Holistic Feathers

I am not afraid of tomorrow … I have seen yesterday and I love today!

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Wow, it’s been a good few days since I was able to write anything on this blog … as some of you know, I have been away on a “busmans holiday”, a retreat/workshop in mid-July with some amazing women. Unusual to have this kind of workshop with just women attendees but with 24 huge hearts in the room, with equally big personalities, we had an incredible time.

We were blessed with beautiful weather for a start, despite forecasts of torrential rain. OK, so we got that on Friday but the UK had been under a deluge all week!

There’s so much I want to share with people from that incredible week but this one is the most important … the story of how sending love and healing to the world can change elements.

Firstly I need to share a little bit of the background history:

As most of my readers know, my beloved son (a wandering nomad!) is in the Armed Forces. Although he is now stationed in London, he started his career in the Army Foundation College up in Harrogate where 3,000 16-year olds spend 42 weeks on a life-changing experience, developing close bonds with those in their platoon and section (a section is made up of no more than 12 soldiers).

Very sadly in March of this year we got news that his best friend from Harrogate had been killed in Afghanistan; he had only just turned 18 years of age when he stepped on a landmine during a routine patrol. I cannot begin to tell you how devastating this was to my son and also to us, as a family, who felt unable to give him the support he needed to come to terms with this massive loss, only hugs and soothing words while he grieved for someone who was as close as only a brother could be.

On my first night away on the retreat I got news that another of his friends from his section had died in Afghanistan: a terrifically brave boy who’s childhood dream of being a Marine turned to dust when he trained at AFC. Instead he joined the Infantry … and he died a hero on my birthday, trying to save the life of one his team.

Yet again I was faced with the utter misery of not only grieving for another tragic loss of a young life, a beautiful boy filled with dreams and hopes for the future, and for his family … but the knowledge that there was nothing I could do to relieve the pain my baby was feeling.  Heart-sick comes nowhere near to describing that pain.

On the Tuesday morning I shared the tragic story of loss with this amazing group of 24 beautiful beings … and part of the morning meditation was directed towards healing the rifts of the world, healing the losses felt worldwide that were being caused by these ongoing rifts. A deeply moving meditation and one which helped me enormously to quieten my mind during this important week; supported by women who understood the emotions I was going through as a mother, on many different levels. Women who were saddened and heart-sore at the loss of so many lives for a purpose many of us cannot comprehend.

However, what we did not expect to hear later on was reports that members of the centre (and some of the monks) had seen beautiful pink lights flooding the sky across the bay; never seen before, they wondered what on earth they could be. Indeed, during that week they saw more pink lights – always at times while we were meditation as a group, sending love and healing to the world and beyond.  The skies were invariably a beautiful deep blue, studded with fluffy pale grey and white clouds … yet these pink lights appeared almost as though they were a sprinkling of faery dust, glittering and sparkling for all to see.

All the retreat attendees were busy women – practical, grounded, level-headed and most of us run our own businesses. Most of us are mothers. So no room for fanciful imaginations or woolly ideas … yet all of us were joining forces in opening our hearts and sending love to the world, for the highest good, to those who were able to welcome it with open arms. A small way to try to heal some of the damage caused by negative influences and hurts in modern day society.

I like to think that by combining together our desire to send love to the world, we managed to do some good. As for changing the skies (the elements) – that’s a pretty impressive way to see evidence, if any can exist, of your energies at work. If a little bit of love from just 24 ordinary ladies can do that to the surrounding skies, then what can a whole lot of love do if we all directed our thoughts and love at one particular moment in time towards maintaining peace and harmony throughout the world?

I have always joked to my son that maybe the Armed Forces should invest in mothers as a protective force … maybe there are other ways we can combine to offer protection, rather than sheer physical presence?!

I’d like to leave you with this poem:

The soldier stood and faced his God
Which must always come to pass …
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as brightly as his brass

“Step forward now, you soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?”

The soldier squared his shoulders and said
“No, Lord, I guess I ain’t …
Because those of us who carry guns
Can’t always be a saint

I’ve had to work most Sundays
And at times my talk was tough
And sometimes I’ve been violent
Because the streets are awfully tough

But, I never took a penny
That wasn’t mine to keep …
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep

And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear
And sometimes, God forgive me
I’ve wept unmanly tears

I know I don’t deserve a place
Among the people here …
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears

If you’ve a place for me here, Lord
It needn’t be so grand
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don’t, I’ll understand.”

There was a silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod …
As the soldier waited quietly
For the judgment of his God

“Step forward now you soldier,
Walk peacefully on Heaven’s streets,
You’ve done your time in Hell.”

