OMTimes Magazine April B 2019 Edition by OMTimes Media

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HEART WIDE OPEN

November A Issue

CONTENTS â&#x20AC;¢ OMTIMES

Table of Contents

Tina Malia Exhilarating Interview With Tina Malia By Kara Johnstad

94 122

The Health Benefits of Citrus Caviar By Dr. Paul Haider

Have You Had a Hugging Dream?

Creating a New Way of Being

The Power of Detachment

By John Holland

By Judi Lynch

By Andrew Pacholyk MS L. Ac

April B EDITION

Badass to Buddha: When Contemplation leads to Rehabilitation

The Healing Power of Storytelling

Why a Narcissist Can Never Be Happy

The Most Important Thing that You Forgot

Table of Contents

02 82

106

116

122

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Table of Contents 94 98 102 106 116 122 128

Karma, Dharma, Destiny and Free Will, Oh My! Is it Possible to Transmute Bad Karma? Living Intuitively: The Key to Intuition

Sister Jaguar's Journey Embracing Evolutionary Education Grief and the Forgotten Art of Saying Goodbye

The Year of Living Deeply

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H EAR T Wide Open

Interview with Tina Malia By Kara Johnstad

Tina Malia is a visionary musical artist. Her sonic creations span sacred chant, world, dream pop, and folk music genres. A prolific singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, and sound engineer, Malia expresses her radiant inner landscape through song. Omtimes.com

Tina’s mother, a renowned concert pianist and opera singer from South Korea, was the driving force in Tina’s classical musical education. It was her father, however, who bought her a guitar when she turned 15 and encouraged her to follow her musical passions. Tina Malia all-encompassing musical and spiritual perspective has led her to the studio and live performance with a vast array of iconic artists including Kenny Loggins, India. Arie, Bonnie Raitt, Bassnectar, Deva Premal and Miten, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul & Mary) Peter Kater and Joanne Shenandoah I am delighted to have with me in the studio the prolific singer-songwriter Tina Malia. A visionary musical artist, Tina expresses her radiant inner landscape through song, and her sonic creations span sacred chant, world, dream pop, and folk music genres. Tina is a beloved pioneer in a growing community of people around the world dedicated to residing in harmony with the Earth and expressing it through art, health, education, and music. So

welcome, Tina, and thank you so much for taking time to deepen the conversation on voice and vibrational healing.

Kara Johnstad: Would you like to share with us something from your childhood, a memory, which role did music play while you were a kid growing up? Was it a natural thing to be in the field of music? Tina Malia: Music was my whole world as a child. My mother was a concert pianist, so I lived and breathed music from the time I was in the womb, considerably. My mom would practice the piano seven hours a day. I love telling this story because it’s my first memory on planet earth; I liked to be in my car seat which of course would make me a perfect candidate for traveling musicians my whole life. She would put me in my car seat underneath the grand piano, that is how I got babysat, and she would practice for hours and hours. I would hear all these songs, and I still remember them in detail, note by note, these concertos that she would practice. So, Music has always been my Omtimes.com

life, and then my mom started teaching me when I was pretty much old enough to talk and old enough to request it, and it was my first language. I learned how to read music; I was learning how to read and write and everything else.

Kara Johnstad: But when you’re performing you perform a lot on the guitar; so, you’re fluent then also in piano, and I’m sure you play. Tina Malia: Piano was the first instrument, I learned classically which, if there are any classical musicians out there, it’s quite a jump. Not for everyone, but it mentally is a jump to go from classical music on an instrument to writing free flow on that same instrument. I can hear the voice of my mother standing over me. However, guitar, I just always found it a lot easier to just let this other exploratory part of me come out. So, it’s easier to carry a guitar than a piano around.

Kara Johnstad: No, I love that because my mother was also a classical pianist prodigy, and so it was my grandmother. That’s very beautiful, this feeling of Omtimes.com

finding a fresh, maybe a fresh instrument to express that very deep, beautiful poetry that you have within. What was the turning point in your life when you realized that you want to dedicate your life into being a musician and being a songwriter? Tina Malia: Well I kind of always knew I would make music, I remember being 11 and declaring to myself that I wanted to be a singer, and I just was clear about that. I always must include my mother in this conversation because she was just part and parcel of all my musical training and everything that led up to that. She wanted me to be a classical pianist, so I was very much being trained to do that, but I loved to sing. My mother, who’s passed now, she was from South Korea. So, all the stories you hear are true about Korean parents and how they are with their kids and how they make you practice hours and hours and hours per day, and it’s very serious. So that was that side, and I would like to add I was very grateful

for that discipline and to have that level of training. My father who is American was much more laid back, much more kind of a hippie attitude so he was the one I went to for a guitar and he helped me, encouraged me to sing and be a singer, the school play and all my choral parts and everything like that. So, I started to develop this love for singing and there’s just something about it, to have your instrument inside of you, there’s no other feeling like that on Earth. It’s the euphoric thing besides mantra meditation that I can do.

Kara Johnstad: You’re going into your seventh album, so I know the other six albums, and one of my very favorites is your Silent Awakening album. I found it very enchanting and poetic, and this is my curiosity as another, as a fellow singersongwriter, that album was full of much poetry and much original material that was coming directly from the heart. In the last couple of albums you’ve made space to honor the Sanskrit or the mantras, I guess your other albums also had chants in other languages,

I was just wondering as such a talented poet what your reasoning was behind that, or if you find yourself being drawn back to expressing your truth in your own words? I guess I so much enjoyed that album and I love all, but I also loved what you wrote directly from your heart. Are you planning to do that on your seventh album? Tina Malia: I am; this next album will be another album in English. I know I live kind of in these dual worlds so to speak, I mean music, the creation of music, the language of music, the music itself is what moves me and so the words and the language, in a way, they all touch me similarly, you know. The Sanskrit and not only the Sanskrit, the Gurmukhi, Hebrew, Spanish, all these different languages they all have their different flavors, and they touch me very deeply in different ways. I have found the mantra chanting to be an incredibly effective tool, and I know many people are very deeply in that world and use music in that way. So, I love to offer that space, and then I Omtimes.com

also know I have this whole other litany of fans that don’t connect at all with the mantra. I have people that just straight out say that to me, “When are you going to stop with this mantra thing?” You know like, well, never. I also have a deep love for poetry. I remember Sarah McLachlan saying that once in an interview, and it shocked me, she said writing lyrics for her was like trying to scoop water out of a stone. I couldn’t believe that she said that because I always considered her poetry to be so prolific and you just assumed that it was very easy for her, but similarly, for me, that is a process that is-those songs.

Kara Johnstad: We continue to meditate, we continue to chant, we continue to sing, we continue to work for the planet, and yet sometimes it’s just dedication. On Your later albums, you are singing beautiful mantras and beautiful chants, and they’re there to heal us and guide us back to wholeness, have you found personal healing through your life and of recording mantras, living mantras, singing Omtimes.com

mantras? Your chanting practice is also a personal healing journey. Tina Malia: Absolutely, I started chanting mantra with a man whom you may know, and you probably do, his name is Jai Uttal, and he was one of the first Westerners that went to India along with the Krishna Das and Ram Dass, and he met a man named Neem Karoli Baba. Jai Uttal is a huge influence on bringing this practice over to us Westerners. I sang in his band when I was 18. To make a very long story short, I was singing in his band, learning these mantras and they were very beautiful, but I was going through a very deep personal crisis, truly going through the night of my soul, and felt very lost here on Earth, so depressed. Depressed really isn’t even the word for it, I like to say my cells felt like they were on fire, like every cell felt like it was burning and in so much suffering, and to the point where I was starting to plan how to end my life, because I just couldn’t take it anymore, I was 24, by the way. Finally, Jai, my friend, came to me and you know he saw me in

this state of despair for quite a while, and he asked me, he said, “Hey Tina, have you ever tried doing japa mantra?” I said, “No, I don’t know what that is,” and he said, “It’s really easy,” and he had a mala, I’m sure all of you have seen, you know these necklaces, these malas, and they’re a tool. They’re beautiful. They’re tools; he said: “It’s really easy, you put it in between your hands and every time you pass a bead you chant this mantra.” I chant the mantra ram, that was what was given to me by my teacher,” and it’s just love, it just means god and love, and you’re just calling out to the divine, and he said, “You should maybe try it, it might help you.” I started this practice with nothing else to lose and nothing else to do because all of my books, everything I had done in the past, even singing, music, nothing was working for me anymore and I was just in this constant state of despair. I started doing this mantra repetition and after, you know, many hours that day and then the next day and then weeks and then months, and it was through this practice that I was completely healed, completely

lifted out of this deep state of despair. So, I say that mantra saved my life and it’s true, it is something that saved my life. It didn’t just pull me out of this despair; it filled me with the feeling that I was so desperately looking for all over planet Earth. All of the spiritual teachings that all of us read, from every teacher, from all over the world, what do they always say? It’s found within, well what if you don’t know how to find it within? What if you don’t know what that tool is? That’s what mantra is; it’s a tool. It’s like giving you a shovel so that you can go internally, and you can dig beautiful sacred tool.

Kara Johnstad: So Tina your story deeply touched me that I had to think of the word sound mind, sound body, making a sound decision, how sound literally can start to get every single cell in our heart and our mind, vibrating in harmony. I thought it was very precious how you spoke about being in a night of the soul and having not only singing, but the practice of japa mantra helped to heal Omtimes.com

you, make you whole. Anahata is the title of your newest album, and it’s also the fourth chakra of the seven main chakras. Located directly in the heart, a Sanskrit word, I found it interesting that Anahata also means unstruck, unbeaten, unhurt. Why did you choose to name the album Anahata? What does it mean to you? Tina Malia: I think you just said it even better than I would’ve said it. It’s exactly that; it’s that sense of purity of the heart, just that. The sense of purity, and like you said, unstruck before it’s touched and tarnished, how we are in our true nature.

Kara Johnstad: I like from the Anahata album, music called Moola Mantra, would you like to share a few words before we go into that title? Tina Malia: This is really, this is a beautiful mantra. It’s a real calming and bringing a sense of peace, and as all of these mantras, the point of all of them as you will start to study Omtimes.com

a bit about them, all of them is different angles, allows you to come to the end of suffering.

