But there are levels of knowing, and most people have only a casual understanding of the nature of observation/experience. Feel deeply into the notion that what vibrates powerfully in your essence will INEVITABLY emerge into the world of matter and action.

Manifestation is not a personal development tool. It’s part of the cosmic function, i.e. an expression of the way things are.

We are certainly not slaves to every thought as some writers suggest. There is no need to fear the bizarre, negative patterns and images that race through our minds because we can simply choose to reject or empower thoughts at our own discretion.

Understanding the manifestation process is not about micro-managing the brain’s verbal thought mapping. In fact a deep grasp of attraction and manifestation reveals our ego mind has little to do with the creative process.

The title of this post is worth contemplating at length. You might even affirm this statement throughout the day until it “clicks”.

First BE. Then you may do freely.

The millionaire entrepreneur became wealthy well before the currency arrived in her bank account.

The young man who lost 25 pounds and became a rock-solid specimen of muscle tone and power arrived at the point of being trim and fit well before his body shifted to reflect this state.

This is about more than thinking in a positive fashion. While affirmative thoughts appear at the onset of the transformation process to BE implies a state of absolute “is-ness”.

Before you lift your hand to scratch an itch on the end of your nose, your brain transmits the command to do so. All the information is present within the tiny electric flashes that roll across the surface of your brain and there is no doubt as to whether the action will occur.

When you were conceived in the womb, a tiny spec of matter contained every bit of data regarding your eye color, how tall you would grow (barring any setbacks), how effectively your pancreas would process glucose, your pain threshold, whether you would prefer chocolate or vanilla, and thousands of other details. Long before you were born the focused intent of the sperm and egg called you into being.

Everything begins in the unseen and then flows into the seen or known.

So before you can hold, express, or enjoy the object of your desire you must be or allow to be.

I’m talking about the truth of creation here. Or at least I’m trying to capture with words the essence of the creative process.

If your desire is a jelly donut then you must absolutely have the experience of holding a jelly donut in your hand, complete to the last detail of the sticky glaze on your fingertips, the red glob of filling that lands on your shirt, and the smell of raspberry seeping through the flaky crust of the pastry. Indeed all this happens in your mind well before you arrive at the bakery.

Think about how to BE and allow to BE what you want. Master this and you’ll shift into a life experience of creative bliss.

How did life begin in the first place?

Do we have disembodied souls?

Is reincarnation real?

These are fascinating questions with no cut-and-dry answers. The organized faiths of the world have, in a sense, prospered due to the continual asking of these questions.

Every human being who bothers to think at some point arrives at these basic questions. And religion promises answers, or at least comfort.

While I think how life began and what happens after the body expires are topics for great philosophical conversation, I do not believe such things are as important as what we do in the present moment and how we define our life journey.

Do the specifics of how the universe started really help us find out who we are in this life and how we might best serve others? Does the exact nature of what happens to our consciousness after it leaves our bodies honestly take precedence over how we can make the world a better place right now?

I think not.

And I believe this is yet another example of the great failing of organized dogma. Religious teachings preoccupy people with what might happen to them in the next life should they fail to adhere to proper ceremony. Likewise many creeds demand absolute agreement with the official version of how things began on earth, to the extent that such areas of the theology are elevated to priority status.

Scientific studies have provided some interesting evidence about the nature of universal beginnings, and about the fact that our physical reality is still expanding from a point of possible origin. In the same way various studies and personal accounts have revealed some interesting possibilities about what happens when someone dies.

I certainly have many of my own thoughts on these matters. But again: It seems grossly unintuitive to obsess on such details at the expense of the present moment and all the good that is here and now.

Asking and discussing are part of the spiritual journey. Insisting on absolutes, becoming preoccupied with such matters of past or future, and transferring one’s self-esteem into a specific view of these matters are - I believe - products of the hypnotized mind and not inspired being.

Who doesn’t wonder about life after death? And who isn’t at times mesmerized by how the universe began?

Even more to the point, who among us has not sat baffled by the question:

How could existence have a beginning, for what would have been prior to a time when the Universe was?

These are profound concepts, at least at this time in human understanding. But speculatively addressing them does little in terms of nurturing true spiritual growth.