(Discovered on www.janice142.com)

~with love & blessings from me, Callie, a very proud mum

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It’s easy to overlook the power of limiting beliefs and spend years wondering why you can’t seem to move forward and make lasting changes in your life. Though you might have grand dreams of living a better life, limiting beliefs will keep prodding you to act in ways that are counterproductive to those dreams.

Everything you do (or don’t do) is based on an internal set of subconscious beliefs. In some situations these beliefs can be helpful, but they can also cause big problems by placing limitations where none really exist. For example, if you hold a subconscious belief that you don’t have what it takes to create a successful career, you’ll find yourself taking jobs that offer little opportunity for promotion or advancement – or even satisfaction. No matter how badly you want to experience more success in your career, you’ll continue to think and act in ways that make it impossible to do so.

Limiting beliefs can be difficult to change because we often don’t realize they exist! They reside in our subconscious minds and rarely make themselves known in obvious ways. Rather, we usually become aware of them when we decide to make changes in our lives and keep bumping up against invisible walls.

Visualization is one powerful tool that can be effective in changing limiting beliefs, because the process of visualization speaks directly to the subconscious mind and plants more empowering messages – which can override the limiting beliefs.

Before you enter into the visualization process, it’s a good idea to figure out what kind of limiting beliefs you suspect you may have. Asking yourself specific questions and writing down your answers can be an illuminating way to find out. Try questions like these for starters:

# Am I making as much money as I want? If not, why not?
# Do I love my career, or would I rather be doing something else?
# Am I happy with the size and state of my body? If not, why not?
# Am I happy with the things I’ve achieved in my life so far?
# What else would I like to achieve?
# Do I really believe I’m capable of doing these things?
# If not, why not?

As you write down your answers to these questions, you’ll likely notice some limiting beliefs popping up in response. For example, when you ask why you’re not yet making the amount of money you desire, your answer might be, “I’m earning as much as I can at my current job, and there are no other prospects for me to get a better job right now.” As much as that might appear to be true, it’s a limiting belief! In other words, you THINK it’s true, but it’s simply your perception.

Once you’ve identified a limiting belief, write it down like these examples:

# I don’t believe I can make more money than I do now.
# I don’t believe I deserve a healthy, loving relationship.
# I don’t believe I can have a better career than I do now.
# I don’t believe I will ever be able to lose weight.

Once you’ve got a list of limiting beliefs, perform a visualization exercise daily and imagine that the opposite is true. For example, call up mental images of yourself receiving a great new job, or stumbling upon unexpected opportunities to boost your income in other ways. Be sure to actually move yourself into the feelings of these visions as if you were really experiencing them rather than just “seeing” them in your mind.

It will take time and consistent effort to change your belief in what is possible, but the more you focus on consciously believing in the possibilities, the more you’ll begin to let go of your inner limitations and open to better circumstances. Even better, the greatest part about this process is that you don’t need to know “how” something is possible – you just need to be willing to believe it is, and that is often enough to attract new opportunities that will change everything.

(c) by Iain – Evolution Ezine – All rights reserved

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I came across this interesting article in the weekly Evolution Ezine – happy reading!

Callie
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Send Negative Energy Packing … Increase Your Blessings and Positive Energy

Nowadays, the terms “energy work,” “healing” and “cleansing” are used and understood by a lot more people than perhaps ten or fifteen years ago. This is due, in large part, to the renaissance of holistic health and a widespread appreciation for living and healing ourselves, naturally.

But prolific, respected authors such as Carolyn Myss, Sandra Ingerman, Wayne Dyer and Scott Cunningham, have asserted that focusing on one’s well-being by way of eating and living holistically, is not enough. Essential, yes – but not enough. It is imperative, these voices unanimously echoed, to keep our energy clear. What, specifically, is meant by “energy”? I am referring to the energy in our own bodies and that of the environment in which we live. Clearing and charging our personal and home energy, can and should be done, these experts say, routinely and with conviction.

If Asian medicine is correct, and the Chi, or energetic force that both enlivens and animates the body, requires a clear path upon which to flow; if Ayurvedic medicine is correct, and our health is directly affected by the state of our energy; if the global Reiki movement is correct and human beings are able to respond positively to a Universal energy that can heal mind, body and spirit as well as cleanse and infuse places and things with healing energy – then could Myss, Ingerman, Dyer and Cunningham be correct? Could it be possible that “the big picture” for humans – wellness, harmony and prosperity – begins with clear, uncluttered energy?

