Shared in common: peace, forgiveness, and love

When Muslim Sufi minister Jamal Rahman and Franciscan nun Gabriele Uhlein come together with Jean Feraca of Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Here on Earth” on August 12-14 at the Christine Center, the Center anticipates a lively, inquisitive conversation. This coming together of diverse spiritual teachers, facilitated by Feraca, will be both a celebration and a time to discover a common ground for everyone who participates in the weekend retreat.

Uhlein, a Franciscan scholar, draws her enthusiasm for the dialogue from the historic meeting of St. Francis of Assisi and the Sultan at the time of the Crusades. “Imagine the surprise of St. Francis when he discovered precious Islamic teachings so aligned with his own Christian understanding of the spiritual journey,” says Sister Gabriele. “Hearing and participating in the wisdom of the Sufis transformed his spiritual practice.”

Co-leading the weekend event is Jamal Rahman, an internationally-known spiritual leader who was originally from Bangladesh. He makes his home in Seattle, and travels frequently to the Holy Land to lead interfaith retreats with a Rabbi and Christian minister. His book, Three Amigos, shares the faith experience of these three great religious traditions. “Only that which comes from the heart can open another heart,” says Jamal Rahman.

The Christine Center offers this retreat to all who are curious about how to pray with others beyond one’s own tradition. Participants will explore the unfamiliar names of God and experience how the longing for such basic things as peace, forgiveness and love transcends our differences.

For more information, email christinecenter@tds.net or call 715.267.7507. Visit www.christinecenter.org.

Richard Smoley is the author of The Dice Game of Shiva (New World Library) and five other books. He’s a former editor of Gnosis, editor of the Theosophical Society’s Quest Books, and the executive editor of Quest magazine.

The following is an interview with Smoley about his latest book.

The Dice Game of Shiva — that’s an intriguing title for a book. What does it mean?
Richard Smoley: It refers to a Hindu myth in which the god Shiva plays a game of dice — essentially a kind of strip Parcheesi — with his consort, Parvati. The strange thing is that Shiva always loses. He loses everything to Parvati, even his clothing, but it doesn’t make any difference to him. He goes off to the forest and lives as a hermit. Eventually Parvati comes in search of him, and they’re reunited in the end.

That’s a strange story. What’s it about?
Smoley: It’s about one of the central issues that has always perplexed philosophers — the nature of consciousness. Shiva represents consciousness — and in the book I define consciousness as the capacity to relate to self and other.

And Parvati? What does she represent?
Smoley: What consciousness experiences — the totality of the world, inner and outer.

Richard Smoley

This is getting kind of abstract. Why should I care about this kind of thing?
Smoley: Because it’s something that you’re doing every second of your life. At the core of your being there is something that experiences, something that sees. It doesn’t do anything else; it just witnesses. It has no properties, no characteristics other than this. This is what the mystical traditions call the true Self, the “I,” Christ consciousness, the Atman. This is who you really are.

But we forget this. We think we are what we see. We become what we behold. And I’m not just talking about the physical world. You also experience your thoughts and your emotions, and you mistakenly believe that you are those things. That’s what the mystics call maya, illusion.

Parvati symbolizes all of your experience, and Parvati always “wins” the game. Why? Because consciousness in its pure form has no attributes, no qualities; it just sees. Everything you see, inner and outer, belongs to Parvati, so to speak. So Shiva always loses the game, and Parvati always wins. But it doesn’t matter to Shiva. In reality he loses nothing.

But how can I not be my thoughts, my feelings, and so on? Those are what I am.
Smoley: No, they’re not! You can step back and see them; you can watch them like a film passing before your eyes. That’s the purpose of many — maybe most — meditation practices. They’re meant to show you that there’s something behind all the junk that passes through your mind, and that that something is what you really are.

Then everything in the world is just kind of a film that I’m watching?
Smoley: You and everybody else. In each of us there is this true Self, which witnesses. It exists in animals, plants, even in inanimate matter.

