December A 2017
Cover Story
Metaphysics
24
94
Rob Greenfield: The Dude Making a Difference
Health & Wellness 44 48
Successful Weight Loss and Fitness Depends on Spiritual Balance Being Present with Pain
Spirituality 54 58
Are You Listening to Your Soul or to Your Logic ? Why Do We Have to Suffer So Much
OM Living 66 70 74 78 80
Getting Sober Reviving Ancient Vegan Wisdom Manifesting Made Easy: 7 Tips to Increase Flow Spotlight - International Yoga Festival Creating Your Travel Journal
Relationships 88
Why Bubble-Wrapped Kids Grow Up Feeling As Overwhelmed As Abused Kids
9 Best Crystals for Protection 98 How to Activate Inner Wisdom 104 The Hard Thing About Following the Clues 110 How to Put Your Psychic Powers and All the Answers You Seek Right in the Palm of Your Hand!
Personal Growth 118 Dealing with Your Trickster Ego 122 Questions for Developing Self-Wholeness
Books 128 Spotlight - The Akashic Tarot
Rob Greenfield: The Dude Making a Difference It’s a simple idea, albeit not an easy one, to inspire people to live in a manner that is beneficial to Earth, our communities and ourselves. But Rob Greenfield gave up doing
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easy, when at the age of 24 he started paying attention to the environmental and social issues of his generation and discovered that he was contributing to many of these problems himself through the food he was eating, the car he was driving and the stuff he was buying and consuming. At which point he began his transformation from a drunk dude to a dude who’s dedicating his life to making a difference. From cycling across the USA on a bamboo bicycle to foraging in grocery store dumpsters. From traveling across the USA without credit cards or cash, Rob Greenfield’s extreme adventures, and his activism campaigns, TEDx talks and TV series bringing awareness to important environmental issues, that have not only caught the attention of the world’s media.
changes in countless people over the last six years to be the change we all wish to see in the world. Sandie Sedgbeer: Rob, your extreme adventures, and your in-your-face activism campaigns have been featured in numerous media outlets, including the BBC, CBS, Discovery Channel, US Today, Huffington Post, The Guardian and the LA Times. Did you have any idea when you set out on that first trip across America that you were riding into a whole new life as an environmental activist and humanitarian? Rob Greenfield: Yeah, that was completely my intentions. At that point in 2013, well, I had been making changes in my life for two years at that point. I really started to feel like I was becoming an example, the change of what I wanted to see in the world.
He also inspired positive Omtimes.com
Successful Weight Loss and Fitness Depends on Spiritual Balance by Karen Ulvestad
It’s easy to become trapped in the notion that weight loss is purely a physical process. After all, we see our physical image in the mirror, and it reflects what the world sees.
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We become distracted by this illusion of ourselves, and forget we embody a spirit. Learn ways to see past the mirror’s reflection, and gain lasting weight loss and physical fitness. Physical weight loss and fitness are bound closely with our thoughts and spiritual well-being. Often, the extra pounds are the result of physical or emotional trauma. What we do not see is that this permeates our thought processes and to our spiritual core. Trauma or abuse is pervasive throughout our entire being. It is easy to think that people will not notice us if we add the extra pounds. That is not true. We are noticed. We garner the attention that we are trying to avoid, because of the deep seeded pain we are carrying in our core self. Put simply, we are more than a physical body. Our logic may deem that losing weight is solely associated with the physical body. The physical body reflects the physical
aspects of too much weight. It harbors painful joints, illness, or chronic sleep issues. This is the physical manifestation of the issues that trouble us. The first step to lose the weight is to acknowledge we are perfect the way we were created. The issue isn’t ours. It belongs to the abuser, and they wanted to give it to us. So, let it go. Beyond the body, our minds think thoughts all the time. The mind doesn’t shut down unless we allow it to be quiet. To reach this “quiet” state, we can meditate, drink a glass of wine, or exercise. The question becomes, do the thoughts stop, slow down, become clear, or continue uninterrupted? The second step is to gain understanding and control over our own thoughts. Our belief system is based on our thoughts and feelings. We are influenced by all the events that happen to us on the physical and spiritual realms.