I believe so. Considered by a lot of my readers and students to be an old time mystic living in a modern world, I’ve been writing and speaking about energy for some time now. At the forefront of my passionate proclamations about energy work, is one idea: keeping oneself and one’s home cleansed of harmful, contrary, inhibiting or negative energy, is vital. If we do not, then all the positive thinking and holistic practices in the world will be met with resistance. It makes good, clear sense to me that if we can remove some of the “orange cones” so to speak, those things that block our flow and create obstacles, shouldn’t we do that?

I cannot take much credit for this powerful idea. It’s a practice we’re seeing a lot of now – cleansing oneself and one’s home of negative energies. One very popular method is known as smudging. This is the practice of waving smoke from a purification herb over us, as a way to cleanse or purify. Interestingly, though you hear a lot of people refer to this practice as Native American in origin, this custom is found in the lore, writings and current traditions of many indigenous cultures. Michael Harner wrote about the Shamanic smudging in Peru and Ecuador; Barbara Tedlock noted the practice of herbal fumigation among descendents of the Maya currently residing in the Highlands of Guatemala and the modern day shamans of Siberia. A friend of mine, a man who is a direct descendent of a New York Seneca tribe, tells me he was taught that traditional botanicals to use for smudging are dried white sage, dried cedar wood and dried, braided sweetgrass. We can go back even further; the ancient Egyptians left behind a recipe for their signature incense, Kyphi. This ritual incense included a great many ingredients, among them frankincense – noted for it’s ability to purify, protect and cleanse.

In each of these instances, smudging is what took place – a cleansing of one’s personal energy and the energy in one’s environment, through the smoldering of sacred, powerful botanicals. We can do the same today. Many spiritual groups practice smudging and some modern holistic healers have identified that other natural items such as crystals, some gemstones and herbs, also cleanse or purify. Very often, we find that lunar phases empower this kind of work, depending upon the time of the month and the type of work being done. Farmers and agricultural folk have always known this.

For cleansing energetically, it is best to send away unwanted, negative energy as the moon is waning, or decreasing in light. To draw in or increase positive energy, it is best to work as the moon is waxing, or growing in light. You should check a calendar to determine the dates for current and upcoming moon phases. Botanical or energetic items may be acquired from a health food store or new age shop.

Here are two of my favorite ways to cleanse negative energy and increase positive energy, below. It may seem that these practices are simplistic in nature. Easy, they are. Simplistic, they are not. Please note that each of the items used for cleansing negativity or increasing positivity, are energetic in nature, and thus powerful in themselves. When items are combined with each other, joined with our intention and further fortified by the antiquity of the custom, we are effecting very powerful practices, indeed.

CLEANSING NEGATIVE ENERGY ON THE WANING MOON or FULL MOON
Note: Waning moon is that period of time between the Full and New Moon. This cleansing may be performed on the Waning Moon or on the Full Moon.

NEEDED:
1. Dried white sage (in bulk or bundled together as an herbal wand) or dried sweetgrass.
2. 1 piece of hematite, a silvery-black stone
3. 1 white candle

Any time of the day or night when the moon is waning, light dried white sage or sweetgrass. Beginning with yourself, take up the hematite in one hand and with your other hand, wave the smoke first around your head area. Next wave the smoke down your entire body, along your extended arms, down each leg and underneath each foot. It is thought that the smoke clears the body’s energetic aura of impurities, “trapping” them in the fumigation and taking the negative energies heavenward to be released or recycled.

Next, smudge your home. Start in the room you consider to be the hub; for many this is the kitchen. For some, the hub of the home is their office or living room. Carrying the smoldering herb in one hand and the piece of hematite in the other, walk clockwise around each room. Wave the smoldering sage or sweetgrass smoke throughout, including the corners and closets. Custom dictates that one leave a door or window open while performing this type of cleansing, so that the negative energy has somewhere to go, a way to get out.

When you are finished smudging, light a white candle to affirm the release and clearing of negative energy from yourself and your home. Visualize purifying white light permeating your home and sealing it as cleansed. Carry the hematite with you; it is magnetic in nature and will continue absorbing negative energy around and on, the person in posession of it.

AFFIRMING POSITIVE ENERGY ON THE WAXING MOON or NEW MOON
Note: Waxing moon is that period of time between the New and Full Moon. This positive energy blessing may be performed on the Waxing Moon or on the New Moon.