Kara Johnstad: Tina is here with us in studio today, so Tina, you›re speaking a lot, or you’re sharing with us very much exactly what I wanted to ask you actually, you know the world can be harsh at times, we have some challenges that we need to face as part of just being on the Earth, being human and it’s very natural for us to close down in order to survive. I was just curious, do you have a daily ritual, a daily ritual of course of mantra, that helps you stay with an open heart and that beautiful presence that you have. Tina Malia: You know, as I mentioned at the beginning of this, of this interview, so Jai Uttal is the person who gave me this mantra and my daily practice and his teacher was Neem Karoli Baba, so this was Neem Karoli Baba’s, pretty much his only teaching. You know, he would say chant ram. He didn’t have books, he didn’t have discourses, and he would say that all of your questions will be answered there.

Like I said, having had this practice now for many years, I can say that that is very true for me as well that it stops all the questions and it stops all of the searchings for everything else because they say that mantra is another form of silence.

Kara Johnstad: Tina Malia, it’s just a beautiful journey to be here with you today, and I’d like to have you know this, Francis from Assisi is attributed to saying that to sing is to pray twice, do you feel that singing is a form of prayer? Tina Malia: Absolutely, no I’m completely on board with that. You know, and it’s a choice too, of course, you can sing anything you want to, and if you-- what I have found, and that’s why I’ve dedicated my life this direction is when you choose to use your voice to sing prayers in whatever. The language you choose, to or even if it’s humming if it has that prayerful quality to it. What do we mean by prayerful? Well everything from, a sense of gratitude, a sense of healing, and hope, all of these feelings that when there’s that intention behind it, sometimes the sound itself creates that, you don’t

even have to do it with your mind. The sound itself can be so beautiful that it stops the mind and brings those feelings and qualities to you. There’s that intention, and again, that’s why I love chanting the mantra, and I love doing sacred music and conscious music, it-- like you were talking about earlier, it does create this vibrational field, and we are made of water. It does tune the water in our bodies to those frequencies. I’ll share with you all my secrets, Kara. Anything you want to know.

Kara Johnstad: Yes, yes, yes. Tina Malia: I don›t have a lot, honestly. My first and foremost I›ve already shared, so my second secret, I think the most important thing is diet. I find that my body, my vessel, is very, sensitive to everything I put into it and it took me a long time to figure that out. We are not taught that in the West, how what we eat not only affects our physical health but affects our mental health almost first and foremost, so I’m very careful with that. I’m Omtimes.com

very aware of what I put into my body; I’m vegetarian, I have also found for my reasons that any very heavy foods really create a heavy mindset for me as well. They create heaviness in a body, everything; caffeine, I’m very conscious of what I do so that I keep, I like to stay in a state of wellbeing like you were saying before. So that’s a very important one for me, is health. I love cooking; I love food. I love medicinal foods, so that’s my secret life. A lot of people kind of joke with me that they know me as a cook, because like the world thinks you’re a singer, but you’re a cook. I’m very, very into art, so anything that has to do with art, and I love the Earth, so I do woodworking, I have all these kind of separate art projects, and they are really what keeps me healthy.

Kara Johnstad: So, what is your Sadhana or your practice look like when you’re on tour when you get so busy, what do you make sure that you get done so that you can stay in balance with all your

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things going on? Tina Malia: After so many years of doing japa meditation, I was saying earlier in that story, for the first few weeks, it didn’t have much effect on me. Then after months, and after years, now it’s something that if I get a little frazzled and I feel myself get frazzled, all I have to do is put myself in time out. I close my eyes and touch into that well, or into the welltrodden path of that practice, and within moments I’m right there again. Kind of goes back to what I’m doing, but that is what keeps me together in every part of my life.

Kara Johnstad: Yeah, I think, and many people don’t realize that music really it anchors itself everywhere in our body and our memory so the more you practice, it can be that it takes only 30 seconds or 10 minutes just to tap in, you don’t need that long, long practice, right? Tina, what’s a good internet address that your listeners can go to find more about

your concerts and retreats and buy some music and connect with you? Tina Malia: Just tinamalia.com, T-I-N-A, M-A-L-I-A, .com.

Kara Johnstad: Tina, now think about this: how can we use the power of voice to heal humanity? Tina Malia: I started giving workshops. I never meant to give workshops. I always only meant to be a singer and a performer but through these last few years, people have asked me to start giving workshops on all these things that I talk about because I love them so much. So, one of the things I start people with is, just to put a timer on for 10 minutes. Ten-minute practice per day, and everyone has 10 minutes. If anyone who says he is too busy, put a timer on your phone and pick something easy, pick something you resonate with and whether you’re using your voice internally-because the practice I do is actually silent, but I still hear the word internally so I think it’s still effective as a sound

vibration. So, do it internally, or you can do it externally or, making music whether it’s chanting or some practice like that that intentionally focuses the mind for that timeframe. I find that all solutions to our problems can come within those few moments, because, actually within those moments we realize that many things that we think are problems are not problems. The mind is not always our friend; it likes to tell us all kinds of things that are not true. So, giving yourself that time and that practice, it changes you, it does. It changes how we see things, and it changes how you see yourself. It changes how you see the world. It brings a sense of peace and calms to all situations.

Kara Johnstad: Thank you, Tina, so much for being with me today here at Voice Rising, the wonderful, prolific, openhearted, singersongwriter Tina Malia. Tina Malia: Thank you so much, Kara. Thank you, everyone.

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Health & Wellness Innovative new approaches to Healing as well as holistic methods for dealing with health issues and personal growth

“There is a variety of citrus fruit called “finger limes” that have the texture of caviar and many great health benefits including being

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full of vitamin C and lots of antioxidants, B vitamins for good mood, potassium cardiovascular health, and they help with inflammation and much more.” Where They Grow - Finger Limes grow in Australia and California and are not genetically altered but are natural fruits that grow and contain caviar-like beads that burst with lemon/lime flavor. Flavor - They taste like a cross between a lemon and a lime juice, also, are slightly tart. Finger limes look cucumbers with a dark outer skin when cutting lengthwise in half the inner caviar jewels can be scooped out and enjoyed in so many ways. The seeds pop in your mouth like caviar eggs thus giving the fruit a fascinating texture. Varieties - There are many different types of finger limes, some contain seeds that are red in color, others are black, and still others are green, pink, and even purple. However, they all have that great distinctive

lemon/lime flavor with subtle differences. Cancer - And studies show that eating citrus like kumquats and finger limes can lower our risk of coming down with mouth, stomach, and throat cancer by 50%. Antioxidants - Citrus like finger limes can improve wound healing, help prevent and reduce the severity of colds and flues. Because of the great antioxidants in finger limes, they help prevent cancer and lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and arthritis. Vitamin C - Citrus like finger limes contain most of our daily dietary vitamin C. And B vitamins that are important for energy and for boosting our metabolism, also for keeping away depression. Polyphenols - Citrus like finger limes contain polyphenols like green tea, plus beta-carotene for a healthy immune system, and even great zeaxanthin, and Omtimes.com

lutein which are important for eye health. Skin - The inner seeds of finger limes contain lots of citric acids, malic acid, lactic acid, and glycolic acid which are great for getting rid of wrinkles, lines, and signs of aging. Making a paste of a few of the seeds and spreading it on the skin for a few minutes rejuvenates wrinkled and aging skin. Skin Pigmentation - Finger lime seeds help to heal acne, premature skin aging caused by too much sun, ichthyosis, psoriasis, rosacea, and the ability to help with uneven skin pigmentation. A few studies at the University of California at Davis and other universities have proven the effectiveness of finger limes seeds for healing skin. Uses - Finger limes have perfect for making perfumes, shampoos, deodorants, body sprays, moisturizing creams, aromatic oils, for vegan sushi, in salads, in desserts and even with fish, seafood, chicken, and oysters. Omtimes.com

Moreover, these little fruits make great juice and salad dressings. I am making any salad pop with wonderful flavor. Some people are using finger lime seeds to make specialty cocktails and great jams and jellies. The Grounded leaves are used for spicing up meats, fish, and even some baked goods. They have a spicy, pungent aroma that is hard to describe but work well for many kinds of savory and sweet dishes. Finding - Google “Buy Citrus Caviar” or “Buy Finger Limes” and there will be lots of places online that sell fresh finger limes. Alternatively, ask for them at local health food stores. The fruit can also be ordered on Amazon, or even the trees can be ordered online. Be creative with these little bundles of citrus caviar. They can be used for adding amazing touches to foods that would be mundane otherwise. By just adding

a few finger limes seeds food becomes alive with flavor, bringing about a new depth of interesting culinary enjoyment. For vegans, this is a great way to have sushi that contains what looks like caviar on the outside without having animal protein or fish eggs of any kind. Plus, they look so beautiful and glisten in the light, that they make anyone want to taste the veggie sushi that can be made with these bundles of lemon/lime delight. One note - Finger lime fruit must be picked ripe because they do not ripen on their own. Dr. Paul Haider – Master Herbalist and Spiritual Teacher for over 25 years, helping people to recover and feel healthy. You can also find Dr. Haider on FB under Dr. Paul Haider, Healing Herbs, and at www.paulhaider.com – feel free to connect with him any time. Omtimes.com

Simply Spiritual To perceive reality from a different perspective is to open oneself to the wonders and unlimited wealth of creation. Simply Spiritual offers the opportunity to visit new places, new methods, and different ways to perceive the vast human knowledge of our Universe.

Did you know that many of us visit the Spirit World when we sleep? Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all aware that our physical body canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t exist without time to rest, regenerate, heal, and recharge our energy. Sleep is

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a vital function of our daily routine and overall well-being. I believe that our spirit also uses this time for a similar function. While we’re asleep (usually during our deepest dream state), it detaches itself from its physical encasement (our body) to visit the Spirit World to regenerate. During this time, it’s still connected to our physical body through what is known as the “silver cord,” or “etheric cord.” Many people have reported having vivid dreams in which they communicated with loved ones who have passed on. When we see our loved ones in this dreamlike state, it’s usually just a fleeting visit. They appear younger, healthier, and more vibrant, because, in the Spirit World, that’s how they are! As we awaken, the spirit returns to our body, and we feel the connection start to slip away, as though we’re letting go from an embrace. People tell me stories of how they often wake up with tears in their eyes as the feeling of that special visit slowly fades. I remember the first time it happened to me.

