..
.
.
In the 31 Planes of Existence, we are in Realm 5. Any realm below our realm is 'hell' to us. To the animal realm, like a cat, we are amazing and in heaven. To the higher consciousness, we are in 'hell'. All the 31 realms are in us. If the lower worlds in you disappear, you are in Nirvana (the euphoric state). Then, there is no time, no object and no subject. 'I' and 'you' disappears. Nirvana is the highest level of consciousness.
For example when you ask for more money, you won't get more money because you come from a mind of "lack". And since you always get what you ask for, you get 'not enough money'.
.
[TIME OUT: I found this funny video on Youtube. Now careful, this is sorts of thoughts that you OUGHT NOT TO HAVE... ]
.
.
To ask effectively, just say “I have enough”—Be grateful.
.
- Zepplins ;
].
Be careful with your thoughts. Some are culture bound. For instance, there is this saying (in Hokkien) that goes, "Pai pai ang, ma si ang" - that means "Bad bad husband is still a husband." Or, "Bo bor, chin kang kor" - that means "No wife, much hardship."
These are sayings that are burned into our subconscious and if we are not careful, we go into manifesting such thoughts.
.
Page 470, Lesson 336-Forgiveness lets me know that minds are joined.
ACIM is about Forgiveness. Unfortunately, somehow in the Chinese culture, revenge is a virtue. When we want to do harm to some people, we end up being hurt ourselves.
.
In this class, how many have broken their agreement? Whether it is a one year or one hour. An agreement is an agreement as far as the universe is concern. We are harvesting our fruit from our own sowing. We are harvesting former crops now.
.
Examples are plenty in religion, each one says things differently.
.
.
.
Women tend to respond from the heart. Men tend to respond from the crouch. Most men wants to own. A woman wants to be owned, until ownership becomes too tight, and the soul wants to be free.
.
When you can see everything as a part of you, then you are free—The goal is your awakening.
The majority of people are not 100% Love and hence would tend to be in a biological-physical relationship. There is nothing wrong with a biological relationship, it is for biological function..
When a relationship no longer works, then it is time to leave. If 'divorce' sounds too painful, just think of it as the 'seasons are over'. Leave each other respectfully. When we argue, we are looking to be right. All your answer are only within you. Eventually everything else that serves no purpose must go. Learn to be a happy Learner.
.
Question: Why is a book like ACIM written in such a convoluted way? Since the authors are connected to the source, it should be more clearly written.
Reply: It is convoluted only if your mind is twisted. Simplicity is very difficult for twisted minds. (272.2.3). It is simple if you are an observer of life. Do you know I haven't read the book. Yes, I have to confess, I have not read the book. But if you ask me any paragraph in the book, I can explain them.
My comment: But I can tell you that Dr Aaron Lim can explain many complex subjects in a very simplified way. I have not met another person that can explain such subjects better.
.
God created the Universe which includes me. I already know the Universe. (It is a matter of remembering.) Listen to that aspect of yourself called the 'holy spirit'. Where is the Holy Spirit ? The Father, the Son the Holy Spirit is you. That aspect of you, the Holy Spirit, knows everything. All I need to do is to listen to the Holy Spirit.
.
The knowledge is for you to recall. My job here is to help you to remember to yourself. The Anti-Christ is the one who tells you that he has something that you don’t have.
'The Ten Commandments' was originally 'The Ten Commitments'.
'Commandments' is something that comes from 'outside' you.
'Commitments' have to come from 'inside'.
[Note: I have put 'inside' and 'outside' in quotes because when we are fully enlightened there will be no 'inside' or 'outside'. All will be ONE.]
The Commandment: "Thou shall not commit adultery." was originally, "Thou shall not commit idolatory". The latter means, "thou shall not have anything other than God before me."
An idol is an image of your brother that you would have given value more than what he is.
When Islam started, it took away all idols. Unfortunately it is now replaced by an onion dome symbol on its roof. I have seen pitched roof rural mosque in Malaysia with a tiny symbolic onion dome on top. So we still teach separation.
