Transparency

Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown, New Zealand


We wear different masks in different situations.  We wear one mask for our parents, another mask for our children, another mask for our spouse or lover, another mask for our bosses, and so on.  We try to put forward the image that the person we are interacting with expects to see.  We are putting on a show instead of living an authentic life.  It is stressful to put on these different personas

Intimacy is when we show our loved one who we are, regardless of whether we look silly or scared.  Intimacy requires transparency.  When we live transparently, we flow with the rhythm of Life.  It is relaxing because we do not have to remember what story we told what person.  We relax into our Being.  We never have to think about or remember how we are supposed to act.  We are who we are and we do not care about the consequences.  We never alter who we are because we are afraid or even concerned about how the other person will react.  Their reaction is immaterial.  Who we are is of prime importance.  We act authentically and let the chips fall as they may.

Living transparently allows us to be happy and at peace.  We can breathe easily because we are not concerned about other people's reactions and we are now living authentically.  We have nothing to fear.  We are confident because we have the power of the entire Universe behind us.  That is indeed a formidable ally.

Let's be transparent.

Death

Russell, New Zealand

When we are comfortable with the idea that we may die tomorrow, we will truly be free.  Our fear of death influences everything we think and do.  We are so afraid of death that we do not want to think about it.  We push thoughts of death below the surface of our consciousness where it stalks us like a shadow.  It makes us fearful, anxious, angry and frustrated.

Since we confuse our identity with the thoughts and beliefs that are contained within our bodies, it is not surprising that we view death as extinguishing our very selves.  When we realize that we are not within our bodies, but our bodies are within us, we know that awareness continues after the body falls away.

When we embrace the concept of death, we flow with the rhythm of life.

Let's accept death with gratitude.

Love

Dylan

We have a hole in our lives which we try to fill with alcohol, drugs or material possessions,. We try to avoid the pain and emptiness that we feel by watching television, using the internet, and gossiping with friends.

The hole can never be filled because there is no hole. We just need to change our orientation away from our thoughts, judgments and beliefs, and towards the Divine. When we surrender to the great Unknown, we do not have to be afraid that we will be alone or that we will be susceptible to dark or evil forces. When we allow ourselves to be open to the void of non-attachment, we will be joined by Spirit, which is love.

It is a cliche that "God is love." It is also true. Every action that we take comes from either love or fear. When we act from love, we are in harmony with our true nature and are fulfilling God's purpose for us. When we act from fear, we continue the cycle of desire, frustration, fear and anger.

Let's act from love

Gratitude

Qamea, Fiji

The key to happiness is gratitude.  Gratitude means that we allow reality to be just as it is.  When we are grateful, we do not have expectations as to how things should be.  We are happy and grateful for the way things are.  Since our experience in the world is a reflection of our inner state, when we are grateful, the Universe responds by providing abundance.

When we are in a constant state of desiring things, the Universe responds by not providing what we want.  This creates a constant cycle of dissatisfaction.  When we are grateful for whatever we have, even if what we have is comparatively meager, the Universe responds by providing what we need for our development and happiness.  Donald Trump is a very poor man indeed, because he never experiences satisfaction.  He is always longing for more in order to fill the hole inside himself, which can never be filled by things.

Let's be grateful for what is.

Surrender

Buffalo Road, Coromandel, New Zealand

1.  Our thoughts and beliefs are not true.
2.  We are not our thoughts and beliefs, even though we think we are.
3.  If we acknowledge and surrender our thoughts and beliefs to Universal Spirit, we will fulfill our life's purpose and experience peace, love and joy.

Let's surrender our will to God's will.

Awakening

Kamakura, Japan

In my view, there are four simple steps to awakening.  As Michael Beckwith says, it is simple, but it is not easy.

The first step is intention.  When we are so fed up with our misery that we cannot stand it any more, we look for a way out.  We are so incredibly frustrated with our lives that we think the Universe is out to get us. We are depressed, angry, neurotic and loathe ourselves and our lives.  To some, suicide is the solution.  Others discover a different way of being, one of love, peace and joy.

Sometimes, we see someone on television or meet someone who is enlightened and we desire to have the life force that they have.  Sometimes, we have a spontaneous transcendent experience.  We are briefly transported out of our miserable existence and feel euphoric and a feeling of oneness with others.  We think that if it can happen once, it could happen again, and we try to figure out how to bring back and prolong that divine experience.  To some, drugs introduce us to the euphoric feeling of oneness.  This can be a trap if we rely on drugs to experience that feeling.  Some wonder whether that same feeling can be obtained without drugs and are willing to try.

The second step is utilizing the many tools that are at our disposal which can lead us to awaken.  We can bring our attention to the present moment. We can choose to be loving instead of fearful.  We can give up our will to God's will.  We can meditate.  There are more incredible resources available to us than at any time in our history.  There are teachers, living and dead, books, websites, seminars, workshops, temples and churches (watch out for the dogma!), etc.  We should choose the path and resources which best resonate with us.

Once we begin utilizing the tools which we have chosen, it takes courage to face and acknowledge the long held beliefs and painful memories which rise to our consciousness when we are still.  The pull of compulsive thinking is very strong.  The groups we belong to will also exert strong pressure.  Our gender, religious, social and economic groups will begin to lose their power if people stop identifying with them.  Our parents, teachers, religious leaders, media figures, and friends will try to keep us in their belief systems because they believe that those systems keep them safe from the terrifying unknown.

We also need discipline to keep our attention on stillness and away from obsessive and compulsive thinking.  Our belief systems are like a magnet, constantly drawing us back to the thoughts which we believe keep us safe.  Also, it takes discipline to remain focused when there are so many distractions to keep us from the present moment.  Television, films, social media, games, shopping, gossiping with friends, etc. make it easy to distract ourselves.  The constant barrage of media can make it difficult to be alone, without distraction, in order to tune into the tiny voice of stillness.  It is well worth it.

Let's have the courage and the discipline to utilize the tools that are available to us to awaken now.

Acknowledge and Surrender

Church Bay, Waiheke Island, New Zealand

We cannot stop our thoughts.  However, we can stop identifying with them.  We can create a separation between ourselves and our thoughts by realizing that our thoughts are not us.  They arise from nothingness and disappear into nothingness.  As they arise, we acknowledge them without fear or judgment and surrender them to the Void.  We have the courage to look at our deeply buried thoughts as they arise dispassionately, without fear or judgment.  Meditation and stillness will slow our thoughts down so we can consciously see them.

Once we acknowledge our thoughts, they lose their power over us.  Unacknowledged thoughts and beliefs remain with us, tormenting us throughout our lives.  They are the cause of our frustration, our unhappiness,and our failure to live fulfilling lives.

We acknowledge our thoughts and beliefs and release them to the Universe.