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How Psychology has De-Souled the World

December 15, 2009 – 11:51 pm

by Dr. Matthew Anderson 07/08/2008

As a minister, I have always had great interest in soul. As a child, I was told that my soul needed to be saved. I took that message to heart and though I expanded and deepened my idea of what soul meant and means, I never lost my belief in its central importance to my life. Therefore, I want to continue my series of articles on the subject of soul by focusing on how it has been treated by the “new religion” of psychology. (More about “new religion” in later articles.)

When making radical claims, it is best to begin by quoting an expert. Here is a statement by Dr. James Hillman, author of 50 books and renowned Jungian analyst (Re-Visioning Psychology, 1974).

“Psychology, whose very name and title derives from soul, (psyche), has stopped soul from appearing in any place but where it is sanctioned by this modern world view….Psychology does not even use the word soul: a person is referred to as a self or an ego. Both the world out there and in here have gone through the same process of depersonalization. We have all been de-souled….and so we must free the vision of the psyche (soul) from the narrow biases of modern psychology.”

My own interpretation of what Hillman is saying is that modern psychology has become a victim of materialism and scientism — and has invalidated the appearance and experience of soul. By reducing all phenomena to physicality (brain waves, neurons, etc.) psychology has gutted soul of all its spiritual meaning and power, and made it the property of the ego.

How does this psychological de-souling of the world affect each of us? To de-soul the world makes this universe a place of dead matter. It takes away our belief in and connection to Divine Presence in every area of our lives. Love, the most powerful and life-transforming of all Divine attributes is reduced to chemistry. Dreams, for millennia a source of Divine guidance and healing, become the brain’s reactions to activities of the prior day. Synchronicity (the meaningful, non-rational connection of special events) is downgraded and ultimately trivialized to coincidence.

In spiritual reality (which I believe is essential to healthy lives), soul draws us to love, to the wisdom of dreams, and to an awareness that all that happens to us has meaning and purpose.

We are not merely rats rushing through a maze, as we all learned in Psychology 101 in college. We are soul-filled and led beings who are here on a soul’s journey to growth, full expression of our gifts, and a celebrative acknowledgment of the wonder of life.

How can you resist the de-souled perception of life and find soul-filled meaning in all that you do? A thorough answer to this question would take an entire series of books. However, you can begin with this simple advice: Look for soul and trust it when you find it.

Soul will appear when you open your mind and heart to its presence. It always has and always will. That is the most soulful truth I can imagine.

This article appears courtesy of Early to Rise’s Total Health Breakthroughs which offers alternative health solutions for mind, body and soul.

Rev Diana | beliefs, soul, soul awakening, soul connection, soul journey, soul path | Comments (0)

Inspiration: The Power that Drives Your Creativity

December 15, 2009 – 4:54 pm

by Dr. Matthew Anderson 09/30/2008

When was the last time you felt truly inspired?
Can you remember the physical sensations that went with it?
How about the intense emotions that accompanied it?
Did your mind join in with ideas, plans and
possibilities for creative action?
Did this experience lead to something amazing
and wonderful in your life?
Is it something you would like to experience more often?

To be inspired implies an infusion of spirit — to be filled with a spirit of energy that can often feel powerful, exciting, stimulating, creative and even divine. Inspiration has been at the core of almost every great accomplishment known to human beings. But, for most people it seems to come and go at will, essentially uncontrollable. What if that was not the case? What if you could increase the frequency and intensity of inspiration with the proper use of certain techniques? Would you want to know more?

The experience of inspiration can become a regular part of your life if you are willing to follow the guidelines I have outlined below. They work for me and they will work for you.

Guidelines for Inviting Inspiration

Since we cannot control inspiration (trying to control it usually kills it), we need to learn how to invite it into our inner being. It is something that comes to us (or wells up within us) when we have created a receptive container. Here is how to do that.