The meaning of life is HERE AND NOW, as is the opportunity to share love with self and others and to fully be immersed in the experience of living. Perhaps someday, or in some dimension adjacent to this present, all answers will be/are known; in the absence of such a knowing the greatest wisdom invites us to simply be in the mystery and love the unfolding of each new moment.

The physical world we see and touch is the result of our vibratory state. In other words what happens around us is a reflection of our inner state. Of course there really is no in here/out there distinction in the one reality, but these terms help us understand and conceptualize.

Clear yourself and accept this message as if for the first time and you will know change:

How many times have you seen or heard the phrase “wealth is a state of mind”? And how many times have you simply shrugged this off, or “sort of” believed it to be true?

The fact is, the reality you are living in this moment is the result of thoughts, actions, and feelings from previous moments. Therefore, the reality you’ll experience in the days ahead is the manifestation of what you are thinking, how you are feeling, and the actions you are taking (or not taking) here in this present moment.

Furthermore, wealth is really not a measure of monetary holding. Nor is your net worth figure.

Both of these things are a part of wealth, but neither is the core element. Wealth is about feeling happy, comfortable, abundant, secure, optimistic, excited, and grateful for the current state of your life .

Money is a wonderful spiritual energy but it becomes a negative force when it’s the center of much worry and anxiety. If you earn $40,000 per year and you’re wonderfully grateful for your work, your home, and all the joys your income brings then you are very wealthy indeed!

But if you are fretting the economy, constantly checking your accounts and worrying about how to get more than what you now have, you are pushing wealth away from you. And we’ve all met people with very large bank accounts who behave like this - hence my point that wealth is about more than just dollar amounts.

Being wealthy just means you feel abundant in the moment and you are aware of the fact that you deserve to prosper. From this center your actions will reflect a sincere desire to create and allow even more to come into your life.

In the same way we all have plenty of air to breathe whenever we like, we also have access to all the wealth we need to live in the abundance we desire.

I had a very difficult time grasping this concept. I paid lip service to it for months, but never really felt into it.

Then one day something shifted inside me. It all seemed so incredibly clear. I realized that by always wanting more from a feeling of not yet having enough I was creating a constant process of lack and poverty.

Only when I began to express true moment to moment gratitude and live each day from the place of really having and enjoying the many blessings in my life did I understand the truth about wealth .

In particular, look at the underlined statement above about really having . If you hold $1,000 in your savings account but constantly bemoan the fact that you don’t have $5,000, it’s as if you don’t have the first thousand at all… because you don’t really appreciate it!

In the above scenario, change perspective and rejoice in the fact that you have $1,000 above and beyond the money you circulate for each month’s necessities! This is the nature of wealthy thinking - it’s all about starting each day, in fact launching each thought from a positive attitude.

Some readers will have a moment of clarity as they absorb this post. Others will get a vague feel for what I’m saying, but won’t fully comprehend the magnitude. Still others will roll their eyes and say “whatever”.

This amazing truth reveals itself fully when the individual is ready to understand.

To this end I wish you much prosperity and quick understanding. Also I urge you to continue to seek an understanding of the concepts of intention, inspiration, and manifestation/attraction as these principles will help you be as wealthy as you like.

I invite you to download my complete mini-course on how to manifest your desires consistently and effortlessly. This content has helped many readers merge with the ideals of manifestation and attraction and it can help you as well.

There is nothing wrong with such unknowing. In fact it’s ideal.

Treating spiritual growth like some sort of personal development hobby is fine, but for the true seeker there are enjoyable projects in the realm of personal improvement and there is the ultimate process of walking one’s spiritual truth. The latter is of a more profound nature than the former, and hence not bound by such concepts as timelines, goal setting, and clearly defined direction.

I humbly submit that teachers who insist you hold specific timelines and objective lists for your spiritual growth are missing the point.

Goals and dates are great for things like making money, losing weight, moving into a new home, filling all the seats in your networking group, or even learning the basics of a new skill. And it can be rightly said that all of these things are spiritual pursuits.

For isn’t everything spiritual in nature to the person who has one foot on the ground and the other in the dimension of spiritual awareness?

Certainly yes. Physical, intellectual, emotional, and energetic experiences and concepts are all manifestations of the universe and are therefore spiritual to the person who walks the spirit path.

