Created Obstacles

 

Selfish Fixations

As we grow up we’re conditioned in selfish ways that allow for our fixations to be as they are. Simply put, if our selfish fixations were based in love humanity would be much different…

As I look back, I see how many of my fixations arose from selfish conditioning, this was just part of what was there growing up. Nothing particularly right or wrong in this, especially because there wasn’t much that could have been done differently. It’s very difficult to act in a loving manner if that’s not what’s in place growing up. Some things are learned naturally, but everything takes some conditioning associated with it. If you’re learning how to golf, at first it’s awkward with no knowledge as to the best way to swing a club, but the more you do it the more awareness of how to swing there is. This way of learning is beneficial when what you’re learning is based in love. Part of the problem is when what becomes fixated on isn’t based in love because it seems natural. This is why it’s so hard to change. I knew what was right (loving) and what was wrong (selfish) growing up, but doing what was loving was not what I was conditioned to do so being selfish became natural for me; there wasn’t anybody to tell me different.

To say the least, these selfish fixations caused much suffering because there wasn’t any room for much else to be seen. This is the merry-go-round most people are unknowingly on and it’s a direct result of why humanity is the way that it is. If we all grew up with our fixations based in loved, humanity would be much different, it’s that simple. I know this because fifteen years ago I began seeing things differently (of love) and lo and behold things began changing. It doesn’t mean it’s always this way, but just as it is with learning to swing a golf club properly, it takes practice. And for me it’s done so the loving behavior becomes as natural as the selfish fixations were…

Truthful Vision

Your answers will always be within yourself, you just need to make sure the tools that are being used are showing you a truthful vision of what is the most beneficial way to live…

Many years ago I had a definite vision of the direction I wanted my life to go as I began the study of my own mind. There weren’t any lofty goals or some great state of mind to attain to make my life about something in particular, all I had was a truthful vision of peace; a peace that eluded me for most of my life, this is still my vision today. Just because you’re on a so called spiritual path, it doesn’t mean what you’re doing is truly beneficial. I did things for many years that I was told were beneficial to me and it turned out not to be so; they were things that actually keep me suffering. I won’t go into details, but what I do today is beneficial and how I know this is because I’m at peace and I don’t have a real desire for anything else. I have a passion in my heart to share my experience with others, but it’s not an aching as I don’t need this moment to be different. If you’re not looking for anything that’s how you will know if you have a truthful vision as opposed to one made up by the Conditioned Mind.

You may want to be the most spiritual person in your circle, you may be reading all the right books, quoting all the right people, and putting all your energy into a so called practice, but there’s only one question and that is can you stop it all and still be at peace? If not, what you’re doing is only being used to distort your vision. I had a distorted vision for forty nine years so I know what I’m talking about. Try another book, a program, therapy, another pill, dieting, meditation, drugs, alcohol, and on an on, but when the tasks is complete and you’re living your daily life if you don’t have a clear vision of peace, what you’re doing isn’t working. There are many pointers in life, but your vision becomes distorted by thinking the pointers are the answers. The answers are simply within, you just need to make sure the tools you’re using are showing you a truthful vision that provides you with the most beneficial way to live…

Pleasure Chasing

For most, pleasure chasing is something that’s constant; it’s a direct link to what keeps the mind in a state of agitation. When things are accepted as they are, pleasure chasing is no longer needed…

We live in a pleasure chasing society. When it’s cold we chase warmth, when it’s hot we chase cool. Pleasure chasing is how many people spend their entire lives. If it’s not learned to be with the discomforts of what happens and not constantly push them away, there will be very little peace in your life. We live mostly in a place where we’re afraid of this discomfort because it means facing ourselves. Although our true essence is the love of all creation, this isn’t seen because the Conditioned Mind doesn’t allow it.

Once awareness is developed that allows some discipline to at least slow the mind down, it can be seen how pleasure chasing occupies most of our waking hours; we’re in a constant fix it mode trying to have things the way we think they need to be in order to be happy. The problem with this is nothing stays the same so we have to constantly make adjustments. It’s truly exhausting to live this way, but it’s the way most people live. It doesn’t have to be this way, but the only way it won’t be is if you can be with what occurs and not want it different than what it is. This doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy pleasure, just understand pleasure isn’t what allows you to be at peace. When you can accept things as they are that’s when you stop pleasure chasing…

False Thoughts

When truth is revealed no longer do you hold onto your thoughts because it’s understood most of them are false…

Don’t believe every thought because they tell you things that are false. Your thoughts will tell you the past is real yet the only place the past exist is in the mind. Your thoughts will tell you to fear, yet the only thing you have to fear is fear itself. Your thoughts will tell you to hold onto the belief of a self that’s a solid entity, but the form that’s being occupied needs no such attachment to exist as it’s always in a constant state of flux. Your thoughts will tell you I think therefore I am, but thoughts have nothing to do with I am. Your thoughts will make up beliefs that everything desired on the outside is needed, but if none of those desires come to pass, nothing happens. Even if they do get fulfilled, the satisfaction is fleeting at best. Then there’s the thoughts of the so called ego, this is like the bogeyman under the bed, it’s there until you look under the bed. Also, there’s no need to get rid of thoughts as they only exist because you think they do.