  • Be willing to honor inspiration when it arrives. Be respectful.
  • Value imagination. Staying in your head (being rational and pragmatic) is the antithesis of creativity. Imagination is central and essential to the development of your inspiration.
  • Allow positive emotions to be part of the process. Feelings like wonder, excitement, joy, and enthusiasm nurture and encourage inspiration.
  • Practice stillness. Inspiration most often appears during times of quiet reflection. Excessive busyness will completely block the flow.
  • Pray for it. I often pray this simple prayer: “God open my heart and mind to receive your creativity and inspiration.”
  • Act on it. Action indicates that you are a trustworthy recipient of the gift. Once you have passed this “test” you will experience an increased flow of inspiration

    • Let Providence Work It’s Magic

    Finally, remember and trust in the following statement made by the great poet and philosopher, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832). I have posted it on the wall in my office. You might do the same.

    “Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one commits oneself, then Providence moves too…

    Whatever you can do,
    Or dream you can, begin it,
    Boldness has genius,
    Power and magic in it.”

     

    This article appears courtesy of Early to Rise’s Total Health Breakthroughs which offers alternative health solutions for mind, body and soul.

    Rev Diana | Inspiration, beliefs, positive thoughts | Comments (0)

    Soul Make a Difference

    November 18, 2009 – 7:00 pm

    An awakened soul makes a difference. It makes a difference in the choices we make about all aspects of our lives. It makes a difference when we gather information. Do we believe what is popular or do we believe what resonate with our innermost being? If you believe what resonates with your inner most being you will never be steered wrong. The small quiet voice within you will always direct you to that which helps you, but that cause no harm to others. An enlightened being does not have to sacrifice for the good of all. It is the nature of the inner being to take in consideration the good of all in helping its physical body choose. That sounds simple enough. The catch lies in listening to that voice over the noise of the masses

    Rev Diana | Uncategorized, soul awakening, soul path | Comments (0)

    The Most Stupid of Vices

    February 7, 2009 – 8:42 pm

    By Alexander Green

    Economists Sara Solnick and David Hemenway recently conducted a survey where they asked participants if they would rather earn $50,000 a year while other people made $25,000, or earn $100,000 a year while others got $250,000.

    Sit down for this one. The majority of participants selected the first option. They would rather make twice as much as others, even if that meant earning half as much as they could have with the second option.

    This is completely nuts, of course. Yet other findings by Solnick and Hemenway confirmed the envious nature of contemporary culture. People said, for instance, that they would rather be average-looking in a community where no one is considered attractive than merely good-looking in the company of stunners.

    When it came to education, parents said they would rather have an average child in a crowd of dunces than a smart child in a class full of brilliant students.

    What is going on here? In his book The Mind of the Market, Scientific American columnist Michael Shermer writes, “Our sense of happiness tends to be based on positional and relative rankings compared to what others have.”

    There’s one problem, however. That doesn’t work.

    As the philosopher Bertrand Russell pointed out, “Envy consists in seeing things never in themselves, but only in their relations. If you desire glory, you may envy Napoleon, but Napoleon envied Caesar, Caesar envied Alexander, and Alexander, I daresay, envied Hercules, who never existed.”

    Of all the dissatisfactions we face, surely none is more menial than envy. It denies us contentment, is a waste of time, and is an insult to ourselves. Worst of all, it’s completely self-imposed.

    “Envy is the most stupid of vices,” wrote Honore de Balzac, “for there is no single advantage to be gained from it.”

    Face it. We all know people who are smarter, fitter, richer, funnier, more talented, or better looking. But so what?

    Thinking this way only keeps you from appreciating your own uniqueness and self-worth, things that, not incidentally, do lead to greater happiness. Especially when combined with a strong sense of purpose.

    As Shermer writes, “Feeling ennobled is a pleasurable emotion that arises out of this deepest sense of purpose. Although there are countless activities people engage in to satisfy this deep-seated need, the research shows that there are four means by which we can bootstrap ourselves toward happiness through purposeful action.” These include:

    1. Deep love and family commitment

    2. Meaningful work and career

    3. Social and political involvement

    4. Transcendency and spirituality

    This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, a free newsletter dedicated to making money, improving health and secrets to success. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.

