The Reality Behind the Need for Realizing New Relationships

As a result of my deepening interest in truthful ideas, quite a few of my friends feel I have gone off the deep end, and I have noticed a growing separation between us as I work more and more for my own spiritual freedom. It is not that I don’t care for them, but rather I am becoming less concerned about the things that have always driven all of us.

My fear is they will eventually want to have nothing to do with me. Is it normal for friendships to pass as people change their life and level? Is this what Christ meant when he said, “Let the dead bury their dead”?

Yes, quite often old friends will fall away as you work on changing your interior relationship and begin seeing more about this life and its true purpose. Think of the company that a caterpillar keeps and then, as it is transformed, how its new friends have wings and inhabit the sky. Letting go of those who want to remain earthbound is at least in part the true inner meaning of this passage of Christ’s that you have cited.

Because I see it as counterproductive to my spiritual work, I have recently stopped sharing my negative states with a person near and dear to me, a friend who is also a practicing psychotherapist. Now he seems threatened by this new action on my part. He sees “sharing one’s feelings” as the way to achieve and maintain intimacy. I don’t feel that I can go back to the relationship the way it was. Can you comment on this?

Congratulations! Through your inner work, you have stumbled onto a great discovery. Your sensing and understanding of this change in relationship is accurate. This person needs to feed on your weaknesses in order to feel strong. By your refusing to supply the food (of negative concerns), the creature feeding suddenly shows itself. Don’t be afraid to see all of this and its implications. The change that must occur as a result of your choice not to be in a conspiracy of woes will be the dawning of a new and higher consciousness within yourself.

How do we find others who are also searching for their true selves? At times the search causes us to leave former friends behind — not because we are better, but because we are different.

Here is a highly encouraging thought: The study of Truth leads us to those relationships that are beneficial to the Truth we are studying. It could be said that as you grow in your love of Truth/God, your newly emerging nature is a law unto itself that naturally repels what is dissimilar to it and likewise attracts what is helpful, healthy, and loving. In short, while it is good to find others who are interested in the Truth as a part of our own free will, the search for others who are embracing their true nature is ultimately directed by our own wish for the Truth.

I am having trouble understanding how to leave relationships with my friends and family alone. It seems that the changes I feel are affecting them, but neither they nor I understand some of these changes. It is an extremely confusing time for everyone in my life. Can you help me ease this effect?

The Truth asks us to give it its way in our lives. The relationships established before the dawning of any such light within us are naturally going to be put through necessary changes by the inclusion of this new understanding as it dawns within us. Try to understand that we live in a world of which we see only a tiny, tiny part. But even in those small glimpses of our physical reality can we see hints of the celestial one. What happens to the creatures living in any environment when that environment is changed? Some naturally stay, some must leave, and most importantly, as it concerns our work, new creatures are attracted. Continue with your work. Be willing to let the chips fall where they may with all of your relationships. Be kind, but above all, be true. The rest will take care of itself.

At times it seems to me that the more I realize about the awesome nature of spiritual love, the more loneliness I feel in my current human relationships. I long to share my discoveries with others, but who do I turn to?

A certain kind of loneliness, of feeling ourselves all alone, is a necessary portion of the path to the higher life. This sense of being alone comes out of realizing what are the inherent limitations in our actual relationships in this life, combined with a growing spiritual longing to commune with others in a deep and meaningful way. Go through this. We easily forget that there is a God, a Great Intelligence that guides the steps of anyone willing to put Him/Truth before all else. This same Intelligence will lead you to new relationships, inner and outer ones, in which not only will you be able to express the love you feel for the Truth, but this same love will fill you as well.

Be True To Yourself Even When Others Don’t Want You To!

“Waiting on others to approve a change you know you must make in your own life — an action you must take that will likely lessen your dependency upon them, and perhaps drive them to make changes in their habitual choices — is like hoping that a snowman looks forward to a spring thaw.” ~ Guy Finley

Related Reading:

Seeker’s Guide To Self-Freedom: Truths for Living

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Three Levels Of Life Purpose

There are three fundamental purposes to everyone’s life. One general purpose is on the personality level. The other is on the soul level. And the third is on the level of spirit. No matter how one’s specific purpose is described or expressed, it must come down to one of these. On the personality level our purpose is to learn. On the soul level our purpose is to express love and thereby to serve. Our third purpose is at present very elusive – to be.

Our three purposes are related to our threefold nature as spirit, soul and personality. To understand life and to live effectively we must increase our knowledge and expression of this triune nature. At the present time our collective development is focused on understanding and expressing our soul nature and integrating our personality nature with it. We can only do this if we understand the purpose of each.