There’s the image in the mirror who is thought to be given a name for identification purposes. If the name is different the thought is we are someone else, but that’s only a thought because the form remains the same. There will be thoughts that are held onto that are false. Unfortunately the more your thoughts are attached to, the truer they seem. To truly be free, your false thoughts will have to be exposed. This doesn’t mean you find out you don’t exist, what you find out is you don’t exist in the way you thought you did. When this truth is revealed no longer do you hold onto your thoughts because it’s understood most of them are false…

Base of Stillness

The energy that unites and draws humanity together is the base of stillness. When you’re in this space others are attracted to it as it’s the one place where there’s unity simply because of the base of stillness…

It’s very important to have a base of stillness so people know there’s a place they can turn to. Everyone needs a place where they know they can go for relief from the unconscious world. It does matter what this base is, if you go to a place that’s used as distractions it may feel like relief, but it won’t be. If you get lost in something mundane, the day will go by because that’s life, but if you’re spending the same day in the base of stillness, you’ll exude peace and people will be drawn to you.

Don’t be concerned with what others think, just have stillness as your base and let no one take that away. Exuding stillness in a world that is mostly based in noise will allow others to also be in stillness which is needed for any transformation to occur. The stillness that draws someone to you is the stillness that becomes part of humanity. Life is an open experience so if you’re not learning from it you most likely have your mind made up what it’s about. When you truly see these made up stories aren’t needed, they fall away. This falling away allows life to be based in stillness. When you’re in this space others will be attracted to it as it’s the one place where there’s unity simply because of the base of stillness…

Present Moment Anchor

The mind is usually everywhere but the present moment, the body is an anchor to use in a sitting practice because there’s no way it can’t be in the present moment…

The importance of developing a sitting practice is in how this develops discipline which allows the mind to settle enough so one is in the present more often than not. The breath is used for this because it anchors you in the body which is always in the present. You never take a past or future breath, you can only take a breath in the present, this is why the breath is used. It’s the same reason chants are used. When Om is used, you don’t Om in the past or the future, you Om right now. When this is done it anchors you in the body which is always in the Now. The mind for most is constantly in the past or future. There are times when it’s present, but this is fleeting and mostly occurs because of happenstance. The body is a great anchor to use in a sitting practice because there’s no way it can’t be present. This doesn’t prevent anything from happening, but what it does do is it allows for one’s awareness to be with what’s happening instead of having resisting energy trying to use something to push it away. This resisting energy is at the core of how addictions manifest.

Besides a sitting practice, I often use the tool of simply looking down at my feet since wherever my feet are there I am; this also anchors me in the present. This is also why one uses a mindfulness practice, such as walking meditation. When you’re mindful of each step, you’re anchored in the body which as stated before, is always in the present moment. Life is magical in relation to form, but there’s nothing magical in being present for what’s actually happening as long as one is aware that it’s not happening to you, it’s just what’s happening, you just happen to be present to observe it…

A Realistic View

Because of the way the mind becomes conditioned its default state is mostly agitated. A realistic view of the mind is if you’re at peace right now with the world exactly as it is without having to save it…

Do whatever it is you think you need to do to get the desired results you think are needed, but see what’s guiding you. If you’re to get a realistic view as to what’s really going on in your life, there will have to be a deep awareness of why you are going in the direction you’re going. There are reasons why a person constantly struggles with being at peace and as subtle as this can be, it’s not something most people consciously think about. Because of the way the mind becomes conditioned, its normal state is mostly agitated. From the time a person starts their day the agitations begins. The alarm clocks rings and the snooze button is hit and although it’s not thought about that you’re not at peace, the bottom line is you’re not.