    Rev Diana | beliefs, self imposed issues, self worth, spirituality | Comments (0)

    Practice Positive Thoughts

    June 12, 2008 – 5:04 am

    How important is it to make sure that you are focused on that which you really desire? It is very important to focus on what you want. We all have fears, but to focus on those fears do not better prepare us for them, nor does it avert them. Instead it creates them. The universe is impartial and will give us what we focus on. Instead of focusing on being late for a important meeting focus on getting there on time and all of your effort and energy will flow in the direction of achieving that, other wise you will find yourself experiencing a flurry of events guaranteed to make you late.

    This is just a small example, we sabotage our lives like this everyday with out realizing that we are doing it. To stop this trend we need to be aware of our thoughts. If they are geared to negative/positive you are automatically creating what you are thinking of . When you find your thoughts headed in a negative direction you might want to redirect them to a positive outcome for the situation that you are thinking about. If you have always looked at the negative side of things it may be a bit of a challenge to train your mind to positive thought. That can be done by monitoring your thoughts and not letting your mind wander idly through the events of your life. Such as I don’t have, I can’t get, I am never going to make it etc…I don’t have can be shifted to I  always have what I need when I need it. Replacing the negatives with positive words is the first step in reminding your self that the negative outcome that you are thinking about you are also creating.

    How do you respond when someone ask you for something? If someone ask you for money do you say to them “oh I am broke” or “I don’t have any money”? If so you are creating a self fulfilling prophecy. Easier, more positive and more honest is I don’t have money for that or for you, it may be tempered with “at this time”.

    It is all in how you think, and what you think, followed by what you say. You may be practical, honest, and realistic all while using positive thoughts and responses. Practice it until it becomes natural to address life in a positive state of mind. Positive thoughts and positive focuses create positive results.

    Rev Diana | negative thoughts, positive focus, positive thoughts, power of words | Comments (0)

    The Power of Detachment

    June 12, 2008 – 4:27 am
    by Robert Ringer

    Detachment is an incredibly powerful tool that I wish I had understood much earlier in life. There are many things from which you can detach yourself, and one of the most important is the habit of judging people, actions, and circumstances as being right or wrong, good or bad.

    As Deepak Chopra says in The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, when you are constantly classifying, labeling, and evaluating, you “create a lot of turbulence in your internal dialogue.” The more internal bickering that takes place, the less time and room (in your mind) for constructive thinking.

    Worry, irrelevant thoughts, and fears only add to this internal bickering. All of these are abstracts from which you should make a conscious effort to detach yourself. Even more important is the necessity to detach yourself from needing the approval of others. When you are attached to peer approval, you tend to make bad decisions.

    Then there is the pain and discomfort of your present situation. The more you struggle against the unpleasant circumstances of the moment, the more time and energy you waste. It’s okay to want things to get better down the road, but don’t waste time and energy wishing things were different than they are right now.

    Accepting your present situation means detaching yourself from the pain it is causing you. Philosophically, you should learn to accept pain as a normal part of life. Which means, paradoxically, that the best way to eliminate pain is to not try to eliminate it. The more you fight pain, the more it is likely to persist.

    Above all, learn to detach yourself from specific results. Practice the art of being flexible. Understand that circumstances constantly change and that things rarely work out precisely as planned. The results you end up with may be much different from the results you were after, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they will be less satisfying. If you are too attached to a specific result, it shuts down your creativity.

    As with peer approval, when you are too attached to a specific result, you have a tendency to force decisions. And forced decisions are most often bad decisions.

    The quickest and most certain way to achieve a goal is to mentally focus on what you want, and attach very strong feeling to wanting it. If you picture a result without attaching strong feelings to it, it’s no more than a thought. And that’s where the subtle connection between desire and letting go comes in.

    Having strong feelings about wanting something in your life is a good thing. The stronger your feelings, the better. But, at the same time, you have to let go and allow it to come to you – perhaps in a different form than you expected.

    If a specific objective becomes an obsession – if you believe that you can’t be happy without achieving it – your feelings pass the point of diminishing returns and your focus becomes counterproductive.

    All this does not mean that you should permanently resign yourself to the circumstances of your currently bad situation. Nor does it mean that you should give up your desire or intention for a specific result. What you should give up is your attachment to that result. Or, as Chopra puts it, you should “accept the present and intend the future.”