I waited a year for my mom to come through after she’d passed on. When she finally did, I remember waking up from this special dream with the distinctive memory of how we hugged in an all-toofamiliar embrace. I could feel her love as though she had been right there with me. I still hold that feeling in my heart to this day. Anyone who’s seen my lectures and demonstrations will have heard me ask my audiences, “Who here has had a dream of a loved one, and who has had a hugging dream?” Usually, a sea of hands will fly up, along with nodding heads and smiles, confirming that they too have had a dream experience with a loved one. It’s heartening to witness, and it just goes to validate the existence of the Spirit World further. If the dream you’ve had of a loved one is a real visitation, then the dream is more than likely to be uplifting and happy. Alternatively, if you dreamt of someone experiencing sorrow or fear, then that’s not real after-death communication. More likely, Omtimes.com

you’re still working through your bereavement. Trust me; you’ll know a real visit and a real hug when you have one. They’re very healing and precious, and no one can take that away from you or say that it’s your imagination playing tricks on you, or just wishful thinking! You know when these visits and hugs are true, as you’ll feel them in your heart. John’s Lesson The good news to remember is that we can get a glimpse of the Spirit World and we don’t

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have to leave this world to do it. We truly have connections to our loved ones who have crossed, even though we remain here. Have you had a hugging dream lately where you felt like you connected with your loved one in the Spirit World? If you have, please share your story with me on my Facebook page. You can also call into my Spirit Connections radio show, and we can talk more about how we bridge the two realms in our hugging dreams. Live a Soul-filled life!

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Creating a New Way of Being by Judi Lynch

Awakenings come in all shapes, kinds, and sizes. Through life-changing events, spiritual quests and a myriad of different reasons we move to a new level of existence Omtimes.com

through new and evolved eyes. Our visions may be broad; our lives trying to catch up, leaving us feeling “stuck” in the middle without a plan in forwarding motion. Creating a vision of how we see ourselves and what we want to accomplish in life can be the first step to manifesting the new. Reaching a goal or a plateau can help us feel purposeful and successful, but it helps always to have a dream to realize for the future, too. It could be to take a trip of a lifetime, start a charity, start an animal rescue, get physically healthier or getting a specialized degree for a new profession. These ideas and wishes can be realized with planning, visualizing, and taking action with the ability to keep moving forward no matter what “seems” to be in our way. Creation starts in the heart and soul of the mind. If we can see signs that emotionally, mentally and physically things need to change it’s a sound message not to wait any longer.

Too many times we can let the little “voices” of negativity creep in. Either through our thoughts or the words or actions of others, we can let one negative fact about our dream crush our spirit. We can also get too comfortable with the way things are in life and feel anxiety about change even when we know it can bring us joy. One of the most amazing things we can do for ourselves is to hang out with people who bring us light, encouragement, and acceptance. An unhappy soul can smash your ideas faster than a falling hammer. It takes some courage to rise above what others are unable to see or comprehend. The attitude we adopt comes from deep inside. We can become lost in childhood memories of ourselves and critical of our true abilities when we let the past overwhelm who we are now. The way we define ourselves changes as we age and mature. If we have been living with hope, health and promise it is much easier to make the metamorphosis into Omtimes.com

a new life setting or career. If we are living in a negative bubble of fear or hostile environment, it is difficult for the mind to “wake up” into action. It becomes necessary to break the cycle of thought through action. Instead of talking about “someday” we have to begin today to bring us to the goals we desire. The feeling of being stuck makes it obvious our minds can become programmed to believe we are not capable when we most certainly have been capable of realizing our dreams all along. There are several things which help assist us in creating evolution in our lives. Having support is key for those who need compassionate encouragement. Support can come from many places and people in our surroundings, mentors helping us reach our potential. The patterns we established earlier in life have to be reexamined and reprogrammed for us to thrive in different situations. The need for survival (financial and emotional) can

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leave us feeling trapped in certain circumstances when there are ways to bring us more empowerment and control. Learning to speak up or speak out by asking for help from a friend or professional who is a source of knowledge can be invaluable. Taking a chance and sending out a resume, signing up for a photography class, walking several miles a week, planning a move to another city, switching to all organic food, studying a favorite subject online, meditating every day, sending out gratitude as daily prayer and on and on. Incorporating all the things that will help to bring us new vibrations help bring in new energy of thought. Keeping a positive outlook is easier when we feel well, confident, more in charge of our destiny. Our intuition is sharper, our senses more in tune and our bodies have rested and are healthier when we feel peaceful, hopeful and happy. It truly is a necessary skill

to learn how not to absorb collective negative thought energies around us which have an effect on our moods, choices, and decisions. Our souls know how to get our attention, but we also have to be listening without letting in all the chatter that can cause anxiety and indecision. If we can trust that our vibration and intention is strong, realistic and attainable, we are much more in tune with universal information which helps guide and sustains us into the future. With that realization, there is enough strength to create a new wave of being our beautiful and unique selves. Judi Lynch is a psychic medium, intuitive counselor, healing channel and author. She is president of the Crystal Healing Foundation, Inc. a 501(c) spiritual charity and writer for OM Times Magazine. She has authored two books, Friends with Lights and Conscious Ascension and has read for clients all over the world. To learn more or contact for a session see judilynch.com

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OMTimes Magazine Relax… Let your worries drift away into the moment… OMTimes is a free publication and can be delivered right to your inbox… Subscribe at: Free OMTimes Subscription Visit our website at: www.omtimes.com

OM Living For those living a more Conscious Lifestyle

The Power of Detachment

(excerpt from Andrewâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new book, Lead Us To A Place ~ your spiritual journey through lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seasons)

When you hear the word, you may think of a Buddhist monk, leaving all his worldly possessions behind and climbing the lonely mountain to live in complete solitude for the rest of his days. Detachment

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or non-attachment is freedom from “things.” These are things our EGO feels are important to us. Non-attachment is a fully engaged connection to our life through the act of being more conscious or mindful about ourselves. It is the selfrealization of the truth about reality. Detachment is not about distancing yourself, but more about understanding the true significance of life so that we better connect to it. By learning to understand that your consciousness cannot be affected by things you hold on to, this gives you a better sense of what holds you back. The concept had alluded me for a long time. The understanding that I had to “give up” all that I worked for seemed unfathomable to me. I know through all my religious studies that Buddha taught “with attachment comes suffering. Relinquish the delusion and ignorance that fuel both the attachment/clinging and the aversion/hatred that makes life so unsatisfying, and you will find peace (Nirvana).” In his teachings, Jesus expressed to us through the book of Corinthians, “As we look not to the things

that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. ” My Hindu yoga teacher would often say, “let go the realm of material things, for, in time, they will bring you nothing but dissatisfaction.” Through my meditation practice, I have come to realize that starting with the things I cannot control, are the first things to detach. For I have no voice in their outcome, therefore, holding on to them has no purpose and can never serve me. A friend of mine always travels. On her journeys, she must take with her at least three suitcases. She drags them through airports, waits for them to come through on airport baggage belts and hustles them through the streets of whatever city she has landed in. She “needs” every bag. One day, her luggage was lost in transit, and she arrived at her destination with nothing, but her little carry-on bag and the clothes on her back. For two weeks she waited and waited Omtimes.com

for her possessions to appear. They never did. It was at that point that she realized how she could get through her journey without all that “baggage” and what was important, was right in front of her. At least she had clothes on her back and the means to nourish herself. That was all she discovered, was really important. About a year ago, I decided to convert my entire website, Peacefulmind.com over to word press. This website format has gained great popularity and works much better when viewed on cell phones. One of the “plugins” or programs I chose to include in my site was a dictionary of terms. I had spent a year, filling in the definitions and by the end of that year, I realized that the plugin I chose was slowing down my website, as it was not compatible. I had website designers and experts analyze my site over and over. Every time they did, they came up with the same response. It was the plugin that was slowing my site down to a crawl. Yet, I could not let go of it. I made every excuse in my head that it was something else. I had invested so much time and Omtimes.com

effort into it, that I became so stubborn, unhappy and in denial, that it was starting to reverberate back to me ~ and not in a good way. I could image it likened to investing time in a relationship or in a job and it not working out. Yet, the Universe (and everyone else I asked), was clearly pointing me to the answer. My ego could not let it go. Finally, I came to the realization, by meditating on detachment, how I could actually benefit by letting it go.I then started to re-analyzed my life and looked further back into my past. I sensed just how little control or influence I really had over it. I clearly wasn’t paying attention to what life meant at all. I was attached to all the outcomes, holding on to what I thought I had control over and was not letting life “just flow”. I was living life attached and because of this, the result was suffering. I was suffering due to my lack of confidence, which was being undermined by what I thought people thought of me. I was fearful of making my own way through life, due to my belief that people expected certain behaviors or

responsibilities by those in my circle of family and friends. It was all due to my belief that I attached to these situations, whether they were really true or not! Now, I always lecture about being true to yourself and finding a belief that serves who you are. By seeking out the truths in your life and what makes you happy, you will always be your intrinsic guide and mentor. I still believe that these ideas ring true today and it has to do with what we attach our minds and emotions to. Detachment is not about creating distance. I have learned that it is more about understanding the true purpose and what is of value in your life, so we may better connect to its meaning. We must not get bogged down by the things that anchor us to the ground and not allow our spirit to soar! Detachment is about mindfully paying attention to what is really important on your journey. As always, you have the right to re-evaluate your path along the way. What may have been the center of your Universe a few years ago, has no more

material significance or spiritual relevance and can be looked at through a different set of eyes with the power of detachment. The practice of non-attachment has you look at outcomes that you have no control over and choose to release them. The practice of non-attachment has you appreciate, love, life and your relationships even more. Simply by not having your ego expect an outcome, you are finding the selfless person who does not need to control every situation, but rather understand the decisions that are made. The practice of non-attachment makes you no longer selfcentered or selfish, and you become conscious in your awareness of the other person. You no longer self-identify with a needed outcome. The practice of non-attachment simply means that your happiness is no longer defined by anything outside of you. You, therefore, remain free. Andrew Pacholyk MS L.Ac http://www.peacefulmind. comâ&#x20AC;?Live life, consciously â&#x20AC;&#x153;Therapies for healing mind, body, spirit Omtimes.com

From Badass to Buddha:

When Contemplation leads to Rehabilitation

Dr. Miguel Farias & Dr. Catherine Wikholm discuss the mentality of prisoners, as well as those who work in prisons. After speaking with various prison staff, the authors surprised to discover that many of them donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t believe that the prisoners are capable of real change. The concept of a prison cell as an ashram is an idea that captures the imagination, and the paradox of finding spiritual freedom through the loss of Omtimes.com

physical freedom is intriguing. Might there actually be truth in this unusual idea â&#x20AC;&#x201C; can daily yogic sun salutations and deep breathing really make convicted rapists and murderers less violent and impulsive? While itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unlikely that yoga and meditation could replace traditional rehabilitative approaches, it seems possible that they may have a unique ability to reach prisoners on a different level: to make them feel more at peace, and more valued and connected.

