Controlling Power

The more control we have over ourselves and our lives, the happier and freer we will feel:

Example
A simple example is when we are drinking a glass of water: we move our hands, we turn on the tap, we fill up the glass, we direct it to our mouth, we drink this invaluable liquid and thus we quench our thirst. Our body 'smiles back at us'... 
This is a simple example of controlling matter and being part of a game. This sense of control over matter doesn't mean exploitation rather something that is pure: interaction.  

But...
...we sometimes get angry with situations or other people. Why does this happen? We have the 'logical' expectation that all of our thoughts, desires and directions should manifest in this game of interaction around us... for many reasons though, this is not always possible especially when it concerns other people too... and even if it is possible it doesn't last...

Sometimes, the simple expectation that a person should behave as we want them to is in itself an attempt to control them. When we try to control another person, which is impossible, we are bound to fail, feel frustrated and stressed. Thus, we lose spiritual energy and feel exhausted which comes back as anger towards those we try to control or other people that are 'easier' for us...

This is the magic moment in which I can ask myself: "What kind of control do I truly need in order for me to be really happy?" We are capable of having power over ourselves; we can be more responsible for our thoughts and feelings. We have the capacity to choose the quality of our response to different situations and people that we come across in our lives, whatever the outcome.
If we do not exercise much control over our thoughts and emotions, we easily fall into the tendency of seeing ourselves as victimized, and we blame others, making them responsible in our own minds for how we feel. When we do this, we are forgetting that we are the creators of our own thoughts. When this happens, we are handing over the control of our thoughts to those who influence, criticize, attack or slander us.


If we want to recover control over our life, we must learn to control our thoughts and feelings and not blame anyone else for them. The more self-control we have over ourselves, the less will we want to control others and our capacity to influence other people positively will be greater.

By feeling victims we build walls around our heart keeping life and our 'enemies' outside... we become more and more cynical which we cover under the words 'maturing process' or becoming more 'experienced' or 'realistic'...

Exercise of Self Control
The more we turn inward for gaining control the more we will feel content and rejuvenated. In order to fulfill my need for control in a healthy way I need to have 'spiritual gymnastics': mind and heart exercises by practicing meditation.
By being a systematic spiritual effort maker I can empower my mind and my heart and thus I gain trust for myself and my life. During meditation I create simple thoughts and emerge feelings which replenish me and empower the circulation of spiritual energy within me. I will need less and less to impose my will on others or try to ‘control situations’ externally - on the contrary, I will have more power to affect others positively. 

It's a matter of power, and for power we need healthy 'spiritual nutrition' and systematic exercise...

Escaping ... Part B'

Growing up a child will observe the ways in which adults invent numerous forms of 'rejuvenation' or escape from their daily routines... Sooner or later these pleasant pastimes prove themselves to be ways of avoiding truth and become a source of new addictions…

Substances
Some external habits stimulate substances within our body… how long will we be chemically enslaved to these habits?
Take the exhaustive habit of anger as an example: it stimulates adrenaline in the body,giving the illusion of liveliness and 'control'. Gradually, however, it is possible to get addicted to this ‘chemical comfort zone’ and to create a hostile facet in my character (a trait which has become socially accepted as meaning we are being 'frank' or even 'courageous'). Adrenaline suppresses our natural state of peace and also the health of our body… but social reward or our own temporary satisfaction blinds us.

What should I do? Feel supressed ?
Somewhere between explosion and implosion there are many alternatives which we have not explored. Alternatives which we do not have the real courage to exercise… In this, spirituality can give me a helping hand… Let me move away from what seems to be  black and white…  Let me begin to talk with myself honestly:

"Because deep down I am reluctant to change anything about myself, I am for the time being unwilling to live a higher quality life (and so I am complacent) …I am reluctant to move closer to my true nature… maybe because I haven't yet really focused on discovering it… not yet at least… but any moment is the right moment to begin…"

It is a matter of discerning and choosing: will I let my habits emerge 'just like that' without the slightest filtering of them… without even really listening to them?

in silence let me listen… what is their message ? … what is it  that I don't satisfy within me?.... what are my deeper needs… from where are they originating ? … which deeper call am I not acknowledging? … which control, which power am I missing and substituting with anger…? 

So, what is the solution?
Solutions always hide behind problems… let me bring them into the light...

Substances
There are some substances that do not cause addiction and … we have unlimited and free quantities of them. Where? Within ourselves… There are some non-physical substances that are called virtues and powers: Peace, purity, friendship, inner wisdom, goodness, these are our imperishable instincts.

These eternal instincts or archetypes, want to emerge in our consciousness and they are determined to do so… For example, the substance called peace pulls us to a peaceful forest. Purity and innocence pulls us towards a dolphin or a deer.

With meditation I expand my understanding. Through my systematic reactivation of my true peace I start discerning the mechanism of chemical illusions. I realize that through any temporary satisfaction I loose valuable spiritual energy: I loose the power to direct my mind to beneficial thoughts and my heart to pure feelings. 

NOW is the time to learn the art of listening to my inner peaceful nature, the call of the self, time and the supreme source for true empowerment...