NEEDED:
1. Peels from 1 orange, a handful of rose petals and a tablespoon of dried cloves or star anise
2. 1 quartz crystal point or polished quartz crystal
3. 1 white or purple candle

Any time of the day or night when the moon is waxing, fill a small saucepan with water and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Add all botanical ingredients, including the orange peels, rose petals and cloves or star anise. Give the mixture a stir with a wooden spoon. As the scented steam rises, see your home being filled and blessed with positive energy. According to holistic aromatherapy, orange peels facilitate blessings and harmony; rose petals encourage unconditional love, loving communication and expression; cloves and star anise protect against harm. If you like, you can gather “handfuls” of the aromatic steam and “wash” it over your face, inhaling the scent and thus allowing the energies to affect your consciousness. As water evaporates, add more cool water to the pot. With the addition of more water, the potency of the aroma may subside. You may add more botanicals – just be sure to include all the ingredients.

Light a white or purple candle to align with high, Divine energies. This further adds to the potency of your intention. Set the quartz crystal, which is a natural conductor of electricity and a powerful magnifier, near to the simmering pot and lit candle. In this way, you are boosting the energetic power of your aromatherapy and positive energy candle. After a while, you may carry the crystal with you as a way of boosting and magnifying your own positive energy.

KEEPING THE QUARTZ & HEMATITE CLEANSED

Experienced crystal connoisseurs know that while quartz does not retain outside energy nearly at the rate or volume hematite does, both stones must be cleansed and recharged regularly. A good timetable is to cleanse and charge stones monthly, depending on the frequency of their use. You may smudge the quartz crystal and hematite, removing negative energies from them in this way. Another effective method is to hold the stones under cold running water. To charge (restore) hematite, place it on a window sill in the sun or out in the grass or on your front step, in the sun. You will notice the hematite will get very hot; this is part of the charging process. To charge quartz crystal, it may also be placed in sunlight to magnify and restore its’ energy. Alternately, you may bury quartz crystal in the earth, leaving it deep in clean soil for no less than one week, or as much as one month. When you are ready, dig up the quartz and gently wash it off.

ABOUT THE WRITER:
JO LYNNE GIANVECCHIO-VALERIE is an author and lover of all things holistic. She has been Editor in Chief of holistic and new age print magazines, and was on the production team for the PBS Television Show Nature’s Wisdom Television, which she eventually co-hosted.
Jo Lynne’s latest work is her debut book titled, A Tale For All Seasons: Magical Stories For Heart And Soul. She is the founder of The Natural Food Cupboard and facilitates spiritual circles, workshops and events. Jo Lynne holds a BA in Journalism, Creative Writing and Literature; she is a Reiki Master, Certified Herbalist and Licensed Holistic Aromatherapist. Learn more about Jo Lynne on her web-site, www.JoLynneValerie.com

LISTENING TO “Home” by Chris Coco vs. Afterlife; “Earthlight” by Deuter  and “Cycles” by R. Carlos Nakai

Discovered by Callie via Evolution Ezine: sign up and receive weekly updates

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This is such an easy natural beauty cleanser recipe!

All you need to do is macerate* some violet flowers and leaves  in olive oil for a couple of weeks, then strain and add some beeswax to the oil mixture.

Hey presto!

This cleansing cream is excellent for removing make-up, even for sensitive skins.  You may also use this mixture on your face and hands as a body lotion if you suffer with dry skin.

Definition of macerate: separate into parts (constituents) by soaking

Recipe discovered on Stairway of Life

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Meditation: Inner Silence, Peace of Mind, Enlightenment

Imagine yourself standing on the beach, watching the waves rushing to the shore, and then returning back to the ocean. Feel the cool, pleasant breeze, and breath in the intoxicating smell of the ocean’s water. Tune in to the feeling of calmness that you experience now. Stay with this image and feeling for a while. It is pleasant, isn’t it?

It does not matter that this scene is taking place in your imagination and is not real. You have been successful in invoking feelings associated with being on the beach. You were in engaged in some sort of meditation. Was it difficult?

In the last fifty years meditation has become popular, and people are becoming aware of its benefits. Many erroneously believe that it is only a means to relax the body and mind, when actually it is a lot more than this. Life in the West is full of tension and rush, so meditation has become erroneously recognized as a technique for relaxation. Relaxation is very important, but it is only one of the by-products of meditation, and not the end aim.

There are many techniques of meditation. One technique may appeal to some and another method may appeal to someone else. It is not a matter of which methods is better. At each level of development, a specific technique may be more appropriate.

