DO’S AND DON’TS FROM

AN URBAN SHAMAN PERSPECTIVE

1.  STUDY WITH PEOPLE WHO SEE YOU IN THE HIGHEST LIGHT OF WHO YOU COULD BE.
   You will tend to become that in their company. Never work with someone who you feel is not in integrity – how can anything be healed in such a climate? Notice your dreams before you start working with a spiritual teacher. Is there any kind of warning in them? Unless your teacher is self-realized, you will outgrow their guidance. But a good teacher will happily help you as far as he or she has gone. 

   (Please see amma.org for information about Amma, the Indian hugging saint/avatar....She has helped millions move into their hearts.)

2. A GOOD TEACHER IS GENEROUS WITH KNOWLEDGE.
   Look at nature herself. She offers everything all of the time.

   
   

3. THE OLD PARADIGM IS POWER OVER SCARCITY.
   Avoid those who treat you as if you are lesser than they are because you haven’t learned the tools they are offering. The spiritual journey is a deepening which is free to everyone who chooses it.

   
   

4. NOTICE THE WAYS YOU FEEL BAD ABOUT YOURSELF AND DON’T BUY INTO IT.
   Notice too, the energy of “trying to grow” spiritually and feeling bad because you think you are not doing it right, that everyone else somehow gets it but only you don’t. These feelings of inadequacy are a replay of how you felt as a child and will surface on the way to your healing. Even the awareness that you are caught in the feelings of your wounded child will help them heal. Just knowing it isn’t the full story, that this is just a passing emotional state (even if it feels soooo familiar), is a big part of the healing.

   
   

5. THE DEVOTIONAL APPROACH IS THE QUICKEST ROAD TO ENLIGHTENMENT.
   It is the quickest because it is the most like God’s. Focus on loving yourself, others and all of life. Turn your mind toward gratitude and forgiveness. Overtime, you will come into an emotionally loving attitude to all of life, including yourself.

   
   

6. TO REALLY EMBODY UNIVERSAL LOVE, WE HAVE TO FEEL OUR EMOTIONS. Feeling our emotions with an attitude of self-compassion and observation fully tends to heal our body chemistry and physical health. Less energy is spent on repression and more is spent on dancing into life.

   
   

7. AT THE ROOT OF HUMAN SUFFERING IS OUR PAIN OF FEELING SO CUT OFF OR UNWORTHY OF UNIVERSAL LOVE.
   We may say: “God is everywhere.” – But we don’t feel it. This shows in how we use nature, control nature but forget that we too, are part of nature. When we let ourselves feel the grief of being so disconnected, the tears melt the personality’s numbness and one feels more alive. This is the process of awakening.

   
   

8. FEAR AND ANGER ALSO COME UP TO BE FELT.
   But the root of both is the grief of feeling so separate from All That Is. The more we can be observers and feelers at the same time, the faster our progress. If we observe ourselves as we feel these deep feelings and know we are clearing our connection to ALL THAT IS, then we won’t buy into the particular storyline or drama being played out. No longer hostage to our emotions, we have more choices with how to respond to a situation.

   
   

9. PRACTICE SHARING YOURSELF, AND YOUR SKILLS WHENEVER YOU CAN, ESPECIALLY IF YOU CAN DO THIS FROM YOUR HEART.
   Everything is One so whatever you give to another, you give to yourself. As you grow spiritually, you can notice the subtle receiving that begins the moment you reach out and give.

   
   

10. INTERRUPT YOUR NEGATIVE MIND WITH PRAYERS, MANTRAS AND PRACTICE THINKING ABOUT UNIVERSAL LOVE AND GRACE.
    Our minds can get negative but the more time we spend thinking loving thoughts, the gentler and more loving our lives will be. Don’t fight or worry about the negativity – just observing it lessens its impact on our lives. As you are able, replace unwanted thoughts with positive ones. Gently steer your mind elsewhere. Doing this will brighten your own future and everyone else's because our thoughts and actions subtly influence everyone in the world.

    
    

11. PRACTICE BEING FULLY PRESENT.
    Training yourself to be fully present is like putting money in the spiritual bank. When you are present in this moment rather than lost in worries or thoughts, you can receive guidance that otherwise is not even noticed. Also, as you become more aware of your body and how it feels moment-to- moment, your body can speak to you in many ways. The by-product of this is increased awareness and trust.

    
    

12. PLAY INTO THE THOUGHT THAT YOU ARE AN IMMORTAL BEING IN HUMAN FORM.
    Enlightenment comes as one knows this for sure.

    
    

13. REMEMBER, THE HUMAN RACE IS MORPHING INTO A HIGHER CONSCIOUSNESS.
    This is a new era. The mental, emotional and spiritual shifts facing us have never been done before. Cut yourself a little slack!

Premasudha Janet Hobbs  
Evolution Made Simple    
copyright 2004