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Being Present with Pain by Linda Bloom
Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional. Regardless of what we do, life will at some point, bring us losses, disappointments, and instances of physical and emotional pain. Pain is the experience of something that creates physical, mental or emotional distress. It’s the body’s way of bringing Omtimes.com
awareness to something that needs our attention. Pain, either physical or emotional, is the body’s way to inform us that we need to attend to something. Although pain isn’t an emotion, there are emotions that are painful to experience. Grief, anxiety, guilt, shame, and rage are all examples. Emotions are energy in motion in the body. Some are more difficult to experience than others and we identify them as being “negative,” but those are simply labels that describe our assessment of those sensations. Suffering is what we experience when there is prolonged resistance to painful experiences. It is often during our efforts to avoid, deny, or resist that which is inevitable, that we create suffering. People who live at a high level of well-being know how to respond to the messages they receive from their body, and are able to attend to their emotions appropriately and skillfully. They are neither compulsive pleasure-seekers, nor compulsive avoiders. They don’t compulsively deny
pain, but rather experience feelings and sensations with a minimum of attachment or aversion. The tendency to withdraw from painful experiences is deeply embedded pattern. We do it involuntarily, which in many instances is a good thing. We don’t have to try to decide whether or not to let go of a hot plate, our nervous system implements that decision and takes the appropriate action in a nano-second. Most people don’t have any idea that another response is possible. If you are running a marathon, and develop an excruciating chest pain, it’s appropriate to stop running. If you don’t, your body will be stopped in its tracks, literally.
The Advantages of Staying Present for Discomfort And yet, there are times when staying present with uncomfortable feelings is more skillful or appropriate than letting go of the hot pan. Developing the capacity to listen to someone’s grievances, rather than to disengage or become defensive with Omtimes.com
Why Do We Have to Suffer So Much? By Carmen Vasquez
Suffering is something that most of us, as human beings, live with every day. Sometimes it feels like an unfortunate feature that is permanently installed within us by an unknown programmer without our permission. For some people, suffering begins at conception or birth. For others,
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suffering appears a bit further down the road; they arrive on Earth in a non-traumatic way and are surrounded by love from day one. Sadly, as they grow up, this “perfect reality” starts falling down and their lives are gradually filled with problems and impossible challenges. As this trend, that these people tend to perceive as fate or bad luck continues, suffering starts taking hold. The important question here is this: “Why do we have to suffer so much?”
When we enter our physical bodies, in our current existence as well as in our past ones, we fall into a “deep sleep” and forget who we really are and our true purpose. This purpose is no other than the self-knowledge that leads us to understand that we are not meant to be perfect. This is the real reason why, since the beginning of time, life was created as duality and imperfection. The only true way of knowing what we are is by not being.
To understand this question fully and find a good answer, first, we must understand the true reason why we are here on Earth. All of us, every single one of us, came into this world as a particle, a small fraction of the Whole, that Being -or Energy- that, in its absolute perfection, created everything. That entity -by dividing itself into infinite particles- gave birth to every single living creature. That is why we are told that we were created “in the image of God”. Actually, we are a part of that Being, Energy or entity that is known by many different names all over the world.
Asleep, forgetful and completely disconnected from our true purpose, we have spent millions of years asking ourselves how and why we are here. In order to fight the emptiness that we feel, we have created a plethora of organizations and belief systems that have convinced us that we can fix all of our problems and find our “salvation” if we entrust our faith in external things. Unfortunately, sometimes this quest for answers ends up causing even more suffering as those beings and people, in whom we put our faith, fail to deliver the solutions that we Omtimes.com
Getting Sober
by Alan Cohen
I recently learned of the death of a musician I admire. Ruud was a trombonist in AndrÊ Rieu’s orchestra. Besides being a talented musician, he was something of a comic spark plug, performing clever antics in skits the orchestra wove into
their performances. I enjoyed watching Ruud on YouTube for years. He died suddenly at a relatively young age. I was surprised at how moved I was at the news of Ruud’s passing. I found the incident sobering. We usually use the word “sober” as the antithesis of being drunk. When an event sobers us, it dashes cold water on our face to extricate us from the drunkenness of the meaningless activities we often engage in. We are awakened from the addictive behaviors we use to distract ourselves from our pain. The list of our addictions, hard and soft, is substantial: Drinking, drugging, email, Internet, smartphone, gaming, anxious eating, overworking, compulsive shopping, disconnected sex, neurotic cleaning, mindless babbling, arguing, continual drama, and on and on and on—all tricks we play on ourselves to stay hypnotized by emptiness. We each have our preferred escape.
