The Three Elements of Psychological and Spiritual Wellbeing

The 3 elements of natural and psychological wellbeing are Creation, Presence and Wisdom.

So, let’s first look at Creation.

This is the power to create through thought.

When we think, we receive ideas and we invest in the ideas that we believe in. We invest them with our energy, we bring them to life and then we see them outpictured in the world around us.

Now, this creative power of thought, as the name suggests, can manifest as our actual thinking, as the words we hear in our mind, or as mental imagery, and as memory and imagination.

But the Power of Creation can also manifest as our emotions and as bodily sensations, as a direct result of receiving and believing in these ideas.

The Power of Creation via thought can also manifest as the appearances of what we see around us and what we choose to pay attention to or focus on in our immediate environment.

The ideas we receive and believe can also manifest in our behaviour and in how we react and respond to other people.

These ideas also impact how we see ourselves and how we view others.

So, one seed idea can create, for us, an entire reality (or pseudo-reality, depending on its validity).

We could look at these ideas as seeds. We could look at beliefs as the water that nurtures the seeds. And we could view the mind as the soil in which the seeds blossom or fester.

Ideas can spread like weeds if they are very negative and we can descend down a rabbit hole of associated unhelpful, unconstructive and destructive ideas.

Alternatively, positive, life-affirming ideas can bloom and blossom likes flowers and contribute to, and enhance, our wellbeing and mental health.

So, that is the Power of Creation that produces our moment-to-moment experience. And you can therefore see, with problems such as low confidence or anxiety, how our seed ideas and beliefs can then contribute to our experience and affect how we see and react to, and interact with, the world around us.

The next fundamental element of natural wellbeing is the Power of Presence.

By Presence, we mean our True Self. The True Self is our identity that extends beyond the physical body and beyond our surface personality.

We could also call it the Soul. But it is a Universal Soul.

Presence could be described as Life itself. It is the animating spirit or what some cultures refer to as the Great Spirit that is the source of all living things.

The Power of Presence is the source of our healing. It contributes to our natural wellbeing because it is beyond the limitations of the physical body, personality and our individual psyche, emotional baggage and hang-ups.

This Eternal Presence existed before we were born and it is what we will eventually return to when our individual consciousness leaves the physical body at death.

And then finally, we have the Power of Wisdom.

This is the innate intelligence of the Great Spirit.

Wisdom is the Voice of the Great Spirit that we receive internally as intuition, clarity and guidance. It includes the wisdom of the ages, the sages and the collective intelligence of all Life.

So these are the three elements of natural wellbeing and psychological and spiritual healing.

And when you understand, access or merge with the Powers of Creation, Presence and Wisdom, they can elevate your wellbeing and expand your sense of Self and be an ever-present source of healing and guidance in your everyday life.

Seven Tips to Unlock the Wisdom and Guidance of your Higher Self

We all have a Universal Guide or inner voice.

In some traditions, this may be called the Holy Spirit. It can also be called Waheguru which means wonderful teacher or supreme being. Other names include Higher Self, the superconscious, Guardian Angel, the Comforter etc. depending on what tradition, culture or belief system that people belong to.

Whatever you choose to call it, this Universal Guide is on hand to help us with decisions, fears, phobias, anxieties, judgements and misperceptions.

So here are my tips for unlocking our channel to inner guidance and higher wisdom.

Tip number 1: You don’t have to have a psychic gift

When it comes to receiving guidance from Spirit or our Higher Self , the first thing to remember is that no one has special dispensation or special favour.

Don’t think you’re not good enough or not intuitive enough or not psychic enough or not spiritual enough.

Yes, some people have had more practice at listening to guidance from Spirit.

Some people may hear guidance in beautiful prose.

But equally, if Spirit communicates with you in some kind of slang or dialect that you’re familiar with, it doesn’t make it any less meaningful or true. It’s not the form in which the message appears that is important, it’s the meaning of the message itself.

Anyone who sincerely wishes to communicate with Spirit can do so. This is because at another level, we are all Spiritual Beings just pretending to be human.

Our Whole Self, our Eternal Self is Spirit, and it is that which gives us Guidance.

Tip number 2: Receiving guidance from Spirit is a form of prayer. Only it’s listening rather than talking.

Last week, I heard a couple of interesting definitions of prayer.

One was from a teacher of the Kabbalah who described prayer as a “gut-level” need.

Another description I heard was from an ACIM teacher who described prayer as “the heart reaching out for that which it desires.”

