Our attention is very limited; what we can focus on and hold in our consciousness at any one time is very limited, so beliefs and our mental constructs of the world and how it works and how we have evolved to function within it can be very helpful. If you had to consciously “think” about everything and all the possible results of your actions you would move very slowly about in the world and be subject to numerous accidents in our fast moving, life and world. Even walking around in the city and getting to where you wanted to go without mishap would be quite an accomplishment as you constantly have to make unconscious decisions to avoid other people walking, automobiles, cross streets, avoid construction activities on sidewalks and the many circumstances that we often do not really pay attention to as we have learned to just automatically go about our day and tasks.
Beliefs can be very helpful and can also be the causative factor in much unnecessary suffering. Our beliefs help to create how we experience the world around us. From our beliefs, of all the possibilities available, the Universe works to deliver those beliefs in all that we encounter in the world. What we find physically manifesting for us is a reflection of those beliefs that are conscious and unconscious.
I would like to give you an example from my life that “happened” (I put “happened” in quotes as it implies I had no connection or influence in what occurred to me) as I was traveling home from a Hakomi Workshop in June.
I was traveling back to Ashland from Vancouver British Columbia Canada on a small airplane early in the morning and had just sat down. Being one of the first people on the plane I had the opportunity to observe the other passengers as they came in to be seated.
A group of four young men came in and as they passed me I felt assaulted by their aftershave and the cologne they were wearing. I was very pleased that they continued to their seats towards the back of the plane. I grumbled to myself about insensitive people who are unaware of or just don’t care about how what they do can effect other people around them. This led me down a memory path of similar incidents, people and thoughts about my sensitivities and living in a world that is often oblivious to how chemicals, scents and smells can be aversive to anyone sensitive to such things.
Shortly, a man of what appeared to me to be of Middle Eastern ethnicity came in and sat directly in front of me. He might have bathed in cologne, deodorant and aftershave, as the odor was so powerful and strong radiating off from him. I allowed this feeling of being assaulted to continue my downward spiraling of thoughts, feelings and emotions. Airplane travel became aversive and painful, fear for my health, dislike of unconscious people, the advertising industry that promotes chemical scents as positive and good, remembering articles and books that I have read affirming how “bad” such chemicals and scents really are for people, wondering if I would get “sick” from the smells…
Somehow I was able to observe and catch myself as I sunk deeper and deeper in negative feelings, thoughts and justifications for my beliefs and sensitivities. I thought if I keep going on this direction of thought, thinking and beliefs I would really have a miserable flight and probably make myself sick before I even got home. So, I quickly determined that I have a core belief that colognes, perfumes, aftershaves, heavily scented soaps and detergents, chemical air-fresheners and all such “unnatural” scents would harm me. I also knew that my intense dislike, strong resistance and fear for my health regarding such scents would draw those exact things to me in greater and greater proportions the more I focused on them, how “bad” they were, how much I disliked them and how they would hurt me.
I immediately got as quiet as possible inside myself, ignoring the scents, incoming people and general airplane noises and began to say to myself things of a soothing nature starting with more general and then more specific thoughts like:
- The flight will only be an hour and I can survive it.
- After a short while my nose will become numb to the smells.
- The people wearing the colognes, perfumes, aftershaves and clothes washed in heavily scented cleaners are just unaware and if they really knew what they were doing to themselves and others they would probably make different choices.
- My body is healthy and strong; it will be able to transmute the chemicals before they really negatively effected me.
- I will be just fine and can enjoy this flight by focusing on all the things that are going “right” and are pleasant and nice about flying.
- People are really interesting and we are all in various stages of awakening, I wonder what their world is really like and why they make the choices that they are making.
- I can enjoy this ride and will be wiser for all the experiences I have gained from being here right now!
I surrendered at that point and even silently laughed to myself as I observed the situation I had attracted to me. Then the girl standing next to me very nicely said that she thinks she has the window seat that I was sitting in. I thought, great now she will be sitting right next to me with her girlfriend in front and the cologne drenched man next to her. Surrendering again to my manifestation I looked at my seating assignment and saw indeed I had sat in her seat and my window seat was on the next plane I was to take (same type of small airplane and same seating isle).
Now the airline steward had been attracted to the girls standing and observed correctly that the seat assignment was under discussion. I had resigned myself to sitting with all the perfume, cologne and now chattering friends around me and was internally at peace with it (I usually prefer a more quiet time so I can sleep of meditate while flying so early in the morning). Here comes the best part now.
The Airline Steward asked if there was a problem. We all said no problem, just shifting our seats. The Steward then asked if the three (heavily scented people) were friends and wanted to sit together as there was a seat where they all could sit together towards the back of the plane. They all agreed and moved away from me. So, I now had the seat in front of me empty and the seat next to me empty (quiet and scent free now) and the air quality as good as it can get in a small plane! It was a very pleasant flight and the next as well.
I believe I attracted a situation that I really did not desire by my beliefs and focus on what I disliked and the fear (fear is a big attractor) at the base of my beliefs. By immediately doing the inner work necessary to shift my lower vibrations (downward spiraling thoughts and focus) into higher vibrations (upward spiraling thoughts and focus) and not fighting what looked like an even worsening situation (the addition of the two heavily perfumed girls) my current “reality” shifted very quickly and rather unexpectedly into one much more pleasant and enjoyable. In fact my current reality shifted into my highest vision of what I wanted for that flight!
It is also important to note that the most probable outcome was for me to be seated next to heavily scented, perfumed and noisy people. I think this would have been exactly what would have happened if I had continued my downward spiraling of thoughts, beliefs and feelings. By realigning myself inwardly first my outer reality changed dramatically, quickly and unexpectedly into something much better than I had really ever expected to happen so fast.
I hope you can find use in this example for you own daily lives to shift beliefs and change situations you may find yourself in into a higher vibration that is more pleasing to you. The principals illustrated above will work in your daily life to bring you greater peace, enjoyment and satisfaction if you use them. Simply stated once you bring your own inner vibration higher, your outer reality and manifestations will reflect the new higher level you are radiating out into the world. This can happen remarkably fast and in quite improbable and wonderful ways!
In Light, Love & Service,
Adama
No comments:
Post a Comment