Constantly having to do something is caused by the mind being agitated which keeps you from the awareness of the agitation. Save the world if that’s the direction you think you need to go in, just understand maybe the world doesn’t need you to save it. If you’re not truly at peace in the moment without having to do anything, that’s what really needs to be looked at. Nothing else matters regardless of what you’re doing because it’s only a made up story that keeps the mind in an agitated state. Many people are so busy trying to save the world that they don’t see the forest from the trees. Until the beauty of the moment is seen and you can just be with that, peace will not be had because you will be too busy trying to save a world that just may not need saving. To me a realistic view of a settled the mind is if you’re at peace right now with the world exactly as it is without having an agitated need to save it…

Form Attachment

It’s strictly from form attachment that one wants things different which in turn causes you to create your own suffering…

If you really want to know what the basic flaw seems to be that keeps one creating their own suffering, it’s attaching to form to a fault. It’s not that we don’t exist or that we’ll be able to transcend our human form, it’s more so to find a way to embrace it and not attach to it. It will always be attaching to form in some way that causes suffering. It doesn’t have to be attached to, but it will take discipline so the mind settles to see this. It’s always form that wants things different and it’s always attaching to the story of form that causes suffering. This is true regardless of the circumstances.

Here’s an example of form attachment that pulls one into suffering. I ordered a pair of shoes online, when they were delivered I tried them on and they didn’t fit. By my first reaction you would have thought I was going to have to go shoeless, but that wasn’t the case. I attached to them not fitting and didn’t accept the fact that the shoes simply didn’t fit; this is what form attachment does. When I saw how childish wanting things different was, it fell away and I was able to simply send the shoes back. You can substitute the shoes with anything and you’ll get the same childish results of suffering. This is all because to be human is to desire, but it’s strictly from form that one attaches to wanting things different, this causes form attachment which is what creates your own suffering…

Approved Nonsense

You can only do what your own mind approves of. Until you wake up to see the nonsense behind what’s approved, it will remain and your mind approved nonsense will be the driving force of your existence…

Everything reached for is a coping mechanism of nonsense that your own mind has approved of. And although approving different things will produce different outcomes, the core of all of this approved nonsense is the same; it arises from your own mind. This is what causes one to constantly seek approval which isn’t real. The Conditioned Mind makes you believe it is and the ensuing behavior manifest to fill this approved nonsense. The Conditioned Mind says, Hey, you need to reach for something, what is reached for depends on the conditioning in place; sit and ponder this for awhile.

Until this is understood and the diabolical Conditioned Mind is seen for what it truly is, suffering will remain because you will always approve nonsense to fulfill the arisen mind agitation. There’s nothing inherently wrong with satisfaction, but when it’s the driving force of existence, it will keep the mind in a constant state of approving nonsense; this cannot be seen by a mind that’s locked in this state. Only within a quiet mind state will there be awareness of this. The reason why anything is reached for is because there’s approved nonsense by the mind for the present moment to be different; this is the lie of the Conditioned Mind. You can only do what your own mind approves of and unless you wake up to see this, your conditioning will remain in place and approved mind nonsense will be the driving force of your existence…

Message of Love

If you want the world to change, learn how to change yourself. But understand it’s not going to happen by believing in something, it will happen when your heart opens to connect with Universal Love…

Humanity has been unconscious for thousands of years. Look at the Bible which portrays what was going on in the region at that time. To me the story of Jesus is meant to bring humanity a message of love. No doubt it is Spirit led, but to those of that region who were lost not only to Roman rule, but also to the doctrine of the Old Testament, they didn’t care. Jesus pointed directly to the father and said, only through him (his love) could one see the love of the father in their heart and thus be able to love their neighbor. Love is magical in its ability to transform, but it’s not magical for a select few to experience. The teachings of Jesus are second to none when it comes to a direct path from the freedom of the bondage of self. The message from Jesus wasn’t about Jesus, it was about finding the love in your heart through his love so you could connect with Universal Love. You can call that God if it makes you feel better, but to me it’s simply love and doesn’t need a label.

Regardless if you believe in the story of Jesus or not, love is his message. Humanity is no different today than it was over 2,000 years ago. All that has happened is there are different beliefs being held onto; everyone still thinks theirs is right. The Pharisees were scared Jesus was going to make their profits less, they were of the world and that’s why they did what they did. What Jesus taught wasn’t of the world so they just wanted to get rid of him. I don’t hold onto beliefs so I don’t get into the story of what happened to Jesus as being true or not. All I know is the message of love left behind has the ability to transform and it doesn’t take a belief to have this occur. Love is what humanity is missing. We are lost and have missed the mark. If you want the world to change learn how to change yourself. Just understand it will only happen when your heart opens and connects with the love that the story of Jesus portrayed…

Worldly Influences

The ways to be drawn in by influences are endless, but understand the draw comes from your own mind and even though your conditioning provides the worldly triggers, you alone attach to them…

If you’re practicing to live a spiritual life but you don’t know your own mind, it’s like going to the gym, but not working out in a beneficial way; your results will be non existent. If you don’t notice your attachments, the whole point of any practice is missed. This is because of the draw of worldly influences makes looking inward difficult. There are so many influences that prevent looking inward from happening, but if it doesn’t happen you’ll remain in bondage to worldly influences. Influences are all they are because when there’s even the slightest of an opening to allow what’s within to be seen, your expansion begins.