Purpose is so essential and basic because it is the underlying motivation, attraction or urge that moves us to do what we do. It is also what gives meaning to what we experience.

When a person has a difficulty of any kind in terms of the physical, emotional or mental realms of functioning, feeling or thinking, the issue must ultimately relate to purpose. Either the soul purpose is not being expressed or the individual is not learning what needs to be learned in order to express one’s purpose. The ultimate solution or healing cannot be found without referring to purpose.

This implies that in order for one’s experiences to be understood or related to in terms of meaning, one must be able to relate to purpose, for meaning is always found in relation to purpose.

There is a principle that governs purpose which is that the greater purpose of anything is beyond itself, and must serve some greater reality than itself. It can only do this, however, to the extent that it is true to itself, expressing who or what it really is.

As the soul increasingly influences the personality through our growth, we must share what we learn – i.e., our learning must serve the greater good. The soul makes us more inclusive, therefore our learning must be shared in a way that reflects greater inclusiveness. When it is shared, others are assisted or empowered to be more true to themselves and to be able to increase their ability to fulfill their needs, and in turn assisting others.

The two purposes that we are capable of responding to are on the personality level, where learning is required, and on the soul level where service is the purpose. Learning requires becoming more aware. Serving requires becoming more conscious.

Learning is not just growing in awareness, although that is usually the expression used. There are actually three aspects to learning which we must always remember, and use practically. Learning involves one or more of the following:

1. Becoming more aware (mental) – This involves overcoming ignorance. As we do this, we develop understanding.

2. Becoming more open (astral/emotional) – This involves overcoming selfishness. As we do this we develop love.

3. Becoming more willing (physical) – This involves overcomin inertia. As we do this we develop the capacity to make choices and act in ways that empower ourselves and others.

Serving is often understood as doing something for others. The emphasis on service, however, must be service as a state of soul consciousness. This may, and usually does, result in doing something for others. But the beneficial effect on others, even when action is involved, is not primarily due to what is done, but to the loving state of soul consciousness that the doer has.

Service is an emanation of soul qualities. It therefore only exists when one is soul conscious. This means that the service is understanding, loving and empowering. These qualities make connection with others and resonate those same qualities in others. Service therefore is always a soul support or a soul awakening.

From this you can see that in order to serve by emanating these three qualities (understanding, loving and empowering), learning in the three ways described above is essential. The degree of our service is therefore limited by the degree to which we have overcome ignorance, selfishness and inertia. The overcoming of these three limitations automatically purifies and refines our mental, astral/emotional and physical bodies through which service is expressed.

Our third and highest purpose is to be. Being is the state of Spirit within. Being implies wholeness, being all. Until we build the higher bridge of consciousness, integrate soul and personality, we do not know how to just be. When people say ‘just be,’ they often imply an unconscious avoidance of effort, striving, thinking or responsibility – almost a state of inertia.

In order to be, we must first master learning as we here describe it and become fully soul conscious. These are our current tasks. However, we do experience indirectly the presence of Spirit as being within each of our bodies, and through that experience we grow toward being whole.

1. In our physical bodies it is present through the animal soul which has the natural intelligence of the physical world, embodied as instincts. It is important that we do not attribute to this body an intelligence that it does not have. It cannot tell us anything about our higher purpose, either as human being or as a spiritual being.

2. In our astral bodies it is present as our ability to feel other energies that are present, to feel our own energies, and to relate the two.

3. In our mental bodies it is present as our capacity to think. It is present here through our human soul.

4. In our soul bodies it is present as our soul purpose and manifested universally as Intelligence, Love and Power.

Let us determine at this stage in our life what specific opportunities for learning are presenting themselves to us, and how we are responding to them.

Let us also focus on the soul qualities of understanding, love and empowerment and deepen our consciousness along these three lines of connection to the universal.

And finally let us be more frequently sensitive and open to the presence of Spirit in each of our bodies.

Questions For You:

1. What are you currently doing to overcome some specific ignorance and gaining understanding?

2. What are you currently doing to overcome some specific selfishness and becoming more open?

3. What choices are you currently making that serve to empower others?

4. How would you describe your current service in life?

Does God Have a Future?

Debate “Does God Have a Future?” in its entirety. ABC News Nighline.

Imagine the creation of the universe. Something from nothing. Now stranger still, imagine the universe as having no beginning and no end, it simply exists simultaneously, despite how we perceive it. These are the only options. Isn’t this existence just a little too unbelievable for one to demand evidence when trying to peer past the current limitations of science and religion? Granted, Deepak does make statements a little too matter of factly, but his reasoning is sound. At least as sound as any reasoning will ever be when trying explain the “art” we see in the universe.