Meditation’s Benefits and Goals

Meditation relaxes the body, calms the mind, and minimizes tension. After a period of practice, the racing and rushing of thoughts in the mind slow down, not only during meditation, but also in daily life. Happiness increases along the way. Tolerance, love, understanding, inner power and fearlessness increase too. The concentration ability gets sharpened, and the mind become stronger and under control. The ability to enjoy the present moment increases, criticizing and blaming disappears, and strength, happiness and satisfaction increase.

All meditation techniques are means to the same final target, to empty the mind from thoughts, discover the real “I” and live in Pure Awareness. Along the way there are many benefits that have already been mentioned in the previous paragraph.

Nowadays there are many books about meditation. There are lectures and workshops too, so it is quite easy to find information about meditation, and someone to guide you along the first steps.

To meditate, we need at least some concentration ability. It does not mean that without proper training in concentration we will not be able to meditate. Even if concentration is foreign to us, we can start practicing meditation. The practice itself will strengthen the powers of concentration. But a prior ability of concentration is a great asset that speeds up our progress.

According to the teaching of the Indian philosophy of Advaita Vedanta, there is no separate self, all is One. It is only illusion, Maya, that clouds our vision. If we accept this premise, then we can say that the Absolute Self, the One, or whatever name you give to the Absolute principle, “creates” bodies and looks at its “creations” through the body’s eyes. This causes the illusion of many selves. The Absolute is One, homogenous whole, but through illusion, delusion, ignorance and wrong thinking there is a belief in separation, of multitudes of units.

Everyone is very much engrossed in this illusion. There is ” I”, “You”, “She”, “They”, etc. We believe in separate selves, and identify with a body, a family, a nation, or a race.

The purpose of meditation is to “unlearn” all the wrong concepts and come to realize who we really are. This realization may be mental at first, until we really KNOW. We are not the physical body, the ego, our thoughts or our feelings, but something else. By delving inside ourselves, into the feeling or sensation, which can be termed as “I am”, we come to know ourselves. It is nothing external or new that we find. This feeling of “I am” is always with us. We simply let the mind flow outside, to sense objects, and so “lose” this feeling. It is something that has always been, always is, and will always be.

This Real “something” is like a bulb of light that is always lit, but is covered by many sheets. We have to strip away the sheets. These sheets are our thoughts, feelings, ideas, and mental habits. By stripping them away, we see the internal Light.

Look inside yourself and try to examine and be conscious of the feeling or sensation you have of yourself. I mean just the feeling that you are alive and existing. Concentrate on what you sense to be your essence. This feeling of “I-ness”, is actually always with you, no matter what you are doing or where you are. It is an invariable and continuous factor, but it is clouded by the five senses and by thoughts. It is not something theoretical, metaphorical, or mystical. It is a fact. It is the common experience of everybody. Yet, it is ignored, because the five senses and the mind flow outside, not inside. Do not expect to hear trumpets and walk on a red carpet when you become conscious of this feeling, because it has always been within you, only at the back of your mind.

There is one trap that has to be avoided. Never be attached to any particular kind of meditation. After practicing one technique successfully for a period of time, it is time to move on to some more advanced one. If you stay attached to a technique or method that you have overgrown, you might halt your progress. A competent teacher knows when you need to advance to a more advanced technique, and will show you the way, otherwise you may just stay in the same place. If you do not have a teacher, look at your experiences, listen to your intuition, stay open minded, and you will know when to move on.

It is advisable to practice one technique at a time, and not to jump from one to another. There is no sense in practicing many techniques at the same time.

Practicing Meditation

Sit down, relax your body, feelings and thoughts by whatever methods you know. A few minutes of calm deep rhythmical breaths will make you more relaxed. When advanced on the path you will not need all these preliminaries. Now try to look at your thoughts, as if from the outside, as if they are not yours. Watch your thoughts calmly, without using force, and without being carried away by them or being emotionally involved with them. Whenever you find yourself deviating from the meditation and thinking about something else, gently bring your mind back to the task. Do this at least 10 minutes each day and then gradually lengthen the time up to 20-25 minutes.

The next step is to think about the body, the feelings and thoughts and then reject them as not your ‘I’. When looking at some object and thinking about it, you cannot be that object, you are separate from it. If you think about your body, it means that something separate from it is thinking about it. This also applies to your thoughts, feelings, beliefs and ego. Keep thinking in this way and you will come to the conclusion that you are not all these components.

Thoughts, feelings and beliefs change, sometimes radically, but yet you still exist as yourself, you retain the same awareness or consciousness of your being. The body’s cells change too, but you, the essential you, remain the same. The I is eternal, and all else is not. Everything comes and go, but your ‘I’, your feeling of being alive and existing, when not identified or mixed with anything such as body, thought, or feeling, is always the same, never changing. This I is your real Self. One minute you may be thinking or feeling something, the next minute another thought or feeling pops up. But who is aware of the thoughts and the feelings? Think about it, and then just try to be aware of the answer with no words or thoughts.