Beyond our worldly desires which might include a new job, a better car, a nicer house, romance, increased financial income, better health or a perfect body, what we ultimately desire is peace, fulfilment and happiness.

Eventually, sooner or later, we will get tired of yearning for things that only satisfy us temporarily and we’ll start towards a journey on a search for true fulfilment beyond the things of this world.

Picture yourself on a moving staircase. An upward escalator. It’s not easy to walk down an escalator that’s moving up.

The easiest thing to do is to go in the direction that the Universe is going and to be in alignment and in sync with it.

There is no point in trying to do your own thing and go against the flow. It’s like going down an upward moving escalator. The Universe is mighty. And when we join with the Universe or with Nature or with the Natural Order instead of trying to fight against it, then so are we.

This involves listening to what is best for us and allowing ourselves to be guided rather than giving the Cosmic Powers That Be a shopping list of what we think we want.

Tip number 3: Choose the right voice

That is, choose the right voice to listen to.

We have two voices that serve as guides. One is a judgemental voice which feeds us with fears, anger and hate.

The other one is a Voice that nourishes us with Love.

If the guiding voice you hear is critical, judgemental, grandiose or harmful, then it’s the voice of your Ego Guide and it should not be paid attention to.

If this voice is telling you to go out and murder someone, obviously this is not the voice of Higher Wisdom. It will never encourage any harm. Tough love maybe. But not harm.

Listen to the Guiding Voice that nourishes you with Love, Comfort and Understanding and Common Sense. It is practical as well as wise.

Tip number 4: Don’t limit the format in which you receive your guidance

If we want to communicate with this inner source of wisdom then sincere intention and desire are all that is needed to communicate with the Infinite Light and Guide within us.

But it may not be in the form of an internal conversation or thoughts in your mind.

It may come to you in the form of a feeling. It may arrive as spontaneous but inspired action without forethought.

You may receive this communication through the words of another human being – a child, a neighbour, a family member or even someone you dislike.

Guidance may be given to you through the lyrics of a song. It may come to you through an overheard snatch of conversation on the bus.

The answer will come to each of us in many ways at our own level of understanding and in our own language or using our own cultural symbols.

So, once you have asked for guidance, stay alert. Listen and watch for signs and synchronicities.

Your willingness, your intention and desire will lead you to hear, understand and follow your inner guide.

Tip number 5: Have patience

The ingredients required to hear and follow your inner guidance are willingness, intention, desire and PATIENCE.

It’s very important for us to have patience with our self once we get started on this practice.

Give yourself time. Learning to listen to guidance is like exercising and strengthening a muscle. This gift will grow stronger, the more you practise it.

Tip number 6: Use a Journal

You may want to keep a journal of the guidance you think you have received, if you followed it and what happened when you did.

Tip number 7: Be kind to yourself

If we judge our self, criticise ourselves constantly, we will slow our progress down and then we will be unable to hear the guidance of our higher wisdom because the voice of our Ego Guide will boom loudly in our inner ear.

So, in remembering the Golden Rule which says, treat others as you would like yourself to be treated, keep in mind that you should treat yourself how you would like others to treat you, with dignity and respect and with patience when you make mistakes.

Listening to the wisdom of your Higher Self or Universal Guide is the second stage of Serene Empowerment.

The book, Serene Empowerment covers the 12 Stages.

Learn more here.

Why Use Spiritual Solutions to Manage Stress and Anxiety

The 12 Stages of Serene Empowerment is a process that I’ve developed which helps to ease the anxiety that sometimes stops us from performing or functioning effectively at work, socially or at home.

As the pressures of modern life increase, finding healthy ways to deal with our anxiety and stress is more vital than ever.

Anxiety doesn’t just stop us from enjoying life or from performing effectively but it can also be exhausting, draining, paralysing and unfortunately, totally addictive.

At its worst, ongoing anxiety can lead to mental health problems and, of course, it’s well known that stress is one of the biggest causes of physical ill health and disease.

A holistic and spiritual approach to addressing our issues of anxiety and stress is often the crucial missing piece or missing peace.

But by spiritual, I don’t necessarily mean religious. This is spirituality in the sense of having a deep connection with the Natural Source of Our Being. The innate essence of strength, healing, power and wisdom that’s within us but which usually lies dormant and forgotten.

Just as we need food to nourish our bodies, we need our spiritual resources to nourish our minds and give us an innate sense of wellbeing.

When we ignore or neglect the spiritual part of ourselves, we’re ignoring the most important part, the part that gives us strength, power, innate wisdom and inner healing.