How is that?
Smoley: Well, I said that consciousness is the capacity to relate self and other. For anything to exist at all, it must have some amount of this capacity, however small. Even a hydrogen atom must somehow be able to “recognize” an oxygen atom if it is to bond with it to form water. This is not consciousness as we know it in ourselves, but still it’s consciousness of a kind.

Where is God in all this?
Smoley: God is, I would say, the ineffable source out of which this primordial distinction of self and other arise. In one sense, God is yourself. Isn’t that what all the mystical traditions are saying? Jesus, in the Gospel of John, alludes to this when he says, “I and the Father are one.” Most Christians misunderstand this. They think that Jesus is talking about himself. But really this “I,” this capacity to say “I am,” is, so to speak, the point where we connect with God. Haven’t we heard any number of times that one of the most sacred and profound names of God is “I am”?

Why should I pray to God?
Smoley: Well, I said that God is the source both of self and other. We can experience God as other also. Some theologians take this to the point of saying that God is “wholly other,” but I would say that that’s just half of the picture. When you feel God as other, then you pray to God. When you rest in stillness in the center of your being, you feel God as Self. We can experience it sometimes one way, sometimes another.

Are you saying that Hinduism is the true religion?
Smoley: I’m saying that at their core all religions are saying these things. In my previous book, Inner Christianity, I explored these ideas in the language of mystical Christianity. For the purposes of this book, I found it more helpful to use some terms and concepts from Eastern religions.

Why isn’t all this a matter of common knowledge?
Smoley: Religions talk about this in mythic terms, because if you talk about it discursively, the way we’re doing here, it can be hard to wrap your mind around. Besides, there are certain dangers in this knowledge.

What are these dangers?
Smoley: If all this hits your mind in the wrong way, you can come away with the idea that your personal ego, your little self, is God. This happens sometimes, not only in people who are certifiably insane, but in certain gurus who have enough charisma to collect some followers. The gurus are right in a sense — their “I” is God — but that’s true of everyone and everything, not just the guru, however advanced he may seem.

On the other hand, there are also dangers in forgetting these truths, in failing to realize that God is not only in you, but that which says “I” in you. If you don’t remember this fact, you’re cut off from the center of your own being. People in this situation — and I would say that this is true of most of us most of the time — are weak and susceptible. They, or we, are prone to the mass hypnosis of ordinary life, in which we place our trust in money, in things, in leaders good and bad. This trust will inevitably be disappointed sooner or later. As the Bible says, “Put not your trust in princes.”

What’s the way out?
Smoley: Well, the first step is awakening. Simply becoming aware of this Self in you, this “I” that witnesses. It doesn’t require great mystical powers. Deep down, we all know that there is something that says “I” in us. And that this something lies deeper than our ego with its desires and anxieties and agendas.

Some philosophers say that simply becoming aware of this fact is enough, and at times that’s true. But most of us need something more, and I would say that a good meditation practice would be a helpful way of probing deeper into these truths. And there is also prayer in the more familiar sense, in which we approach God as other.

Of course, there’s more to the situation than this. There are questions of cosmic justice, of science versus spirituality, and there’s also the most perplexing issue of all — causality — the issue of what causes what, which has perplexed philosophers more than practically any other problem they’ve had to face. In my book I go into these issues at much greater length. But recognizing the truths I’ve sketched out here is, I’m convinced, already a big step.

Religion and culture as art are beautiful. Religion and culture as truth are dangerous.

Both religion and culture rely heavily on our shared mythology, dramatic tales of heroic accomplishments, ancient teachers and powerful gods. These stories are an answer to a subconscious stirring within all humankind. They are a poetic representation of the dream and the hero’s journey within each one of us. The archetypes that we have created throughout history are representations of our internal process.

Mythology is not something to be played out or acted out in the real world. And today we live in a world where many people cling to their chosen mythology, as if it were the only true lens through which to understand reality. But a world run by beliefs cancels out logic and common sense. We are like children playing in a sandbox; everyone has their own story that they are playing out. Yahweh, Allah, Krishna, Buddha, Christ and so on are characters in stories that we have created and continually generate. They are comic books for adults, but we take them as literal truth. It is like worshipping characters from Shakespeare or praying to Santa Claus. This world should not be in the hands of anyone who feels that there is something or someone coming to save us, whether it’s a Messiah or a Mothership, or a new age.