Similarly, when I was in school the priests defended that the statues in the church were saints, while he criticised the Buddhists for praying to wooden idols. Since then, I stopped attending church..Let not their forms deceive you. Idols are but a substitute for your reality, because you lack confidence in who you are. You are Love itself. Love will seek itself. If you are perceived as love then the world will come to you. Your devil is your fear - your Ego.
Let me give you an example for what an idol is. For instance, I have bought a new Mercedes C class car and my wife took the car and got into an accident. When I know it, the first thing I asked was, "How's the car?" Immediately, I had given the car more value and power than it actually is. I had made it into an idol.
.
Question: How about Feng Shui?
Reply: Don't pay attention to it.
I used to have a company that was making money. Then someone said that I should consult a Feng Shui master. So I did. He came in and relocated all our desks in the office and I had to have a desk that is like a crescent moon...etc. In three months' time, my company went bust. My staff all became uncomfortable with the new desk positions because they prefered the original space that they had chosen for themselves.
.
There was a restaurant in Malacca which had a little statue of Dato Kong on an altar and the owner of the restaurant prayed to it regularly and offered it flowers and joss sticks. However, that didn't help and after some time, the restaurant closed down.
Then one day when I passed by, I noticed that it is now a Korean restaurant which seems to be doing well. Its owner stands outside to greet and smile at everyone. What is more surprising was that the little Dato Kong statue was not worshipped at all and instead was laid near a drain in front. That didn't do any harm to the new restaurant. Instead it prospered. So, it has nothing to do with what is outside of yourself. No matter where you go, just put Love first.
Love means affection to make that person feels important. If you have a Goddess in your Life, wouldn't this all you want to do? What happened to our patience, kindness and sweet words?
I have a house that is in the corner of a street, sandwiched between two other houses. My sister saw the house and said that it has bad Feng Shui because the driveway in is very narrow and it is difficult for money to go in. I wonder why she thought that way. Why didn't she think that the situation is such that when money goes in, it is difficult to come out? Isn't this just as logical?
Question: How about mantras?
Reply: A mantra is nothing more than a repetition of a certain phrases, unless you have a preconceived thought. Thoughts always come before form. Thoughts cannot be suppressed. Thought can be replaced by another thought. Therefore, it may also be an activity to bring your thoughts away from your cluttered thinking. Other than that, it would be just another activity that wouldn't help you. No amount of Holy verses can help you if you don’t have Love.
Question: I don't know the meaning of the Sanskrit mantras I recite, but they sound so beautifully soothing to me and they help me to be peaceful. How is this so?
Reply: If you feel something about it though you do not understand the meaning, then you must have understood it before in your previous embodiment.
[TEA BREAK]
I am going to talk a bit more about ED - Erectile Dysfunction now because some of you were asking me about it during the tea break.
As regards to sex, men often do not want to tell the truth. In a way, women too. This is so because there are a lot of judgment and taboo because religions or cultures say so. Men don't share their sexual fantasies with their spouse as they are afraid that she will judge him. Men are afraid of telling their spouse many things because women are sensitive and will turn defensive. When a person is defensive, he will either 'fight' or 'flight'.
There are men who has ED at home, but when they are on paid sex, there is no ED. That is because, for paid sex, he has no fear of rejection or failure.
There was a case where this man loves oral sex, but the wife refuses to do it. For twenty years, she had refused to do it. So they got divorced. Many people were surprised because they appear well in public and he left a beautiful woman for someone more plain. You see, what happens in the bedroom we don't know and what we see in public may not be indicative of how well a marriage goes.
In another case, a man wanted his wife to shave. Shave 'there' lah, where else? *Chuckles* But the wife refuses to shave. So he has problems with sex. When this man was a baby, he was cuddled by his grandfather and got very irritated by his spikey facial hair. So he grew up detesting body hair. In other words, he has anchored body hair with the unpleasant feeling with the grandfather.
Also, I would also not encourage men to be in the delivery room with the wife. There is a 50% chance that the man will be affected sexually as he now relates to her genitals differently.
The body always follow the thought. Sex is a mental thought. You anchor an emotion to a thought.
Haha! What kind of a Course in Miracles is this, talking about ED and sex? *chuckles*
Apology
An apology is a care taker way of wanting to maintain peace. Are you at peace when you say you are sorry? If the other person say I won’t forgive you then that is not your issue anymore.