What is time calling me to do? To choose between chemistry or clarity… what is my supreme friend, the One who remains stable in his true state, calling me to be: … the embodiment of peace and pure happiness, away from illusion…
When I keep my inner space clean,  I am able to bring my mind close to the Pure Source, I'm feeling the current of clarity and grace… this grace restores and recharges me… this current enables me to keep improving myself…

Let me remember my true identity… that I am an eternal being… wherever I may be I can always remember my eternal Friend….. and as I do this, my consciousness is purified,  I begin to be like you again,…after all, you are my eternal parent…

The habit of fear

In our way to completeness, we sometimes live with fear which sometimes may be obvious and other times it remains well hidden behind innocent and quite logical expressions… words that repeat, such as: 'right' 'unfair' 'all' 'them' 'noone' 'honestly' 'always' 'never' 'realistically', are used when we want to avoid our responsibility, so we say something while we mean and feel something else.

The expressions that follow may be appropriate, true and fair enough when we are using them with honesty, but our fear-based motives hide many times what we really mean.

Fortunately for us and for the others around us, life is destined to uncover and expose our fears in a very natural way…life is destined to expose them to the light.

Type of Fears and the Expressions we use

Fear of the unknown

"let's be sensible... many things can happen… look what happened to Michael..." "...it takes time" ....."we must plan everything well  and be very thorough... otherwise everything will  just be up in the air...", "I don't function that way"

Fear of solitude

"we all need someone...", "I can't leave her, we've been through so many things...",
"a relationship is something that is alive, every real relationship has some tension; it's normal; let us be realistic"
Thus we sustain relationships based on fear of losing and we end up filling ourselves with possessiveness, codependency and finally with sorrow...:
"...which is something normal and it sometimes makes things interesting..." we admit many times to our friends...

Fear of 'others' or of cooperation with others

"they are not fond of me; I'm sure... you should see how they were looking at me the other day..."
"it's always more effective to cooperate with one person, maximum..." "I'm more effective when I'm on my own..."

Creative stress (?)

The Mythology of Stress (cont.)

There are some myths about stress that hide the real inner work that has to be done:

Myth ΙΙ:
"Small quantities of stress have been proved beneficial because they boost our creativity "

Truth: At present stress (fear of failure) and other emotions have coloured the soul to such an extent that we have forgotten how it is to feel our natural feelings. While intoxication or alertness by chemical means are in fact desensitization (alcohol, nicotine, drugs) and toxic shock (caffeine), they have entered our culture as bliss and refreshment in the same way that fear and worry have become motivation for creativity and interrest.   

}It is a illusion that stress, or putting pressure on people, is necessary to get things done. Why?

Because when fear (emotional pain) is invoked and used as a motivator, it always results in a drainage of emotional and spiritual energy, which eventually can lead to physical disease.

The light of dawn always comes right after the deepest darkness

Situation
When things seem to go wrong or not exactly as we've planned, we feel that the situation colours us. Our enthusiasm dries up and we unconsciously start painting our thoughts with the colour of the situation; everything seems dark and gloomy and we see no light at the end of the tunnel…

}We keep recycling with perfect concentration all the negativity that even the best yogis & yoginis  would be jealous of :
Not even one luminous thought can enter our dark “meditation"... We would even be able to convince everyone in our meditation class that "it's impossible for me to concentrate… it's so difficult… it’s my nature…I’ve always been like this … it's in my genes…"  

Luckily concentration, along with other spiritual powers, is absolutely natural for all souls and we don't need to learn how to do it...

"Techniques" or "tricks" can take us only so far…   honest exploration and love for what I concentrate on are enough... 

Reflection... the real "digestive" for every day-life

Reflection is an exercise of the mind and intellect that goes into the depths of understanding an idea, or realization, or point of knowledge with the aim of practicing it in daily life.

Values… in action is a sign that knowledge has been… digested; without this, knowledge simply remains a beautiful aspect, appreciated, interesting information in my intellect but without the ability to give me strength because it is still external; it has not been internalised.

spiritual power: the ability of the soul to remain unaffected by negativity... the ability of the soul to be heard by itself when it claims inside : "…alright … now… remain peaceful…" ... we all comply with the powerful ones anyway…

All quality action (quality action is that action which is truly appropriate to person, circumstance and the need of the moment), all newness of perception (understanding), all new insights, or vision, require a space for silent reflection as a preliminary step.
Normally, the known thief , Mrs. Action Nonstopson, the administrative head of the "Ritual-Routine Life-time S.A", buys our valuable awareness for hay …

… boredom, routine, new expectations, dissatisfaction and... new promises …"no doubt my friend… after this project I will be peaceful"

A mind and intellect that do not give time and attention to reflective silence (meditation) become spiritually lazy…

spiritual laziness : No new heights are reached because there is no depth of awareness in what we are doing, no reflection on purpose. Externally there may be lots of activity and creativity for hours and hours, but the soul is incapable to stabilise and tune in to its inherent peace and happiness.

The soul cannot transform a thought into experience.

…as result… we get trapped by routine.

To daily break free from this force, to relieve the mind of the weight of stress and waste and routine, I need to step inside and reflect (think) on who I am and where I am going and reassess my value system, bring it into life into the moment...

"what am I..?" "what is my true nature ?" "what are my values…? if I have forgotten them and I'm fighting against life once again… le me remember these values by emerging them right now into my awareness…... peace... purity... love... happiness... wisdom...I'm a being of light... a living point of peace... I emanate goodness and benefit…I'm love…

I'm love in motion…..."

... few seconds every hour is enough to bring me back from forgetfulness... so that I can stop the wheel of routine and start the wheel of my real happiness… it's a choice