Yesterday was Christmas Day and the realisation came to me that, in spite of all the consumerist hype and nonsense, this is an utterly sacred day as it honours the birth of a holy man, a great teacher, mystic and enlightened being who eternally offers us his guidance for living life in a profound and meaningful way. If we don't treat Christmas Day in this way, then we have failed to grasp its true meaning and we might as well just go to the office. I realised this when I went to the mass and observed the undignified behaviour of some of the congregation. Why were they there? What does Christmas mean to them? Is it just the claptrap of Father Christmas, jingle bells and the endless shopping? Is it a belief in the myth of the Christmas story that is okay for us when we are children but becomes blown apart when we become spiritually of age and have learned the truth of it all? Is it the mythical historical Jesus or the reality of the Cosmic Christ whose birth we are honouring, if indeed we are honouring anything? Does Christmas mean anything profound at all to those who attend a Christmas service or is it human beings just being like sheep as they are wont to do and going through the motions because it is the done thing? Are we searching for the Truth or do we just bury our heads in the sand and remain spiritually dead?
Personally, I am no longer a Catholic but I honour the birth of the Cosmic Christ with gratitude as someone who came to help show us the way. He was a Buddha and Buddhas have such a spiritual meaning for us as they radiate unbounded compassion and wisdom and understanding. They are beacons of light in a world of darkness and if we have any heart, or any spiritual sense, at all we should honour them on their holy day. Acknowledging this will help the development of our own compassion, wisdom and understanding.
With all my heart I wish you all a happy and holy Christmas.
Friday, 26 December 2008
Wednesday, 17 December 2008
Keeping Positive
It's amazing how the media, especially in Britain, love to focus on bad news and to try and make us feel that the world as we know it is falling apart. Prophets of doom, they are, catylists for negativity. And it's amazing, too, that the British prime minister can have a smile on his face as he tries to make out he is saving the British economy when, in fact, he is more responsible than anybody for it being in the mess it's in. Yet, when we look at the broad picture of what is happening globally, we can see it as being the karmic retribution for monstrous, excessive greed by the banks and society as a whole and utter incompetence by governments on both sides of the Atlantic. We're getting our cumuppence because we're all to blame in some way and the consumerist pack of cards is tumbling down. Hurrah, let's start again. Economies are cyclical, they go up and down and this time they're inevitably going a long way down. But we're still alive, we've got a roof over our heads and food on the table, and we've got minds and the value of our varied experiences to help us work out how we can live our lives in a more sensibly sustainable way. So, let's get it all in perspective and find a way of simplifying our lives and not living on money that isn't there. Indeed, we can see this as an opportunity for cultivating a bit of wisdom and focusing our attention on what is truly important in our lives. After all, nothing is for ever.
If we are feeling blown apart by how this economic downturn is affecting us, then we can find a way of lessening the stress by focusing on our necessities rather than our unnecessary desires. Remember, we can always change our perception of anything in order to genuinely suit our needs better. We have the ability to make choices. So, let's now make the right choices, the ones that are truly good for us and for our families and friends.
Let us also simplify our lives by cutting out what is not for our highest good. This is such a great opportunity for us to reflect deep and long on how we have been living our lives and on the changes we can create to make them more sustainable and therefore more joyful. We can cut out what we don't need. Yes, simplify.
For so many people this has become an annus horribilis. At least, thst is one way to look at it, to feel a victim and to be sorry for ourselves. Yes, we can do that. Or, instead, we can see it as an opportunity for change. Choices again. I remember during the last Asian 'crash' seeing television footage of a former millionaire Thai car dealer from Bangkok who was laughingly cleaning a car with hose, bucket and sponge in his new role as car valeter. Yes, he was staring all over again with a smile on his face... from the bottom. The human spirit can be indomitable.
So, let's laugh at the press, and at Mr Brown, and instead we just keep and open mind and remain clear-headed and deeply intuitive and know that there is always a way if we'll just allow the universe to speak to us. Trust in man-made institutions has flown out o the window because the motives have all been wrong. Instead, we need to trust ourselves and our natural power and wisdom and also to trust in the universe to guide us. Upwards and onwards... into 2009.