Bo Lozoff summarizes the aim of organizations that teach contemplative techniques to prisoners worldwide when he says that we should ‘allow for transformation, not merely rehabilitation’. In other words, the change that charities such as his and the PPT seek to encourage goes far beyond the cessation of offending behavior; we are talking about a radical change in worldview. The PPT’s current director Sam Settle describes this transformation as ‘the forgetting of one’s self as one lives – the forgetting of me’. In essence, moving from focusing on oneself as a separate individual to seeing oneself as part of a larger whole. Whether or not we share these ideas about the possibility of the transformation of convicted criminals – from sinner to saint, from ‘monster’ to Buddha – on a theoretical and anecdotal level, there does seem to be reason to think that yoga and meditation can bring about positive personal change in prisoners. The institution of home For many who have lived in prisons from an early age, the prospect of going outside is daunting. I once worked with a

prisoner, ‘John’, who was serving his tenth prison sentence at the age of only 21 years old. He attended every session of the offending behavior program I was facilitating, only to – in the final session – suddenly become aggressive and disruptive to the point where he had to be removed from the group. Talking to him afterwards, trying to understand why he had sabotaged something that could have helped him towards securing an earlier release date, he admitted he was scared of being released. ‘There is nothing for me outside,’ he said, visibly upset. When John was a young child, one of his parents murdered the other; he went on to spend the rest of his childhood in numerous short-term foster-care placements. Angry and distrusting of people, he would repeatedly run away from them. He committed his first offence aged ten and received his first custodial sentence aged fifteen. The frequency of his impulsive crimes meant that he had spent the majority of the past six years behind bars. There were no family or friends waiting for him on the outside. The uncertainty of how to build a meaningful life, alone, in the ‘real Omtimes.com

world’ was overwhelming. Prison was all he felt he knew. Self-belief All staff members working in prisons – from officers, to psychologists, to governors – are acutely aware that changing prisoners can be extraordinarily difficult – but it’s not impossible. In my own work with young male offenders, I lost count of the number of times I heard ‘he’ll never change’ from prison officers, who generally would have little idea of that individual’s backstory and the factors that contributed to his offending behavior. Often the prisoners in question were boys still in their teens, some of them coming from such difficult backgrounds that it would have been a miracle if they hadn’t ended up in prison. The desire to reform is often unsupported – sometimes owing to budget restrictions, but other times owing to a lack of belief. Changing is hard. And it’s even harder without a helping hand. The support of others – whether friend, therapist or institution – can be fundamental in whether or not we succeed in bringing about a desired change. Feeling that others believe in us can Omtimes.com

significantly boost our sense of self-efficacy. Feeling that others don’t believe in us at all undermines our self-belief so that we may start to feel a dramatic waning of our own confidence and motivation to try to change. Changing attitudes It was a Thursday afternoon and I was on my lunch break, in between research interviews at a West Midlands prison. I was accompanied by an officer in his late fifties, who had been assigned to facilitate the interviews; escorting prisoners from the wings to the interview room. As our break drew to a close, the officer suddenly deviated from his impromptu monologue on the joys of pigeon fancying, my knowledge of which had substantially increased over the hour, to ask whether I really thought that yoga and meditation would do anything at all for prisoners. ‘Well,’ I replied, ‘we think it might. There’s evidence that it works outside of prisons to reduce stress and increase positive emotions. So it may help prisoners to manage their emotions better and improve their self-control, which might

also reduce their aggression.’ ‘Ha!’ said the officer. ‘I doubt it.’ ‘Why?’ I asked. ‘I don’t think any of these can change,’ he told me. ‘I’m a firm believer that leopards never change their spots.’ It wasn’t just yoga and meditation the officer was dismissing as futile. He went on to say that he thought nothing could be done to change prisoners for the better; each and every one of them was a hopeless cause. ‘No matter what,’ he told me, ‘they will always revert back to what they are. It’s like a man who used to be a philanderer; he could get married to a woman and be faithful for, let’s say, ten years, but in the end, he’ll always cheat again.’ My attempts to debate failed miserably. When I maintained that I did think we could rehabilitate prisoners, he delivered his closing argument: ‘Well I’m older than you and I’ve met quite a lot of different people, so I think I know. Author Bios Dr. Miguel Farias is an author, lecturer, and industry leader. He writes about the psychology of

belief and spiritual practices, including meditation. He was a lecturer at the University of Oxford and is now the founding director of the Brain, Belief and Behavior Lab group at Coventry University. Farias is also the lead editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Meditation. Dr. Catherine Wikholm is an author, clinical psychologist, and a chartered psychologist. She was previously employed by HM Prison Service, where she worked with young offenders. Catherine has worked within the specialism of children and families, both in the National Health Service (NHS), as part of a London child and adolescent mental health service, and in private practice. Her current NHS role is as a Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist in a London perinatal mental health service. Miguel and Catherine worked together on a ground-breaking research study investigating the psychological effects of yoga and meditation in prisoners. Edited and Excerpted from The Buddha Pill – Pg. 25-28 & 30-31Reprinted with Permission Omtimes.com

The Healing Power of Storytelling by Jayita Bhattacharjee

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Too often, we wear a smiling sadness outside, while the world knows nothing about it. As we seek solace to find a way back to ourselves, we run from place to place. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s take a moment to stop running, to

stop wandering, and come back to the beauty of words, the words that arise from the heart. As the seasons of life take us to some of the brutal battles that we once faced and fought, not every battle fought is won. Some are lost. Some leave us crumbled for decades. The call comes to rising, as “the years are still left to live”--whispers the words rising from the heart. As we live in the faster lanes of life, and at times, wonder— have we lost the spirit of living in the real sense of the word, there we search for the feeling that is lost, has died probably years back in the relentless racing, chasing, purchasing, competing and finally heaving a sigh of relief—that we are living life. Having that illusory feeling, in silence, we often go back to a place where we know something’s still missing. Moreover, this knowledge comes from a feeling of a consuming void. So, what we think, relieved us once, finally put us in a cycle of devastating emptiness. One

that ultimately comes to chase us till the very end. Moreover, then begins our search. As we continue to search, there comes the healing power of telling our story, owning up to it, and admitting, it is ours, to begin. As the words fall of our souls, and we tell our story heard and witnessed by others, we feel heard and felt. All along, while we kept the song unsung, the words unsaid, suddenly they release in the air. Moreover, as the world hears it, a calmness descends on us. It becomes a moment of silent recognition where words said by a heart are words received by another heart. That is the moment of a silent honor. Where something gave is taken with grace and thankfulness. To Us, it becomes a moment of healing. That silent hearing by others gives us joy beyond words. It becomes a moment when the God in you recognizes God in me. We know deep down, we have felt each other, we

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have heard one another in a moment of storytelling. It then becomes an act of beauty. We become the powerful storytellers, where we become the unfolding narratives that speak of our journey. How we walked the path of life in the past, how we struggled in the troubled timesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;as we give voice to the unvoiced events and encounters of life, we begin to calm ourselves. As we know with every word that is released in the air, there is a heart out there in the universe that is hearing it, feeling the pain and joy, receiving it with the deepest acceptance. From there rises the gradual healing power of our storytelling. We no longer wind up feeling lonely, and out of touch with our mission. We get anchored inside. The more we tell the story of every season that touched our lives, the deeper becomes the rooting. Eventually, we become beautifully rooted in love, joy, hope, and faith. The very faith that we lost being unheard and staying unsaid now fades away. We know, the universe Omtimes.com

is hearing us. It is a beautiful feeling, one that shows the gold of light after the rain has stopped drizzling. The dense sadness, the thick feelings that once curled up in our throats, every time, we looked backâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; now begin to cease. Loveliness spreads all over our hearts. We become unburdened. As our history comes out of our lips, we heave a sigh of relief. The words break every agony into pieces, and there goes the savage smashing of all the past pain. Beauty begins to steal our hearts again. Such is the way; healing descends drip by drip as our story releases word by word. So effortlessly, abundance knocks our lives again. Every time someone hears our story, our stress goes down. The stress hormones like cortisol and epinephrine are flipped off, and the relaxation takes over that releases healing hormones like oxytocin. How gently we are calmed down, skipping off the stress simply by releasing words in the air. As our hearts whisper from the deepest pain,

the moment they rise in the universe, a calmness descends over the heart and soul. We know we are no longer trapped in the past. We are free, tasting freedom at last. Words kill the agony; they carry an invisible power that can be felt. The heart which feels compelled to tell the story is a heart on a journey to heal with the light of its own words. Every word unfolds with a new light and how beautifully the fog clears at last. As we give voice to the heartbreaking phases of life, it leads to the groundbreaking way of healing. What once almost killed us, now finds a way to honor pain in a dignified way. We do not run; we do not escape rather we walk through it in the sheltering embrace of words. They become our faithful companion in this journey of storytelling giving us gifted healing at the very end. It relaxes our nervous system and repairs us from the inside. We know, deep down it turns on the body’s self-repair mechanisms, so at least we

can cling on to this method as preventative medicine. As the story is heard, we feel that we are not alone. Someone who is hearing the story is with us. So, we feel connected, as loneliness sees its way out. It brings a feeling of connection, taking away isolation. As we tell the story, we become vulnerable and present ourselves out in the open, holding nothing back. We let the world see us in our raw and authentic beauty. From that place of authenticity, rises our deepest story—the story set out to heal us. How beautiful is this portal falling from the lips of us? They travel from our lips to someone’s hearts and eventually back to our hearts as healing us, at the end. Jayita Bhattacharjee was born in Calcutta, India and later education from the University of Houston in Economics, she had chosen her career as a trustee and teacher. Her books “ The Ecstatic Dance of Soul’, “ Sacred Sanctuary,” “ Light of Consciousness,” “ Dewdrops of Compassion” are among the many that she has authored. Find Her on Goodreads Omtimes.com

Relationships The interconnectiveness among all human beings and, consequently, the relationships among us are the focus of this section. The dynamics of the web of connections we make is one of the most prominent aspects of human existence: how we interlace with each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s existence in a meaningful way.

