Intuition is the faculty within us that encourages us toward what we consider to be right action, feelings and thoughts.  Intuition teaches us and helps us to be true to ourselves and to live according to our aspirations and highest aims.  It tends to develop as a dominant faculty particularly with females and has a vast potential to aid all of us in the art of living. But in order to be aware and receptive to this inner guiding voice, we must be sensitive to it and learning to trust it takes a little practice.

Awareness of intuition may vary with each of us, sometimes occurring with a subtle but repeated or sustained feeling about something or someone. Sometimes like a bolt out of the blue we may feel compelled to act upon a strong ‘hunch’ when we seem motivated by an inner shout rather than a subtle whisper of what to do.  Some of us may choose to be ‘deaf’ to the inner voice, and can only find trust in logical thoughts as they arise from a familiar basis.

However, we are most likely to benefit by our inner guidance and wisdom, if we are conscious of the existence of the faculty and are prepared to listen to our own inner counsel.

The result is of benefit to us in several ways – by the expansion of our sensitivity and awareness of everything around us and in our lives; by increased perception of factors in our relationships that allow greater exercise of compassion; it offers a means of trusting ourselves and gaining greater self confidence;  and discovering and utilizing intuition allows us to know that we are capable of accessing inner wisdom as to how to direct our lives constructively.

Learning to appeal and to listen to this inner voice of wisdom and to apply it will invite direct proof of its value.

Thought of a profound nature is seen as the inherent wisdom of a culture or philosophy.

In the case of classical teachings, they have been tested and perpetuated over centuries of time. These provide the basis upon which each generation relies upon in establishing their ideas and values.

We also are free to contribute our own creative ideas for the benefit of the coming generation.  Each of us is capable of adding something constructive to the vast accumulation of human thought and experience. All of us have undergone experiences that have led us to arrive at some profound insight, understanding or wisdom. We could be considered un-generous if we did not wish to give to others the fruit of our valued life experience and be able to express this in some way. So the storehouse of human knowledge grows.

This advance of thought and discovery is particularly obvious in the modern sciences and technologies that have created rapid change and development to a degree that would have stunned previous generations.

Each of us seeking to develop our own creative thought must rely upon intuition where lies our inner strength as well as unlimited resources of imagination and concentration that lie in reserve, untapped, awaiting our urge to expand our particular interests.

It is no longer sufficient to possess a mere acceptance of adopted ideologies that require faith. These must be advanced and confirmed through personal knowledge born of direct experience as applied in any science.

With the mental sense of security that comes through trust in proven knowledge is established the springboard for the mind’s adventuring into new territory. We find that in passive moments of contemplation, or in the midst of intellectual activity, fresh creative thoughts arise of our own making.

New thoughts and ideas are conceived and through action are born into the world.

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“Listen to all who talk from the heart, for your heart needs food too.  But do not follow their saying blindly, because your truth, your own truth, is within you.  Obey the dictates of your heart therefore, and be not afraid, because it will never lead you astray.

The heart is the treasure-house of wisdom; the mind is the treasure house of learning.  So look to the balance between mind and heart; and what is felt as an inner, clear conviction, hold fast to that before all, and do not waver.”

Meha Baba

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“Human life appears to me as a great orchestra in which we are the players. The great composition to be performed is the “Symphony of Life”, its infinitude of dissonances and melodies blending into one colossal tone picture of harmony and grandeur. We players must study the laws of music and the score of the great symphony and we must practise diligently and persistently until we can play our parts unerringly in harmony with the concepts of the Great Composer.  At the same time we must learn to keep our instrument, the body, in the best possible condition; for even the greatest artist, endowed with a profound knowledge of the laws of music and possessed of the most perfect technique, cannot produce musical and harmonious sound from an instrument with strings relaxed or overly tense, or with its body filled with rubbish.”

Henry Lindlah

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“If the stars should appear one night in a thousand years, how men would believe and adore; and preserve for many generations the resemblance of the city of God which had been shown.”