Then something happens that forces us to face ourselves and our lives. A death, divorce, accident, business setback, health issue, legal problem, or weather disaster. Some crisis or emergency. Then we have to think about what is really important and what our priorities are. While such challenges are painful, they are also liberating. They jolt us to dig into our soul rather than hang out at the shallow surface of our lives. When we go through such difficulties, we resist and curse them. After we graduate from the lessons they bring us, we find deep gratitude. None of us knows how long we or our loved ones will be here. It could be a very long time or a short time. Some people disappear quickly, without notice. For that reason we must appreciate the people and gifts in our lives while we have them. Don’t take anyone or any situation for granted. Bless it while you have it. Tell your close ones that you love them.
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Manifesting Made Easy: 7 Tips to Increase Flow By Sharon Kirstin
Life is hard. We need to hustle. In fact, we are lazy if we don’t. But doesn’t life feel like a struggle when we buy into this belief? We are in constant
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competition. We fight our way to the finish line, fight each other, fight ourselves. What if there was a way to attract our desires to us? Would we be interested to know how? Of course! When we realign with the energy of our true desires we become magnets. We pull our creations to us instead of chasing them with a lot of effort. The state of flow is our natural state. If we are not in flow, we are very likely in resistance and out of alignment with our soul’s true plan. We are the creators of our reality and if we align our energy, mind, and actions to our inner plan, we start manifesting with ease. Miracles, magic and instant manifestations are available to all of us. And yes, there is a recipe to enter a state of flow.
Tip #1: Raising our vibration The vibration (or frequency) of our energy field is what draws experiences, people and things to us like a magnet. When we change our energy, we change our experiences in life. Meditation is a fast track to connect with our divinity within. When we attune our vibration to source energy we strengthen the relationship with the creator power within. In this state of oneness with the vibration of creation, we can receive clear guidance on our next steps as well as profound healing. The more we connect to source energy the easier it will be to enter this state of flow. This enables us to skillfully cocreate (manifest) from thought to physical form.
Tip #2: Setting clear intentions Intentions are like a magic
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9 Best Crystals for Protection
The power behind Earth’s minerals can be felt the minute you put a crystal in your hands or near your physical body. Crystals are the treasures of the earth. These stones are filled with energy to be used. Each crystal, stone, gemstone is rated by its hardness, shape, size, qualities and often have a metaphysical significance Omtimes.com
as their personality. Some of the best crystals for protection include Bloodstone, Carnelian, Hematite and Obsidian.
Agate Eye: Properties: The protective eye stone, is a spectacular variety of agate, sometimes onyx, sardonyx or “cryptocrystalline quartz”
containing layers of carnelian! This is considered a stone of virtue allowing us to find the sheer delight in living. It is infamous for bringing stability and long lasting happiness to life partners, marriage and live in relationships! Used to enhance clear choices by limiting hesitation and therefore providing courage and protection to its wearer. This is a great stone to grid the home with in order to protect against crime and the “evil eye”.
Ammonite: Properties: Ammonite is often used for stability in life. This is actually a fossilized creature that resembled a snail, over 65 million years old. It is now a helpful stone which offers a sense of relaxation. It is believed that Ammonite brings stability and order in life. Ammonite is a stone of protection. It provides for insight and it helps to assist one in seeing the “whole picture.” Since it is associated with the Root Chakra, it encourages ones survival instincts and is grounding.
Bloodstone: Properties: Increases courage helps in avoiding dangerous situations by soothing the mind.