Why a Narcissist Can Never Be Happy Marcia Sirota, MD.

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re living in an era of narcissism. Narcissists are being elected to the highest levels of government, both here in Ontario and the United States. Too many of us are being taken in by the self-delusional confidence of these narcissists, believing that it represents competence when all it demonstrates is the grandiosity of an over-inflated ego.

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There are many traits that narcissists have in common: an inflated sense of selfimportance; extreme overentitlement; a profound lack of empathy; the tendency to view others as merely a means to an end; the capacity for profound insensitivity and cruelty. Narcissists are users and abusers, plain and simple. They’re bullies and con artists, manipulators and oppressors. They’re blowhards and charmers, smiling at us one minute and cutting our throat the next. We might be conned into thinking that there’s substance behind all their grandiose posturing, but the narcissist is an empty shell, driven by a fierce and undying need to fill a gnawing sense of emptiness deep within. A powerful inner need for gratification drives the narcissist. They mistakenly believe that this gratification will come through the exercise of power and influence and the accumulation of money and possessions.

The narcissist will fight to accumulate more money and more stuff; to wield more power and influence; to bend more people to their will, but it will never be enough. The narcissist doesn’t understand that more and more of the wrong solution doesn’t eventually make it the right solution. The narcissist would be a fascinating psychological case-study and a truly tragic figure, were they not so exceedingly dangerous, both on the personal and the political front. They will stop at nothing to get what they want, but they’re doomed never to find satisfaction because their behavior can never lead to happiness or fulfillment. The truth is that nothing can make a narcissist happy, because their agenda of dominance, exploitation, and oppression creates an everexpanding chasm within their soul. The narcissist can take pleasure in the exercise of power and the subjugation of others, but they can’t feel happiness from any source.

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They can’t feel the joy of a loving relationship – they’re incapable of love. They can’t feel the fulfillment of a job well done – they’re incapable of taking satisfaction from positive accomplishments – and they can’t feel the contentment of doing a good deed for others – they’re incapable of empathy.

The narcissist will always confuse the currency of dominance with the currency of happiness, and these are the opposite.

The narcissist wrongly believes that by using or abusing, taking or stealing they’ll feel better, but it doesn’t work. The human brain isn’t wired that way. We, humans, feel happiest when we’re kind, generous and altruistic; not when we’re selfish, greedy or cruel.

Happiness comes from being kind and loving; from doing good deeds and being a good person; from feeling a deep sense of connection with others; from making a positive contribution and from living a meaningful life. Using and abusing others can never, ever lead to happiness.

Narcissists get a rush of pleasure when they “win.” Unfortunately, pleasure is superficial and fleeting. The pleasure the narcissist feels is similar to that of a drug high. It’s an intensely thrilling but ultimately meaningless experience that leaves them immediately craving the next rush.

After years of pursuing their selfserving but ineffective agenda, the narcissist ultimately becomes enraged. They mistakenly believe that their problem is that they don’t have enough power, money or influence; that they haven’t sufficiently bullied the people around them into submission.

One of the narcissist’s fatal flaws is that they can’t differentiate pleasure and happiness. They

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continue to chase after the former at the expense of the latter, which leaves them emptier and more miserable after every display of dominance.

The narcissist is incapable of taking responsibility for their actions so they’ll always blame their victims, accusing them of

being the hurtful ones and ratcheting up their acts of brutality and oppression. The narcissist believes that everyone around them is there for only one reason: to meet their needs. If the narcissist isn’t getting their needs met – and by definition, they never will – they’re convinced that it must be the fault of the people around them. As time goes on, the narcissist becomes more and more furious and more and more destructive. They exact revenge on everyone whom they perceive as interfering with their gratification because they can never see that the problem lies within them. They end up bent on two goals: pursuing their agenda of greed and punishing those who get in their way, but neither of these will ever make them happy. If happiness is defined as a deep and abiding sense of contentment, satisfaction, and inner peace, occasionally sprinkled with joy, then by

definition, a narcissist can never be happy. It’s their constant, nagging sense of dissatisfaction and rage that drives them to pursue their misguided agenda repeatedly. Narcissists live in the false hope of finding some modicum of solace for their incessant fury and need, but their pattern of behavior traps them in an endless feedback loop of empty pleasures, meaningless vendettas, and an everexpanding inner abyss. The narcissist will never stop behaving badly because their actions will never give them what they want. They’ll never be happy, and that’s exactly what drives them to keep on pursuing their wrong-headed and extremely destructive agenda. I’d feel pity for them, were it not for the fact that they do so much harm to others. Sign up here for my free monthly wellness newsletter. Sign up here for my new online course, How to Stop Overeating, Once and For All.

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Metaphysics

The Most Important Thing that you Forgot! In the beginning, there was a song. The song was beautiful â&#x20AC;&#x201C; like invisible colors painting the sky in a translucent and uplifting way. The song sang to itself: all day and all night.

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Alas, the song got bored after many repeats of its song-beauty, so it experimented with different tunes. At first, there were little variations in the melody, rhythm, and harmony. The next thing you know, there were sweeping musical changes. The songs seemed to take on a life of their own. Songs that were similar enjoyed each other’s company and formed groups. The songgroups created genres, creating happy music, exhilarating feelings, and peaceful energies. The songs played with each other – like duets & bands, exchanging notes and echoing the feelings found in the music. The creativity continued. Ideas were pushed and stretched. Each new step was a daring new sound! Finally, sad songs were born, something that never happened when they were All One. They even morphed into nasty sounds and songs.

The songs forgot they were One-Song, a universe. They identified with their last song-creation only. After a while, they got tired of singing altogether and tried exchanging energies – similar to talking. Before you know it, they forgot their songs, because they forgot to sing. Without their songs, their energies became heavy and sticky, eventually transferring into dense matter. At first, the conscious song-energy occupied minerals and rocks, and eons later, plants and ultimately animals, and finally the beautiful songs evolved into the souls of man. The songs-of-theuniverse now occupied physical bodies. They desired to experience the pleasures of touching, tasting, sex and more. They became trapped in their “bodies.” The soul-song made their physical bodies happy and healthy. Without their soul’s song, their bodies became

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sick. Many even died, so the soul-songs reentered a new and unique, physical bodies. Sometimes the journey in each body was for a very short amount of time. In each adventure, the soul-songs searched for something, but they couldn’t remember what it was. They forgot their songs and experienced sticky dissonance instead. Not only did people forget their songs, but they believed they were their physical bodies. Oh, so silly! Weed killer (such dissonant sounds) was sprayed on plants, which people ate. Their food was modified in mass quantities, and it slowly became cheaper “nonfood,” and it clogged up their harmony chains. They ate dissonance without being aware of what was happening. People ate poisonous medicine, smelled toxic fumes and were radiated with a cell phone and computer signals – full

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of nasty sounds. Their bodies were like radio stations, broadcasting gloom and doom music. Slowly people entered a stupor. They spoke with dissonant mumbling, and this rippled throughout their being. A few avoided the toxic chemicals and unnatural radiations. Their bodies began to sing a little. People can’t hear it, but their bodies can sing sweet songs - too low in volume for them to hear. Even this invisible version of their song made them feel a little better. Did they hear a subtle soft song? Their song? They experimented with being still (meditating) and they began to hear their song ever so softly. They weren’t even aware they heard it, but the soft vibrations lifted their moods and health, inch by inch. They hummed and played around with sounds until they started to sing again – any song. By singing, they

remembered bits and pieces of their voice, their verse in the uni-verse, their song. Their voice improved – becoming thicker, resonant, deeper and higher all at once. They used more tones that comprised their original song! They sensed the invisible echo of who they were - divine music. When they sang, hundreds, thousands and millions of individual harmonies rang like church bells, dropping musical snowflakes on everyone – leaving hints of their original beauty everywhere they went. They joined with other groups that were remembering their song as well. They sang happily ever after, as they united with greater and greater songs, singing their way back to One Song! Jill Mattson is a prolific Artist, Musician, and Author. Jill is a widely recognized expert and composer in the field of Sound & Color Healing!

She has also produced nine musical CDs with intriguing, magical tracks using ancient & modern techniques, & special healing frequencies to achieve profound benefits. Jill is a four-time author. (Crystal Realms CD – Best Sound Healing CD of 2017, Best Overall Music (popular Vote and Industry Leader’s Choice – Gold Awards), The Lost Waves of Time – Best Book of 2016 and Best Alternative Science book of 2016, Deep Wave Body Healing CD– Best Sound Healing CD of 2016, Contacting Angels & Masters CD – Best CD of 2015 and Deep Wave Beauty CD – Best New Age CD – Silver Award). Jill has participated in many hundreds of teleseminars, radios shows, and magazines! She offers an online Sound (& Color) Healing School. Jill presents new ways of approaching health and everyday issues using the benefits of sound and color! Free music & School of Sound Healing at www. jillswingsoflight.com

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Karma, Dharma, Destiny and Free Will, oh My By Liane Buck

The words Karma and Dharma are terms that ordinarily create confusion in Western culture. We believe that the difficulty arises from an

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erroneous association of Karma with adverse events, a reward from a wrong action or a sort of penance. Dharma is often not even known in any sense. In reality, Dharma and Karma are two facets of the same concept and linked to the already popular and widespread idea of free will, and together they impact the fate of an individual. Earth school has a funny way to teach us lessons. To the contrary of any regular school, we know, in our planetary learning system, we first receive a test, and then a lesson. “Dharma or Ethics and Morals are the Fundamental Set of Rules created for those who want to Play the Game, by those who are Inside the Game.” –Vineet Raj Kapoor

THE DESTINY AND THE FREE WILL Often, we tend to blame fate for the challenges presented in our lives and forget that all we do, and how we react to situations are actions performed exclusively by us.

To be responsible for the consequences of our actions, for coping and living with the choices we make are some of the greatest gifts we can receive in exchange for the freedom of choice- Free will. The use of this freedom is what leads us to either a life of anguish or the bliss of enlightenment; for when we use it in wrong decisions without admitting that we act against the path of light, the feeling of frustration is an immediate-a different perspective from the peace one finds in accepting its attitudes. Remember: it is you who hold the reins of your destiny, interconnecting your mission on earth to the weight of your own actions.

