Loving Awareness

True Rest

Posted by admin on January 30, 2008  |  7720 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F30%2Ftrue-rest%2FTrue+Rest2008-01-30+18%3A28%3A18adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F30%2Ftrue-rest%2F

As I’ve mentioned briefly before, I’m basically disabled now with a strange illness, one that doctors (so far) cannot diagnose. I cannot walk more than a couple blocks, clean my place, do shopping, lengthy cooking, etc, without getting a disorientation that lasts for hours. This doesn’t mean I can’t do all those things, simply that there are consequences which mean that if I do, I won’t be able to concentrate, talk without some slurring, or walk in a straight line.

Far from being resentful about this state, it’s brought to the surface a huge amount of insights surrounding how I live my life. The latest insight, which brought many tears, was simply how I do not let myself rest. There’s a strange guilt and defensiveness about letting myself truly do nothing. Like many, I defined my value in terms of the value I bring to others and to the world. A certain amount of repose may be necessary to “recharge”, but it was something to get over with quickly so I could get back to what brought goodness to the world.

Slavery in our lives – Martin Luther King Jr day

Posted by admin on January 21, 2008  |  7317 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F21%2Fslavery-in-our-lives-martin-luther-king-jr-day%2FSlavery+in+our+lives+-+Martin+Luther+King+Jr+day2008-01-22+04%3A03%3A43adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F21%2Fslavery-in-our-lives-martin-luther-king-jr-day%2F

In the United States today is Martin Luther King day. This man, through the work of millions of other people, has come to symbolize human rights and a desire to end slavery’s legacy in all forms. He understood, as do others, that slavery still exists in different forms even now. It exists as institutions, it exists in economic forms, and exists in the minds of people. This last part is rarely mentioned.

So what is slavery?

To expand the idea of what slavery is to include both the world and internal states, I would redefine it as the following:

Slavery is the state of living with no perceivable choices.

What is enlightenment?

Posted by admin on January 16, 2008  |  7016 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F16%2Fwhat-is-enlightenment%2FWhat+is+enlightenment%3F2008-01-17+03%3A28%3A18adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F16%2Fwhat-is-enlightenment%2F

The following was a question received from Mary which is wonderful and brings a lot of common ideas out into the open:

Question: I’ve come across the topic of enlightenment so often lately that I’d like a clear perspective on it. I find the idea confusing because it seems to be a worthy aim for the spiritually focused, yet it is said that those who say they are enlightened are not, and others say that it is better to work for personal maturity rather than enlightenment. Others say that it’s no fun being enlightened, while others say it’s pure bliss. So what is it really? How to get there, what does an enlightened life look like in our here and now life?

The concept of enlightenment, I find with some humor, is one which is filled with much non-enlightened thought: that is, thought based in separation and ‘ego’. Firstly, the concept is a label for an experience decidedly without labels. It is an experience of utter freedom â???? but whatever thought you have of what enlightenment is will always be accumulated from others. It is again, something someone else tells you is a better way.

What is healing, exactly?

Posted by admin on January 13, 2008  |  6913 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F13%2Fwhat-is-healing-exactly%2FWhat+is+healing%2C+exactly%3F2008-01-14+01%3A12%3A43adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F13%2Fwhat-is-healing-exactly%2F

Much of my exploration of love and spirituality has come directly from my own healing journey. I, like seemingly everyone, have had wounds from childhood that influence me seemingly all the time. In addition, I’ve had many physical maladies manifesting something going wrong internally. Right now I’m in a state of being unable to work or be active physically, because I get disoriented for hours if I do anything. Including getting groceries and household cleaning. Rather than getting disheartened, I’m using this for the gift that it is to do some inner household cleaning.

To honor this, I thought I’d share some channeling surrounding what healing actually is. Any similarities to actual persons in the examples are 100% not an accident. Nothing is!

On to the channeling…

Questions: What exactly is healing? How does one “do it”? It seems like a lot of times we think of healing as “getting over it”.

When we use the word ‘heal’ or ‘healing’, we are talking about allowing something to revert or assume its natural state. Most of you go through your lives with some part of you either physically or emotionally in a other than natural state. This creates conflicts and imbalances which allow you further opportunity for learning and growth. Healing, then, allows those parts of you to revert to their ‘normal’ state: A state of rest, a state without conflict, a state of peace.

Letting go

Posted by admin on January 8, 2008  |  641 Commenthttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F08%2Fletting-go%2FLetting+go2008-01-08+11%3A15%3A53adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F08%2Fletting-go%2F

You may have noticed that amidst the bustle of the holiday season, it’s easy to forget the turning of the seasons. Beyond gift giving and family, we have a fundamental connection as living being to this earth, and its movements move us. The wintry season with long nights, hibernation and repose, offer us time to reflect, re-evaluate, and release. Without dark nights, we would not awaken to a day that is new and transformed from those in the past. Letting go is emphasized by nature in this season, and listening to the nourisher of life on this planet provides deep nourishment in itself.

The essence of compassion part 2

Posted by admin on January 2, 2008  |  6621 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F02%2Fthe-essence-of-compassion-part-2%2FThe+essence+of+compassion+part+22008-01-03+02%3A13%3A40adminhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.loving-awareness.org%2F2008%2F01%2F02%2Fthe-essence-of-compassion-part-2%2F

The topic of compassion is of course very close to the purpose of this site âs it is an aspect of Love. However, this was instigated recently by the ‘Spread the Love Now!’ project of Wade of The Middle Way, Kenton of Zen-Inspired Self Development, and Albert of Urban Monk.Net. This site, as the ‘About’ page shows, has two writers, and we thought we’d each contribute something to this. So there are two articles about compassion, one for each of us. This topic is, after all, central to the purpose of this site – why else would we call it Loving Awareness?

If you haven’t read the previous entry on compassion, please do so. I’m going to add to it, starting with the first comment as a basis question – on the subject of child abuse. It’s a very good question, and representative on most people’s initial response to thinking of compassion in terms of awareness and acceptance, rather than having a duty to do something to solve a problem. I realize this is a touchy subject, and that what is written here may be controversial because of the massive cultural pain that exists. However, bringing compassion to such a painful area brings a huge amount of clarity to how it is applied in the world.