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 A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING
A New Awareness As with any journey of discovery, there comes a time when you must leave the comfort of what you know as a light-hearted view of life to explore the true nature of your reality. With this in mind comes the realization that this newsletter must now begin to evolve to present more in-depth information so that you can further your own journey of discovery and kindle within the curiosity to explore your own spiritual truths and path. Relationships - Righteous Anger and Truth The world today presents us with many, sometimes overwhelming situations and quick reaction or inaction can cause our spiritual selves to feel suddenly crippled and overwhelmed with the emotions of rage, guilt and unforgiveness. We become rigid and unyielding to the slightest change and hurt. We can even momentarily think of revenge and "payback" or worse yet act out those thoughts; which in itself can bring on another bout of spiritually crippling feelings. While it isn't what most people would consider a spiritual attitude, we must accept these as part of ourselves as unpleasant as they can be. They are part of our humanity. We are human and we must accept that we will stumble many times on our path of growth and learning. To add to the confusion we have well-meaning friends and family giving advice and even those who wish to see us be disrupted edging us on. All in all, it can feel like a treacherous place to step but by entering in while having a deeper understanding of the forces at work, we can ultimately free ourselves, physically and spiritually from those forces that would rather see us be disrupted and unfocused. Within this freedom comes an inner calm and centeredness that allows you to see the disrupting forces for what they are. It allows you to see the motive behind the words or actions and to deal with the intent. Righteous Anger Righteous Anger may seem like a misnomer to some but this is not the mind-blinding rage of injustice. This is the soul/spirit standing up and saying "Enough." Whether this be from an outside source or from ourselves. When presented from ourselves it can sometimes make one feel separated and alone making it harder to deal with once the little voice in our heads starts to berate us. From and outside source, righteous anger is often experienced as a rebuttal to something said or as a reaction to someone else's actions. If in reaction to a spoken comment you must acknowledge that some points may have merit and indeed start the process of self auditing. The problem is we may not wish to hear what is said. As a reaction to someone else's actions it can become harder to define where your anger is rising from; has the action reminded you of something you've done or thought about doing? Again the process of auditing oneself must be initiated. It isn't an easy process and you may not like what you find but it is a process that will allow you to release the vented anger, forgive the event, truly heal your spirit and make future events meaningless non-events. The problem is that righteous anger walks a fine line most of the time. If we deal either too harshly or too lightly with instigator we run the risk feeling betrayed, unloved and unworthy or victimized within the situation. The plus side is that if we deal with it appropriately, learn to truly audit our feelings about it, we can learn the lesson and understand the experience and move past it with ease, never having to revisit it again. That is the aim of true spiritual growth.
Truth We deal with so many people who deal with half truths, that in time they no longer see the reality of where their truths lie. That is something we all run the risk of unless you focus on your truths and examine them because we also must be very careful of what we claim as "my truth." If you have to vehemently defend your truth with anger and pettiness ... is it really your truth? Or is it a perception you've chosen without looking at other causes or the paths that others must walk or is it a definition you've chosen over your own awareness because the alternative means you are not who or where you thought you were? Or has it been easier to accept what someone else says because it saves you the hard work of learning about your own spirit and spirituality. Dealing with truth takes courage, admitting you may not be always correct is hard but your spirit will grow as you expand your knowledge, listening to your soul's acknowledgements. Ultimately we don't have the right to berate others for what they consider their truth nor do we have the right to judge or condemn them for those thoughts and actions no matter whether they seem to affect us or not. Society must have rules and those rules must be respected in order to function but you have the choice of how you will react to it. Making it personal isn't the only option, moving past it, forgiving it and growing toward Home may be the more difficult reaction but it's outcome is one of peace and calm within the seeming maelstrom. Each of us journeys to discover the one universal truth. We will all stumble along the way but it is the only way to return Home. The spiritual journey Home is one with many paths and if you find accepting big changes difficult you can and should search for other smaller steps to help ease your journey.
CRYSTALS Agates Agate is a very common crystal and it is found in many parts of the world and in many different forms. There Botswana agate, Fire agate, Blue Lace agate, Moss agate, Tree agate to name a few. Agate is normally found in areas that were once volcanic, such as parts of the USA, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, and the Indian peninsula. The colour of agate can vary from type to type. Agate can be gray-blue to beige, rusty red to brown or be almost translucent and it may have other layering of colours to create bands and shapes within the crystal itself. The appearance of agate is that it looks like a soft crystal with almost a waxy shine to it. As a medicinal crystal agate has been used to calm and dispel discomfort for pregnant women and their children and to help relieve headaches and improve balance. It can also be used to relieve the pain of minor inflammations of the throat and the tiredness from the eyes. As a healing crystal it is important the the crystal be touching the skin close to where healing is desired. As a spiritual aid agate helps the wearer achieve balance of emotions and can aid in keeping someone grounded. It can help the wearer see everyone in their true light and is said to bring prosperity. It is said to protect during storms and prevent miscarriage. To clean all agates should be held under warm running water and then left to recharge in the suns rays for about an hour. Tree Agate Tree agate is a very rare type of agate that originates from India. Unlike most of the other types of agate Tree Agate is considered a "supporting" stone. Its strength is intensified through connection with other stones. Tree Agate can be found in natural crystal rosaries or necklaces and is therefore a great aid in helping to deepen the concentration of the wearer during meditation and prayer. Botswana Agate Botswana agate has a gray waxy appearance and is said to benefit those who must be around extreme heat like fire-fighters. It is also said to be able to help those who wish to quit smoking as one of its properties is to help the body assimilate oxygen into the body to help with the mood swings and depression that can come from trying to quit. Fire Agate Unlike its name Fire agate has the ability to calm the mind and emotional storms of the wearer. Many use this stone in preparation of meditation as its power to connect to the forces of the earth provides a strong sense of being grounded and connected. One of its facets however is that during the calming effect it can also bring to light long buried emotions and problems that need to be dealt with in calm reasonable ways. Moss Agate Moss agate is said to help the circulatory system to regain balance and strength. It is also said to help balance the emotional and intellectual sides of the brain and to help awaken the intuitive nature of the wearer. It can also aid in bringing creative talents and images forth.
Various Agate Crystals
MONTHLY MEDITATION "Overcoming Fear and Worry" "God is within me, around me, protecting me, so I will banish the gloom of fear that shuts out His guiding light and makes me stumble into ditches of error. I will wipe away, with the soothing veil of Divine Mother's peace, the dream fears of disease, sadness, and ignorance. Teach me to be tenaciously and cautiously courageous instead of often being afraid. I am protected behind the battlements of my good conscience. I have burned my past. I am interested only in today. I will fear nothing except myself, when I try to deceive my conscience. Today I will burn the fagots of worries and fears, and kindle the fire of happiness to illumine God's temple within."
From Metaphysical Meditations by Paramahansa Yogananda |