DHARMA The Dharma is one of the facets of this same principle, representing the path of truth and natural law; as a zone where light flows naturally and walks the path of virtue. Dharma is how we understand destiny or our mission on earth, and to live it is to follow the

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path indicated by the universe. He who follows his Dharma finds the peace and fluidity in his life, perform his actions with grace, beauty, and naturalness, as well as a painter who creates his paintings as naturally as the act of breathing.

KARMA Karma is mistakenly interpreted by us as a villain as if it were a burden or a punishment for something we did, but the reality is entirely different from this interpretation. We accepted this idea in the same way that we forget what free will genuinely is and blame destiny for our ills. Karma is the law that completes the concept of Dharma. If you want a good metaphor for these concepts, Think about yourself as a road traveler. The driver is your soul, the car is your karma and dharma are the road. The destination is enlightment. Karma is the law that determines how far or near we

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will be from our Dharma, so a balanced Karma, illuminated with good choices, makes us ever closer to its other half of the fullness. Karma means action, in Sanskrit (ancient sacred language) is a term coming from the Buddhist, Hindu and Jain religion, later adopted also by the spiritualists. In physics, this word is equivalent to law: “For every action there is a reaction of equivalent force in the opposite direction”, that is, for every action that an individual practice, there will be a reaction. Depending on the religion the meaning of the word may be different, but it is usually related to action and its consequences. The law of Karma is that law that adjusts the effect to its cause, that is, all the good or evil that we have done in a life will come to bring us good or bad consequences for this life or coming lives. The law of Karma is unchangeable and is known in various religions as “celestial justice.”

When a Household Breaks, Many lives are changed, and others just End.

DOMESTIC ABUSE There are Many Forgotten Victims

Is it Possible to Transmute Bad Karma? By Humanity Healing

Almost everyone has heard of karma or the Laws of Karma, but what the vast majority of people do not know is that it is possible to transmute it, or at least to get rid of its negative side.

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Negative karma may have been constructed by actions that did not help illuminate your spirit. Instead, they may have brought pain and suffering not only to ourselves but to others. Those attitudes may have been realized in previous lives and have caused us to accumulate negativity to our life karma. WHAT IS A RITUAL OF TRANSMUTATION?

By achieving the transmutation of karma, many of the difficulties we face today on the physical level can be fully transformed into positivity as we are bringing Light, the Divine Truth into our lives. The removal of negative energy can resolve Family, financial, and professional conflicts. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO MAKE A TRANSMUTTING RITUAL? The Karma Ritual of Healing and Transmutation can be performed by yourself at any time of the year and needs concentration in search of good energies.

The Flame of Transmutation should be triggered for healing and the search for the positivity of karma. I also knew how the Violet Flame, being an aspect of the Seventh Ray of the Holy Spirit, is a Sacred Fire that will be used to reach karmic elimination. Moreover, you can only attain this state by practicing the Law of Forgiveness and Living through it.

You must light a violet-colored candle every day for three weeks in a row. This candle will be an offering to Saint Germain, to the Seventh Ray of the Holy Spirit - to Healing, and karmic transmutation.

The success of The Karmic transmutation depends greatly on our dedication and engagement in spirituality. Transmutation process can be triggered by anyone who wants to be free from negative karma.

After lighting the candle, focus on the Flame of Transmutation, the Violet Flame. Internalize the Flame of Transmutation and its extension through all your past lives and your current life.

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After this time, concentrate on the statement: “Saint Germain and Seventh Ray of the Holy Spirit I pray now that through this violet flame to help me achieve transmutation Karmic and exhaust all the negative karma of this life and my previous lives to achieve karmic freedom in emotional, family, financial and spiritual energy. “ At that moment, meditate and affirm also: “Through this violet flame, I ask that I receive the full liberation of my negative karma and with all the people whom I kept captive, or caused any

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spiritual difficulty, mental, professional or financial, even those that are no longer alive in this world. “ To conclude, repeat the statement “I am the violet flame! I (my name) am the purity that God desires.” The Violet Flame works on raising any energy to its highest frequency. The performance of the Violet Flame on a specific situation happens through the use of the three powers: Love, Wisdom, and Power, with the intention of changing it.

The energy of intention should be directed to the existing Living Intelligence in the Violet Flame, which then accelerates the energy to such an extent that it jumps to another vibratory pattern, producing a completely different substance.

particles of dense substance from our bodies

Violet Fire transmutes anything illusory into truth wherever it got lodged in your physical or spiritual being. It includes everything from the seeds of hatred to itself to the physical virus.

The work with the Violet Fire also helps the transmutation of auric aggregates, thoughtforms, as well as poorly qualified collective standards, which cloud and resist the path of return to the light.

When the Violet Flame acts, it passes through the clogged spaces between the electrons and the nucleus. It ejects these

and dissolves them. This process transmutes unqualified energy into Energy Primordial, restoring its innate purity of our beings.

There is no risk of side effects. The result is beautiful, fair and true.

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Living Intuitively: The Key to Intuition by Robyn M Fritz

Many people are curious about intuition; others are skeptical about it, still more think it’s a gift reserved for a select group of people that doesn’t include them. It’s no wonder so many people are just not using their intuition, at least they don’t think they are.

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How Energy Healing Boosts Our Intuition The truth is, we’re all using our intuition every day, all day long. However, we’re often not using it correctly because we don’t understand how our particular intuitive ability works. That means we’re

missing out on an innate skill that can make our lives easier, even safer. The key to learning how our intuition works is to tap it properly. An easy, natural way is by developing a daily practice of hands-on energy healing. Yes, energy healing. While we can all learn energy healing modalities, from Reiki to Healing Touch, energy healing is an innate skill we all have, just like intuition. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s simple and quick to use, so we can easily incorporate it into everyday life. We can start using energy by recognizing what it is. Energy is the stuff of life itself, the building block of everything we see and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t see. If we think of our bodies as energy in a physical form, we can understand that working with energy is as simple as breathing. Making Energy Healing a Daily Routine The trick, then, is to make working with energy a normal daily practice that acknowledges we have

innate healing abilities as we intentionally use them. One simple way to do that is to start and end the day with an energy healing ritual. That could be as simple as crossing our hands over our hearts while inviting ourselves to consciously breathe in healthy energy for a few minutes, blessing ourselves, then thanking ourselves for taking the time to do this routine. As we deepen this practice, we notice that we are paying more attention to details in our life that we overlooked or ignored in our hectic schedules, including our intuition. We may even move on to doing this simple practice in a free moment during the day, or when we are stressed. The result is that over time, this simple ritual becomes part of our daily life. It reminds us that there is more to the world than we can see and that we can be open to it by simply being present, conscious of the healing moments, and then paying attention to what we notice because in these quiet moments our intuition presents itself. This isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t

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meditation, nor is it a timeout from life. Instead, it’s a few conscious moments where we acknowledge our sacred souls, the bodies we’ve chosen to live in, and our connection to the wider world around us by inviting healthy energy to support and inform us. As most energy healers will tell you, even a simple ritual like this has the happy side effect of boosting our intuition. Why? Because intuition and energy are intimately connected, and paying attention to our energy a few times a day also opens us up to our intuition, like putting the key in a car’s ignition and turning it on. Energy is our foundation, and intuition is one of the building blocks of our lives, but it’s often a quiet skill that gets pushed aside in our loud, busy lives. An energy ritual easily helps us normalize both our intuitive and healing skills. It is why energy healers will often say how much more intuitive they are. It isn’t because they are working on their intuition, although

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they may (and should) be; it’s because they’ve allowed themselves to tap into their intuitive abilities with an energy healing practice. For additional help, consider keeping a crystal-like selenite, a form of quartz, with you as you do your energy healing ritual. Selenite’s properties include helping us clear confusion and stuck energies while boosting our ability to set intentions and enhancing clarity. Try this simple energy healing ritual, throw in a bit of selenite, and see how it boosts your intuition. Robyn M Fritz MA MBA CHt hosts the OM Times radio show, “The Practical Intuitive: Mind Body Spirit for the Real World.” An intuitive and spiritual consultant and certified past life regression specialist, she is an award-winning author whose next book is “The Afterlife Is a Party: What People and Animals Teach Us About Love, Reincarnation, and the Other Side.” Find her at RobynFritz.com.

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ADVENTURE

Dan Maston goes on an epic adventure

MONSTER TRUCKS ...and where to take them

ROADTRIPS OF THE YEAR

Shakti World

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Sister Jaguar’s Journey sisterjaguarsjourney.com

I searched sixty-eight years before finally finding God in an ayahuasca plant in the Amazon jungle. What’s the big deal? I’m a nun!

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I know. I know. You want me to tell you what happened when I ingested ayahuasca during a plant ceremony in the Amazon jungle. Before I describe WHAT happened, you need to know WHY I

sought to heal through this ancient shamanic ritual.

fantasizing that only death would bring relief.

The Early Days Abuse.

The tremendous shame I felt for the place of dishonor I occupied within my family was compounded by the avalanche of guilt perpetuated by growing up Catholic-to-a-fault. As I received profoundly toxic messages delivered in the name of God, I rejected the Church’s prosecutorial morality. I didn’t buy it then, and I certainly don’t buy it now. It took years to recover from the belief that I was personally responsible for Adam and Eve acting like humans in that apple orchard!