Sam Harris and Michael Shermer vs. Deepak Chopra and Jean Houston

The “Face-Off” is a recurring series where opposing sides debate hot topics. In the sixth installment of the series, Deepak Chopra, a physician and best-selling author of “How to Know God,” and prominent scholar, philosopher and writer Jean Houston,  face-off against Michael Shermer, founding publisher of “Skeptic” magazine, and Sam Harris, author of “The End of Faith” on the tension between God and science.

We found this debate very interesting and are curious to know what everyone thinks!  This video is in its entirety .. so grab a cup of coffee (or 3) and relax!  Then come back to post your comments

http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/FaceOff/

About the Panel

NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Dr. Deepak Chopra is an MD and board-certified Internist and endocrinologist. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, Adjunct Professor at Kellogg School of Business and Management, and Senior Scientist with The Gallup Organization. Chopra is the Chairman and co-founder of The Chopra Center for Wellbeing where he directs the educational programs. Hailed by Time magazine as one of the 100 icons of the century, and credited as “the poet-prophet of alternative medicine,” Chopra is the author of more than 55 books that have been translated into 35 languages and sold over 20 million copies worldwide.

Dr. Jean Houston (B.A. from Barnard College, Ph.D. in psychology from the Union Graduate School and a Ph.D in religion from the Graduate Theological Foundation) is a scholar, philosopher and researcher in human capacities, and is one of the principal founders of the Human Potential Movement .She directs two schools of psychological and cross cultural studies as well as a school in social artistry dedicated to human development in the light of social change.  A consultant to United Nations agencies in human development, she has also worked with other agencies in over one hundred countries training leadership  and holds conferences and seminars with social innovators,  educational institutions and business organizations worldwide. She is the author of 26 books including A Passion for the Possible, Search for the Beloved, Life Force, The Possible Human, Public Like a Frog, A Mythic Life: Learning to Live Our Greater Story, and Manual of the Peacemaker.

Dr. Michael Shermer is the Founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine, a monthly columnist for Scientific American, an adjunct professor at Claremont Graduate University, and the author of The Mind of the Market, Why Darwin Matters, The Science of Good and Evil and Why People Believe Weird Things. Dr. Shermer received his B.A. in psychology from Pepperdine University, M.A. in experimental psychology from California State University, Fullerton, and his Ph.D. in the history of science from Claremont Graduate University. He has appeared on such shows as The Colbert Report, 20/20, Dateline, Charlie Rose, and Larry King Live.

Dr. Sam Harris is a neuroscientist at UCLA specializing in the neural correlates of belief. He is the author of the New York Times bestsellers The End of Faith and Letter to a Christian Nation. The End of Faith won the 2005 PEN Award for Nonfiction. Harris’s writing has been published in over 15 languages. He is a Co-Founder and CEO of The Reason Project, a nonprofit foundation devoted to spreading scientific knowledge and secular values in society. He received a degree in philosophy from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA.

Soul – A Work In Progress

Life can be very confusing at times because we live in a multi- dimensional world. Even we ourselves have many dimensions to our own individuality.

Life in the manifested world is one of Spirit clothed in matter, existence in form. There is nothing much for us as human beings to do with this except to experience it, get involved with it and become conscious of it, which means to intentionally identify with it. This full involvement will expand our consciousness whenever we do it. And whenever we do this we are creating soul, we are soul-making. It is a psychological process for it takes place within our identity. Everyone experiences the form. But often the underlying, motivating energy of Spirit is not known. Without awareness of Spirit presence within the form, we cannot know ourselves or anything as soul.

As an entity, soul is who we are as incarnated Spirit; we give it a name as an independent state of being. In fact, this entity (soul) is who we are as consciousness. This is as difficult to understand as to say we are Spirit, which is who we are as life. Our personality is who we are as matter or form. So if we are to experience all of who we are we need to relate to ourselves and the world in these three ways: as consciousness, as life and as form.

The first step is to know ourselves as form, which means to know our personalities. We are making a lot of progress along this line. Our next step is to know ourselves as consciousness, which is the same as knowing ourselves as soul. That is the evolutionary step now facing humanity and ourselves as individuals.

It is very helpful to view soul from the perspective of a work in progress that we are creating. Rather than seeing soul as some given that is in control, we can see ourselves as the spiritual participants in the grand design of creation, able to create soul through our intentional consciousness – through awareness and through the choices we make.