We have made a mess of this planet because of this type of thinking and believing. It doesn’t work and it isn’t going to!

We have forced the world into an unreasonable mold that does not accommodate the needs of the individual nor the collective. If you don’t get what I’m saying, take a few pages from history. Someone decides that Christ is our Lord and different groups wage war on everyone who does not convert to this belief. Folks come over to the American continents to escape religious persecution and then kill most of everyone who lives here. Or, more recently, the U.S. pushes its weight around as a world power and other cultures react with (surprise, surprise…) religious fanaticism and violence.

Museums, libraries, theaters, churches, temples, homes – these are the spaces and places for religion and culture. They should be shared like food or appreciated like old wine, but not force fed. If you really look at religion and culture, they are much like entertainment. They are theatrics performed to enlist certain emotions. The older you get, the harder it is to continually turn a blind eye to the inconsistencies in the sets, characters, rhetoric and dogma.

We go to a movie and realize that the actors are playing roles. Yet, some people call them by their character names and fall in love with the characters. News Flash! Human beings love to fall in love. They are emotional junkies. Love is the biochemical drug that makes us feel alive…it’s ridiculous at times. It is something that needs to be refined and cultivated.

I hate to have to wake you up folks, but you simply can’t be effective or truthful when you try to convince yourself and others that this is all about love. The Universe is a complex mechanism, and we must realize that we simply make stuff up to make ourselves feel like we are safe and have some control.

When we step out of the movie theater, we usually separate the story we’ve just been immersed in from the reality we’re stepping into. What would happen if you walked away from mythology? In the real world, what do you need?  What is it that is within you that fulfills you? And yes, religious, cultural and spiritual entertainment is great, but how do you rate? What is it that you can nurture and cultivate about you that will make you great? Bottom line: Stop giving away your power to a myth. Your ability is inherent. It is within. There is nothing that can get you out of your own way except you!

To offer hope, as opposed to resources, is slavery. Period. This is a bountiful planet filled with resources, and it is an outright lie to tell people that the things they need are inaccessible and that a certain person or god decides if they are worthy or if it is, in fact, the right time for them to receive what they need. It is a crime to mislead people who are in a place of weakness or meekness. It is shameful to create fear of hell or punishment and then in the same breath offer “hope” through complete allegiance to a particular faith.

People need to be empowered, not subjugated. We need to be empowered if we are going to survive. There is no one or nothing out there that will save us.

At the age of six, I looked up at the altar in St. John’s the Evangelist Catholic Church wondering why there were only males leading the congregation. Being that I was female, I realized that I would never have a vital leadership role in the Catholic Church if I chose to. I became disinterested in Catholicism in kindergarten, even though I was required by my teachers and parents to continue attending mass two to three times each week.

Five years later, my parents allowed me to attend public school and to visit my friends’ churches. But I soon realized that their religions, as well as the majority of world religions, really weren’t much different than Catholicism. Because of this and other unexplainable rules and beliefs, I became disenchanted with religion.

When I returned to Minnesota in 2002, after living out-of-state for more than a decade, I had several good friends who had embraced New Age spirituality. Since I was eager to have some type of “spiritual” base and community, I looked into it. Yet again, I came to realize that New Age spirituality really wasn’t much different than any major religion.

I was drawn to the claims of the New Age movement – the focus of the individual’s approach to spiritual practices and philosophies coupled with the rejection of religious doctrine and dogma. But as I really began to examine the roots of New Age spirituality, I discovered that it’s not much different from the dogma I grew up with.

In the New Age movement, many still use the term God and refer to this entity as He, Him and Father. Humans are viewed as divine, and progressing toward a “Christ Consciousness.” Both of these terms limit our concepts of feminine power and energy and closely follow religious doctrine, which has been largely set up to sustain the patriarchal system.

Many major world religions also uphold some type of ethical guidelines, commandments or precepts to live by. Parents, teachers and bosses use the same concept to manage children, students and employees. It’s the concept of “cleaning your room so you can go out and play.” Sure, reasonable rules that respect others are helpful for a peaceful society. But it needs to be clear why these rules are in place. Religions typically use rules for social control with the belief that by honoring them, followers will be “elevated” in some fashion.