Without question, I grew up in a verbally toxic, physically abusive home. My mother beat me regularly from the time I was four until I was sixteen. I got to pick which of my Dad’s belts would be used as if I had some sort of power over the inevitable. I would undress and lay face down across my bed. I braced myself for the stinging blows while vowing not to cry. I didn’t know why the abuse started and I didn’t know how to stop it. My Mother simply chose to fight with me rather than battle her demons from within. It was years before I suspected her anger was really meant for my alcoholic Father. The more she hit me, the more I retaliated with anger and resentment toward her, my Dad and my siblings. As a child, I spent a lot of time

Ironically, as a child, the Catholic school down the street became my place of refuge. If I wasn’t home, I was at school with the nuns. I did everything possible to never be home. The Sisterhood and The Transition to a Healing Path

The nuns offered me shelter

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from the pain of a brutal upbringing. When I was with them, I was safe. I belonged someplace. But eventually, I would have to go home. After graduating from high school, I chose a very reasonable transition to adulthood. I joined the convent. Becoming a nun gave me the only thing I ever wanted in life: membership in a community with women who stood together on a platform of eco-justice as we gave voice to the marginalizedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;especially women and childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and the economically poor yet culturally rich. I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t in the convent forty-eight hours before I realized it was clearly a cold, rigid, unsociable institution. Since I had been immersed in criticism and antagonism throughout my childhood, the oppression and condemnation in the name of God seemed normal. I felt

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quite at home with all the screaming! Individual candidates were publicly singled out, rebuffed, and deliberately humiliated. This hazing seemed contrived and disingenuous as if the hardships of religious life were exaggerated to test the sincerity of our intentions. It all seemed so silly. One day I woke with double vision. My Superior sent me to an eye doctor in the neighboring town. I was told to wait in the car for business related to another Sister. A few minutes later, I was pulled from the vehicle, forced up the stairs of the hospital, and admitted into an insane asylum! No intake conversation, no paperwork, no signature, no diagnosis, and no explanation. I had no idea what was happening. I was paralyzed with fear and instinctively knew that I was in for the fight of my life, while entirely on my own. The Institutional Abuse

The worst of that insane experience occurred when I decided to check on an elderly patient. It appeared she had tried to swallow her fist to commit suicide. I worked feverishly to pull her hand from her mouth. She died in my arms. I was forced into that mental institution as a bewildered, terrified teenager. I exited that hell hole as an enraged young woman determined never again to be abused by another person or institution. Never! Even today, after all my healing, I stand guard against that possibility. I just have not been able to erase that horrifying experience tattooed on my soul. Years passed, all five decades! I used my doctorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s degree to become a national authority on progressive education. The abuse I encountered in my formative years greatly influenced the private and public charter schools I

founded in Tucson, Arizona. These schools were my personal protest against the abuses experienced by children, teens and young adults as they struggled to find their place in the world. As a nun, I spent sixty-eight years looking for God in all the wrong places. A lifetime of prayer and public service as a radical, alternative school administrator failed to bring me the peace and divine connection I had always sought. Finding a Path to the Divine Through Ayahuasca

Throughout my life, I slowly lost my soul and allowed events and circumstances to move me to a place of profound sadness. Anger and depression controlled my thoughts, feelings, and actions. Lacking the skills to cope with dignity and grace, I slipped farther and farther away from my center. I lost what the Achuar people of the Amazon call arutumâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the energy of life itselfâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the force

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that creates communion and hope, the vigor that allows one to move forward into an optimistic future. My connection with nature, life, and God disintegrated to dust. At the perfect time in my miserable life, Sandra Morse, my friend, mentor, and therapist-of-sorts had the wisdom, experience, and grace to drag my suicidal self to a shamanic, soul retrieval ceremony in Ecuador’s Amazon jungle. On my first of five trips to the jungle, I saw a black jaguar prowling river’s edge. Since I’m the only person from the North to ever see a black jaguar in the Achuar Territory, my new friends began calling me Hermana Otorongo— Sister Jaguar. The name was a perfect fit. The Jaguar holds a commanding position within the Achuar tribe. The jaguar guards the portal between their everyday and spiritual worlds, where it facilitates communication between

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those living on earth and those living in other realities. According to the Achuar, seeing a jaguar was a good omen that empowered me to experience a series of cultural, environmental and spiritual events that would eventually transform my life. When I drank ayahuasca, I saw the black jaguar in a new reality. Shazam! THERE REALLY IS A GOD! Grandmother--The Energy of life itself

There in the jungle, ayahuasca—lovingly referred to as “Grandmother”—sent me her spirit of the Jaguar where I experienced the recklessness of my anger. The river ran with blood, the plants and bushes turned to skulls. Giant trees morphed into metallic, mechanical insects of colossal size. But Grandmother also offered her tender embrace. Vibrating lines of energy shimmered like the Northern Lights, candlelight shot

outward in all directions in an attempt to recreate the Big Bang, colorful spider webs held planets and people in place, and shooting stars became the faces of every student I ever taught. Fifty years of faces flashed before me. As I took it in, I knew I had given the kids more than my anger and hostility. I knew they accepted me for who I was. I knew they had forgiven me. I knew they understood. It took traveling 3,000 miles away from home and 4,000 years back in time for a tired, old nun to find peace in the here and now. There, in the Amazon jungle, among the Achuar and their sacred plant rituals, I saw God in their ancestral sacrament of ayahuasca. At that moment, my lack of place within an organized religion was “redeemed” through an Achuar rite of passage into ancient, tribal spirituality. There, in a single, simple, life-changing moment,

Grandmother suspended the clutter of my judging mind. The anger and depression of my past collided with the worry and anxiety of my future. There I was, immersed in the forgiveness and peace of the present moment— forever changed. Grandmother pushed my tormented humanness to the truth. As I surrendered in silence, benevolence replaced all the malevolence I ever generated on Earth. Grace diluted my anger and replaced my grief with peace. Pachamama whispered without words, “Welcome home, Sister Jaguar, welcome home.” While resting on the sacred ground under the canopy of a starfilled universe, Pachamama (Mother Earth) invited me to take my place within her web of life that began with the first crack of the Big Bang. I knew I was called to blend my story of forgiveness into a New Creation Story. I knew I had to live and tell my sacred truth. Okay. Here’s the place where I

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humbly announce that today I’m a holy mystic who only emerges from meditative trances to enjoy Arizona sunsets! Not so. Did you know jaguars prowl the Amazon jungle and the Arizona desert? Pachamama has a wicked sense of humor. The inner Lifelong Inner Journey

Seven years ago, while star-gazing and discussing cosmology with my friend, Orion, I missed a two-inch drop in terrain, fell, and shattered my right femur. It was the last free, unassisted step I ever took. I’m basically crippled—a three-legged jaguar with a profound limp. In forced retirement, I spend my days praying, meditating, reading, writing books, watching CNN, and whining about my constant pain. I spend my nights crying louder, feeling sorrier for myself and wishing things were different by morning. But they aren’t.

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I am still a nun. While I live in a religious community and love my Sisters deeply, Pachamama has given me another gift of a local, heart-opening community with indigenous roots and values. This unique community resides in the hearts of its members while it accepts everyone as equal individuals. This group is not designed for regimentation, but rather for transformation and relaxation. In this community, we trust each other and suspend our defenses to be with each other in loving, appropriate ways. I have no need to protect myself within this group; we safeguard each other. My hope for this fledgling community is that we grow into a global network that includes diverse people, especially my Sisters and the poor, as we serve Pachamama and her people. In many ways, my story is not unique. After all, most hearts search for happiness, most souls yearn for peace, and most folks choose to take the shortcut home.

I am grateful for my life. Very few people get to be a rebel nun with a place and purpose of service in both the ancient and modern world. Very few people get to add to and take from a common fund to be free to fight relentlessly for justice for the poor and emarginated. As I share my story with you, I hope you, too, choose to develop a daily spiritual practice whereby you know personal peace profoundly. I hope you dismiss all negative family, childhood, religious and cultural conditioning as well as all perceived negative notions of yourself and the world. I hope your best friend pushes you off your comfortable ledge and rarely tells you what you want to hear. I hope you often go to a safe place in your mind or nature to surrender all that torments you as Pachamama draws you into the present moment. I hope you rest in Pachamama’s loving embrace—heartbeat to the heartbeat with her and all creation. As you forgive and

accept yourself and others at that moment, I hope you experience Pachamama’s peace on a personal, primal, pristine level. My prayer is that your journey through life takes you to the center of your soul and the outermost edges of the cosmos. In your travels, may you realize you are finally headed home? Shazam! THERE REALLY IS A GOD! Sister Judy Bisignano and Sandra Morse live in Tucson, Arizona. They are co-authors of Sister Jaguar’s Journey, an Amazon Best Seller and winner of the Readers’ Favorite Book Award. Order the book on Amazon.com. View the 20-minute documentary for free by clicking this link: https:// www.sisterjaguarsjourney. com/filmviewer2/ Contact Sister Jaguar at judybisignano@gmail. com and Sandra Morse at sandritamorse11@gmail.com.

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Personal Growth & Development

We grow as individuals as we face challenges and overcome lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s obstacles. This section is dedicated to helping you chart your course.

Embracing Evolutionary Education by Crystal Presence

“Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” –Albert Einstein Evolutionary Education is a living process driven by inspiration, curiosity and

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passion. To make the changes that we want to see in our world, we need to shift the way we think, feel and behave. As parents and teachers, we are role modelling by what we do, not what we say. We must transform our outdated methods of educating by letting go of trying to shape our children by having them memorizing facts and defining them through standardized testing. What if we restore their freedom with a new context of evolutionary education? Education as a living process? In his groundbreaking book, The Future of Children, Phillip Moore makes it clear that “in order to navigate this next evolutionary passage where we mature into self-intelligent co-creators, we need to shift our views” about education. Free ourselves from an addictive culture while cultivating the confidence to be part of the resolution in making our planet thrive. Asking ourselves the question; “What is the nature of experiencing an evolutionary education that brings out the best in everyone and our planet?” We can bring forth a new

evolutionary education by… • Knowing that love is fundamental to who we are. Feeling that we belong in an environment of loving kindness. Knowing we are loved and connected as we explore our place in the web of life. • Exploring and discovering the miracle of play. The sacred territory where children can open their minds to merge and blend the real with the unreal, from invisible playmates to adventures that are outside time and logic. • Being in the natural world as much as possible. The natural world provides the complexity and depth, the variety and challenges that foster intricate neural pathway development. In her mesmerizing book, Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer takes us on a beautiful journey with an interconnection of all life. Children who learn this interconnection and fall in love with the natural world will protect, defend Omtimes.com

and nurture it as they grow to adults. • Learning how to be part of the resolution. Learning to physically, emotionally and mentally stay present and make sober choices in chaotic and challenging times. Embracing our faith in the higher intelligence to always be there to guide us in coming to a resolution. • Cultivating the art of paradigm shifting. Learning to live in the process. Releasing ourselves from trying to control and manipulate, making our lives perfect, right and done. Knowing that we are one and connected to a loving source and it’s higher intelligence. • Moving, vibrating expressing and circulating our energy. Opening space for joy, fun and discovering new possibilities. Learning with our whole bodies by engaging all of our senses to receive the resolution. • Exploring the art of meditation. Learning to Omtimes.com