In this way, soul isn’t either some pre-existent given, nor is it something that is created accidentally or comes into being accidentally, but a reality which we determine, dictate, create or destroy. Soul, then, is the quality of life (spirit in form life). This is a tremendously empowering perspective, and one that increases our responsibility.

The major challenges in the world today are pressing us all toward understanding, tolerance, unanimity, sharing and connection.

It is soul which creates unanimity instead of uniformity. Soul creates inclusiveness within the expansiveness or breadth of spirit. Soul creates connections within the diversity of life. Soul creates a horizontal dimension of equality within a vertical dimension of power. Soul creates balance. Soul demonstrates understanding and compassion.

How To Connect With Soul

It is possible to connect with soul anywhere anytime. The personal state necessary to experience soul is to stop and pay attention, to stand in its presence and allow natural affinities to merge. When identified with soul within ourselves, we seek this soul presence in all relationships. Any inner state of acceptance, tolerance, compassion, understanding and empowerment is a soul state of consciousness. This qualitative psychological- spiritual state of being opens us to soul experience in all that we meet.

The opposite of this approach, the ways we do not allow ourselves to experience soul, includes the following:

1. Resistance – to resist another’s ways, ideas, etc.

2. Superficiality – to focus exclusively on a phenomenal or form level rather than on an inner level – i.e., to be superficial.

3. Control – to try to control the relationship

4. Selfishness – to be preoccupied with oneself

5. Indifference – not caring

Releasing Potential

Soul-making is all about releasing potential, the potential that is created when Spirit and matter merge, such as occurs when putting an idea into action. The potential of any such reality is virtually limitless. Activating potential takes us into the power of life. This process is also called creativity. Creativity is not possible without soul because creativity is consciousness of life, which may or may not then express in form. Any movement of consciousness within us affects our physical body in which it takes place, and also the emotional and mental body of the individual and of humanity. True creativity always manifests with understanding and compassion in response to need, and therefore it is transformative.

In soul consciousness there has to be an awareness of spiritual values in material things so that we see Spirit bringing life to matter, fertilizing matter, animating it, so that soul emerges from the union. It is because of this that soul consciousness is so universal, inclusive and caring.

As we embrace our threefold nature as Spirit, soul and personality we are able to function effectively in our multi- dimensional world. As we come to know ourselves as form, we develop intelligence and understanding. As we increasingly know ourselves as life, or know the life within, we are empowered and empower others. As we develop our consciousness we able to stand in love and express compassion to all.

Whether we call it following our spiritual journey, or living a more meaningful and loving life, we are wise to respond to the basic spiritual growth impulse that draws us to becoming more conscious and compassionate.

Questions for you:

1. How are you increasing your understanding of your personality and the form world around you?

2. Evaluate your: resistance, superficiality, controlling, indifference and selfishness in your relationships.

3. What potentials are you activating within yourself and/or some area of your life that can lead to transformation or creative expression?

Submitted By: Andrew and Bonnie Schnider

Michael Moore Speaks About Health Reform

An open letter to Republicans from Michael Moore.  The great thing about the health care law that has passed? It will save Republican lives, too.

To My Fellow Citizens, the Republicans:

Thanks to last night’s vote, that child of yours who has had asthma since birth will now be covered after suffering for her first nine years as an American child with a pre-existing condition.

Thanks to last night’s vote, that 23-year-old of yours who will be hit one day by a drunk driver and spend six months recovering in the hospital will now not go bankrupt because you will be able to keep him on your insurance policy.

Thanks to last night’s vote, after your cancer returns for the third time — racking up another $200,000 in costs to keep you alive — your insurance company will have to commit a criminal act if they even think of dropping you from their rolls.

Yes, my Republican friends, even though you have opposed this health care bill, we’ve made sure it is going to cover you, too, in your time of need. I know you’re upset right now. I know you probably think that if you did get wiped out by an illness, or thrown out of your home because of a medical bankruptcy, that you would somehow pull yourself up by your bootstraps and survive. I know that’s a comforting story to tell yourself, and if John Wayne were still alive I’m sure he could make that into a movie for you.

But the reality is that these health insurance companies have only one mission: To take as much money from you as they can — and then work like demons to deny you whatever coverage and help they can should you get sick.

So, when you find yourself suddenly broadsided by a life-threatening illness someday, perhaps you’ll thank those pinko-socialist, Canadian-loving Democrats and independents for what they did Sunday evening.

If it’s any consolation, the thieves who run the health insurance companies will still get to deny coverage to adults with pre-existing conditions for the next four years. They’ll also get to cap an individual’s annual health care reimbursements for the next four years. And if they break the pre-existing ban that was passed last night, they’ll only be fined $100 a day! And, the best part? The law will require all citizens who aren’t poor or old to write a check to a private insurance company. It’s truly a banner day for these corporations.