The 12 Stages of Serene Empowerment has been inspired by the 12 Steps of Alcoholic Anonymous. But because the focus is on easing anxiety, it adopts a slightly gentler approach.

It’s also based on universal spirituality and it’s a simple path designed to reduce anxiety and stress levels one day at a time.

With the 12 Stages of Serene Empowerment, you focus on a single stage for say a day, week or month. As you choose.

With the book, Serene Empowerment, you can follow the daily guide which takes you through one stage a week. Each stage focuses on one particular topic. Each day revolves around an exercise, thought for the day or a recommendation to keep you focused and on track.

The ultimate aim of the 12 Stages of Serene Empowerment is to help reduce anxiety. Your life may still be busy. You may still have pressurising deadlines. You may still have to face challenging family circumstances but you’ll gradually gain the inner resources, strength and power to deal with these situations as they arise. The circumstances of your life may or may not change but you will be transformed and better able to deal with it through a renewed connection with your Self and your own inner resources and authentic power.

The 12 Stages of Serene Empowerment offers a complete and structured path to guide you back to your native sense of wellbeing. Plus, it’s a path that you can follow at your own pace and fit around your lifestyle and commitments.

If you’re inspired to dive into the Serene Empowerment process right away, it’s available in paperback or as an eBook in most online bookstores.

See book in store.

The Story of Ego: The Rebel Without A Cause

This is the story of Ego from a spiritual (and mythical) perspective:

There is a Creator, a Source of Unconditional Love that created joy, peace, oneness and freedom, and created spiritual beings and a world in which to enjoy and extend this joy, peace and freedom.  

Then there is the Ego, who wanted to create independently of the Source, to make up its own world of joy, peace and freedom. But creating independently of the Source of Love means that you create everything that the Source is not.  So instead of creating an experience of Oneness and Unity, the Ego made a state of aloneness and separation.

The Ego needed an environment in which to experience this state of aloneness and separation so it made a world that was the mirror image of the Source's world of joy, peace and freedom.  But because this world was separate from the world of the Source of Love, the Ego's world was a place of sorrow, war and restriction.
  
The Ego needed a vehicle through which to experience the world that was made, so the body was made for the Ego to experience the world.  The vehicle had eyes - all the better for the Ego to see the world with.  The vehicle had ears - all the better for the Ego to hear the world.  The Ego's vehicle had a nose in order to smell its world and the Ego's vehicle had hands in order to feel and touch its world.  

Because the Ego's world is a back-to-front, upside down version of the Source's world, things work in exactly the opposite way.  Instead of looking inside to experience happiness, peace, power and freedom, the Ego has to look to physical things outside of itself to supply happiness, peace and freedom. Abundance and power is symbolised by money.  Happiness is symbolised by conditional love and circumstances meeting conditional expectations. Instead of being and experiencing Love, the Ego has to try and get substitutes for Love to make up for the emptiness inside.

The Ego's goal is to be independent of the Source of Love.  But to be independent of love is to be without love and to find yourself in a world of pain.   

The Ego is the original rebel without a cause.  Because the Original Cause is Love.

Amazing Peace

Sometimes we tend to think of "peace" just as quietness, calm or boredom.  We tend to equate peace with the absence of excitement or with simply being relaxed.  Or we tend to equate peace with death as in RIP.

But there are other meanings of peace.  

Peace is not just a case of deep relaxation or being in tranquil surroundings.  Peace can be a state of mind.  

You can be at peace in the middle of tumultuous surroundings, chaos, noisy environment, a war zone, if you are connected to your inner peace.

This state of inner peace is not just a case of feeling supremely “chilled out”, deeply relaxed, mildly detached from everything or indifferent apathy.  

This Peace with a capital P is not only the absence of anxiety, stress and turmoil but the Presence of Love, Confidence and Trust, a transformative Peace that generates power and strength. 

It is a Peace where you feel safe to be your Self, no matter what you are doing or where you are or what circumstances you find yourself in.  You feel completely safe to express and radiate the Presence of Power and Love.  And therefore those who come into your presence for those moments, let down their defences and feel safe to be who they are.  

It is a Peace that is not only the absence of war and conflict, but a Peace that will give us a sense of purpose and direction, be the centre from which we operate and be the Guiding Star in our lives.

To sum up, Peace is power.  It is a state of grace, confidence and trust.  

Peace is also our stepping stone to experiencing happiness and well-being that is not dependent on our circumstances.  

The best and deepest type of happiness is happiness for no reason.