But the innermost dimension of spirituality lies beneath, behind, or beyond such things, depending on the terminology you prefer. In other words when we think specifically about our conscious development and our process of spiritual awakening, we can say this phenomenon is deeper than any other pursuit or involvement that’s part of our life experience.

That said, my point with this article is that it’s best - in my humble opinion - to release the notion of timely progress and specific milestones with regard to our spiritual expansion.

First of all there is no real arrival. We are always in motion, eternally on our journey. And the joy of shifting into various stages of observation should never be hampered by some sort of spiritual yardstick or bar graph.

We will evolve into new spaces of being at or own pace. When our emotional growth is sufficient to allow for greater wealth, increased understanding, more patience, and so forth we will step into these phases of living.

Does a small kitten work hard and strain into the flow of life so that it may more quickly become an adult feline? Do the flowers of spring rush into full bloom, anxiously counting the days until they can drop the old, withered petals and push new floral growth out into the world?

Of course not. The idea is absurd.

And it is no less absurd that we should say…

I’ll be a more patient, understanding, intuitive person by the end of the month.

Or…

This time next year I’ll be able to forgive more quickly when I become angry with myself or another.

Such ideas are silly of course. We’ll grow at the pace most appropriate to our individuality.

Time is probably just a construct of our imaginations. The idea that things have happened before, are occurring now, and will take place in the future is how we arrange the conscious experience of the Universe.

We must have chosen this system for a reason, perhaps to savor the various experiences as individual sensations. If this is so then we rob ourselves of an essential bliss each time we declare the time and date of our next spiritual shift.

You are perfect exactly as you are right now. Indeed you are every possible experience, in every possible place at every imaginable time; you are all that has been, is, and will be.

What more could you possibly ask for? So relax and enjoy the ride; celebrate things along the way but in matters of awakening (or whatever term you choose to define spiritual expansion) try to be more of a witness to the miracle than an impatient driver.

Synchronicity is an important spiritual concept that refers to synchronized events, or things that align for a purpose. But what we sometimes forget is that synchronicity need not always be a grand event or earth shaking revelation.

If we are an expression of the cosmos becoming conscious of itself it follows reason that every moment of our life experience is relevant.

We have eyes so the Universe can see itself.

We have ears so the Universe can hear itself.

We have emotions so the Universe can participate in it’s myriad processes in new and colorful ways.

Nothing is trivial.

If you really want to live on purpose meet each day with the belief that everything has a meaning. Trust that life will give you what you need or communicate the appropriate messages in a timely manner.

Don’t become obsessed with interpretations, because your mind, like all minds in the present stage of human evolution, may not be able to comprehend or pay attention to every single message. Just be open to synchronicity  within what most people would consider “the mundane”.

In truth there is no mundane. Everything is profound.

Whatever you find yourself noticing holds relevance for you. This could be a magazine headline you see in the checkout line, a bit of conversation you overhear at lunch, or a bright blooming shrub you notice for the first time as you enter a familiar building. Things that seem quite ordinary and insignificant in the moment can later reveal themselves as exciting clues or new miracles.

Wherever your attention leads you, intend to understand whatever is appropriate for your journey. And then relax and trust guidance and answers to follow; these may come quickly or you may have a brilliant “AHA!” weeks later.

I know this happens all the time for you. But its such an abstract, experiential subject it’s difficult to articulate in verbal fashion.

Call to mind the times when…

You overheard a bit of apparent trivia that helped you solve a real problem weeks later.

You saw a company or organization name for the first time and were somehow stricken by it. Some time thereafter, having forgotten all about the company, your financial adviser urged you to buy stock in the corporation and the venture ended up being quite lucrative.

You noticed a distinct title while browsing the bookstore. A few months down the road someone gave you a copy of the same book and it changed the way you look at life in a major way.

These are vague examples but I’m sure you’re coming up with your own list of synchronicities at this point. The message I’m trying to deliver is that such coincidences are not merely sprinkled among the nondescript events of a given day.

These small moments of clarity and meaning are everywhere and everything. Anything we notice is a trail that can be followed; every sight that catches our eye and every sound we hear can be the start of a new adventure or the answer to a long-held question.

When we approach each new moment as a fresh start and embrace the infinite potential of life the ideas of “mundane” and “ordinary” fall away. I challenge all readers, over the course of the next week, be extra alert and take note of the many (MANY!) synchronistic novelties that unfold.