So don’t feel too bad. We’re a long way from universal health care. Over 15 million Americans will still be uncovered — and that means about 15,000 will still lose their lives each year because they won’t be able to afford to see a doctor or get an operation. But another 30,000 will live. I hope that’s ok with you.

If you don’t mind, we’re now going to get busy trying to improve upon this bill so that all Americans are covered and so the grubby health insurance companies will be put out of business — because when it comes to helping the sick, no one should ever be allowed to ask the question, “How much money can we save by making this poor bastard suffer?”

Please, my Republican friends, if you can, take a quiet moment away from your AM radio and cable news network this morning and be happy for your country. We’re doing better. And we’re doing it for you, too.

Yours,
Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
MichaelMoore.com

P.S. I’ll have more to say on this tonight, live on CNN, at 9pm ET. I’ll be talking with Larry King about the health care bill and where we go from here, considering we still don’t have universal health care.

P.P.S. In case you missed these photos in yesterday’s NY Times Sunday Magazine… That’s the results of seven years of madness. The Iraq War began its 8th year this weekend. How can we remove more of those responsible for this tragedy in November?

Source:  MichaelMoore.com

Life as Art

This is the first in a series of articles about creating our lives as works of art. Most people don’t usually approach life in this way. While we may learn as children that we should have dreams, we are also warned that the outside world (called circumstances, fate, bad luck, etc.) may keep us from realizing them. These warnings, like a knife scraping against a piece of young wood, whittle away our slender sense of empowerment.

My dramatic inspiration for investigating a different approach to living came, appropriately, from seeing the movie Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf (adapted from the play by Edward Albee). For those who aren’t familiar with the film, it portrays the complex and often-vicious marital games played by a couple named George and Martha (Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor). It’s by no means an easy play to watch, for it reminds many of the dramas their parents and/or other close relative played and can give people uncomfortable insights into current relationships.

Who’s Afraid of Us?

The world abounds with Georges and Marthas. Unlike the actors who walked away each night from their roles in the movie, our real-life characters, because they believe that the parts they play are real, are locked into them. When we recognize that the roles we play are no more real than those of the characters we watch or read about, we, too, can step out of them or revise them according to our wishes.

When we view our lives as dramatic productions and ourselves as the authors or playwrights, we begin to live according to the law of attraction. With this approach, we believe that the power of our thought and emotions draws to us matching circumstances. In its simplest expression, if I believe I’m powerless in the face of circumstances, seemingly powerful circumstances will emerge to prevent me from having what I want. In other words, life will edit or tear up my script.

The difference between these approaches relates not only to the kinds of results we achieve but also to how we live our lives. The first approach creates a grim attitude that says, “I will do the best I can, but something is sure to strike me down. Maybe that terrible something will leave me alone if I show how serious I am, how determined, how willing to work hard and suffer and sacrifice.”

The second attitude is far more playful. Those who practice it recognize that when we believe we have the power to create the lives of our dreams, we don’t look over our shoulders, waiting for someone or something to punish us. We can relax and be playful, experimenting with our minds and emotions to design a variety of scenarios, choosing that which feels most pleasing to us on all levels of being.

Planning the Story

Sometimes the responsibility of planning one’s life, rather than lightening our steps, makes us worried about taking the wrong ones. Indeed, our lives become tragic or at least problematic when we take our roles too seriously and forget that we’re not only the actors but the writers of our particular plays, that not only can we determine how we play our parts but how the drama will develop, and how it will end.

The author John Irving (who wrote The World According to Garp, The Hotel New Hampshire, The Cider House Rules, and other novels, says that the first thing he write when beginning a novel is the last line. He further claims that he never changes that line.

It may be that in planning our lives, we can benefit from a bit more flexibility. I have always found that the phrase, “This or something better” covers a range of possibilities. Nonetheless, having the ultimate goal clear and firmly in mind draws powerful energy towards its manifestation.

Rewriting the Script

Keeping that intention in the forefront doesn’t mean that we have only one path available for reaching it. We can change settings and stage props without altering our chosen themes.

When we allow this theme to direct our drama, we are clear about the direction we want it to take; we create scenes and supporting characters that further the action. We can regard temporary impasses as comic relief.

Sometimes rewording your theme can make a difference. If you think your subject is “I can never find a job I like,” try changing it to “I’m exploring a variety of work situations in order to find the one I like best.” Look around to see if you’re casting actors from previous plays and rewrite the script in order to resolve these relationships. If your drama seems to resemble a tale told by an idiot, go within to ask what its meaning is.