To apologise do the following
1. Verbalise the apology
2. Explain why you are sorry.
3. Commit not to do it again.
For a divine person, apologies are not needed cos they have got no concept that they can be offended. So don’t take things personally. People do things according to their own consciousnes.
.
Question: How do we differentiate between the 'holy spirit' vs 'hearing voices' (as in being a schizophrenic)?
Reply: The Holy Spirit is calm, gentle, peaceful and does not judge. It does not carry a conversation with you. "Voices" come from fear. If in doubt, listen to the voice that is still. Just like the master chef, he knows how much oil, salt, sauces and other ingredients to put in at the correct time, correct heat and duration to produce what he wants. The knowingness and him are one. He just follow his inner-voice.
Question: But what if you are at the cross-roads in your life?
Reply: Highly spiritual people has not cross-roads. They just listen to the Holy Spirit and go with the flow.
Question: How would one learn to trust and go with the flow?
Reply: Just remember that "I am Love".
It is like the leaves that fall from the tree onto the river. It will eventually flow to the sea, but the tree does not know anything about it when it sheds its leaves. The leaves won't know either. The leaves doesn't struggle against going to the sea. It goes with the flow.
One of you has a baby who is 18 months old. Already you are worrying about how you are going to get him to universities and so on. You don't have to. Just ask and be ready to receive. The 'how' you don't have to know.
All the talk about 'sacrifice' for the children are all 'ego stuff'.
Technology will bring you many things that are not possible or affordable today, 20 years from now. You don't have to worry if your child will go to universities or not. 20 years from now, universities will be so different. There may not even be a need for universities in the current form.
Question: What do you think of the current disasters that happened recently? (Sichuan earthquake and Typhoon Nargis in Myanmar.)
Reply: It has nothing to do with us (people). If there are no human beings around they will still happen.
[End of Day 1]
Day 2.
Today is Father's Day. A happy Father's day to those of you who are fathers. I saw a bumper that say it is easy to be a father, a biological function, but it is not easy to be dad. It is easy to be a father. Almost anyone can be. To be a 'daddy' to your child is something else. Likewise, to be a mother is something easier than to be a 'mum'. Perhaps there should be a "Father's Day" and a "Dad's day".
Today is the last day of our ACIM course here. So since you all have read the book, you can zip it up and throw it into the river. *Chuckles* (As many of us have only read some pages in the book.)
It is also Maggie's (one of the participants) first day in the course. Sometimes the last in, ends up to be the first. Anyway, the ACIM course is like a buffet, you can never finish what you are eating. Also, a person's choices change. Just like your day, you choose what you want, whether you want chaos or peace. Life is like that. You can keep on eating a different thing.
You can be a creator of your day. We all went down with an empty plate. Whatever go into your body is what you choose.
Recently, I got an sms from a lady in Malaysia. In it, she spoke about her want to find a boyfriend and it seems futile.
It is wonderful to have a man (for her), but it is no big deal. After sometime, the man seems guaranteed to leave her.
There is a difference between 'want' and 'need'. 'Want' is optional. 'Need' is when you feel you don’t have something and that your Life is lacking. It comes from fear. In neediness, there tend to be 'control'.
Nobody likes to be controlled. Also, no woman is a rare commodity. If a woman wants a man to stay, she has to help him to have reasons for him to stay.
It is wonderful to be in the company of a man/wife and it is important not to take each other for granted.
Then I got another sms from this same lady. She says that she acknowledge that she will not get the kind of man that she is not (of the same consciousness). She also asked if some people are destined not to have a man. You see, only minds can be joined, bodies can't. After sometime 'getting' a man, she told me that she can't stand him any more and it's over.
Is there such thing as 'destiny'?
Are you destined? Let's say, it's about money. Are you destined to have money (or not have money)?
There is no destiny except for the one you created for yourself. We sow seeds unconsciously or semi-consciously. Let's say, many embodiments ago, I didn't like school, but I was very good with my hands. But I decided this time, I would be a scholar. Am I destined not to be a scholar? No! But, I can still be a scholar.