Be on the lookout not for the obvious miracles that even a skeptic would pause to consider, but for the seemingly small events that we find ourselves noticing. Anytime you come out of the fog of your constant mental chatter to see, hear, or feel something with sudden clarity I urge you to open your mind to the connection at hand.

Happiness and abundance are the birthrights of all. Only through corruption and manipulation have some parts of the world been cast into poverty and lack. When we choose to accept the truth of our connection to the source of all things we understand that we are already part of everything we could possibly desire.

There is no separation. What you want, you already are.

To ask, you simply feel and know the depth of your desire or intention. Many times such a desire will emerge spontaneously; this is called inspiration (in the spirit). Whether or not you open your mouth to form a verbal request is irrelevant.

Asking is desiring with faith that you’ll receive. In truth asking and receiving are one; these notions are connected like all else in existence and we use the different words to describe different perspectives of the same essence.

So we ask or desire. And then we gladly receive what is given.

Once we feel what we want the following thoughts should be a celebration of gratitude. For we know in our hearts our desires are already ours, and we only need to take possession of them.

We hold the power to ask, and then to receive. What happens in the tiny space between is not the concern of our intellectual minds.

In other words, how we are to receive that for which we ask is not for us to decide at the level of ego. This is the end point I had in mind when I started this post.

Too often we befuddle the process of receiving by trying to work out the details of how in our mind. And when we can’t see a clear path we begin to doubt. But our ego minds are small indeed when compared to the infinite part of us that created our bodies and the worlds we inhabit.

Let go of how and let the conscious cosmos do its work. Your job is only to ask and then to receive.

I propose that all things in our physical plane of vibration, while perhaps moving more slowly and appearing more dense, are just as much a part of the light as our thoughts and the energy that animates our consciousness. Let us remember that our interior reflects the exterior and vice versa.

Our thoughts reflect our bodies and our bodies reflect our internal workings.

How we feel about self manifests in the way our body looks and feels. How we feel about the world around us is made evident by how we treat the planet and natural things.

The first virtue of Lao Tsu is Reverence for all of life. Many of us even believe this extends to inanimate objects, since all the cosmos is living and intelligent in some way.

Traditional religions teach us to be ashamed of bodily urges and functions. And for this reason many spiritual people don’t comprehend the magnificent nature of the physical reflection.

Much of religion is about control and diminishing the light in those who follow. This is definitely the case with any teachings that promote shame of body and disregard for the physical, from killing non-believers to callous treatment of animals (as in sacrifice).

I believe true spirit is a connectedness and loving of all things, both hard and soft. Without our bodies we could not enjoy our five senses, and without the wonders of this physical plane we would miss out on such things as the smell of rain, the brilliance of a sunset, and the the fabulous pain that comes from a good workout.

Our bodies are spiritual gifts, and in some ways they represent all of the physical plane. At the very least they symbolize our connection to this world of matter, or slowly moving energetic waves.

To denounce the physical and relegate it as less than spiritually magnificent is to miss out on a great part of the journey. We should be grateful for our bodies, our senses, and this 3-dimensional world we get to play in.

At the same time of course we need always remain unattached to some degree, i.e. we should remain in this world but never fully of it. Even so, our respect for our bodies and the earth allow new levels of personal growth and bliss.

The question arises: If indeed this world is an illusion just how real can our experience of the physical be?

And the answer is, as real as we allow.

It is possible to eat whatever one wants and not gain weight or have health problems. But this requires a strong measure of belief/intent. Personally I have deeply ingrained mental programs that make it difficult to escape a reality where I must exercise some care with my diet and exercise often to avoid becoming overweight.

I know full well this is simply the playing out of my beliefs into the physical realm. Even so, I watch the experience unfold in accordance with these beliefs. So for me especially reverence for the body is important.

I also know that when I have grown emotionally and spiritually to the appropriate point I’ll be able to eat anything I choose and always maintain my preferred body fat and muscle tone. In another dimension of the multiverse I am already doing exactly this.

While we’re on the subject of reverence for the body, how does vegetarianism factor into all this? Again I believe choice of the individual is key.

I’ve eaten meat all my life until recently. It suddenly occurs to me, as someone who deeply loves and works actively to care for animals of all kinds, perhaps eating the flesh of another creature is wrong for me.