Emerson
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“On Solitude: We must acknowledge that solitude is a fine thing; but it is a pleasure to have someone to whom we can say that solitude is a fine thing.”

Balzac
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Every man who can read has it in his power to magnify himself, to multiply the way in which he exists, to make his life full, significant, and interesting.

Aldous Huxley

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This soul that is the Self of all that is, this is the real, this the Self;

That Thou Art – Om-Tat-Sat

Chandogya Upanishad

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Beauty within ourselves must learn to contact the beauty without; thus unifying itself evermore with the not-self.

Gerrit Janssen

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“There is an inmost centre in us all, where truth abides in fullness;….and, to know, rather consists in opening out a way where the imprisoned splendour may escape, then in effecting entry for a light supposed to be without.”

Robert Browning

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Each soul is potentially divine. The goal is to manifest this divinity within, by controlling nature, external and internal. Do this either by work, or worship, or psychic control, or philosophy, by one or more, or all of these – and be free. This is the whole of religion. Doctrines, or dogmas, or rituals, or books, or temples, or forms are but secondary details.

Vivekananda

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There is in the distance the promise of a new world, not a perfect world, but at least a world freed from poverty and exploitation, a world where we can work together for the common good, a world where mankind, released from much that binds it to materialism, may find within itself a nobler and more enduring goodness and beauty which bring rewards incomparable.

Gerrit Janssen

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From the unreal, lead me to the Real

From darkness, lead me into Light

From death lead me to Immortality.

Hindu prayer

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Mental attitude – our positive mental attitude allows positive moods and happiness and is just as important as good physical posture that allows healthy physiological processes

Mental ‘diet’ or nourishment – the matter which we read, or listen to, must be of good quality material and provide a healthy variety of information that we can digest

Mental exercise and endeavour – the mind is naturally made for activity as our body is designed for movement. It requires disciplined thought to channel our mental abilities into constructive intellectual studies, work and endeavours.

Mental rest and relaxation – we need to be free of stress to allow natural mental processes to function freely. Mental relaxation and meditation offer refreshment even more pleasant than deliberate relaxation of the body muscles to relieve strain.

 Mental ‘Breathing or Respiration’ – Physical deep breathing is important in order to oxygenate the blood and brain. However we need to keep our minds functioning freely through good relationships and mental exchange with others which could be seen as mental ‘breathing’ – that is, both taking in ideas as well as expressing our own thoughts.

 Mental vitality and creative capacity – vitality and creativity are clear indicators both of good physical health and a healthy state of mind. We need to keep up our mental interests, creative hobbies and enthusiasm for living.

Mental environment – We need to enjoy shared wholesome mental interests with others in a friendly and harmonious climate sharing similar ideologies.

 Mental ‘Sunshine’ and appreciation of our good fortune

Just as we enjoy sunshine, we all feel the psychological benefit and enjoy bathing in the warmth of a vibrant personality or the affection and encouragement of friends. Encouragement is an important requirement in order to enjoy good mental growth and self confidence.  The support or encouragement extended to you by family, teachers, friends and associates has a tonic effect and we benefit by our good fortune when we are surrounded by loving and happy people and influences which inspire us to Keep Happy!

LEARN TO GIVE AWAY YOUR SUNNY SMILES FOR FREE!!!

This is a question we are all asking…….

The world in which we are living in the 21st century is not conducive to health of any kind. We have a struggle to survive- physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. The destructive tendencies of man have been rampant in every sphere and have contaminated our living from family life to nations. Seemingly we are neglecting or even discarding the clear patterns and guidelines for human culture.

We would all agree that the overall current trends and actions, habits and attitudes are not in agreement with a natural humane way of life.

Let us focus on a few of the disturbing facts, and think about ……..

The needless destruction of our environment.