The law of Karma is similar to this in the New Age movement. Rather than give energy to the belief of Karma, why not simply entertain the concept of a self-fulfilling prophecy? Recognize that the results of our responsibility, or lack of responsibility, typically affect us in some manner.

Similar to the law of Karma, the idea that “you are the creator of your reality” is part of New Age spirituality. This statement places destiny into your own hands and away from external forces. It states that you have affected your current situation. Acknowledging that you can create good fortune in your life is very empowering. But this same concept becomes a problem when it is used to uphold guilt and shame and is steeped in the idea of original sin. If we use this concept to promote wallowing in the “bad” that has happened to us and how we are “bad” because we created it, then this concept is no different than the belief many religions advocate that humans are to be blamed for the imperfections of the world.

New Agers talk of ascension, higher, highest and movement upward toward a patriarchal idea of heaven, away from Mother Earth, which embodies the feminine principles of creation, nurturing, growth and power. New Age Spirituality also speaks of light and enlightenment. Light, in the very basic sense, comes from the sun, which again takes us upward – away from the feminine. The womb and the soil of the earth, from which life is created, are dark. Why is it that so many human beings have a fear of the dark? What is the belief that is lurking there? What is the fear?

Enlightenment is an 18th century philosophical movement characterized by the belief in the power of human reason. This term, so well-used, would literally keep us locked in the mind and in consciousness. The Sanskrit word, prajna, meaning pure and unqualified knowledge (beyond suffering) brings us to a more precise meaning than our English word, which involves reasoning, mind and thought, which is the root of suffering. A better term could replace enlightenment, such as awareness, perception or depth.

The New Age takes some of its concepts from many of the world’s religions, which have been drenched in the masculine voice and agenda. The Bhagavad Gita, one of the most important Hindu scriptures and considered to be one of the philosophical classics of the world, is a useful tool in ridding the reader of the need for outcome, but it is also a strong persuader in upholding war and aggression. By continuing to focus on the texts and icons from the world’s religions and the ideas of faith and hope, we bring the focus further away from the core and the depth of the self, which was the original concept and definition of the New Age movement.

In many ways, those in New Age spirituality are not fully utilizing the inherent knowledge that is within all of us. Many of us utilize psychics, readers, healers, teachers, channeling, products, oils, stones and other people and products to help us or guide us on our path. This can be very helpful as a support system. But we need to make sure we continue to embrace and step into our own power as we journey forth. Becoming dependent on external sources for our information is the antithesis of the independence that has defined New Age spirituality.

In a time when it is necessary to bring the focus back to the feminine, the earth, nature and the elements, we still remain far from our roots – our intuition and innate power. It is this feminine power that can bring about the necessary change we need as a society.

Take the opportunity to reawaken and embrace the feminine power that has been diminished for millennia in our patriarchal world, in dogma and in common language that has been perpetuated in the New Age movement. It is time to release the masculine traits – especially those of aggression, dominance, anger, destruction and control.

Take time to examine words and ideas before you say them. Don’t simply say something because it is common lingo used by the world around you. Doing that will keep you locked into dogma and doctrine. Be a critical, free thinker who can help us move forward into a New Age that actually enables us to step into our true depth and inherent power.

We are participating in an explosion of new age teaching, interest in Eastern
religion, and a general curiosity about the usefulness of everyday spiritual
practice. When you turn on the television, it seems just about every talk show
host is discussing how to maximize human potential and help viewers become a
more advanced version of self.

In our effort to reach higher, spirituality is a major interest in the books we read, the classes we take and the inner peace we want to find. Accordingly, there is growing dialogue concerning differences between traditional religious teaching and a form of spiritual practice termed: everyday spirituality or spirituality of the market place. Interestingly enough, the usefulness of spiritual practice in everyday life is an ancient teaching that lies at the heart of human development systems, such as Sufism in which travelers are taught, through ordinary daily activity, to align with the Higher and make life a prayer.

