There Is a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem
The concept of being a sinner is an image of self-contempt and guilt, while the concept of encountering an obstacle is empowering. I love the healing parable of Jesus and the blind man.
As he went along he saw a man blind from birth, his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned? This man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.”
We have been trained to think in terms of sin and punishment. These ideas disempower us by stressing that we are weak and wrong. The empowering way is to view trials as lessons and opportunities to choose differently. We can transcend the odious notion of being sinners cloaked in guilt, awaiting punishment. To access a spiritual solution to a problem involves focusing on the idea of a solution. The sinner filled with guilt becomes immobilized and remains in passive inertia. When we view the sinful behavior as an obstacle to a higher level of awareness, we can still take responsibility by asking ourselves, “What is the lesson for me? And what can I do to avoid this the next time?”
The disciples in the parable assumed that the man’s blindness must have been caused by a sin somewhere by someone involved in this blind man’s life. But Jesus taught that misfortunes in the physical world are not because humans have sinned. The misfortunes are obstacles on the path to uniting with the infinite within us. He reminds them that no sin has taken place.
We are all blind in many ways. It is through our figurative blindness that God’s work can be displayed in our life. It was Mahatma Gandhi among others who preached the value of the dark side. Our dark side and our dark spots are as Gandhi said, a blessing from God, rather than an encumbrance for which we are to be punished. Our conditioned belief system learned the concept of sin.
This “radical” idea teaches the concept of obstacles to unified awareness of God within. If you have violated any of the commandments that you ideally hold on to as law; if you have stolen, cheated, or lied, or coveted or even physically harmed another, try viewing these actions as obstacles to your spiritual union with all that you truly are and can become. Remind yourself that this is what you would love more than anything. Then you will have empowered yourself to begin the process of removing those obstacles.
This is such a freeing concept. Say to yourself, “I still have obstacles that I have imposed which keep me from a spiritual solution,” rather than, “I am a sinner and there is no hope for me unless God sees it in his heart to forgive me.” One thought empowers, while the other diminishes. One thought leads to a solution, the other keeps you immobile. In short, go and sin no more, because there is no such thing.
Even if you have done irreparable wrong to someone through uncontrolled greed, or anger, you can still view this action in terms of obstacles to your union with God. Certainly you will feel remorse and do all that you can to right the wrongful acts. You can only correct such flaws in the future by viewing yourself as having erected barriers to your highest self and by forgiving yourself. Sincere penance does not consist of perpetuating grief for wrongs but in resolving to avoid in the future those deeds that call for remorse.
THE FOURTH APHORISM
The person who is steadfast in abstaining from falsehood has the power to obtain for himself and others the fruits of good deeds, without having to perform the deeds themselves.
Normally when we use the word truthful we infer that a person’s words correspond to the facts of which he speaks. Yet in this yoga sutra, Patanjali’s phrase, “steadfast in abstaining from falsehood,” means something quite apart from being factual and honest.
What is meant here is the practice of completely and wholly identifying oneself as a spiritual being, united with God at all times and never confusing one’s identity with the ego world of possessions, achievements, and reputation. To reach this state is to be in the company of those rare saints whom we all revere and quote so frequently. In this state we can be moving toward steadfast abstention and find ourselves gaining those fruits of good deeds. They will enable us to not only resolve our own “problems” but those of others.
Look carefully at the words used in this sutra. Obtaining for yourself and others the fruits of good deeds without having to perform the deeds. Just what does this mean to you?
Patanjali suggests that steadfast abstention from falsehood means that saying to someone, “God bless you,” means that the person is truly blessed because we are no longer capable of even dreaming an untruth. Similarly, this steadfast abstainer from falsehood can perform miraculous cures by simply telling a sick person that he is well. Thus Patanjali suggests that when a person becomes perfected in truth he literally gains control of truth. That person’s being, along with their words and actions allows them to obtain the fruits of good deeds without necessarily performing the deeds with their physical bodies.
Now I am not offering you sainthood here in exchange for becoming a one-hundred-percent truth teller. Rather, what I am proposing is that you open yourself to an idea that allows you to gradually and steadily remember your identity as a divine spiritual connected-to-God entity. In moments you previously labeled as stressful or problematic, you will begin to see the fruits of good deeds (another way of saying problem solving) show up without having to labor long and hard to solve your difficulty.
The very fact of your self-reminder that you are united with God in this very instant of strife will allow your thoughts and affirmations to become your reality. As you steadily gain this awareness, you will have the same impact on others. In other words, you will be bringing spirit (which is all you are in your awareness) to everyone and everything you encounter, and the fruits of good deeds will be observed on a regular basis. Whenever you find yourself filled with inner frustration or rage, a gentle private reminder to abstain from this false identity with the material world, will bring you back to your true essence. When you are back, notice how the rage and frustration have dissipated. Now use words to bless yourself and the situation, and you begin to see what Patanjali meant with this “radical” aphorism.
