Knowing what is right and what is wrong in your own inner consciousness is insufficient. It is not the knowing of truth that transforms a person; it is the doing of truth that has an impact on you and on the other people that you interact with.
You may know that it is inappropriate to think selfishly and look out for your own best interests first, but your inner emotions may drive you to be blinded to the needs of others.
You may know that it is against your basic truth to judge another individual, but your inner emotions may cause you to look at that person and make a judgment because of the effect you are allowing them to have on your life.
You may understand that all of God's creatures were created equal, but that doesn't stop you, on an emotional level, from feeling that the human race is the most important life form on the planet.
The discrepancy lies not in a lack of information, for the information is available on a world-wide basis for those who would seek it, evaluate it, and accept it as their own; the discrepancy lies in the ability to integrate Universal Law into your lifestyle.
Awareness of the self does not just focus into the positive aspects of a personality, or the positive aspects of skills and talents that you brought with you into this lifetime, but into the negative as well; it is only when the positive is weighed against the negative, and the balanced perspective is used as a guidepost in integrating higher consciousness into the self that the influence becomes apparent in your relationships and in your lifestyle.
Self-actualization can be translated to mean, "making the self actual." It means there is no difference between what you think and what you do. There is no contradiction between what you tell others and how you respond yourself. It is manifesting who you are and what you believe in on a day-to-day, consistent basis.
The path to self-awareness is a long and solitary one, and many individuals give up. It is difficult to accept what our conscious choices in the course of a specific existence have driven us to do to other people. It is hard for us to accept that we have been selfish, or resentful, or spiteful. It is hard for us to see where we have deliberately manipulated our lives so that we have control over the people and the situations and the events within it. It is not easy to admit that we are not the positive, smiling, loving person that we prefer to see ourselves as; when, in the course of personal growth, it becomes necessary for an individual to truly, honestly evaluate how they have interacted with their fellow human beings, the drop-out rate skyrockets.
This is unfortunate, because personal growth cannot proceed - self-awareness and self-actualization cannot be accomplished - without a true and open acknowledgement of who we used to be and how we used to live our lives, no matter how unpleasant that panorama may be.
This does not mean that we need to spend years of our lives suffering regret and remorse for the wrong we have done in their lives to other people. It does mean that we need to take a reasonable amount of time to look back and to evaluate honestly what was really at play in any particular situation, where the two parties were really coming from, and where each conducted themselves with less than universal love.
We cannot change the past; we cannot undo the influence that we have upon other people by our thoughts and our feelings and our reactions, but we can learn from that experience and make a personal commitment never to treat anyone with that lack of respect again. If that person is still in our life, we can have the grace to apologize, and share our learning experience, and say, "I'm sorry that I used to be like that. I want to be like this, now, and I hope that you will help."
It is only by acknowledging our past weaknesses, and sharing our future aspirations, that we can experience the support and encouragement of others on our journey to self-actualization. If we are not willing to admit that we have ever made a mistake, ever reacted inappropriately, ever deliberately hurt someone, then we cannot admit that we need to change, or that we need other people's help in doing so.
It is, from a soul evolution perspective, self-defeating behavior to remain in situations made from the lower consciousness that create less than fulfilling situations and relationships in our lives.
Lois Grant-Holland is a Life Path Focus Counselor offering Life Path Focus Sessions, Karmic Astrology Charts, Channeled Guidance, Intuitive Readings and Classes and Workshops to spiritual seekers on all positive paths, and is the site facilitator at The A.N.S.W.E.R. - (The Seeker's Resource Guide to Alternative, New Thought, Spiritual Growth, Wellness and Enlightenment Resources.) You can visit her website at http://www.loisgrantholland.com
monthly home cleaning Buffalo Grove ..Am I dreaming? The sign outside the skyscraper reads: "Spiritual... Read More
I have been reading a lot lately about the concepts... Read More
Far to many people have become "followers" rather than BEING... Read More
An angel can be your best friend. Angels have been... Read More
In the spring of 2003, I spent three weeks in... Read More
The Question Really picture this in your mind.... Someone tells... Read More
As humans, we are the species that operate with symbols.... Read More
In Corrogue, Celtic mythology helps me live a wonderful life.As... Read More
Billy Graham once said, "Being a Christian is more than... Read More
Some of my greatest teachers have taught me that faith... Read More
The world's idea of justice and freedom fall short of... Read More
Tarot card reading delves into an individual's psyche and thus... Read More
Acknowledgement of our need of God and reliance upon Him... Read More
I know eyebrows are probably raising about now, but let... Read More
Let us face reality squarely in the face by acknowledging... Read More
It's an almost unbelievable thought, but could you be getting... Read More
Human beings are blessed with a unique gift: the gift... Read More
Let Your Family and Friends Know That You Are A... Read More
What's a cosmic 2 x 4 you ask? It's actually... Read More
It doesn't matter what magazine or newspaper you pick up... Read More
It's human nature to point a finger when we think... Read More
For some of us, spirituality is considered a religion, and... Read More
We hear this word so often and have one thing... Read More
Life is full of ups and downs, trials, and tribulations.... Read More
The truth revealed as we read about Hazael also reminds... Read More
scheduled maid service Mundelein ..Who Are you?Have you ever asked yourself the question 'Who... Read More
Is it not true that only after gaining Enlightenment (Self-Realization)... Read More
Have you ever noticed how much our lives resemble a... Read More
No one, not even God can make us choose the... Read More
As I sat down today to write this article, I... Read More
To find out how psychic you are, try answering the... Read More
"I would rather regret some of my failures in life... Read More
What does the story of your life say about you?... Read More
Mrs. Dixon the famous prognosticator and psychic to the stars... Read More
Job was a spiritual man who loved and obeyed God... Read More
African-American people are natural caretakers. We do a great job... Read More
When I first heard Donnie McClurkin's song, "We Fall Down... Read More
I cringed lower into the seat of my grey metal... Read More
When we find spirituality, or it finds us, the experience... Read More
THE KABBALAH OF PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION: TURNING DARKNESS INTO LIGHT"In the... Read More
The Orisha are the Messengers of Oludumare, the God/dess of... Read More
A while back the Lord had given me this message... Read More
Psalm 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God;I... Read More
Several months ago, I read an... Read More
Irish myth has the power to transform your life into... Read More
Freedom....The cherished goal of humanity throughout its history.No society has... Read More
Imagine for a moment. It's Tuesday night about 7pm. You... Read More
What is it with angels and digital clocks? I fell... Read More
Many of you come to this site because you are... Read More
Don't be confused that a saint is a religious leader... Read More
Spirituality |