I am weaning myself from the meat. Again because of my beliefs I sometimes have cravings, experience weakness, or just revert to mental programs.

It has been said that even if I stop eating animals they won’t stop eating one-another. A valid point, still I go where my heart leads.

I’ve rambled a bit with all this. It’s 7:30 in the morning and I haven’t slept yet because I’m monitoring a situation with some wild kittens on my property; still I hope I made a few useful points that will serve the reader.

I’ll add a part two and create a more coherent set of points. Thanks for reading as always and be sure to grab your free Meditation Guide using the form in the right margin if you haven’t already done so.

Harv Eker: Secrets of the Millionaire Mind

Those who aren’t involved in self-development might look at this title and shrug the book off as just another get-rich-quick fairy tale. However, Hark Eker’s Secrets of the Millionaire Mind is not only based on the author’s actual experiences, it delivers an exceedingly realistic formula for personal wealth creation.

The premise of the book is to explore the thinking habits of wealthy and successful people, and to compare this with the mindset and thinking of the poor. Eker risks offending the ultra sensitive and those who wish to play the victim through his merciless examination of how certain mental habits are keeping millions of people poor.

Secrets of the Millionaire Mind raises important questions about how people really think and feel about money and success. The book, using a series of “wealth files” uncovers numerous self-defeating thought processes, many of which are commonplace and probably considered harmless by the masses.

The wealth file concept is simple: Eker suggests that in order to think like the rich you must store the right thoughts, i.e. files, in your mind. In each of the wealth files illustrated in the book Eker contrasts the common “poor” way of thinking or feeling about a particular situation against the more correct, or “rich” way of looking at things.

Secrets of the Millionaire Mind is packed with powerful insights to help you eliminate negative thinking about money and wealth and optimize your thoughts for massive success. The underlying premise is that wealth is about much more than just money.

Harv Eker addresses the issue of proper focus and the spiritual side of money in a way that even skeptics can agree with. In fact even if you aren’t, for some reason, interested in being wealthy this book is a great tool for self-improvement.

And in addition to focusing on the mental game, or the inner game as the book’s subtitle illustrates, Eker delivers a number of practical, hands-on tips that can be readily applied by the reader. Thus the book is far more than just a mindset lesson and actually gets into the nuts and bolts of money management and wealth building.

He advocates action and laughs out loud at books and teachers who suggest we can simply visualize our way to success. However, as Eker points out, the way we think and feel is by far the most important element within our success strategy.

For those who are still put off by the title I can point out that Harv Eker is a multi-millionaire many times over. And as his book does relay many of his personal, mental strategies for success Secrets of the Millionaire Mind does appear to be a relevant name for the work.

Overall the book is a superb read. It’s a must for entrepreneurs and certainly very helpful for employees who have concerns regarding their future prosperity.

This title is available in hardcover, paperback, and audio. The audio book is particularly enjoyable as it is read by the author, who is a very animated speaker.

Click here to check this book out for yourself.

Also I urge you to visit and bookmark my personal list of recommended books. It’s a fact that reading something productive for just 15 minutes each day will change you for the better in many profound ways.

You are not your thoughts and you need not identify with everything that passes through your awakened mind.

When you think about your hand, your heart, and so forth do you ever ask: Who is this me in “my”, the being to whom this body belongs?

It’s not the mind, for you also say “my mind”.

The body and mind are experiences. You have the experience of mind but you are not the mind.

Thoughts flow constantly through your mind, like the waters of a stream. Some of these thoughts you intentionally generate but many simply arise.

It’s important to understand that your mind may simply be the device with which you recognize the flow of consciousness. There is no need to identify with every thought you have.

Once you understand this simple fact your entire life will begin to change.

People suffer tremendously because of the thoughts that flow through their mind. They feel guilt, anger, or worry because of free flowing thoughts that seem to emerge from nowhere.

This is unnecessary. Many of your thoughts may be memories or the reflection of things you’ve seen or heard, and you may not even be aware of the recollection generating the thought.

Everything your mind tells you is not the truth. You decide which thoughts have meaning and value, and you are absolutely free to reject any thoughts you don’t want.

Your thoughts only matter if you choose to accept them and empower them. This may be the single most important thing to understand on the journey of self-awareness.