Then ask yourself “who am I?” and wait for the answer. The answer is not verbal. It is just a realization with no words or thoughts. No inner discussion is necessary. It is an intuitive knowledge, with absolute certainty, in a direct and experimental way, of who you really are. Then you feel the Bliss of the Eternal. This state is called by many names by different tradition, Cosmic Consciousness, Samadhi, Nirvana Self-realization, to quote a few. The question “Who am I”, as a trigger to come to Self-knowledge, was the path advocated by Sri Ramana Maharshi the great Sage of India.

The human mind has learnt to think in complicated ways and expect complicated solutions and theories about life and its meaning. All these ideas have to be rejected if we want to succeed in our endeavor. It is the mind that is creating many theories, worlds, powers and entities. It creates problems and then looks for solutions. We have to get beyond the mind in order to control it and its creations. Freedom from thoughts and a realization of our true eternal One identity, free us from the mind’s games.

Meditation has to be practiced with a spirit of detachment and without tension. In time, you will become more aware of your Consciousness, your Real I and act and do everything from its viewpoint, not the ego’s point of view. It is really inaccurate to say, ” to be aware of your Consciousness” as you are it, you do not experience it as something separate from you, you are It. If you say, I am observing my consciousness, ask yourself who is this observer. You can observe your mind, but not yourself. The mind observes what is happening around, but when you observe your mind, it is actually you, the consciousness that is observing the mind. Please do not regard what I have said as a game of words, because it isn’t.

What is to be done is to stop thinking and just Be. ‘Be’ means, feel your real being, with no identification with your thoughts or personality. This has to be practiced; otherwise whatever you read here will remain as useless and meaningless words. If you are able to stop all your thinking and still remain conscious, forgoing any false identification with what you call your personality and its attachments, and just experience what is left, which is certainly not a vacuum, then that’s it. You have what people call ‘found yourself’. All what you have to do next is to stabilize in this state, always and under all circumstances.

It is hoped that this short, and rather general article, may be of some help. It is not claimed that this is the only way, not at all. This way may appeal to some. Other paths appeal to others.

At first, meditation is to be performed at special times during the day. At a certain point in your progress you will be able to meditate it at all available moments, when you are not busy with something that needs special attention. Then the moments of blissful silence will start coming, increasing in length, and the breaks between them will get shorter and shorter. One day you may find that you are always in a state of meditation, even while doing other things. This becomes the natural state of your Awareness. No thoughts, only silent mind carried into each task and deed throughout the day, every day.

By (c) Remez Sasson – All rights reserved
Article discovered on SuccessConsciousness – do sign up to receive their newsletter, full of amazing tips and quotes

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According to European researchers, flax seed oil and starflower oil may protect gainst reddening, scaling and roughness.  This is thought to be due to the high levels of essential fatty acids in these two plant oils.

The researchers recruited 45 non-smoking, healthy women between the ages of 18 and 65 and divided them into three groups.

One group received flax oil supplements, another starflower oil while the third group were given dummy pills for 12 weeks.  During the study, the participants’ skin was purposely irritated applying a substance called nicotinate to induce redness and inflammation.

Following this nicotinate treatment, the researchers noted that those taking the  flax and starflower oil displayed a 35-45% decrease in skin reddening.  Moreover, the oil supplement groups lost 10% less water from their skin and showed a significant decrease in roughness and scaling by the end of the 12-week trial.

Blood tests performed after 6 and 12 weeks showed that flax and starflower oil supplementation significantly changed the levels of essential fatty acids in the blood.  This supports the “beauty from within” hypothesis, suggesting that what we eat has as much influence on skin health as the skin creams we use.

The researchers suggest that the beneficial effects of flax and starflower oils may stem from beneficial changes in cell membrane health or the role of essential fats in curbing inflammatory processes in the body but, either way, the benefits are clear.

Article discovered in (c) Higher Nature July/August 2009 professional update, page 7.

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Positive thinking.

Hands up who has never, ever heard of this phrase? Any takers?

Ha ha – I thought as much! Positive thinking is THE buzz-phrase of the moment, especially as the global economy keeps threatening to topple over in spectacular style (not just yet, this is just a tickler …).

What the heck does “positivity” mean? With so much negativity swamping us from every angle at the moment – with even the planetary aspects ganging up on us at times – could this just be a clever trickster way of trying to keep our spirits up, a little bit of light beaming out amongst the murky depths of modern-day life?