What you put in, you can also take out. Go for your highest good, your loving self. You can manifest whatever you are. If whatever you put is not serving you, take it out.
Question: Yesterday, you spoke that it is not worth going to war to fight over boundaries and a nation's way of life...etc. But what about what was mentioned in the Bhavagad Gita? About Arjuna going to war to even fight his relatives?
Reply: That is different. That epic is to illustrate that Arjuna got to do what he had to do given those circumstances and situations. You may like to read that in one of my blog posts, A Little Indian Philosophy
There is little point fighting over boundaries, as they change so many times in history. Is it worth dying for? Even the way of life of a country cannot be defended. For instance, Singapore in the 50s was very different from the way of life now. In a few years' time, there will be a casino that will change the way of life here. The population make-up will change. Twenty years from now, there will be yet another way of life in Singapore. So, how can it be defended?
The Malays often cite the importance of keeping Bangsa, Bahasa and Ugama (nation, language and religion).
Bangsa: If you examine the origins of the Malay people, they are already a mix from the Indonesian archipelago.
Bahasa: The Malay language has also changed tremendously since I was a kid. Departure from tradition is called 'adat' in Malay. It is said that they would rather kill their children than committing 'adat'.
Ugama: Way before long ago, the inhabitants in the Malay Peninsula already had a concept of 'tuhan', which translates as 'god'. Then Hinduism came and they became Hindus, then later they became Buddhists, then when Islam came, they become Muslims. Even the practice of Islam is now so different from what it was twenty years ago.
As long as we are attached to some illusion, we will be born into the same place. But by the time you are reincarnated here, the world would have changed and it will be difficult if you still have attachments to how it was before. So being reborned in the same place could be a suffering.
It is said that the heavier the fruit, the nearer it falls from the tree. Wherelse if the fruit is very light, like the Angsana tree, it will be carried by the wind to be germinated elsewhere.
For instance, if I want to be with my wife and children so much, I may be reincarnated into the family again. This time, I could be borned as my wife's grandchildren. See how I can create a pain for myself with my illusion?
But since we know that it is all an illusion, we might as well enjoy ourselves in it. Be in the world, but not of the world.
You will notice that those who are free from attachments are very loving.
Question: Does being 'detached' works for relationships? For instance, you could have a 'controlling boyfriend'.
Reply: Whatever does not work for you, put it back into the Universe. Let somebody else have that boyfriend. It may be suitable for them, but not for you. There will be some insecure people who wants to be controlled. Your job is not to take care of others.
Question: How about counselling?
Reply: Only when they asked.
Question: I have a problem with counselling some people, especially with some guys as after sometime they get too close.
Reply: That is because you need it. Somewhere there is something in you that needs that and subconsciously asking for it. But there is nothing wrong with having a relationship as a result of the closeness.
Take it as an opera. Before your role is played, you are in the backstage doing your makeup and putting on your dress ready to go out to the front stage for your part.
Question: Can you make mistakes in the front stage?
Reply: Yes, it is called stage fright.
Question: I mean, is it possible that I may have taken a role that I don't want?
Reply: Yes, then change your role. For instance, your role was not supposed to be the Emperor and you got it by chance when the lead actor for the Emperor did not turn up. But sometimes, changing the role may not help, as it is about changing ourselves. A bad driver will remain a bad driver even after he has changed to a better car.
.
There are seminars that are supposed to teach about love, but because the teachers do it for a livelihood, they keep you there (where you started), for fear that you will come back to do more courses otherwise. Even in Buddhism, they are supposed to tell you "You are a Buddha, but you don't remember you are one."
Question: How is it that we have forgotten that we are Pure Love?
Reply: That is because of a tiny mad idea. A mad idea like:
I am Aaron Lim.
I am Chinese.
I must have children.
Gautama is the only Buddha.
Mohammed is the last Prophet...etc.
Question: Are there different levels of enlightenment?
Reply: No. There is either Love or Fear. There is no degree of miracles. There is no big miracle or small miracles. Just miracles. All expressions of Love is maximal.
Question: In the book, it mentions: Today I make no decision for myself. It is the power greater than yourself that is doing that.