To help travelers add this practical approach, we will examine the basic difference between traditional religious form and spirituality; offering various "things to know, and things to do" while following a personal spiritual path.Religion
may be compared
To a great river that feeds the land.
The River winds its way as a mighty force
And smaller tributaries are formed
to serve the distant regions.
Some are satisfied
To drink of the small stream
And forget they must travel
The river to its Source.
Beyond the river’s gate
The Ocean is waiting.

Religion & Spirituality

For spiritual travelers, at some point, it becomes clear that New Age and Eastern systems offer techniques that speak to the basic difference between religious form and personal spiritual experience. While all traditional religious systems are based upon spiritual teachings, inner personal experience is not always emphasized and many travelers leave the religion of their birth with a deep, inner hunger that religious form did not completely fill.

In the beginning stages of any learning, adherence to form is essential. As the traveler matures in his or her traditional religious training, a deeper more personal experience may be available. However, many travelers leave for a variety of reasons or get "turned off" long before this happens. One of my spiritual teachers used to say: "After you have studied with me and experienced the Light, you will return to the religion of your birth and become a better Christian, Jew or Muslim."

• External form. In viewing traditional religious teaching and spiritual experience, it is important to discuss the difference between internal and external reality. Most of us are familiar with the external form of religious teaching. Usually this was the presentation offered during our early childhood and emphasized standard prayers, teachings and a social prescription directed at a large segment of humanity. Over the centuries, this is the part that looks different, because it is, and it changes. External form varies depending upon culture, geography, historical context and the changing needs of the receiving community. Because this part is not the same, and is tied to time and place, it confuses people. This is the part that travelers argue and fight about.

• Internal form. Internally, all forms at their highest level are one, united in spirit. The internal or spiritual essence which gives life to the external religious form is a living, vibrant element. This part, termed the Light in some presentations, is the inner core or life current to the external form. This is the part that fuels the updating of the Teaching into a newer presentation, and the grace that enables the living teacher or exemplar to function. This is the spiritual essence that the New Age traveler seeks to embrace, and become one with.

Religion is like a beautiful maiden, who to fit the changing weather, wears an assortment of clothing. Some days, because the weather is cold or sunny, her outer garments are different. If you were to describe her on these days, one day she would be the maiden in the tall woolen hat, scarf across her face and long coat, and on another day, the women in the light, bright, yellow cotton dress. On the first day, not seeing her covered face, some observers might be fooled and argue or disagree about the woman’s identity or description on the second day; not realizing underneath the various clothing, it is the same young woman wearing the light cotton dress.

Things to Know

To help spiritual travelers realize their own inner potential, we will examine some of the postulants or learning statements that must be understood about everyday spirituality.

• You already are spiritual. This is true, and it is an overriding theme of New Age systems and Eastern traditions. We are spiritual beings who have entered the earth phase to learn, experience, serve and be co-creators. When you are ready, no one can stand between you and personal, inner, spiritual experience. However, getting ready to unlock your own experience is the challenge, often requiring learning the right things, in the right order, with the right people.

• Living in the world blocks spiritual experience. For the most part, everyday activity, work and worry block the inner awareness from coming forward. When focusing on daily life, the "noise" or vibration of this activity prevents the inner awareness from being accessed and perceived. With a period of training, travelers can be taught to operate both streams of consciousness simultaneously. However, this is not a static condition. The capacity to tune in and use the higher consciousness, comes and goes, depending upon the traveler’s capacity and higher needs of the situation.

• Consciously, we create our own reality. All life operates through consciousness, which is awareness and energy on multiple physical, mental, emotional and spiritual levels. Through our soul, which is comprised of a spiritual energy fabric, we create our own multiple level realities, every moment of the day. And because we are both different and the same, we share reality we both agree upon and experience uniquely.

• A completed person adds spiritual awareness. The goal of spiritual paths is to add a measure of conscious, spiritual awareness to the traveler’s individual life and day. This awareness serves as an enriching, enabling element so the traveler can complete daily and higher functions. Each traveler is unique, and as such has an individual life plan that ultimately leads them to join in as co-creator, helping to influence their own and higher destiny of others. Traditionally, in this realm, the completed person is God’s deputy or vicegerent.