With love,
Wrio
If we are feeling blown apart by how this economic downturn is affecting us, then we can find a way of lessening the stress by focusing on our necessities rather than our unnecessary desires. Remember, we can always change our perception of anything in order to genuinely suit our needs better. We have the ability to make choices. So, let's now make the right choices, the ones that are truly good for us and for our families and friends.
Let us also simplify our lives by cutting out what is not for our highest good. This is such a great opportunity for us to reflect deep and long on how we have been living our lives and on the changes we can create to make them more sustainable and therefore more joyful. We can cut out what we don't need. Yes, simplify.
For so many people this has become an annus horribilis. At least, thst is one way to look at it, to feel a victim and to be sorry for ourselves. Yes, we can do that. Or, instead, we can see it as an opportunity for change. Choices again. I remember during the last Asian 'crash' seeing television footage of a former millionaire Thai car dealer from Bangkok who was laughingly cleaning a car with hose, bucket and sponge in his new role as car valeter. Yes, he was staring all over again with a smile on his face... from the bottom. The human spirit can be indomitable.
So, let's laugh at the press, and at Mr Brown, and instead we just keep and open mind and remain clear-headed and deeply intuitive and know that there is always a way if we'll just allow the universe to speak to us. Trust in man-made institutions has flown out o the window because the motives have all been wrong. Instead, we need to trust ourselves and our natural power and wisdom and also to trust in the universe to guide us. Upwards and onwards... into 2009.
With love,
Wrio
Monday, 8 December 2008
What's in a Dream?
For the past few years I have been spending the winter months in Thailand in retreat from the damp and dreary English weather, the high cost of living and the joylessness that pervades the country at this time of year, so sapping one's energy. I am fortunate to be able to do it and by and large it has been a great experience. I give thanks from my heart to the lovely Thai people for their warmth, kindness and hospitality. But now it is time to move on, I think.
The other night I had a vivid dream: to purchase a plot of land in a warm, sunny, rural location together with a few like-minded souls and each one of us to construct our own simple cottage. This would have to be in a location where the purchase of land and construction remains cheap as this is designed to be a reasonably priced project costing no more than £40,000 or £50,000 each. It could be in Thailand, or Southern Europe, or elsewhere in South East Asia.
The dream was crystal clear but the location was not Thailand as the island, for it was an island location, was clearly mapped. So it's as though it came to me in my dream consciousness as the germ of an idea rather than a pin pointer to an exact location.
The other point of the dream is that what would be important is the sharing in the setting up of a loose community of fellow souls who want to live a simple, spiritually aware, eco-friendly lifestyle for part or all of the year in a beautiful and maybe even mystical location. We would each have our own cottage built according to the design chosen by us.
As I write this from peaceful Chiang Mai, I wonder if there is anyone out there who would be interested in joining with me to turn this germ of an idea into a practical reality. If so, you know where to reach me, via my website or wrio@reikiway.com.
And listen to those dreams. They may lead to something.
The other night I had a vivid dream: to purchase a plot of land in a warm, sunny, rural location together with a few like-minded souls and each one of us to construct our own simple cottage. This would have to be in a location where the purchase of land and construction remains cheap as this is designed to be a reasonably priced project costing no more than £40,000 or £50,000 each. It could be in Thailand, or Southern Europe, or elsewhere in South East Asia.
The dream was crystal clear but the location was not Thailand as the island, for it was an island location, was clearly mapped. So it's as though it came to me in my dream consciousness as the germ of an idea rather than a pin pointer to an exact location.
The other point of the dream is that what would be important is the sharing in the setting up of a loose community of fellow souls who want to live a simple, spiritually aware, eco-friendly lifestyle for part or all of the year in a beautiful and maybe even mystical location. We would each have our own cottage built according to the design chosen by us.
As I write this from peaceful Chiang Mai, I wonder if there is anyone out there who would be interested in joining with me to turn this germ of an idea into a practical reality. If so, you know where to reach me, via my website or wrio@reikiway.com.
And listen to those dreams. They may lead to something.
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