Most of all, remember that it’s a play, that you are playing your life. When its reality seems all-too encroaching, step off the stage and become a member of the audience. And don’t forget to laugh at yourself.

Supporting Cast

Crystals

Sometimes the best way to envision the future is to be fully in the present. Carnelian, the “be here now” crystal, is wonderful to hold for the purpose of meditation or even a brief moment of calm focus.

If fear is keeping you from putting your feet on the path, consider charoite. This purple, black, and white crystal, interweaves grounding, spiritual energy, and psychic awareness. In meditation, it is best placed on the forehead.

One of the best ways to keep from drowning in the sea of current reality is to step into another reality and view life with a distant perspective. Green calcite can help us to do that.

Certain crystals help to remind us that all the elements of life are works of art. These include malachite, Picasso jasper, rhodonite, sodalite, and other stones with distinct designs.

Essences

For this subject, I’m focusing on essences from the Flower Essence Society (FES). These include:

Filaree: Restores a sense of perspective when one has compulsive worry over petty details, health, and an excessively critical attitude.

Cayenne: For those stuck in immobilizing habits, procrastination, inertia, indecision; catalyzes one to action.

Indian Paintbrush: Useful when one finds it difficult to act on or sustain the creative intuition; brings vitality and will to creative expression.

Iris: For frustration in creative efforts; helps to draw higher inspiration for creative work.

Madia: When one becomes easily sidetracked or distracted, restores mental focus, concentration, and ability to complete projects.

Shasta Daisy: For those whose knowledge seems fragmented, this helps to integrate diverse ideas or perspectives into an integrated picture.

Reclaiming the Rhythm: An Interview With Rick Allen

What would you do if you were suddenly faced with the threat of losing your most important gift? What if regaining it required more effort and willpower than you’d ever imagined and forced you to rely on parts of yourself you never even knew existed?

Rick Allen became a rock star at the early age of 15 as the drummer for the group Def Leppard. After an explosion of success in the early eighties, his world was suddenly turned upside down in 1984, when a violent car accident caused him serious injuries and the loss of his left arm.

After a visit to the Remo factory in Valencia, California, Rick immediately insisted that his family members join him at a Remo drum circle that evening. Inspired by this experience and the philosophy of Remo’s drumming & wellness department -Health RHYTHMS, Rick agreed to share his personal story and information on his current project, Raven Drum Foundation, in an interview at his home in Malibu, California.

1. Could you describe your first memories immediately after the accident?

1. …………….I felt very lost. It was the epitome of chaos. Really in and out of belief and disbelief. But I think we all have an inner strength in times like those. You really can’t even say what you would do if it happened to you. But when you’re thrown into it – you are amazed at what you can do. The amazing thing was my family and friends. Throughout my hospital stay, I saw people around me dig into sides of themselves I’d never seen before.

1. When was the first time music came back into the picture for you?

1. In my first week in the hospital, I started hearing music that just seemed to be playing. I thought it was coming out of the air vents. Then I told my brother, “You’ve got to go home and get the stereo system and my music collection to see what I can do.” So I started listening to Led Zeppelin, Free, Bad Company, T-Rex, David Bowie – just throwing myself back into that whole era I grew up with.

1. What was it like when you first started to feel the rhythms?

1. It was interesting. I realized that I could play all the basic rhythms I ever learned just with my right and left foot. I played the rhythm by tapping this big piece of foam at the end of my hospital bed. I realized I could make a beat, using only my legs. And it was like – WOW – I CAN DO THAT. I can replace what I used to do with “left hand” with “left foot.” The information was still there, in the brain – I just had to re-channel it.

1. But is it just in the brain?

1. Actually, your entire body becomes a memory of how to play an instrument. You have to re-shuffle everything and ask, “what’s important now?” I’d rather play a basic pattern really well than try and play too much. It’s a constant learning curve. What I can do today with two legs is completely different than what I could do two years ago.

1. You figured out that the information was within you, it just needing to be re-channeled.

1. Well, you have to figure out ways of healing yourself. You let people on the outside influence you – but ultimately, the job of getting well is entirely up to you.

1. Did anyone doubt you – tell you that it wasn’t possible to play again?

1. One junior doctor came up to me and said, “You know you’ll never play drums again.” But I think it just made me more determined. Another guy said, “You know you’ll never be able to wave again,” since my right shoulder was severely broken. After I was released, I came down the hall and waved at him. Even today, I’m working with a trainer and my right arm is still improving. It helps when I use the aluminum drum sticks (Easton) to take some of the shock out of playing. When I’m playing electronic pads all the time, I feel like I need that cushion. I’ve also learned to constantly give myself that positive reinforcement.