• Living exemplars. In many New Age and Eastern traditions, the living teacher or exemplar serves as guide to lead the traveler higher. Through the grace of the path, this person serves higher functions, enabling others to embrace their own latent capacity. This person has a duty to discharge and uses the natural, spiritual laws to help others reach completion. Unfortunately, there are many imitators, and travelers need to be cautious. By tradition, the authentic teacher is the earth’s greatest resource.

• Religion as business. In every age, religion and spirituality have been used as a camouflage and business – a way to gain power, money or satisfy personal emotional needs. Just because something is wrapped in spiritual garb, it does not mean that it will not take from you. In fact, this tendency to use spiritual forms to achieve selfish and harmful ends, historically, has driven many away and thrown one religion against another. In our world today, this is one of the most harmful elements.

• Use your common sense. In selecting a path, if something seems to be too good or easy, it probably is. The traveler needs to be wary of systems that "guarantee success in 10 easy steps." In this endeavor, no one can guarantee anything; your progress along the Path is dependent upon your correct effort and the Grace of God. Also, some Paths prescribe a certain dress, way to look or similarity of action; they are not flexible about this and codes are strictly enforced. If you are uncomfortable with these rules, or there seems to be too much emphasis upon the Master, listen to your inner own voice; it is there to protect you. Remnant sects abound, and your own individual Path should be as natural to you as drinking a fresh, clear glass of water.

• Selecting a path. The reason there are many Paths is that travelers are different, with changing needs. If you are not satisfied with the religion of your birth, ask and petition The Radiances of Truth for a new path to open to you. When it appears, follow it to completion. Remember, in this matter, there are two considerations: What Path seems most natural? What Path reaches out and embraces you?

• Life as Prayer. In some traditions, the goal of the spiritual traveler is to make their life a prayer, through intention and focused energy, to turn every action into an act of remembrance and service for the Higher Destiny. Each of us is familiar with going to work or school and using all of our talents and energy to get ahead so we can personally gain or feel more fulfilled. Similarly, in every action, the spiritual traveler works hard to remember and serve God.

• Diversity of Spiritual Experience. Every traveler has spiritual experience. These experiences are natural and emerge, in part, from our very composition. Many times, these experiences are often not understood as such to be spiritual. They are seemingly mysterious and usually quickly forgotten. Often, they may come in the form of an intuition about something that occurs or a happy, positive energy and sense of being connected to everything. Traditionally, spiritual experiences are given so the traveler can learn and move forward. These are not the goal of the journey; they are foretastes of a higher state of awareness, which is as varied and natural as spiritual travelers themselves. Typically, in time with training, travelers recognize these experiences as spiritual, because they are unlike other forms of mental or emotional consciousness, and they learn to move beyond them.

Things to Do

To help prepare travelers for their own spiritual experience, the following techniques, actions and exercises are offered.

• Quiet, alone time. Daily, each traveler needs to set aside 10-20 minutes to travel inward. This is personal time where the external noise of the world can be turned off and an examination of the many parts of self may be conducted. Even busy mothers or executives must be "selfish" about this and take the time to do something for self. Over time, we must identify the many selves so we can push them aside for a time and unlock what lies beyond daily consciousness. Going inward may be accomplished through prayer, journaling, meditation, or at day’s end, observing the repeating patterns of thought.

• Travel inward. Find a hobby or activity that you enjoy where you can express your inner self. If it is working on a craft, reading uplifting material, gardening, going for a walk, listening to relaxing music, collecting coins or taking a yoga or exercise class. You want to learn to express the many, hidden parts. Each of us has a creative, spiritual potential, and in the beginning you must make time to explore and refine it. Once experienced, the creative expression of the artist or craftsmen, where numerous factors come together, will help expand your daily consciousness and help you begin to perceive what is possible.

• Give to others. Part of healthy, balanced living and ordinary social duty is being part of a family or community, and giving to others. If you have time, volunteer once a week at the local hospital, or nightly help your children do their homework. Perhaps listen to the problems of a neighbor, join the local food pantry or routinely give to your favorite charity. This activity of giving should be entered into freely, without resentment or repeated troubling thoughts like, "People tell me I need to do this." If you cannot do this without displeasure, wait until you can – then observe the many benefits.