Metaphysically, bloodstone is used to either promote a calm, tranquil atmosphere that is grounding or revitalize insufficient energy. A great stone for mentalexhaustion. This stone represents both courage and strength and is used for achieving these attributes. It is associated with honesty and integrity and is useful in removing obstacles in life. Most effective on the Heart (green) and Root (red) Chakra.
Carnelian: Properties: This stone represents confidence, boldness, initiative, dramatic abilities, assertiveness and outgoingness. Precision, analysis, stimulates appetite, encourages celebration and brings awareness of feelings. This stone helps you feel anchored and comfortable with your surroundings. Provides a connection to the past or to historical events. Carnelian can improve motivation. Helps one achieve greater success in career or personal matters. Helps ground people who meditate. Carnelian is one of the most helpful crystals for healing trauma, stress and emotional wounds that have accumulated in the etheric body or the Aura and are now manifesting as physical symptoms. Omtimes.com
How to Activate Inner Wisdom by Elohim Yael
When one’s head, heart and ‘will’ collaborate with the feet and belly center/area, one gets a clearer and integrated picture of one’s inner wisdom and truth. Whereby it is easier
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to make more balanced and fine-tuned choices. Then one can also hear the call of one’s heart clearer, without noise or disturbance. Besides it brings more life energy for a natural state of being. How to realize this inner fine-tuning?
heart, will, feet and belly center, which is the place of our emotions and natural intuitive capabilities. Also since we tend to use our power layers separately within the current dual orientated experienced world.
What fine-tuning inner wisdom brings
Furthermore feelings of insecurity and fear, how understandable or realistic they may be, trigger our mind. Just as thoughts like ‘I don’t want this (in my life)’. It keeps us focused on matters of the mind. In our attempt to stay on top of things, we try to avoid things and push away (situations of) distress. This creates tension that blocks the life energy for inner thoughtfulness, compassion and the warmth of the heart.
When one’s head, heart and ‘will’ collaborate with the feet and belly center/area, one gets a clearer and integrated picture of one’s inner wisdom and truth. Whereby it is easier to make more balanced and fine-tuned choices. Then one can also hear the call of one’s heart clearer, without noise or disturbance. Besides it brings more life energy for a natural state of being.
Power play of the mind blocking life energy As our straight way of thinking is accustomed to direct and calculate things and keep everything in control, this ability has the upper hand. Therefore it overpowers the signals, answers and information from the other wisdom sources – that of the
The power of the smile of the heart Adversely through relaxation and mindfulness the head is capable of bundling its strength with the other power layers and their information. Which is overall in conflict with the tension and impressions that come along with our busy lifestyles. When it’s quiet, peaceful and empty in the Omtimes.com
When I was a kid, I was a big fan of adventure films like Raiders of the Lost Ark, where the legendary archaeologist, Indiana Jones (played by Harrison Ford) sets out with his friends to find the treasure. It didn’t matter whether it was the Ark of the Covenant or the Holy Grail or some other Omtimes.com
random treasure – it was exciting to watch the twists and turns that led to the treasure. The problem, for all of these heroes, was that although there was a treasure, the map to find it wasn’t presented all at once … there would be one clue, and only by following
that clue could the next clue be discovered. Sometimes, our heroes would encounter obstacles ranging from Nazi soldiers to new construction over old historic sites, which would prevent them from finding the next clue. Sometimes they would be led down a false path, and would have to backtrack to get back on the right trail. If only we had the Treasure Map laid out clearly in front of us, we could follow the clues to find the treasure of True Success, just like Indiana Jones. In our own lives, we are constantly receiving clues in the form or our intuition, gut feelings, hunches, synchronicity and even in our dreams. By far the most difficult part of these tasks is not recognizing the clue—but recognizing the path of action the clues may be leading you to try out—a possible path or future that is being laid out in front of you. Sometimes, the clue needs to be interpreted; at other times, the clue and the directions being implied are