As you become more adept at abstaining from falsehood, as defined here, you will bring this kind of calm, peaceful true identity, a connected-to-God countenance, to those in your immediate surroundings. The more steadfast you are in this regard, the more you will hear others say: “I just feel better when she is around.” “I feel calm when he shows up.” “I actually sensed that my discomfort and pain went away when he talked to me.” You literally raise the consciousness of those around you when you are steadfast in your abstention from falsehood. You become a healer without going to healing school. You become a blessing without a degree in divinity. You are obtaining the results of good deeds without having to sweat and work at doing the right thing.
Spirituality is very similar to health. Everyone has health. For some their health is excellent and for others it is poof, yet you cannot escape having it at some level or another. The same is true for spirituality. Every single human being is a spiritual being. We all have spirit. For some their spirituality is high and therefore life-enhancing, loving, peaceful, kind, and at the top of the ladder as I defined it in chapter one.
The more steadfastly we abstain from false identity the less attached we become to anything that is associated with false identity. As detachment increases, spirituality moves up the ladder that you can never completely climb off, any more than you can step off the health ladder. We begin to see the fruits of good deeds appearing without having to work at it. Ultimately, we are close to the top and find there are others just wanting to bathe a bit in our aura, so to speak.
I think of the story of Martin Luther who impacted the lives of millions by his steadfast abstention from falsehood. Luther never wanted to begin a Reformation. He merely wanted the Catholic Church officials to address some ninety-five questions.
To raise funds for the church, Pope Leo X, a big spender who needed money to build gold-lined palaces and create extensive works of art for the Vatican, sent representatives on a mission to sell indulgences. These indulgences were written statements from the pope excusing individuals for sins in exchange for money. People believed they could buy their way into Heaven. Many were burned at the stake after confessions gained in torturous inquisitions.
Luther wanted to rediscover the original gospel as it had been before it was corrupted during the Inquisition. He asked for answers to questions that bothered his conscience. For this he was excommunicated and had to go into hiding from the established and corrupt church. When asked to recant, he said, “I am bound by conscience and the word of God. Therefore I can and will recant nothing, because to act against one’s conscience is neither safe nor salutary. Here I stand. I can do no other. So help me God.”
By steadfastly abstaining from falsehood, Martin Luther helped to begin the Protestant Reformation, and to force the established church to abolish such practices as torture, execution, and the selling of indulgences.
You don’t have to become a Martin Luther overnight. But let in the idea that you can access divine spiritual power to alleviate problems first for yourself, and then for others by shifting away from false identification. Little baby steps at first. Remind yourself that all those who had this power that Patanjali spoke of began their journey by reminding themselves, in moments of strife, that they were first and without a doubt divine spiritual beings, connected rather than separated from their source.
THE FIFTH APHORISM
When a person is steadfast in his abstention from harming others, then all living creatures will cease to feel enmity in his presence.
Patanjali’s statement, “abstention from harming others,” includes not only actual acts of harm but also thoughts of jealousy, judgment, and injury in any fashion. Steadfastly renouncing violence in thoughts and in all dealings with others creates an atmosphere wherein all violence and enmity ceases to exist because it is not reciprocated.
This is a powerful awareness that you can begin to incorporate into your life immediately. Any situation where you experience anger or even mild discomfort involves thoughts of enmity toward the other person or people. Patanjali explains that other people will not feel enmity or anguish if you steadfastly abstain from having harmful thoughts toward them in the first place. Amazing! By you working at not having any judgments or harmful thoughts, those around you will be free of anguish also.
Coming to this awareness of being steadfast in abstaining from harmful thoughts is a potent tool for accessing a spiritual solution to problems involving relationships. When a person is talking to you and you are slipping into the mode of feeling angry about how you are being talked to, you can remind yourself in that instant to abstain from thinking harmful or angry thoughts. I find it is quite effective to use the following words, first internally, and then I say them out loud. They are, “You’re right about that!” Not sarcastically. Without rancor, I simply allow the other person to be right, which is all their ego really wants.
This tool does not make the other person right, it merely allows someone to believe that they are, and it allows you to be steadfast in your abstention from harmful thoughts. As you practice allowing others to be right, you are beginning to live from your higher self rather than your ego. Eventually it will be your authentic way of reacting to others, even when they are being insulting.