1. What do you think is the role of the mind in rehabilitation?

1. It’s all about intention – what you set out for yourself. I keep pushing that boundary and seeing myself in a better physical condition. Being a better musician. Even just being able to tie a shoelace in a better way.

1. When you first started playing again – did it make you more aware of the loss? Was it a painful experience?

1. Actually being able to play my instrument again was enough. That was really the gift. It didn’t matter how good or bad it was. It was just, “OK – I can do this. THANK YOU.” I encounter people that are in worse situations who are so challenged, but they have the audacity to look up to me. I don’t even feel like what some people would say “disabled.” I don’t even feel like I miss anything. I think of some people out there who do so much more than any of us with so much less. When I think about them, I realize that I don’t really have a problem, do I?

1. What was it like playing your first concert after the accident? Your first time on stage?

1. It happened gradually, through an amazing series of coincidences. We were playing four shows at small pubs in Ireland with this guy, Jeff Rich who we affectionately called our “stunt drummer.” He played acoustic drums to back up my electronic kit. But, he had travel problems and missed half of our second gig, so I played it myself. And the next gig had a stage that couldn’t fit both our kits, so I managed it on my own. By the time we played Donnington, outside of London, for a crowd of 55,000 people, I felt great. When I was introduced, the crowd went nuts. My mom, dad and brother were there to support me. That was probably the greatest moment in my life – just sitting there with so much gratitude.

1. What helps you now?

1. It helps me to improvise and play for the fun of it, especially with a group of people. It feels good to do whatever I want. No right or wrong, just very natural, without any muscle.

1. Do you feel that drumming has been healing for you?

1. Yes, but only when I realized it. Not when my playing was forced. Sometimes when you sit behind drums, its all muscle. Very physical. Its not until you realize you don’t need that. The rhythm or the feeling can be found within. I’ve been in situations when I’ve felt it’s been damaging – because I’m over-playing and I’m in a place that’s uncomfortable. And there have been other experiences, where I’m very comfortable – like everything is RIGHT. It transcends the drum and becomes just the feeling.

1. What inspired you to create the Raven Drum Foundation?

1. Actually, Lauren and I want to bring more awareness of healing through the arts. We want to use our website to guide people to where they can go to learn about these tools and get more information.

(Joined by Lauren Monroe- Director of the Raven Drum Foundation)

1. The information is important, but the primary thing is the experience. We want to help people discover how to express themselves through sacred methods. We want to give people keys …to open up parts of themselves. The mission of the Raven Drum Foundation is bringing ancient knowledge through the arts for the purpose of healing. We want to support a collective of artists and facilitators who can share their wisdom and practice.

1. How did all of these events affect your outlook on being a performer?

1. I believe in intention and the connection between the mind and body. I’ve started setting intentions with the guys in the band, even before going in front of 10,000 people. And for myself, I just keep playing with the concept of simplicity and feeling good. I think it’s really about finding something that makes us feel good. If we can achieve that, we have a tool to cope with whatever life challenges come our way.

Rick Allen is President of the Raven Drum Foundation. Since the age of 15, Rick has been the drummer for the heavy metal rock band, Def Leppard. He is a REMO artist.

Lauren Monroe, M.A., CMT is Director of the Raven Drum Foundation. She holds degrees in Dance Choreography, Education, and Massage Therapy.

For more information on the Raven Drum Foundation, go to www.ravendrumfoundation.com or telephone (310) 456-5030. Raven Drum Foundation @ravendrum

Find Them On Twitter!  Rick @rickallenlive Lauren @LMBlaze

Also check them out at

by Christine K. Stevens, MSW, M.A., MT-BC

Christine Stevens, MSW, MT-BC is Director of Music Therapy and Wellness Programs in the new HealthRHYTHMS division at Remo, Inc. She holds masters degrees in music therapy and social work and is a member of the Percussive Arts Society Health and Wellness committee, For more information on the use of drumming for health and wellness, go to www.remo.com, click on HealthRHYTHMS.

Luck, Fortune, and Crystals

I’ve been working with, teaching about, and selling crystals since 1998 and I’ve been thinking of the most common questions people have asked about crystals. One of them is, “Which crystal is the one for good luck?”

I was surprised to realize I hadn’t been asked that question in a long time. Out of curiosity, I searched on the Internet, using the keywords, “crystals good luck,” and I found a number of sites that claimed to sell good luck crystals. Because of the prevalence of these sites, I’ve decided it might be a good idea to explain why I don’t sell crystals for good luck.