I have a trust in the Power greater than my higher self. I release my ego. I just flow with the flow. I won’t know that it will came out right.
If I’m making decision by myself, I will be forcing it. I will be based on fear.
I turn my Life to the power greater than myself. That power is still "I am". We are used to thinking of ourselves as our body. I think that that is me. I delusionally believe that the body is me. I won’t have this form anymore. Whenever you are in doubt, follow the voice that is still. Still thoughts are from the heart. You can’t see things clearly unless you are still.
The voice of the Holy Spirit is still. It does not debate with yourself. It does not, for instance, tell you which man you should marry.
You don't have to ask anyone which man you ought to marry, for you already know. The fact that you are already asking, means that you already have a doubt. For instance, you come to me and ask, "There are two men whom I am considering, one is rich, the other is poor, I like them both equally. Which one should I marry?". I would say, if you really like them 'equally' then marry the rich one. *Laughters* Otherwise, it wouldn't matter. If you really love the poor one, you will still marry him, as you would know it silently inside.
Do you know the famous Van Bild story?
Van Bild was dead poor, but when his wife-to-be then met him, she decided to marry him. On their wedding anniversary, he bought her 12 peanuts and told her he wished those were diamonds. Then he became fabulously rich and bought her 12 diamonds on their anniversary some years later, and she said that she wished they were peanuts. So it didn't matter for the wife.
Mother Teresa was a school teacher on the way to Darjeeling in a train when she heard a voice asking her to help the poor. When she got back to the school, she quit as a teacher, and picked up the first poor person she saw. She was alone in Calcutta, with no premises, no money, nobody else helping. But see what she eventually achieved! She listened to the Holy Spirit and followed what she heard.
Question: What if you ignored your 'voice'?
Reply: Nothing will happen. For instance, for the case of Mother Teresa, she'll miss the calling in this embodiment.
How many of you have met Mavis? Is Mavis there at the back of the class? Not there yet? Ok, I think she will be here later in the afternoon. Mavis is the founder of Touch-A-Life, a charity organisation that feeds the poor. She started her services by herself picking up bread from the bakeries and eggs from the neighbouring farms. She didn't know exactly why she was doing it, but she listened to herself and did it.
Then, one day she read about a Mr Narian who feeds the poor in Surabaya, Indonesia. A voice told her to visit him and she went. On seeing what he is doing, she cried, and she stayed on to help him. However, she also knew that she was not meant to stay forever and there came a time she knew she had to leave. This time, a 'voice' told her to go to Yogjarkata. Why? She didn't know. But off she went there.
When she was there, there was an earthquake. She didn't have a kitchen or helpers, so she bought nasi lemak and gave them to the quake victims. Then as she helped, she met locals who were willing to help by offering transport, then others offered their kitchens to cook food,...etc. Then other locals came forward to help and organised help was formed. At that point, she knew that she had done her part and it was time for her to return to Malacca.
I met her then in Malacca and she was telling me about her wanting to have a centre for Touch-A-Life. I happened to have a house which had been vacant for sometime and suggested that she can use it. I originally bought the house for my sister to live in, but instead she decided to remain in Canada, so the house was not lived in. See, though I intended the house for my sister, it has ended as the centre for Touch-A-Life, you don't know what the Holy Spirit has in store for you.
You don't have to do charity to be with the Holy Spirit. Follow your voice according to our karma. Each of us has a role to play. Our role could be in the office - helping people we meet in the office. We are not joyful if we don't follow the Holy Spirit.
[LUNCH]
We can see 'karma at work' at the Kuan Yin Temple areas. When I was there this morning, many people there were trying to sell me something. No one asked "how are you?" All they asked was, "What do you want?" "I think this is good for you...". These greetings are the same as "please give me your money". They are all selling religious artifacts, but they have all forgotten to put love first. They can't see the Buddha in the persons they meet.
My personal note: I greeted the 'auntie', "How are you?" at the foodcourt the other day and she replied coldly, "Do I know you?" Of which, I answered, "No you don't know me, but I can still ask how you are", causing chuckles among her colleagues and embarrassment to herself.