quite obvious Here’s a simple example to chew on. CASE STUDY NO. 10: Living between the Worlds In the fall of 1997, four years after the initial launch of our product, I left Brainstorm, the start-up that I had cofounded and had been running for four years. While I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do next, I kept seeing images and statues of mermaids in various places in New England—statues at restaurants, pictures on walls, in gift shops, etc. This was made more unusual by the fact that I had been to these places before; I just hadn’t noticed that there were mermaids on the walls and everywhere I looked. This is a perfect example of how the “invisible hand” of the inner mentor works— it points out things in the environment that may have been in plain sight before but hadn’t been noticed by our conscious minds. The inner mentor then produces the feelings of unusual-ness so that you recognize you are
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Your Trickster Ego
Are you making decisions based on your most deeply held values? Do your choices reflect your emotional desires of the moment but not your priorities? You want to make courageous decisions in synch with your best self, but that means reducing the power of that aspect of your ego that is a trickster. Your trickster ego leads you to make bad decisions out of fear, Omtimes.com
preventing you from being true to yourself. The trickster ego likes instant gratification. It is afraid it won’t get its needs met if you don’t hurry up and do what will produce fast results. Integrity goes by the wayside as the trickster ego rushes to get things done. You think you are on the right track but you do
not listen to your wise inner self that whispers, “Slow down and be cautious! You are headed in the wrong direction!” The trickster ego makes you feel everything is going well, but it is deceiving you. Your trickster ego is guided by fear that keeps you from dreaming big and listening to your inner wisdom. It steers you toward compromises that do not honor what is important to you, and causes you to make mistakes. Even if you achieve some success through following your trickster ego’s guidance, that success will be limited and ultimately unfulfilling. It’s not easy to admit how much this aspect of your ego has influenced you—and misled you with false promises that you will feel happy and contented if you just do its bidding. Yet if you can be brave and acknowledge how much you have been misled by your fears, you can recommit to being true to yourself—and taming your trickster ego. When you are honest with yourself, you can more easily see when you are being distracted by surface successes
and rewards that don’t make you feel happy and empowered. Deeper successes that are in synch with your values often require a deeper commitment to being true to yourself. It takes courage to make decisions from your most deeply held values and banish worry, fear, and expediency. Making decisions based in your most deeply held values requires you to quiet the trickster ego that confuses you and leads you astray. Fortunately, you can establish a new relationship with this aspect of yourself. First, pay attention to your trickster ego. Know how it works and what causes it to spring into action. Expose its shenanigans and become aware that it is influencing you. You can do this by getting in touch with your witnessing self, the aspect of your consciousness that sees what is really happening within you. Your witnessing self arises naturally when you relax your mind, opening the door to your unconscious. Your witnessing self will tell you, “You’re not being true to who you are,” and “Listen to yourself!” The Omtimes.com
New Questions That Lead to Self-Wholeness by Guy Finley
Our stressful, pain-filled experiences are not caused by people or events but by our reactions to them. And yet, if we will honestly examine the way we presently question
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our defeats, here’s what we see: we are still desperately seeking answers that serve only to correct the surface or exterior conditions. We are still blaming circumstances for crushing us. The direction of our questions proves that we are still thinking incorrectly about our problems. This is supremely important to grasp if we wish to change our inner and outer world. By their very nature, our old questions tend to make and then keep us victims. They imply that someone or something outside of ourselves is punishing us. No human being is a victim of any punishment outside of their own undeveloped lifelevel from which their inner reactions are seen as outer attacks. This is why we must learn to turn our questions into tools for developing selfwholeness instead of letting them lead us off in the wrong direction. Here are ten new questions that lead to self-wholeness.
These new questions are the power that defeats defeat. They alone assure total victory.
Questions for Developing SelfWholeness 1. Instead of always asking yourself why things always happen to you, learn to ask: What is it inside of me that attracts these painful situations? 2. Instead of always asking yourself why things had to go this way or that way, learn to ask: Why is the way I feel always determined by external conditions? 3. Instead of always asking yourself how to protect yourself in challenging situations, learn to ask: What is it in me that always needs to be defended? 4. Instead of always asking yourself how to clear up your mental fog, learn to ask: Can confusion know anything about clarity?
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