The draw of worldly influences are very enticing. If they weren’t, the percentage of conscious and unconscious beings would be reversed, but it’s not this way because the draw of worldly influences are in control. This draw is only real to a degree. There’s no denying they’re there, but they’re in control because there’s a fictitious belief they are needed. We alone are the creators of this, and if one doesn’t become familiar with their own mind, the worldly influences will continue their control. Sadly there’s really no way around this…

Familiar Behavior

The familiar behavior of a Conditioned Mind can be devastating if it’s not understood. The familiar behavior manifests in many ways. When the mind quiets it falls away; that’s when life truly begins…

The reason why it’s so difficult to change is because the mind defaults to familiar behavior; to the point of its own suffering. The conditioning must be changed if the familiar behavior is to be changed. If this isn’t identified the behavior repeats over and over, that is until the necessary practice is cultivated to stop this. If nothing changes nothing changes. If the conditioning is changed the familiar behavior becomes different. You don’t change the behavior because it’s a by product of the conditioning. When there’s quietness instead of conditioning there won’t be any familiar behavior associated with the conditioning.

This is immensely valuable in the understanding of familiar behavior. If quietness isn’t brought into your life, the familiar noise in the head will continue. You have been conditioned to behave in familiar ways, whether those ways are beneficial to yourself, others, the planet, and the Universe as a whole, depends on the base of your conditioning. The base is what determines the results of your decisions and how they affect the entire Universe. You may not think acting in a self-serving way affects the Universe, but it does. Energy is energy, never created or destroyed, simply transformed.

No act is isolated from itself, whether based in love, greed, hate, or delusion; it affects the whole. The real issue is getting to know how your familiar conditioning makes decisions for you. Change happens when this is realized; that’s when different behavior arises. Your own mind will fight you on this, it makes you think the unknown is not good, but it’s only a story because everything that is known today was once unknown. So learn to quiet the squirrel cage mind so the familiar behavior isn’t the automatic way to go. You’ll be amazed with the way life changes when you start to do things differently and act in ways that are conducive to love. It’s truly that simple, but because the Conditioned Mind likes to revert to familiar behavior, change is not easy…

Heart Center

Your center of being is in your heart, and what’s in your heart is determined by how opportunities are used to either fulfill self-serving desires or being an instrument of goodness that comes from the heart…

When a heart center presents itself to help a person to possibly reduce some of the suffering the Conditioned Mind produces, there’s an obligation to be a benefit to that person. Tread lightly though as the person can only take advantage of the opportunity if their heart is to awaken within them. If nothing happens nothing is lost, but what if something clicks and their view of their heart changes; their gain is the worlds gain.

Understand this, you cannot give away what you don’t have, so get it and give it so the world becomes a better place. As long as people are kept in the dark of a self-serving center, darkness rules, but when there’s awareness of the heart center you become a light. There is no greater reward than to be an instrument for goodness, a light in a world that has the shades pulled down. Those shades are what keeps people centered in ignorance (darkness). To watch a person change right before your eyes is amazing, but this will only happen if your center of being is of the heart…

Aware of Awareness

What leads to a peaceful life begins and ends in the present moment. You can have awareness you’re thinking about something in the past or future, but you can never actually be there…

When a practice that allows awareness is in place, it’s to allow the present moment to be experienced. Being aware of what’s actually happening as opposed to being pulled around by it or pushing it away and applying a label to what’s happening, is what will dictate the amount of peace there is in your life. Life is magical in its essence, but there’s nothing magical in one becoming aware of awareness. All roads that lead to a peaceful life begin and end in the present moment and an awareness practice will assist in this. 

Take a step and simply be aware of it, now take another, this is also an anchor as is the breath to the present. One cannot be aware of something in the past or future because it doesn’t exist. You can be aware that you’re thinking about something in the past or future, but you can never actually be there. Every step or breath can only be taken as it is happening. The more you become aware of this, the more anchored you become of being in the present moment as opposed to grasping for straws in the story of what’s going on between your ears. Be aware of reading this and just observe what arises. Just be with it, no pulling or pushing, just be aware of what’s happening. It’s in this space of awareness that you will find peace and this is because in this space peace is the only thing that’s there…