A while back, a very learned friend recommended that I buy “Excuse Me, Your Life is Waiting” by Lynn Grabhorn. A brilliant book on the power of positive thinking if ever there was one and I’d love to share a couple of excerpts with you here:

“Way back in the thirties a couple of guys in the Orient were attempting to prove that thoughts were real things, and that different kinds of thoughts create different kinds of vibrations. So they decided to see if they could actually photograph vibrations of thought. And by golly they did, right through steel walls …but they also proved something else perhaps even more important. They found that the more emotion the thinker/sender charged his thoughts with, the clearer the picture turned out to be! …So whether it’s high-vibrational joy, or low-vibrational worry, what we’re vibrationally offering in any moment is what we’re attracting back …Which makes us living, breathing magnets.”

What do you think? Does that sound about right to you? It certainly did to me, thinking of how often one little thing goes wrong in the morning and then a whole multitude of ‘things going wrong’ follows me round for the rest of the day, until I get a happy head back on again.

Lynn reminds us in her amazingly entertaining book that as “we exist on this planet in a predominantly low frequency field of energy born of over six billion people who are vibrating more feelings of stress and fearfulness than joy, we involuntarily take in those vibrations and react to them. So … until we consciously learn to override the pervasive low frequencies in which we exist, we will keep recycling unpleasant outcomes into our lives day after tiresome day.”

Candace Pert also taps into the power of positive thinking in “Molecule of Emotion: Why you feel the way you feel”, in this case tying it in with cellular memory. Cellular memory is based on the philosophy that our cells retain memories of positive and negative vibrations which can even be transposed to another being, in the case of organ transplants.

So, if we take it as read that such a thing CAN be possible, how the heck can we shift negativity and bloom with positivity?

Well, affirmations are a really great way to kick-start any day – as is meditation. I have a wonderful Louise L. Hay screensaver which is full of beautiful images and affirmations, so with that and a dose of meditation I should be the most positive girl around!

But as Lynn mentions in her book, we are surrounded by so many people in this world who give off low frequencies because that is how life is … so what else can we do to protect ourselves, try to keep thinking as positively as we can?

Positive thinking is not about ignoring the parts of life which irritate us, or make us angry or fearful. It is about embracing all that we are and actively learning to react differently to situations which help to propel us into this low-vibration frequency. Here are two of my favourite discoveries, which I use alongside affirmations and regular meditation – you may find them useful too.

Energy Essences
Ripple Energy Essences are aromatherapy essences blended with love, created to represent different aspirations in life. There are 12 blends in the family of Ripple Energy Essences*, two of which are Prosperity and Positivity.

Prosperity is to help you attract abundance into your life and know that you deserve to flourish. The essence packs a gorgeous vibration, consisting of grapefruit, lemon, cardamom, cinnamon, orange and geranium. One of the visualisations you may like to use while using this essence is from the Abundance Innersight card:

“Close your eyes and focus on your greatest need. Visualise yourself with an abundance of this now. See yourself living with this prosperity and enjoying the gift of this wealth. Know that you are allowing the fears and expectations of lack to leave you. See these as balls of light that leave you and float like balloons to the sky where they dissolve into light. You are open (to the Universe) and accept prosperity and abundance to enter your life now.”

Positivity is designed to help you create the best in every situation, attract more positivity and transfer positivity to others. The essence is another fruity vibration, full of lemon, coriander, grapefruit, bergamot, patchouli and sandalwood. The following visualisation is from the Enthusiasm Innersight card:

“Imagine you are standing by a lakeside in the darkness of night. Visualise the dawn with the sun coming up into the sky bringing pink and golden light that turns the dark waters of the lake lighter and lighter till the sun moves high into the sky and the waters sparkle and shimmer with the sunlight and reflect back to you the blue of the sky. See your own life becoming brighter and lighter as you connect with the sun and the light it brings to the world. Surrender the darkness of your doubts and fears, allow yourself to be filled with this light.”

Ripple wellbeing parties are also an excellent way to bring positivity into your life – share with friends your secrets of positive, energised living!

Manifesting techniques
There are plenty of amazing techniques available to you, one of which I stumbled across over 18 months ago and which ultimately ended up with us moving into the house of our dreams! M.A.T. (Manifestation Acceleration Techniques) is based upon teachings from Archangel Michael, involving completing a purpose finder exercise (not as easy as it first looked, I found!) and learning five breath patterns, which include an intention overlay … learning also about how the unconscious conspiracy plays a part in creating our reality, and tapping into the power of toroids. Very simple, very effective and this really can help you to create your own reality. I am always thrilled by how easy it is use harness the power of positive thinking and turn it into positive creation, and love sharing these ideas in the form of our Angelic Abundance workshops.