The short answer is that, while I believe that holding, meditating with, and keeping crystals near you can have a variety of positive effects, BUT, I don’t believe in good (or bad) luck. The long answer follows.

Luck and the Law of Attraction

When we believe in luck, we believe that the distribution of life’s gifts, whether material or spiritual, is based on chance, an accidental and arbitrary unfolding of events in which some people come up with winning numbers, while the rest lose. When life looks this way, elements such as free will, choice, determination, and focus have neither point nor purpose. What will be will be, regardless of our best efforts to transform our world and ourselves. All we can do is hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.

I hold a different viewpoint: that what happens to us is determined by the thoughts and emotions we most consistently think and feel. If we think about good health and believe we can or do have it, we will. If we want good health but think of many reasons why we won’t have it, it’s likely that we won’t. This principle is now commonly known as the Law of Attraction.

Though it’s based on thoughts and emotions, the moving energy is that of vibrations. Every thought and emotion has a vibration that attracts like vibrations. The more intensely we generate these vibrations, the more we draw that kind of energy to us.

This belief has the potential to empower us and put us in charge of our lives. It is, however, opposed to the belief in the randomness of events. This can create problems.

In no way do I like all the things I’ve created in my life. When I’ve been careless in my reactions and when I’ve allowed habitual patterns of thought and emotion to take command, I’ve attracted circumstances and events that no self-respecting human being would wish to be accused of creating. At such moments, it’s far more comforting to imagine that somewhere a wheel of fortune slowly turns, rarely, if ever, stopping at my number.

Lady Luck

Envisioning this wheel of fortune, I realized that luck and fortune have historically been given female characteristics. The medieval philosopher railing against the heartlessness of Dame Fortune and the gambler singing, “Luck, be a lady tonight” agree that life seems fickle, changeable, inconsistent, and indifferent to the plans of the orderly mind or the well-organized life. These prejudices have also traditionally been held about women.

When positively viewed, this quality of bypassing the rules and regulations of logic and reason is called intuition, the knowing of things without conscious reasoning. Intuition is powerful because it’s connected to our deepest sense of knowing, to the eternal part of ourselves that doesn’t sense the limitations we’ve told ourselves we have. It doesn’t hear the habitual voices that tell us why we can’t. Intuition tells us why and how we can.

When we follow our intuition, our confidence generates positive energy that attracts our dreams to us. Intuition generates the kind of decision-making that can’t be explained in retrospect, and people who consistently follow their intuition often seem lucky.

They’re not, though; they’re just in their right minds (or brains).

Intuitive Crystals

With that in mind, I recommend some crystals that, while not necessarily lucky, help to develop balance between both sides of the brain, so that intuition has a chance to come out and play.

Sodalite

Right-left brain imbalances get aggravated when mental and emotional confusion short-circuit the natural connections between the two brains. This is where sodalite becomes helpful.

This stone is especially valuable for those who find themselves in states of mental confusion, especially when these states are intensified by emotional turmoil. Very often, when our emotions are whirling about in our heads we are tempted to seize at any decision which seems to promise that it will reduce our distress. Sodalite helps us to resist such temptation.

Tabular and Double-terminated Crystals

A tabular crystal is flat in appearance, with two opposing sides being much wider than the other four. (They are sometimes also double terminated). Their ability is that of connection and balance.

In a crystal layout they can be used to blend energies between two chakras. For example, if you feel something deeply but can’t seem to express it you might place a tabular crystal between the heart and throat chakras.

When you are leaving one stage of your life and apprehensive about taking the steps that will lead you to a new phase tabular crystals can act as bridges. Keep one with you, meditate with it, and program it for a smooth transition.

A double-terminated crystal has a point at each end. They can be used as tools for balancing energy in the way that tabulars are, and they have some additional meanings and functions. Their points are generally believed to symbolize the balance of spirit and matter, to teach us that we can be balanced in our expression of both qualities, and that all opposites or seeming conflicts can meet in the center.

Postscript: You might still want to know what the lucky crystal is. According to many sources, it’s aventurine, whose name comes from the Italian a ventura, meaning “by chance.”

Does it work? One of my employees bought an aventurine at my store and programmed it for winning an apartment a radio show was giving away. She meditated every night with the stone. She worked on visualizing the apartment as hers until she could do so without any interference from limiting beliefs. She carried the crystal with her every day.

She won. Was it because she had the stone or because of the focused thought and emotion she brought to her project?

You decide.