When you have a negative thought, one that does not serve you, simply let it go and watch it drift away. When you have a positive thought, one that further evolves you, embrace it and charge it with your intent.

Practice stepping back from the mind and just allowing your thoughts to flow as they will without intervention from you. Don’t become attached to the images that pass through your mind, and don’t assume your thinking is a reflection of who you are because this is not always the case.

Meditation is a great way to develop this ability. You can get your FREE guide to basic meditation by filling out the short form to the right of this article.

Also the daily practice of mindfulness will help you learn to watch your thoughts without attachment. After a short time of doing this you’ll find a peace that surpasses description, and you’ll enjoy an unshakable confidence.

Self awareness is one of the core purposes of any life journey, I believe. And a starting point is understanding that you need not be a prisoner of your thinking; allow your mind to flow freely and choose to believe and empower only those thoughts that serve your ideals.

This article is not about denial of truth. Some painful thoughts are necessary, and you know intuitively when this is the case.

But there is no need to suffer over random negative thoughts or thought patterns that do not correspond with your preferred mindset.

But our busy world has become addicted to stress and chaos. And the most basic things like caring for the earth and loving one-another remain undone by most.

Thankfully an awakening is underway. Certainly most readers of this blog are part of this event.

There’s nothing wrong with goals, planning, and so forth. But the world’s current paradigm has gotten carried away by the idea of ego control - a brief look around will speak volumes of how well this is working out for us.

Talk of letting go or doing nothing so that all things are done is lost on the masses. It sounds like the promotion of lazy daydreaming; indeed many people who claim to be spiritual travelers choose to interpret it this way also.

For instance in the wake of the film sensation The Secret millions of people began posting on message boards and blogs about how they had “tried the LOA and it hadn’t worked for them”. When these folks were engaged in conversation on the matter, without fail it turned out they had been sitting on the couch imagining their dream life and were later enraged that all the pieces failed to come together for them.

Spiritual terms like letting go, doing nothing, allowing, etc. have NOTHING to do with sitting on our butts and wishing for something other than what we have.

On the contrary our first step is to accept thankfully all that is in our world. Further we must accept responsibility for our part in creating this truth.

Then, when we let go of our egos and allow our minds and bodies to join naturally we are in the state of non-action. We are inspired by our source and compelled into right action; but this action is not work because it flows from the heart.

Hence we do not work, yet nothing that matters is left undone.

And once we have done our part, i.e. set our intention/answered the call of inspiration and then moved our feet on the matter, we let go. We trust that our part is done and that source will take over from here; we get on with our lives and refrain from looking over our shoulders or constantly checking up on the progress we set into motion.

Our work is done then forgotten, therefore it lasts forever.
Tao Te Ching 2:13-14 (paraphrased )

At this time in my life the above may well be the most important verse from the Tao Te Ching. While reading an article about the process of letting go and trusting during the deliberate creation process my mind wandered to these words from Lao Tsu, and their meaning fell on me like a great boulder; I had never fully grasped the passage before.

But in a moment it became so crystal clear to me. Fretting and constantly checking my progress is CLEARLY doubting and disbelieving; even using energy channeling, dowsing, visualization, and positive methodology to excess is the failure to trust and allow.

And because the universe is alive the fabric of space-time responds to our trust or distrust. I personally don’t believe in anthropomorphizing the cosmos into god-beings with names and personalities (but perhaps such entities have some place in the continuum) so when I speak of a living, intelligent universe I mean simply that the source is responsive to a standard range of stimuli.

If we fail to trust our mates, the relationship suffers because they know and are hurt by our lack of faith. If we doubt a service provider can meet our needs tension may arise.

By the same token if we worry and wish to control, in other words if we doubt life will finish our work, the subatomic energy field ripples and responds to us in the same negative way as a person who is hurt by our mistrusting. I have no way of proving this statement, it merely represents my intuition on the matter.

However we choose to define or explain this concept, what remains is the fact that only when we let go and trust do we enjoy the full extent of our potential. This is what Lao Tsu meant when he said work is done then forgotten, therefore it lasts forever.

I hope this writing strikes a chord. I feel the message is very important and I’ve tried to do a good job in expressing it as it came to me.

And now I must let go and trust the universe will connect my intent to the minds and hearts of my readers.