So have a real think about how you can let go of any negativity in your life and allow in positive, happy vibes and take advantage of your increased vitality. Find out what works for you and just keep practicing … over time, positive thinking will become as simple and as conscious-thought-free as breathing! And if all else fails, stick yourself in a bubble and allow all that negativity just flow right over you!

“Reality is the mirror of your thoughts. Choose well what you put in front of the mirror.”

Please avoid essences during pregnancy unless you are under the care of a qualified aromatherapist, err on the side of caution!

(c) Callie Carling, 2009

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We would love to share with you an introduction to the Reyad Sekh Em (Egyptian healing) system, which we offer as part of our treatments.

Reyad Sekh Em® is an ultra high vibrational Egyptian energy healing system; a unique combination of the angelic elemental healing rays (of earth, fire, water, air and spirit) and ancient Egyptian philosophies with the use of colour breathing, sound vibration and crystalline healing energies.

We live in a multi-dimensional reality and many of us, consciously or unconsciously, shift in and out of various dimensions all the time. These other dimensions co-exist in the same physical ‘space’ as ours. The separation between these different dimensions is quite simply vibration; with each dimension operating and existing at a different vibratory rate. Energy healing systems such as Reiki and Reyad Sekh Em allow access to these higher dimensions so that the healing recipient can be spiritually boosted and nurtured towards a healthier balance and vitality. More experienced healers can access even higher dimensions.

Reyad Sekh Em evolved from Tera Mai™ Reiki and Seichem, a system originally devised by Kathleen Milner. The spelling of Seichem, Sekh Em, SKHM is purely arbitrary, the Sekh Em spelling best indicating the way this healing art should be pronounced. Sekh Em is listed in Middle Egyptian dictionaries as ‘make complete’ or ‘power’. Se Khem – another alternative spelling – would mean ‘born of Khemit’. The Ancient Egyptians called their land Khemit (viewing themselves as Khemitians), so this means ‘born in Egypt’.

The Khemitians believed that we all have the capacity for 360 senses, rather than the five senses that we acknowledge. These other senses are re-awakened by self-empowerment activities including positive intent, meditation, healing energies, attunements and by pilgrimages to key sacred sites. All of these activities raise our vibratory rate and therefore act as triggers for clairvoyance, clairsentience, clairaudience and much more that cannot be readily identified by current levels of understanding. These senses can also be empowered by the elements.

The Egyptian five-pointed star represented the five elements of Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether. Reyad means ‘Elemental’, like a little piece of Heaven – the source of the Cosmic Spirit – also known as Chi or Prana. The five-pointed star also represented the five stages of the sun during the day and the five stages of life: Dawn known as Kheper (the scarab), high noon known as Ra (the ram), the afternoon sun was Oon (the wise), full afternoon sun Aten (the wiser) and finally at dusk Amen (the hidden or veil).

Eight separate visits to Egypt, and various meetings with an indigenous tribal elder named Hakim, led to the development of REYAD SEKH EM as an authentic Egyptian approach. This includes self-empowerment meditations, etheric crystals, colour breathing and sound healing vibrations and also embraces angelic philosophies. The system also includes a very versatile ‘Negative Energy Drain’ where heavy dense energy can be released. This technique, which is somewhat Shamanic in style, seems to help tackle anything from chronic aches and pains, to physical/mental/energetic disorders such as arthritis, ME, clinical depression or even fertility problems or serious cancers. Children with learning difficulties such as autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia and ADHD have also responded favourably. However, diet and other factors must not be overlooked.

Reyad Sekh Em can be learned as a natural progression from Reiki, although others learn the system having never felt drawn to learn Reiki. It’s an intensive programme best suited to those who can process a high volume of information in a short time. ‘Initiations’ are given into Reyad Sekh Em by placing the ancient sacred symbols (Kheper, Ra, Oon, Aten and Amen, one at each level) into the aura at specific chakra points, opening the body to the universal rays of Fire, Earth, Water, Air and Spirit. These symbols manifest in a dimension normally outside our awareness causing a change in the energy field. Our own vibrational state is then enhanced to bring awareness of other dimensions and accept the loving guidance of the beings within them. Once this has happened, it is up to the individual to decide how and when they walk the path towards enlightenment.

(c) Joanna Bristow-Watkins
www.harmonyhealing.co.uk

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