connect with ourselves as we disengage from any addictive control. The space to expand our ability to change beliefs and envision the experiences we want. • Creating safety and trust from the inside out. Taking physical and emotional risks as we venture into unknown territory while also learning how to strategize and overcome fears. Knowing that we can make mistakes without being diminished, shamed or ridiculed. • Surrounding ourselves with healthy relationships. Learning to trust our internal guidance on the most appropriate forms, times and places for every relationship. Discovering healthy boundaries. • Awakening curiosity. Opening to explore, discover and learn new things. Seeking out new ideas and adventures into the unknown. • Engaging in the art of manifestation. Seeing an idea all the way through

from a vision, decision, intention, insights and actions to the full manifestation. • Expanding our self-esteem. Experiencing kindness and appreciation of ourselves for who we are, not for what we do or how well we perform or conform to the expectations of others. Freeing ourselves from comparison and competition (for Greek athletes the word competition meant “to strive together”). • Making every day an adventure. Turning a simple picnic, bike ride or walk into something magical. Experiencing how greeting the day with an adventurous spirit profoundly changes our approach to life. Creating community. Our future is calling us to collaborate like no generation before. The environmental, economic, political, and personal issues facing us can only be solved in a new context of cooperation and community. Collaborating with others who share our values, intentions

and willingness to take full responsibility. Drawing from the wisdom of elders such as Diamond and River Jameson, facilitators of Living Freedom. A sacred space where people from all over the world gather to emerge themselves in an evolutionary education that is shared in a fun and dynamic way. BIO Crystal is a certified expansion guide with the Total Integration Institute, author, multidimensional coach and facilitator for the live event called Freedom at the Core. She is the instructor and coach for her online course called Freedom From the Inside Out. She draws from her own experience and the experience of the thousands of people she has worked with over the past 35 years. Crystal is known for the fun and empowering way she supports people in bringing forth the experiences they want in their lives. www.crystalpresenceonline.com www.facebook.com/crystal. presence www.facebook.com/ crystalpresenceonline www.facebook.com/ emotionalparadigmshift Omtimes.com

When you look at the view of Earth from space, you are immediately in awe of what you do see: the incredible beauty of Creation. It is not until you look closer that you realize what you do not see. You do not see lines partitioning countries. You do not see separation between races. You do not see division between religions. You do not see the walls people build to isolate themselves from each other. There is only One Planet. There is only One Humanity. This section is dedicated to introducing thoughts and ideas to foster a greater understanding of Humanityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interdependence.

World Vision

Grief and the Forgotten Art of Saying Goodbye By Cathedral of the Soul

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No one taught us to understand the laws of suffering or how to face the demanding situations caused by sudden grief. What usually happens is that the pain of losing someone we love comes almost always in an unexpected way, which means that something can surprisingly brake inside our hearts.

To deal with this learning curve can be the most challenging process we may have to deal with during our lifetime. No one is immune to losses; mourning is something we will all suffer at some point: losing a family member, breaking an active relationship, or the simple fact of maturing involves going through different levels of suffering. The complicated thing about each of these forms of mourning is that none of us get along well with suffering. We do not know how to administer it, it overflows us and sometimes even destroys us. Why and How to do this? Is there perhaps a magic formula that makes us immune to separation, emptiness, the unfathomable abyss of that hand we no longer hold? Not at all. As experts explain, each person will have to find his way to face their mourning process, where to find relief, the integrity, and ability to stand up again. The importance of knowing

oneself vulnerable Emotional maturity is to know how to advance through losses, to cultivate detachment and in a way, to conceive difficulties as learning experiences. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s difficult; we know that. One can read many things about sadness, can even respond to what a therapist tells you, what your friends or relatives ask you, in order to convey support. However, whatever the level of suffering, any loss is a challenge that one must face alone. No one will cry for us; no one will rearrange our thoughts a feeling and relieve our pain. It is a task of ours that requires time, and which requires above all, to understand that we are not as strong as we thought. That we are as vulnerable as a feather carried by the wind. Is it bad? Is vulnerability a bad thing? By no means is our true strength in our vulnerability. Stop for a moment to think about this: if you resist, if you refuse to acknowledge that you feel hurt, that your life has Omtimes.com

just been broken and that you feel pain, you will raise the wall of denial before you. How do you tackle something you do not recognize exist? Why refuse to mourn the loss, to accept that you feel vulnerable? Recognizing that we are vulnerable allows us to be flexible and able to adapt, because grief, after all, is nothing more than an adaptive response to what is realized through suffering, through the pain. Pain and the Art of Let Go. It may be that speaking of mourning as a form of “art” causes you some concern. Maybe it’s because we prefer to concentrate our lives only on pleasant, comforting, and positive things. That is good, no doubt, but the pleasure of life has, in turn, a share of suffering to which almost no one is immune. However, we must clarify an important point. When it comes to talking about grief, we always think of physical loss in death. However, with a relationship affection or emotional mourning, for a love that we had to renounce or that left us, and Omtimes.com

even the simple act of maturing as a person, of taking on new values, abandoning thought schemes to develop others. These can evoke the feelings of mourning. A process of inner growth where we also overcome personal sufferings and identity, sometimes happen in a quite deep manner. Something without a doubt, the process is enriching and necessary. Yet, they are processes that always involve certain fears, because any change implies an implicit loss and even a feeling of loneliness or emptiness. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Happiness is beneficial to the body, but suffering develops the powers of the mind.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Marcel ProustWe must realize that life is not a serene walk, where happiness is always guaranteed. Life sometimes hurts, and we must accept frustration, loss and mourning. Because they are all resources and ways to necessary wisdom. Article adapted from Valeria Sabater from the site La Mente es Maravillosa Omtimes.com

Books

Year of Living Deeply A Memoir of 1969

Year of Living Deeply: A Memoir of 1969 is the 50th anniversary edition of a memoir about awakening, love, and transformation in the context of the marker events of that year. Soon after the Moon Walk, Robert Atkinson leaves a Southampton summer camp, where he was a camp counselor, to re-connect with Pete Seeger on the Hudson River sloop Clearwater. He is invited to join the maiden voyage as crew member, and one adventure leads to another as his journey of self-discovery converges with the collective transformation going on around him. Full of soulfulness, grace, and insights, Year of Living Deeply gently carries the reader into a magical realm of timelessness, from sailing on the Clearwater, to attending Woodstock, to living in a cabin in the woods, to meeting Joseph Campbell, who, with Pete Seeger, becomes a guide and mentor, to visiting Arlo Guthrie at his farm in the Berkshires with Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, to living as a guest in a Franciscan monastery, all of which help to reveal the patterns connecting all things. He returns to Southampton College, where he had graduated 3 years earlier, to teach a course on folk-rock lyrics as poetry – what all his adventures had been preparing him for – and shares with his students the lessons of a life lived deeply.

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Year of Living Deeply: A Memoir of 1969 by Robert Atkinson What’s it like to spend 50 years of reflection on a transformative time in one’s life? It’s a little like what Arlo Guthrie said to me at his farm in 1969, “As a musician, I feel that the object of a musician is to evolve music.” Evolution is, after all, the nature of Creation. This is partly what Jung is getting at when he says we are born with archetypal images in our unconscious that are waiting to emerge into our consciousness when we have experiences of them. These universal archetypes become guideposts as we venture into unknown realms. The oldest, most common, and most important of these is the call to adventure, signaling the unfolding of destiny and the fulfillment of potential. There may be no better way to evolve our lives, and whatever we do, than by regularly reflecting on them. At age 24, I became conscious of living this call. The right people came into my life at the right time, nature spoke to me in ways I hadn’t heard before, and circumstances brought unimagined opportunities. But something was missing in my understanding of it all. In the Foreword to this 50th anniversary edition of my memoir I describe the mystery of how everything that happened then was interconnected:

How could I have ever predicted that a decision I made about a

master’s thesis topic, in a program I came to only after a quick crosscountry trip for another master’s program that wasn’t quite right for me, would have led to a chance meeting with Pete Seeger, who not only became a mentor but who invited me to sail on the maiden voyage of the sloop Clearwater up the Hudson River, which put me in just the right place at the right time to attend Woodstock? And, how could I have ever imagined that that fall I would have lived in a cabin in the woods by the river, where I would be able to reflect deeply on the meaning of nature unfolding around me, and that a random visit to the city one night would have led to another chance meeting, this time with Joseph Campbell, who became the other mentor I needed just then to help me make sense of all that I was living at that time? Or, how could I have known that not being able to stay the winter in the cabin would have led me to a nearby Franciscan monastery where I was given a cell of my own to live in, where I learned from the friars about a sacred tradition all new to me? And, I could have never predicted then that from there I’d return to the college I had graduated from three years earlier to teach a course all of this had been preparing me for, and which

completed a transformative cycle in my life I would have never expected.

is the journey toward the recognition of the oneness of all and the holiness of everything.

The pattern I was living by, how it flowed together, and the deep meaning it was adding to my life, all became understandable when I serendipitously met Joseph Campbell at one of his Cooper Union talks. He spoke about how the mythic journey parallels what we can experience in our own lives. He not only clarified for me what my own life experiences were really about, but he also put them into the context of a timeless, universal pattern that all the gods and goddesses, heroes and heroines, of all cultures have lived before us, and that we all can also live out in our own lives today.

Reading Year of Living Deeply will provide insights into how we can all live conscious lives. Beyond chronicling 1969, this memoir connects us to the present moment in three important ways: a) by reminding us that the marker events of that year were critical in shaping the transformation of consciousness that is now in full swing; b) by providing powerful insights into how those events have shifted our collective worldview; and, c) by illustrating how important it is for each of us to find our own call to adventure, to be open to our own search for truth, especially in a time of opposing views, and to follow what most deeply calls to our heart and soul.

When that “mythic” portion of my life came to its natural conclusion, I began writing about it in earnest. That’s when my life took a turn toward discovering meaning I hadn’t seen before, and when I started a practice of deep reflection that has continued. Year of Living Deeply follows the four seasons, beginning with summer. Here’s a piece from spring expressing part of a learning that comes from continued reflection on the life we are living: The brightest light is the one that passes from heart to heart. As a wave of love washing over all on earth, this light is awakening us all to a time of promise, a moment of destiny. Evolution

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