There is a story concerning the Buddha, who is in the company of a fellow traveler who tests this great teacher with derogatory, insulting, disparaging, and bitter responses to anything the Buddha says. Every day, for three days when the Buddha spoke, the traveler responded by calling him a fool, and ridiculing the Buddha in some arrogant fashion. Finally, at the end of the third day, the traveler could stand it no more. He asked, “How is it that you are able to be so loving and kind when all I’ve done for the past three days is dishonor and offend you? Each time I am disobliging to you, you respond in a loving manner. How is this possible?”
The Buddha responded with a question of his own for the traveler. “If someone offers you a gift, and you do not accept that gift, to whom does the gift belong?” His question provided the traveler with a new insight.
When someone offers you a gift of their insults, and you refuse to accept them, they obviously still belong to the original giver. And why would you ever choose to be upset or angry over something that belonged to someone else?
In this aphorism, Patanjali states, “all living creatures will cease to feel enmity” in the presence of one who does not think or act in a violent manner. This suggests we can affect the animal kingdom when we are steadfast in this attribute. You’ve heard the stories of how Saint Francis of Assisi would tame wild wolves who were decimating the livestock, merely by being in their presence. Moreover, doves would fly to his hands and all manner of wild creatures would feel the love that emanated from him and would cease to feel enmity.
I have experimented with this notion on many occasions myself. Once while jogging in Egypt a pack of dogs came running toward me at 4:30 A.M. barking ferociously. I stopped jogging and also stopped thoughts of fear or violence and they became calm and harmless.
As you contemplate this idea of abstention from harmful thoughts or intentions, keep in mind that those areas of your life, which you have labeled as “problems,” could no longer exist if you were to be this idea each and every day. The reason you are not experiencing bliss at this precise moment is because you are focusing on what is wrong or missing. Begin the process of filling your mind with love, gratitude, and forgiveness. Ernest Holmes wrote, “What a load is dropped from the shoulders of personal responsibility, when we realize that the eternal mind holds naught against anybody.”
Being in the space of the eternal mind is what you need to do as you pursue spiritual solutions in your life. Hold naught against anyone, and while you’re at it, keep in mind Albert Einstein’s helpful hint about why it is important to change around the way you process everything and everyone involved in what you call your problems. Einstein said, “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking which created them.”
Problems are illusions of the material world. Solutions are attributes of your immersion in the world of spirit. Yes, there is a spiritual solution to every problem. But you will have to move to a higher level of thinking to do so. These then are the five basic aphorisms of Patanjali that will guide you to change the mind that created the problem:
1. Identify yourself beyond ignorance.
2. Calmness is the peace of God within you.
3. You create obstacles, you do not sin.
4. Be steadfast in abstaining from falsehood.
5. Be steadfast in abstaining from harmful thoughts and acts.
You can work at applying these whenever you are involved in a “problem.” They are extremely useful in the discovery and application of spiritual solutions.
As you face a problem, remind yourself that you created it with one mind, and you will solve it with another. Hence, the idea that is the title of this book. “Problems” come from a nonspiritual mindset. There is a spiritual solution available, and you can create the energy to access it at will.
As you work at mastering these five aphorisms of Patanjali, know that they represent the highest places you can attain in the world of spirit. They symbolize how those we call masters and saints lived, breathed, and helped others to transcend their problems. You obviously won’t be one hundred percent on the mark with all five at all times, but gradually, you will remind yourself of the need for a spiritual solution in trying times or when confronted with a problem.
One step at a time, you will find grace, and peace supplanting the strife. You will literally be creating a new energy field for yourself, which is the subject of the next chapter in this book and in your life as well.
3 IT’S ALL ENERGY
Nothing happens until something moves.
—ALBERT EINSTEIN
Spiritual problem solving ultimately means examining the entire concept of energy in a new way. Generally we think of people with high energy in terms of stamina and vigor with qualities of enthusiasm and tirelessness. I am suggesting you think of energy in a context of vibration and movement.
In this formulation, energy is the speed of an individual’s energy field. The idea here is that a higher frequency will aid in problem solving, whereas a lower frequency will intensify problems and inhibit solutions. This is a crucial point in the simplified paradigm I present here and in chapter four. You have within you the absolute ability to increase your frequency and enhance the energy field of your everyday life. By increasing the speed at which you vibrate you move into those frequencies I am calling spirit, and away from those that are grounded in the material world of problems.
Stephen Hawking, who may be the most scientifically enlightened mind on the planet today, has said, “Apparently common sense notions work well when dealing with material things like apples and/or comparatively slow moving things like planets; but they don’t work at all for things moving at the speed of light.” Hence, if you want to access and utilize the energy that vibrates at faster frequencies than ordinary levels of awareness you have to be able to Shift Your Energy At Appropriate times out of good old-fashioned “common sense.” Valerie Hunt, in her well-documented and intriguing book Infinite Mind: Science of the Human Vibrations of Consciousness, concludes, “As a result of my work, I can no longer consider the body as organic systems or tissues. The healthy body is a flowing, interactive electrodynamic energy field. Motion is more natural to life than non-motion—things that keep flowing are inherently good. What interferes with flow will have detrimental effects.”