    When you become adept at detachment – from pain, from evaluating and classifying everything that crosses your path, from precise results – it gives you the time, energy, and mental clarity to focus on the single most important activity for overcoming an impossibly bad situation: exploiting opportunities.

    What opportunities? The opportunities that are part and parcel of every “impossible” situation.

    Based on personal experience, I am convinced that the greatest opportunities lie in the eye of the storm – at the very center of your worst problems.

    Use your will to detach yourself from your impossible situation and, instead, spend your time cultivating the opportunities it has brought into your life – keeping in mind that such opportunities may be heavily camouflaged

    This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.

    Rev Diana | detachment, positive thoughts | Comments (0)

    Confusion

    March 7, 2008 – 4:40 pm

    It has come to my attention that as some souls awaken the bodies experiecne a sense of confusion. There is a sense of things being out of sync in their lives. That is because the path that ego has had them on for many years have little to do with the path that belongs to their souls. Many feel something is missing and began to seek answers as to what could cause such dissatisfaction in what should be a “good life”. This is when it is time to rethink your life’s path. To seek within for the path that belongs to the soul and the body. Do not fear that this path will somehow make your life miserable. It will however change your life. What most do not understand about following the souls path is that the soul has envisioned a life that involves serving the greater good, but that does not mean living in poverty, giving away all of your assets to reach this place where peace once again prevail. Each soul understands the needs of the physical body that is a part of it… Souls do not require a life of struggle or of deprivation to serve the greatest good. It is aware that suffering and struggling does not direct you to the place in spirit that you need to be. [having a stomach ache does not drive you to become the CEO of your company instead your only focus is the pain and what to do about it until that is eased many things that you need to do will go undone] It is the same when we struggle in life many things are left undone because our focus is on what we are struggling with. It is therefore not how soul shows you the path that works for you and brings harmony, prosperity, love and all the things that you need to allow you to assist soul in serving the greatest good.

    Rev Diana | holistic life coaching, soul path, spiritual path, spirituality | Comments (2)

    Souls Awakening

    November 7, 2007 – 4:25 pm

    tranquilityI am happy to say since I started this blog I have witnessed the awakening of soul, many souls. It is as beautiful as standing in a field of wild flowers in the early morning with dew still on them as they open to the sun. Each soul awakens with an awareness of their true reason for being. Their only obstacle is to now turn their physical body to the true path. I have witnesses that too becoming easier for many souls. Some however still need their bodies to hear the sound of a physical voice letting them know what is occurring. As I continue working with those becoming en souled for each that heed the voice of their soul we witness their lives changing right before their eyes. Some still expect the heavens to open and angels to sing as they become en souled. It is really a miracle but one akin to a child being born there are no major bells and whistle except for the parents of that child. When a being becomes en souled the bells and whistle is in the smoothing of life, the congruity of things. A life once bumpy and chaotic become smooth and you move from one situation to the next with out struggle. The soul in it’s oneness with the universe help you achieve what you believe you are capable of achieving. Learning that your thoughts are an important part of your spiritual path and that they need to be directed and guarded has proved difficult for many. They believe that looking for the worse case scenario and preparing for it is being realistic. Being aware of the worse case scenario then moving your thoughts to the true outcome you desire is more realistic and will make it possible for the soul and the universe to provide you with what you really want in life. For those who have dwelled on the worse case scenario, and then brag about their foresight in knowing that it would happen, I say to you congratulations it happened because you actively created it by giving it focus in your life. I close this small blurb on the journey with these words:

    The universe supports the reality of your beliefs absolutely.

    When you believe
    you must struggle for abundance,
    then it will bring about situations that are
    conducive to struggle; when you believe you cannot
    experience love without pain, the universe will give you exactly
    that – love with pain; when you believe it takes time for an illness
    to heal – then so it will. There is not a single force opposing you,
    there is only ONE force supporting you absolutely. It is called
    LOVE, the force that birthed you, that created you in its
    own image. This love is so magnanimous it will give
    you exactly and absolutely whatever it is
    that your reality entails.