Someone in the audience: What Michael had said reminded me of my experience in America, when I was first there for the first few days. I was in a hurry to go to the post office to send something and was wanting to do that as quickly as possible. Then around the post box, there was a postman that had a beard and looked like Santa Claus - he just turned to me, looked into my eyes with a beaming smile and said out loud, "HOW ARE YOU DARLING?" I must admit that my immediate reaction in my mind was, "Do I know you?" But what followed up in my mind was a realisation that he was such a loving voice and people around the place was so loving. Then subsequently, almost all the Americans that I met in the US are all such warm and loving people, which really made a huge difference to my life there.
It is great to know that you have such a wonderful experience in America. Funny enough, this differs from some of the comments I get from some people about their experiences there. This is a case of the subject changing the object by their thoughts and observations. We are living in a holographic Universe.
The object will change according your perception of it. There is no reality in this world. That reality is what you see. If you see your child as a thrash, then you see thrash. If you see them as Divine and you talk to them Divinely, then they are Divine.
There will always be more people disagreeing with you than agreeing with you because they may not share the same thinking, background or experience. That shouldn't affect you. If you think otherwise, then you will have pain. Remind yourself that they are not what I’m seeing. This is your daily work. Don’t let an event in life stop you from being your true self. Equanimity is when you would react the same whether it is praise or blame.
Page 612, Para 5: How holy are you, that the Son of God can be your savior in the midst of dreams of desolution and disaster. See how eagerly he comes, and steps aside from heavy shadows that have hidden him, and shines on you in gratitude and love. He is himself, but not himself alone. And as his Father lost not part of him in your creation, so the light in him is brighter still because you gave your light to him, to save him from the dark...
In the midst of disaster, can you still be peaceful? You can be centred only if you can have love and gratitude with you. Always look for gratitude and you will then see doors opened for you. Love is the only thing in the Universe that increases by giving it away. Transfer love to others. They will never forget you. Everytime you feed people, you get fed.
You are the Sun of God (the Light). Thank you for showing me that I have a place for my heart in here. There are the Rich and the destitute people. They each have their role. It would be hard for a Mother Teresa to arise from Hollywood. There, everyone is rich.
We live in an upside down world. The people helped are there to help me to become who I am. The danger comes from the lack of such understanding. Turn the whole world upside down and you can see completely different world.
Because I feel good about her, every touch is healing. Pure love will always go where love is. The Sun lost nothing by giving us the Light.
It is difficult for man to show love in an affectional way, like hugging people we meet, but at least smile, say "Good morning".
Know your 'weakest link'. Generally, what is a weakest link?
For instance, phospherous is for the roots and potassium is for the fruits and flowers. Nitrogen is for the leaves. If there is not enough nitrogen, then it is no point having the phospherous and the potassium. Here, the weakest link is nitrogen.
My personal note: Another example is in information security. Information goes through a life-cycle and a network of people, computers, cables, repositories...etc. As human beings is the weakest link, it is often futile to strengthen the other aspects of the network, without strengthening the weakest link first (which is the humans).
So, what is your weakest link? Is it that you are too nosey? Could it be that you don't think before you speak? What else? Temper? Lack of focus? Procrastination? Impatience?
Impatience will burn away all your blessings. Patient people will trust the process that everything will come at a right time. There is a cause to all these.
Could your weakest link be that you always give power to other people? (That could include blaming others...etc)
Many things you are experiencing can be due to self-sabotage. For instance, there is someone I know who dare not become successful. If he becomes successful then he must drink then he sabotage it.
Your weak link could be something related to the past.
Question: How do we know our 'weakest links'?
Reply: Journal your thoughts.
My comment: Journal your dreams. You write them down as it is without judgment. You may or may not understand what they all mean, as much of the time, they are symbolic. However, when you read your journal, you will gradually understand most of it and also observe a certain trend in your thought.
There is also the non-dominant hand journaling that will reveal your sub-conscious thoughts better.
Question: Why don't KuanYin help by answering some of our questions?
Reply: Because she is above your problems and doesn't want to judge.