The pollution of the atmosphere with chemicals, noise and radiation

The contamination of our earth, drinking water and food

The violence and aggression between people and nations

The destructive use of nuclear energy

The diabolical use of germ warfare

The crumbling of religious traditions and cultures

The defamation of our heroes and religious leaders

The apathy which allows vivisection and cruel experimentation with animals

The loss of classical values in the arts

The rampant expression of ugliness and disharmony

The exaggerated focus upon material success

The glorification of intellectualism over and above simple intelligence

The moral weakness in society

The neurotic interest in sex

The increasing extent of addiction to drugs and alcohol

The destruction of the family unit

The increase of physical and mental disease

The serious side effects of medicinal drugs

The general social revolt against law and order

And the sad fact that the ideal of freedom of expression has degenerated into license to disturb our fellow man.

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We need to think clearly, try to address all these serious problems and plan for a better future by creating an ordered and patterned way of life.

Can we cancel the old patterns and formulate new plans for a better future?

We must do so.

LET US START TODAY – formulate new plans. Specify the improvements you consider are vital as a people perhaps to our very survival into the future.

Don’t wait for ‘them’ to do something. Each of us must make a change and contribute now.

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Doing this will help you to formulate the values that are important to your life and the way you live it for your soul’s satisfaction.

You will find that it will possibly be a creed that will need revising some time later, but by keeping it simple it may serve you, by silent repetition of it, as a lifelong private source of encouragement and inspiration.

Here are a couple of examples –

I BELIEVE ……

In the wonder of the Cosmos

The magic of the Spirit

The beneficence of Nature

The brotherhood of man

The immortality of the soul

In the One-ness of all life

In the responsibility we have to this Earth

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MY PERSONAL CREED IN LIFE

Is to practise love and kindness

To work towards excellence in all things

To be responsible for my successes and my failures

And to recognize the power of free will to choose my way.

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What is it that we all share in our concept of a healthy mind?

Understanding that it is not as easy as having a picture of the perfect body in health and physical fitness, we may try to formulate what is our personal picture as to what constitutes an ideal state of mental health. We are dealing here rather with codes of behaviour, attitudes of mind, levels of intellectual function, the quality of expression, and discipline over bad habits of thought and feeling, as well as abstracts such as ethics, morals, philosophy and spirituality.

Although we inevitably will attach varying degrees of importance to the qualities that are fundamental, we will seldom disagree on the principles.  It would seem appropriate to aim for a mind that is vital, enthusiastic, creative, reasonable, logical, imaginative, with keen faculties of mind and senses, appetite for knowledge, willingness to learn, willingness to teach, trusting, truthful, optimistic and intelligent.

It is often easier to focus upon such an exercise by first considering the qualities that we do not like in the minds of others. For example recognizing a very argumentative trait in others, or being irritated by prejudice may lead you to choosing what you consider are the healthy alternatives in your own programming and self discipline.

That is what we must do in order to correct old habits of thought and programme our minds. This is achieve with focus upon our own aspirations as well as conscious selection of the finest qualities we admire in other minds and wish to emulate in our own thought processes.

In ancient times it was celebrated as the time of year when the passage of the Sun had apparently seemed to return to the northern hemisphere to bring new life and hope for the new year.

It was also hailed as a deeply spiritual time when priesthoods reminded the people of their close link with the Creator through encouraging them to identify with the spark of God inside them.

At these times the faith in the return of the blessings of the Sun and the thanksgiving spirit associated with the season brought a feeling of joy and closeness with nature as it fanned aspirations toward understanding of nature beyond the earth.

The most important common thread of thought through the centuries would be the potential for us to realise the spark of our divine nature through the feeling or response to the stirring of new life. This was represented in the birth of Jesus that stirs our admiration, devotion and aspiration towards understanding such a magnitude of spirit in human form.

In addition to any way we choose by custom or by individual choice, to participate in the ceremonies and traditions of Christianity the most important thought is to meditate and allow some quiet time so that we identify with the great Love, Power and Light that the Christ represents as the ultimate evolutionary blueprint or pattern for human nature.

All profound teachings are given to us as symbols – the silent language of universal truths.

By awakening the potential to live simply, purely, selflessly and lovingly as Jesus will bring us closer to the feeling of one-ness with life itself, and closer to the answers and truths we seek.