    Change your beliefs and you change your reality

    want to know more about the Journey on a personal level visit Rev. Diana’s Center For Mind, Body & Spirit

    Rev Diana | Law of Attraction, negative thoughts, positive thoughts, soul awakening, soul path | Comments (0)

    Law of Attraction – Getting to Know the Universe

    October 1, 2007 – 3:46 pm

    Does feeling good have anything to do with receiving your desire?

    Yes. The more excited you are about your desire and the better you feel about yourself, the higher the vibrational energy that is emitted, connecting you directly to the universe.

    Vibrations are the energy that is emitted from our thoughts, emotion, soul and mind. Depending on how you are feeling on any given day, those vibrations can be high or low. The higher the vibration the more positive energy. It’s the same type of energy you emit when you are in love or when you have just purchased the house or car of your dreams.

    The lower the vibration, the lower the energy out-put; it is equivalent to someone who is sick and their body and mind are not in sync.

    Let’s delve a little deeper into how vibrations play a part in bringing your dreams, desires and goals into fruition. Connecting to the universe for a desire is like telepathy; words are not necessary for the universe to respond, for it does not speak, hear or see in the same fashion as a human. It’s all about your thoughts, feelings, and energy this is what the universe responds to the quickest.

    Think about the last time you were having a conversation on your cell phone and the call dropped. Well, you were in-between cellular towers and your signal was interrupted because there was a void between your phone and the tower’s signal. Once you were back in line with one of the cellular towers, the conversation was reconnected or you had to make the call again.

    Dropped calls would be the equivalent to being sick, thinking negative thoughts not being aligned with your soul. In connecting to the Universe you must be aware of your feelings and your intentions. It all boils down to what are you thinking, and what are you feeling. Becoming aware of your thoughts and feelings will lead you to make better decisions and attract new wanted experiences. Sometimes a dropped call is your subconscious mind remembering an earlier experience and then disconnecting; not wanting to have the same outcome.

    This is exactly how it works with in the Universal Law of Attraction. When you feel good you are directly connected. Subsequently, if you are feeling bad or are in a stressed situation, you are not directly connected to the Universe; hence, a dropped signal. In order to receive your desire, you must stay totally aligned with feeling good, believing and having faith.

    Aldian Prakoso is a Personal Development Expert in Law of Attraction. He shows people around the world HOW to apply Law of Attraction in their life to attract more money, better health, and better relationships.

    Create your own million dollar check and get FREE visualization e-course ==> http://AudioGettingRichScience.com/BlankCheck

    Rev Diana | Law of Attraction, negative thoughts, negative vibrations, positive energy, positive thoughts | Comments (0)

    Fork in the Path

    April 24, 2006 – 1:27 pm

    You have struggled with trying to change your approach. For some it is easy it is what they have been seeking their whole life. They have always known they were different now they know what is making them different. They embrace the souls chosen path regardless of how it will change their physical world they are ready to become complete and aware on all levels. Their Journey continues they are now ready to walk the path that only the being that has become en-souled is able to walk. They look at the path an realize that they would never have been able to travel this way without letting go and letting the soul lead actually they would not even have been aware of this path without their soul. They have begun the first steps of a journey that will be exciting and rewarding spiritually, and physically to them I offer congratulations and we will check in on them as they continue their journey.

    Unfortunately here we will have to say good bye to some as well the changing of their approach was too difficult they could not release to soul. They felt unable to trust Divine Consciousness, Universal Spirit, God or Goddess Mind [a few of the names soul is know by] to take them down the path that was agreed upon before they arrive here. They still believed that the Divine Consciousness is only a small part of who they are and therefore not strong enough to take charge of their life path. They have made steps on the path and have found a spot they feel comfortable with. They feel safe in this spot. That too is okay. Until they choose to give their soul complete control to follow the path that was agreed upon we say adios to them here. Perhaps later the body will realize that the soul is the power that runs it. Maybe realize that the hopes, dreams and the very fabric of it’s’ existence revolve around the soul not the other way. When they embrace that Universal Truth their spiritual journey will begin again.

    “It is time to trust that small voice within,
    coming from the person we really are.
    It is time to look within and to uncover
    all that has been blocking us from our truth” ….Unknown

    Rev Diana | soul, soul journey, soul path, spiritual path | Comments (0)