But sometimes, she do answer some questions. For instance, my father had an opportunity to buy a quarry. He asked Kuan Yin and she replied in the negative, because he will fail and experienced 10 years of unemployment. But did my father listened? He didn't. He went ahead to acquire the quarry because it sounded like a winner. At that time, Malaysia was going through massive infrastructure developments. Houses and roads have to be built that will require a lot of granite. So how can it not work?
It didn't work because to mine the granite, you need dynamite. To get dynamite, you have to bribe the authorities. Without bribe, he couldn't have that dynamite to get the granite and the business collapsed. After that, truly he couldn't find work for ten years.
So you see, even if you asked and Kuan Yin answered, how did that helped my father? It still all amounts to believing in yourself.
Ok, I will tell you another story about fortune tellers then you decide for yourself whether you should use them. It is from an old Chinese movie called, "The dragon does not live here anymore".
This movie is about a wealthy man who went to a fortune teller in the market, who looked at his palms and told him that his life will not be very long. The fortune teller even told him of the exact date and time that he will die. He was dejected, but accepted the 'fate'.
One day when he was walking in a park, he saw a man trying to hang himself and quickly intervened. The suicidal man was very sad and told him that life is bad and he had decided to end it. "What could be so bad?" the rich man asked. The suicidal man related his problems to him and said that it is better to end his life. Then on closer examination, the rich man realised that it was only about money. So he gave the man money and told him not to kill himself, which he was grateful and gave up committing suicide.
A few days later, the rich man met someone else who was very sad with his problems. Again, the centre of the problem was the need for money. Since the rich man knew he was dying, he thought, it would be better to give the man money.
As the days passed, the rich man met several others with money problems and he similarly helped them by giving them money.
So the day of the rich man's dying day came. He had already bought himself a coffin and a few minutes before the time to 'go', he climbed into the coffin and laid there. Then he gently closed his eyes to prepare for his death. With his eyes closed, he waited. And waited. After more than just a few minutes, he looked at the time and realised he has passed his purported time to die, but he was still not dying. He then got up and went to find the fortune teller.
When he reached the fortune teller, he was angry and asked him why he had not died as he predicted. The fortune teller was astonished and said that it was not possible as he was never wrong. He then asked the rich man for his palm for verification. When he saw his palm he said that this was not the palm that he had read. He said that the life line in the rich man's palm has changed. Then he asked the rich man if he had done something recently that had changed his life. The rich man replied, "Yes. I gave all my money away to help some people I have met".
"Oh! That is why," said the fortune teller, "that is why you have prolonged your life! Good!"
"But what is the point of having a longer life now, as I don't have money?!" the rich (now poor) man retorted.
[End of movie]
Fortune tellers can only tell you your past. Your future is up to you.
Guard your energy if you are in your physical body. This is especially so if you are a more spiritually attuned person.
Question: Why is it more so if you are 'spiritually attuned'?
Reply: That is because you will be more sensitive to energies than the average person. For the less spiritually attuned, their energies are more encrusted.
So watch yourself, if you meet someone or you are in somewhere that is not spiritually uplifting walk out immediately. Your soul knows it. [This does not apply to highly enlightened people like a Buddha. A Buddha lights up everywhere they go to.]
Question: Why do we need to be mindful?
Reply: You don't have to, but if you are not it is painful and many people will not welcome you.
For instance, when you use the toilet, leave it as it is when you found it. So much so that nobody would even know you have used it. Check if the toilet seat is placed up or down. If it is down, leave it down. If it is up, leave it up.
When I first got married, I used to leave the toilet seat up. That's what most men do. Then my wife asked me to be mindful and leave the toilet seat down after use. Then, after a few moments, she came back to me and said that if she had asked me to be mindful to leave the toilet seat down, then equally, I could have asked her to leave the toilet seat up. So, she was being mindful about her own mindfulness.
Be mindful. Be nothing but joy to others. When we use things, put them back in the original condition and position. If you are so mindful, the owner of the place will not even notice you have been around.
.
My comment: Actually in this case about toilet seat positions, it shouldn't matter whether it is up or down and in either position, it is a 50% probability that the next user would find it convenient. :)
There was an actress who divorced her husband because of disagreements over how they use the toilets.
Someone from the floor yelled: Get another toilet!