• Seek the higher road. Most of us know what the right thing is. We are born with an inner sense of correct action and helping others. In your conversation and daily activity, try to help, not hurt; as a guide, listen to your own inner voice, which is a natural barometer. In the healthy personality, there is a balance between our own needs and the needs of others. It is only when we are fearful, angry or hurt that we seek to do harm. When possible, avoid action when you are feeling this way.

• Pray. As part of our childhood, most of us have been taught specific prayers, some of which become part of our lives and others we leave behind. Usually, specific prayers are different than praying. Prayer is a song that arises from your heart that you wish to share with God. This is a communication that springs from your very essence and cannot be taught; it is already part of you. Daily, spend time talking with God. On a deep inner level, there is a part that is most like God. Experience that part. That is our spiritual center and has traditionally been called "the heart."

• Consciousness-building activity. Daily in the beginning, each traveler needs to add consciousness expanding and focusing activity. One of the most familiar exercises is meditation, because it teaches many things: skills like concentration, focus, and switching attention back to the focus word or object. If you have trouble meditating, try another activity, such as prayer or Reflecting the Light. This type of exercise may be learned from a book, class or a teacher. For many, it is part of the learning required, to still and push aside that which stands in our way. Usually, specific exercises are bridges to something else, and as such, intended for fixed periods.

• Physical exercise / healthy living. Because we are multi-level beings, we must maintain a balance or healthy level of homeostasis so that we can access what lies deep within. When we are in physical or emotional pain, it is very difficult to travel inward. When our muscles are tense and we are experiencing troubling, repeating thoughts, the journey inward is further slowed. That is why often the prescription to make the daily, inner journey is begun with a cleansing of sorts. As a form of readiness, a hot, relaxing shower to clean-off the "dirt" of the day, or a deep breathing exercise to connect with our inner rhythm and bring refreshing air and oxygen into our system, is often suggested. Relaxing, cleansing activity helps tune and make us ready to connect with our inner current.

• Intention. Just about any activity may be done for the Higher Destiny. When we are vacuuming the house, driving our children to school or commuting to work, by offering up this activity to the Higher, the activity becomes something we no longer do for self, but to make the world a little better. When you arise in the morning, who do you go to work for? Are you working solely for self or to help others and yourself? Are you picking up children at the sitters and raising them to be more complete people, or better consumers of all the things they want? Begin to consider your motivation and intention, so you can turn it over to the higher, and travel further.

• Repeating the Holy Name. In some traditions, travelers are taught by very slowly repeating the Holy Name, with love and reverence over and over, throughout the day and their lives, they will reach journey’s end. Attached to this Name there is Light and energy. When you align with the Highest, gradually, you become one with the Highest. Throughout the day, try this simple technique of repeating the Name. See what happens. What do you have to lose?

• Practice gratitude. When you are feeling down, sad or depressed, practice gratitude. When you are at your lowest, take a personal inventory and name those things for which you are grateful. Thank yourself or thank the universe for placing these things, people or events into your life. Do this over and over. By using this repetitive cycle of replacement thought, which recounts the good in your life, you will change your consciousness and the energy being created. This more positive thought pattern has healthy and regenerating energy attached to it. Everyone has many things for which they can be grateful. Think about it.

• Good deeds. Daily, do something positive, generous or helpful for another person. Make a list of good deeds or positive actions that you want to accomplish for others. In performing this positive activity, the good feelings you generate will be your reward and the energy attached to your feelings, gradually, will change you. If you no longer need to do these things to help feel better, then do these things for others and the Higher Destiny. By making your deeds an offering, you will be joining in the Higher Destiny and consciously moving along the Path.

• Take a Class. If you have time, take a class on spirituality or read a new self- improvement book. Challenge yourself to learn something new and examine what is happening in this exciting world. Do not be afraid to critically examine your own or society’s most cherished beliefs, because that is how the journey to personal enlightenment and higher knowledge begin.