The increase in psychological problems is largely blamed upon social pressures.

Violent behaviour has erupted in several school incidents and created serious situations, injuries and fatalities with a recent one this year resulting in 7 children hacked to death before the perpetrator killed himself. The overall number of fatalities from this type of attack had risen to 20 by mid year. Estimates from senior health officials state that approximately 100 million Chinese people are suffering symptoms of mental illness such as depression, anxiety, drug addiction and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The problem now exceeds heart disease and cancer as the largest economic burden on the country’s health care system.

Although there is considerable research into mental illness incorporated in the current national health plan there is no department in the health care system at present to deal specifically with mental disorders. There are insufficient numbers of doctors trained to deal with mental health and only 400 professional psychiatrists in Chinese hospitals overall with little likelihood of immediate improvement.

In Beijing 150,000 people are said to be suffering mental illness. The people are uncomfortable with mental health issues and reluctant to seek treatment. This is understandable in a once communist country where psychiatry was outlawed. During the Cultural Revolution those who suffered mental  illness were sent to labour camps accused of ‘counter-revolutionary’ behaviour. The practice of using mental illness as an excuse to imprison dissidents is still strong in the memory of older citizens.

Education of the people regarding personal mental health care is a vital requirement that would play a part in reducing the national pressure to provide   psychiatric treatment . Action in prevention is preferable to seeking a cure.

Relaxation-  Practice lying flat on floor if possible either in quietude or gentle classical music. This requires no thinking but feeling awareness only  – Let nature’s vitality flow through and refresh your psyche

Enjoy a professional relaxation massage – to feel energies renewed

Physical exercise followed by a warm shower or bath with lavender or neroli bath oil

Take a series of slow deeper breaths before you decide to become active again – then deliberately inhale the perfume of one of the natural essential oils that appeals to you

Spend 5 minutes in upright position repeating your personal affirmation that inspires and makes you feel happy and strong

Drink pure water – rainwater if possible or drink a pure fresh fruit juice -sipping a little at a time and consciously drawing vitality

Appreciate being alive – Look around you and focus upon the beautiful forms, plants, sky, trees – to realise afresh how wonderful to be alive to learn and to enjoy nature and participate in the Life Adventure

Finally, promise yourself to remain as long as possible in this pleasant mind set or mood. Let nothing disturb you. Let no one have the power to disturb you. Remain calm in whatever circumstances

Attend classes or participate in sports that are directly helpful in lifting your mood –confiding in your therapist, attending  laughing groups, comedy shows, or, listening to favourite melodic music

Be creative – painting, playing a musical instrument, sewing, crafts, singing or skills in a sport

Seek for a skilled psychologist who will help you without recommendation for prescription drugs, many of which cannot claim to cure and many can prove harmful

Find a healthy natural alternative to The Pill that is one proven cause of depression

Any or all of these are positive self determined ways to overcome depression and you will benefit continuing efforts especially when you find what really works for you personally.

Prayer is the universal ‘advice’ or technique to help lift your mood

Don’t

Drink alcohol – it will not help your depression in the long run

Don’t take antidepressant medications –  many will be detrimental to your mental well being

Don’t remain solitary except to practise your private relaxation but enjoy walks and the company of a friend.

Don’t get in the habit of repeating to yourself or to others “I’m depressed ..” or “I’m feeling bad” – this has a negative effect upon the subconscious mind that relies upon positive thought feed-in.

Don’t continue any old habit – substitute a better one!

Don’t seek solace from food – when depressed is the worst time to digest food and your body will suffer

Don’t try to focus your mind in reading dutiful learning or study but rather choose to study a subject or hobby of genuine personal interest

Don’t bombard your brain with heavy rock noises or music that is loud and without melody at this is the cause of much depression.

Don’t burden your love ones or take out your moods upon others if you can confide in a psychologist or counsellor who is trained to be impartial and just listen.

REMEMBER 

You are a special and unique person, created to experience and enjoy life as well as to offer your personal gifts and talents to others. Why waste life time?