your thoughts wander, simply keep bringing your attention back to the breath for the duration of your meditation. Beginners might also find it useful to sometimes allow a single flower or a lit candle to help them attain this peaceful meditative state.

In my own journey, I was led to vipassana meditation, which is also called insight meditation. This technique, which originated in India with Gautama the Buddha, has become the cornerstone of my spiritual journey. It centers on a very simple, down-to-earth practice with no rituals or dogmas. Vipassana meditation is being introduced in the West by S. N. Goenka (www.dhamma.org) and beautifully described by his disciple, William Hart, in his book titled The Art of Living.

In her book, The Divine Plan beyond 2012, Caroline Cory describes the new spirituality that is surfacing as a result of the energetic shift occurring on the earth plane. At present the shortcomings of the teachings and dogmas at our churches, temples, and shrines are becoming bluntly and globally apparent all at once. Unquestioned revelations that foster division, competitiveness and separation between the various sects are becoming obsolete.

The emerging spirituality, on the other hand, is focused on one universal principle based on Love, Truth, Beauty, and Goodness for every living human being, bypassing all cultural, racial or sexual differences. Honor and respect of the divine order and one’s own divinity will be reflected in the interactions within the home, family unit, workplace, and social circles, as well as in nature with the animal, plant and mineral life.

Reflections for the Healing of Your Heart and Mind

(1)
Today I choose to be at peace; I choose to be happy
and be in harmony with all creation.
The exterior circumstances of my life do not control
nor do they create the interior experience of my soul.
Today, I choose to make all my decisions
from a place of love and not fear.

(2)
Living any moment of my life in any way other than
in appreciation and love is a waste of my life energy.
Therefore, I shall guard my thoughts carefully.
I choose to think only upon that which
is honorable, pure, lovely, and worthy of praise.
In this way, I am in alignment with the universe
and receive healing, joy, and peace into my life.

The Prayer of Saint Francis

The following lyrics from a Christian hymn written in the nineteenth century resonate deeply with the spirituality of the New Earth that is emerging. Embracing their wisdom will contribute greatly to the renewal of your mind and the healing of your heart so that you can be in deeper alignment this higher consciousness.

Make me a channel of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me bring your love.
Where there is injury, your pardon;
Where there is despair in life, let me bring hope,
And where there is sadness ever joy.
Grant that I may never seek
so much to be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love with all my soul.
For it is in giving of ourselves that we receive.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying to our self
that we are born to eternal life.