Life as PrayerFor the Sufi, daily life and traveling down the highway is potentially a prayer. Every moment is an opportunity to align personal action with the Higher Impulse. Through intention and by temporarily surrendering individual need, the spiritual traveler makes their commute to work a prayer of joyfulness and service.

For further discussion on consciousness-building exercises or to learn more about daily activity as spiritual practice, the reader is referred to Dr. Stewart Bitkoff’s recently published book, A Commuter’s Guide to Enlightenment (Llewellyn Worldwide, 2008). It is available at all book stores, online venues, or linking through www.thedeeganproject.com.

Many non-spiritual people subscribe to the belief that our world is the result of matter – composed of tiny billiard ball-like entities. Do they really believe that life is merely a succession of vignettes of memories, feelings, and experiences that vanish when we die? Is that it – nothing survives death?

"I learned that she’d died a month earlier. The details of her death did not register – just the fact that she had died…I decided that I wanted to understand the definition of life and to understand what happened after death…I felt that I had to better understand what life was before I could tackle the mystery of death. How did star ‘stuff’ become life? If there are trillions of universes, are only a few capable of life? Are the missing dark matter and dark energy involved in life?"

"My journey took me on a tour of the mind-boggling scientific concepts of the creation of the universe, life, and humankind. New theories reveal a startling view of reality. Recent breakthroughs explain how mind and consciousness emerge from body and brain, overturning previous dogmas and offering new healing methods. New studies provide fascinating insights into the possibility of an afterlife. Comparing 21st-century science with spiritual beliefs, I found that a new truth was emerging."

Many scientists’ beliefs have been flawed. Scientific discoveries at the beginning of the 20th-century revealed a world created from a dimensionless dot. Now in the 21st century we find there might be an infinite number of universes, hidden dimensions and dark, hidden secrets.

border=”0″ class=”alignleft”>"In the 16th century, Copernicus demonstrated that the sun did not revolve around the Earth. This was the beginning of the modern scientific era. Early in the 20th century, quantum theory led to transcendence beyond materialism and even language. With 21st century revelations, we are at the dawn of a new truth, which merges concepts of science and spirituality. This new truth will radically alter our world view: We are one with our world – and this oneness, information, mind and consciousness is the universe and us."

"If Wheeler is correct, then our universe can be considered mental, and mind and/or consciousness exist out there. What is reality? Is there evidence to support a mental or even spiritual universe? We’ve taken a look at dark energy, dark matter and parallel universes. We’ve learned that 96 percent of our universe is missing. Can reality get any more bizarre? Yes. As I will reveal, everything is energy and space; but space is not empty!"

"Scientists postulate multiple or parallel universes to explain the slippery concepts of science…Ironically, in their attempt to find a non-spiritual solution to these mysteries, scientists propose theories that might be impossible to test or verify, thereby embracing what some might call faith."

The universe is mental!

"The Western paradigm is that brain creates mind and consciousness, yet it cannot offer an explanation or evidence in support of this assertion. It is as though we were to watch a movie on television and insist that it was created by the TV. I have presented an explanation and evidence that mind and consciousness emerge from brain activities. But mind and consciousness are derived from the information realm…Our cartoon world of caricatures that we call matter is wedged between the seemingly strange world of the very small, containing the…vacuum, and the incredibly large universe that houses parallel universes, dark energy and dark matter."

"We now know that the mind can change the brain. The mind has been known for some time to heal psychological states and the body. Let me move to examples of the mind performing healings, exploring even a mind-gene connection."

Spiritual teachings portend scientific discoveries.

"How do all these diverse beliefs in God affect the spiritual? Religions have taught that expectations, scientific concepts, notions of reality, ideas about God, ego and personality all block our ability to know the reality of the spirit."

"We find in this chapter that spiritual leaders from different times and places had similar metaphors for reality. These included life’s vital essence being energy, the flow of such energy in bodily energy fields and beliefs in the spiritual nature of our world. How could the ancient mystics have discovered truths that scientists are just now beginning to accept?"

For more information on Dr. Leo Kim and Healing the Rift, visit www.healingtherift.com