Monday, February 23, 2009

Perception


We are like the grass of a field and our glory is like the flowers.

You can take that in two ways.

Grass can be trampled underfoot by whoever walks on it. The flowers are temporary - transient and passing.

Yet, the grass provides comfort to those who walk on it. The flowers provide beauty in this world. Our real meaning in life comes from the service and beauty we provide to others.

If we think of ourselves as being trampled underfoot, we are being selfish - only looking at the world through our own eyes. But, by the very sacrifice of being trampled underfoot, we provide comfort. Isn't that an interesting view of the dualistic vision of life.

So much of our existence is a reflection of how we view it.

Our current economic situation is like that. As a country, we have perceived of ourselves as being poor.

Out of fear, we have decided to put off buying new cars, so the auto makers are in real trouble. To save money, our society has decided not to eat out as much, so we don't spend money at restaurants.

It falls like dominoes.


Restaurants close. The restaurant suppliers have reduced business. Servers, cooks, salesmen, warehouse people, cleaning staff, accountants and owners all suffer. People get laid off.

All because of perception.

Friday, February 20, 2009

Love or Power


We have choices in life. We can approach life by means of power or by means of love. Power means being in control. You force circumstances to do your will for the benefit of yourself. That usually involves people. So, you have to force people to do your will to be in control.

On the other end of the spectrum, you can use love. You can offer yourself completely. When two people agree to do this with each other, it is the greatest love that can be experienced between humans.

The practical reality seems to make us defensive. Can we trust? Can we surrender ourselves to another or do we negotiate a compromise. When you open yourself to love you become most vulnerable. Surrender exposes us to the possibility of pain. People who like to be in control can hurt us. This is when love hurts.

Yet, when you loose yourself in total surrender, you become the happiest. Think of the peak experiences in your life. At your happiest, dont you loose your sense of self? Love takes over the senses and you want to do whatever the other person wants to do. Anyone who has been in love knows that.

Its a beautiful thing when you can spend time surrendered to another that you love and you trust that person to surrender their self to you.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Spiritual Energy


We all have different forms of energy that we can use. Some of those energies are used more than others.

Physical energy gets us out of bed in the morning and becomes a platform for much of what we do. For that reason, we often focus on the physical energy. We often forget what drives the physical energy.

Mental energy helps us make decisions about how we use our physical energy. But often, we go into automatic mode. These are habits. Unfortunately we loose communication in our relationships because even conversation becomes a habit. Conversation becomes stimulus/response instead of using the opportunity for creativity.

Emotional energy comes from a deep well of our past. How we have been loved affects how we love.

Often the least used energy is spiritual energy. Spritual energy can be a platform for positive change. At its best, spiritual energy is a fire of passion. Passion is best communicated through music, because there are few words that can describe the passion of spiritual energy.

Spiritual energy is the best driver of love.


Click Here to learn more about Kent Courtney