I do not expect you to become an expert on electrodynamic energy fields or to explore this ever-growing field of quantum energy physics. All I want at this point is to introduce you to the fundamental awareness necessary to activate your higher frequency. Here are five simplified verifiable facts, which it is my hope will introduce you to your innate ability to do that.
1. Everything vibrates, everything moves.
2. Faster vibrations mean getting closer to “spirit.”
3. Slower vibrations keep us in the world of “problems.”
4. You can choose to eliminate whatever interferes with increasing your vibrational field.
5 You can negotiate the presence of factors in your life to increase your frequency of vibrations.
There you have it in a nutshell. A spiritual solution to your every problem includes changing your energy field so that you can access the fastest frequency and choose to implement it at will in your daily life.
Now, let’s take a closer look at these five basics and how they will help you implement your spiritual solutions.
Everything Vibrates, Everything Moves
If you look at a page of this book through an extremely powerful microscope you will see it is a dance, with molecules, atoms, electrons, sub- and sub-subatomic particles moving about in ceaseless energy patterns. The book appears solid because your senses (which also vibrate) perceive solidity at this frequency. Thus, this book is energy slowed way down so that it appears as a solid mass. This is also true of your body, and everything in the material world—all slowed down energy that appears not to vibrate. But one look under the microscope gives us that astonishing view of motion.
Likewise, everything is in a state of motion. We appear to be sitting still, but we know that the our planet is spinning once every twenty-four hours, orbiting the sun once every 365 days, and moving through space at dizzying speeds. Spinning, orbiting, and moving are all verbs describing movement. The same can be said of your body. It is a field of vibration and movement, which appears solid and motionless.
All information that you receive comes to you through your senses. Your eyes for example, perceive light, which is really a very fast vibration of air and electromagnetic particles. Your ears perceive sound, which is a slower frequency of air vibrations. Were you to examine that information perceived by your eyes and ears before your senses “picked them up” so to speak, you would see that those vibrations have no evil or disharmony inherent in them. They are simply problem-free vibrations. But, when you take them in, suddenly you say, “What I hear is a problem for me,” “What I see is evil and terrible,” and so on. In other words, you took in those problem-free faster energies and processed them in such a way as to create problems. Even though the energy that you received was totally devoid of anything even resembling a problem, or evil, or terrible. Keep this important notion uppermost in your mind as you read on.
Now for the big leap. Every problem that you face has a vibrational frequency and a movement to it. When you live exclusively in the slowed down, solid-appearing world, you encounter slowed down solid-appearing circumstances that we define as problems. Everything, including what we call a problem, has an energy field. When problems collide with our slowed down solid world, we feel the conflict as an imbalance in our energy field. We call it a problem that we can’t understand or resolve. Thus, diseases of all kinds represent a frequency and movement just like everything else in the universe. Addictions too have a frequency or movement. Fear, stress, and anxiety are all frequencies. I believe we all have the potential to explore beyond the world of the solid and motionless, and learn to increase the speed of our vibrations. This is the key to successfully approaching the slow vibrating motionless problems in our lives.
Thinking in terms of frequencies and vibrations may be a new idea for you, yet our scientists are doing this all the time. They study matter at the subatomic level and report that the essence of creation is energy. Particles appearing from energy seem to stop and appear solid. My purpose is not to delve into the world of quantum physics and give you elaborate scientific proofs. Others far more qualified than I have already done so. My purpose is to have you consider that the solution you seek to anything you’ve labeled a problem may lie in your willingness to shift your vibrational energy patterns.
Here’s an example I’ve created as a tool to help you conceptualize this different energy field. In the slowest vibrations we have illness and disharmony. In faster, but still slow vibration we have ordinary human awareness. Thought and spirit are found in the fastest vibrations.
Consider your physical health where most of your rime is spent attempting to reach point B where you will feel okay because you have an absence of symptoms. Between point A and point B is where you take medicine, consult medical practitioners, and generally strive to get to a point of ordinary human awareness where you just feel okay. Point C represents superhealth where you feel exquisite. You can do five hundred sit-ups, run a marathon, and are toxin-free. Hypothetically, disease materializes at a very low energy frequency. Ordinary human awareness is what we call a normal frequency, and superhealth represents a balanced fast vibration which has the ability to counteract disease frequencies.