Reply: Eh, toilet you only use one, husband you can also find another one. Don't delude yourself thinking that you are such a rare commodity too! *laughter*
In real estate, it is about "Location, location, location". In spirituality, it is about, "Practice, practice, practice". Practice until it become a natural part of you. Silently comes the Buddha (a book).
The more Mindful you are, the more wonderful your life will be, unless you love chaos.
Your heart is the center where love is. Remember the story of the two wolves? There are two wolves—one good, one bad—which one will win when they fight? Answer: The one you feed most.
Question: Is there such thing as salvation?
Reply: Yes, but the person that can save you is yourself. No one else. By the way, for those who were not here in the first lessons, 'salvation' means 'self elevation'.
We are living in the phenomenal world. That means, if you don’t like that world you live in, you can change the world in that instant itself.
I have been around this area many times for this last one year, since we have ACIM here. Everytime, I would like to go to the Kuan Yin temple and watch the world go round. There I saw this man with two beautifulk daughters. They looked lovely and were selling tissue papers to the public. I wanted to approach him and talk to him, but somehow I hear the Holy Spirit say, "No". Then on the following trip here, I wanted to do the same, and again I heard the Holy Spirit say, "No". Now on this trip, this is the third time, I again hear, "No". So for some reason, the Holy Spirit does not think that I should speak to that man. I don't know why, but when the Holy Spirit speaks, I obey.
There could be a variety of reasons why I shouldn't be talking to him or help him. Perhaps it is a lesson he has to overcome himself. Perhaps, I shouldn't be the one talking to him. Someone else would be the one. So I don't know.
But if one of you saw me ignoring a poor man that needs help, you may think, what kind of Dharma teacher am I. So you see, form can be misleading in spiritual practice.
The whole course in ACIM is about Forgiveness. Basically, it is to forgive yourself. If you can’t forgive, it means that someone has offended you. As you are not in permanent state and not real, so who got offended? Your forgiveness is about changing your mind. You go back to the level of your mind that had caused the offense. If you don’t love yourself. How can you love others? You can only give what you have.
So you need to forgive yourself. Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping that the others will die.
Go with your feeling. Do it as soon as possible, because you may not have a 'tomorrow'. You must first love yourself. Out of that principle, you should forgive because of the delusion of holding on to something. Make the list of people you can’t forgive. A face-to-face reconciliation is the most powerful.
You are pure love. Pure love must shine. Put love first wherever you go. Put love first into your business. You own no one. If someone got to go (leave you), bless them. It is okay and wish them well.
Are you living your life from the perspective of Love or Fear. If you fully remember that you are pure love then you are coming to this Earth by choice not Karma.
Whenever you are faced with a choice always choose peace. Defensiveness will drop. A defense is an attack. The more people Love you, the more money you have.
Watch your emotion that is attaching to you. Why does this person still stick to you? Where in my Life am I picky about something? If you are not in alignment with yourself then you are not peaceful. You can’t give what you don’t have. But you still can be loving.
A Story
There is a story of a Christian priest who believes that only Christians go to Heaven. So when he died, indeed he went up to Heaven. Outside the Pearly Gates, he checked his name in the register and was delighted that his name was there. Then, he checked if Buddha, Lao Tze and other famous people who were not Christians to see if their names were there. True enough! Their names were not there. "They must be in Hell," he thought.
Not satisfied, he decided to take the lift down to Hell to check if those eminent figures were there. So, down he went into Hell using the lift. When the lift door opened, there was a sign saying, "Welcome to Hell", then there were flowers, trees and music. It was beautiful and people were polite.
Anyway, he went to the Hell gate keeper and asked to see the register. True enough, he found the names of Buddha, Lao Tze and other eminent people there. He was satisfied that he was right that non-Christians go to Hell. So, he turned back wanting to take the lift back to Heaven. Then, he thought, "How is it that Hell is so beautiful? It is so unlike the impression he always had, of devilish characters burning in fire and everyone there being nasty."
So he turned around and asked the Gate Keeper why Hell is so beautiful and not 'hellish'. The Gate Keeper heard the priest out and replied, "Oh ya, it was exactly like the impression you used to have until Buddha, Lao Tze and all the other eminent ones came here".
.jpg)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment