The Virtue of Commitment
06 May 2010 Leave a Comment
in Commitment, Determination, Gentleness, Joy, Joyfulness, Love, Moderation, Patience, Perseverance, Purposefulness, Self-Discipline, Trust, Uncategorized
When the virtue of commitment is considered in light of personal well-being, what comes to mind is how important it is for commitment to be paired with Love.
Commitment without Flexibility can be harsh and unyeilding. Commitment without Love can be cold and uneffective.
Commitment without Trust can be useless and daunting.
Commitment without Gentleness can be blind and without purpose.
Commitment is making a goal and sticking to it regardless of the obstacles. Commitment is dedication and determination and optimisim.
When we have commitment then we have strength. When we have strength we can achieve any wellness goal that we have set for ourselves. When we set and achieve small goals we will be empowered to achieve more. In this achieving our true potential can be realized and manifested. When our true potential is discovered, great Joy is experienced and all struggle falls away.
Day 200: The Gift of Closure
13 Mar 2010 1 Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: personal growth, self development, virtues blog
Meditation for Spring and New Life
This is the end of a journey and a beginning of a new one.
I began my daily log in August 2009. At that time, I was only 5 months into a gluten-free diet and I was still very unwell, though my energy and hope and been restored.
My gluten-free anniversary is on March 21! It will be one year on that date since I made this monumental change to my diet and reclaimed my life.
The first 6 months were all about food, food, food, food. In the second 6 months, I had the food thing figured out (mostly) and now my attention turned outward towards a career, towards prosperity and abundance, towards love and a continuation of the peace I feel now that my body is healthy.
Here is a quote from Day One:
“Over the past 6 months I have learned so much about a gluten-free diet. I have learned from speaking to others who have food allergies and I have learned from a naturopath. I have eaten meat for the first time in 11 years because it was “doctor prescribed” in order to replace some of the lost nutrients. I have had to become extrememly conscious about everything I ate and in doing so I gained a new awareness about the quality and condition of the food that I have grown up on, the food that I have always known and loved. I have also gained a new awareness of my physical body and physical health and have discovered the wonderful benefits of Yoga and meditation.”
It’s interesteing that I begin talking about food and finish the paragraph talking about meditation. Because that is exactly what happened to this blog! At the beginning I spoke so much about food and now my primary focus is mediation. Interesting.
Meditation (and prayer) is food for the soul. Now that my body is eating well my soul is being nourished as well. However, I’ve been meditating for 17 years and only now that my body is well can I truly appreciate the gifts found in meditation. This is because there is no separation from the body and soul .
In reflection, I would say it has been a very rewarding journey. Nothing will really change now except for the numbers at the top of the page to reflect my new 100 Day Cycle. I also have a few more websites and blogs on the go which gives me an outlet for some of my new endevours.
My focus on this blog has become on virtues for well-being because these can apply in any circumstance in any situtation. As the next 100 day cycle begins I will give thought to the different specific challenges that virtues can help us overcome. We can use virtues to overcome depression, eating disorders, co-dependent behaviours, alcholism, mental illness, anxiety etc. I look forward to writing more about this as the year moves on.
And I take this little moment to thank the readers that have followed me for the past year and hope you will continue to be a part of this journey as we go further and further into wellness and well-being.
Namaste. (The Good in me greets the Good in you!)
Day 196: The Light of Compassion
09 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
in Compassion, Forgiveness, Uncategorized Tags: Compassion, Forgiveness
Debbie Ford writes that, “A compassionate heart will lift you out of the pain and suffering of your own world, because it knows that everyone is doing the best they can, given their state of consciousness and the histories they’re dragging behind them. The divine heart knows that people don’t decide at age 3 to grow up and be an abusive parent, a bullying neighbor or a mediocre couch potato, so it forgives easily. Compassion knows that choosing the higher road in any situation is the most loving option for you.
So when this agent of change is activated in your awareness, you are finally free to stop taking everything so personally and look beyond the myopic view of your individual self. Compassion enables you to reach to the heavens and look through the heart of God. What an astonishing view…and what a profound relief.
It is here that you will finally find the peace you are looking for. It is here that you will be free to surrender your judgments. And it is here that you will experience the liberation of your soul.” (21 Day Consciousness Cleanse www.oprah.com)
Compassion — accepting everyone for who they are, even yourself, and forgiving past mistakes by realizing that everyone, even yourself, is doing the best they can at any given time.
May God grant that I may have a more compassionate heart and rise above all that keeps my heart hiding in the shadows of regret. Compassion can remove the veils and let the light of forgiveness in.
Day 195: The Light of Purpose
07 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
in Purposefulness, Uncategorized Tags: Purposefulness
Debbie Ford says, “If you look to your past or even your present to see why you are here or what your purpose is, you may get stuck in a limited view of yourself. Instead, look beyond your years here on earth, reconnect with the divine, and bring forth your soul’s legacy into the present moment.
You can satisfy your soul’s mission by committing to leaving something behind on this planet that will make a difference to those who come after you. Imagine that your life’s efforts serve as a mark of God and that the only way the divine is seen, heard or expressed is through the legacy you leave behind. The yearning to make a difference is your need to express your purpose and derive meaning from your time on earth.
Although at this moment you may be unaware of your longing to leave a legacy, your legacy is your birthright, your imprint and a purpose worth getting up for each morning. Your soul has an innate desire to leave its mark, and it is calling you, unceasingly, toward its fulfillment. I am excited to support you today in listening for and heeding that call.” (21 Day Consciousness Cleanse www.oprah.com)
Do you know what your purpose is?
Do you know what your biggest strength is and what you can do with it to make this world a better place?
Day 193: The Light of Devotion
05 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
in Purposefulness, Reverance, Reverence, Uncategorized Tags: Devotion, Reverence, Sacredness, virtues for wellbeing
“By today you may very likely feel a raw determination rising up to the surface—this is the passion of your soul that cannot be held back ever again. When you finally muster up the courage and the strength from inside your human self to declare, “I am going to fulfill my highest potential now,” you are lifted out of the confining walls of your ego’s will and into the limitless embrace of God’s will . When you are committed to living a life in service to the most high, the choices to be great, to serve and be served, to love and be loved are apparent. You are keenly aware that the only way to get yourself to where you want you to go is to keep yourself fully bathed in the light. You know that your one and only job is to nurture and nourish yourself.
To stay in the state of inspiration and to experience the profound resource that resides within, invoke the agent of change called devotion. Devotion begins at home, inside your own awareness. Devotion is the agent of change that invites you to devote yourself—minute by minute, hour by hour and day by day—to chipping off whatever is in the way of your golden essence, anything that keeps your light from shining brightly. Calling on you to give up control of the outer world and gladly accept control of your inner relationship with God, devotion is essential for fully realizing your soul’s calling.” Written by Debbie Ford on www.Oprah.com
She wrote it so well, I don’t think there’s anything to add…all that I can say, in terms of virtues is this: Your life is sacred. You are sacred. When we live in acknowledgemen of our sacred selves we are stronger, wiser, happier. When we live away from our sacred selves we are weaker, foggy-minded and feel a sense of loss or vague longing.
Sacredness is not really a “virtue” per say…(or is it? To be debated I’m sure but that is beyond the scope of this blog) but Reverence is certainly a virtue.
By bringing Reverence into our lives, we honour the sacred in ourselves and show gratitude to our Creator.
I am grateful for Oprah for posting this 21 Day Consciousness Cleanse and for so openly honouring all that is sacred in each of us and in acknowledging that our sacredness comes from God.
Day 192: The Light of God’s Will
04 Mar 2010 1 Comment
in Love, Peacefulness, Purposefulness, Uncategorized Tags: Joyfulness, Peacefulness, virtues of wellbeing
This was what Debbie Ford called this day…The Light of God’s Will….
I am happy to see that Oprah can have a site dedicated to “Spirit” on her site and have self development programs on it that acknowledge our spirit comes from One Divine Source, God.
I’d like to take this opportunity to share my understanding of God.
My understanding of God is that God is greater than our understanding! LOL! I’m not being sarcastic here. I’m just saying that before any discussion of God begins it must be stated that truly, we are the creatures and God is the Creator so we can never, ever really know.
The same way that a painting cannot understand the reality of the painter, or the furniture understand the reality of the carpenter, or the poem to understand the reality of the poet.
Therefore, God is Unknowable — so then how do we know that there is a God?
We know because for all of time God has appeared to humanity in the form of a Divine Messenger, a Manifestation (to manifest means to make something appear that was previously invisible). These Divine Manifestations of God, such as Abraham, Krishna, Christ, Buddha, Mohammad, The Bab and Baha’u'llah allow us to understand the qualities humanity’s truest potential and they teach us about the Eternal Truths that move us towards inner and outer peace.
Yes, so that is how us poor humans ever even got to glimpse of anything spiritual or beyond our 5 senses, because of the teachings of God, given to us by these Divine Teachers. But what then?
Then comes two things: We recognize that all religion is connected and we recognize the Divine Manifestation of God for this moment in time and then we learn from the Teachings and do our best to be obedient.
Why be obedient to the Laws of any given religion?
Because the Laws are like divine sign posts guiding us to our greatest joy and happiness. When we do what we are asked, our heart becomes pure and selfish motives drift away. When our heart is pure and cleansed and we feel free from the burdens we carried; we can then hear the songs of our heart singing about what will bring us the greatest joy.
What brings us the greatest joy — true joy and achieved by imitation — is the Will of God. When we follow our heart and our greatest strengths and aim our intentions on being compassionate, selfless, loving and full of integrity then the actions we take to manifest our own heart’s calling will be a direct connection to God’s Will for us. God wants us to be Truly Joyful. True Joy comes when there is Peace, Unity, Purposefulness, and selfless or Detachment from self.
This is because God is not the man in which He manifested Himself in — God is Greater than that, right? God is Energy, God is Love, God is Omnipotent, God is All-Merciful; God is the All -Knowing; God is the Friend.
If you have ideas and images of God as being far away from you, in the heavens, in the sky, in some far off place that you don’t know where, consider that God just may be right here with you right now.
When we are in silent meditation, and we quiet our thoughts and minds, and there is stillness and calm, there begins the path to knowing God. The name “God” is only a title…only one way to say “The Most Great!”
When our hearts our turned towards our highest potential, when we seek after our True Selves and learn to trust our own Hearts we will find a most profound connection with “The Most Great One.”
To feel this connection with The Most Great One is like experiencing all the Virtues all at once in one majestic and wonderous moment. And when you sense that soft breeze from the Divine Realm, everything else falls away, and True Joy encompasses you.
Copyright 2010 Rachel Perry
Day 191: The Power of Realization
03 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
in acceptance, Commitment, Courage, Joy, Purposefulness, Uncategorized, Unity Tags: Joy, purpose of life, virtues for wellbeing
It was at this point in the cleanse when powerful truths about me began to surface and I think it must be similar for everyone.
The Power of Realization is the power to know who you are, to be who you are, and to see that knowing and being who you are is of great benefit to yourself and those around you when you direct your energies towards service.
It was at this point in the 21 Day Consciousness cleanse that I began to hear the song of my heart singing the need to write. Not only did I discover that I wanted to write, but that I wanted to write often, write continually, and write for profit. After 10 years of writing for free, I was now ready to “realize” the gift I had and the purpose it could serve in lifting the hearts of those around me.
I ask you the same question that was so inspiring to me:
What strengths or talents do you have that make you unique?
If you don’t know…then it is time to do some soul searching.
If you do know, but you aren’t using them to your greatest capacity then I ask: what is stopping you from using your strengths and talents for the benefit of yourself and others?
When we honour who we are and do what we can do then great, great results follow.
It’s true what they say that there is only one of us and that each one of us carries with us one peice of the puzzle. This is very true. This is the essence of unity in diversity; this is the beauty of life; this is the joy that we all can have if we only are couragous to look within and see ourselves standing there and say, “Well, I”m not that bad, am I!”
Copyright 2010 Rachel Perry
Day 190: The Power of Truth
03 Mar 2010 Leave a Comment
in Kindness, Truthfulness, Uncategorized Tags: einstien, truth, virtues for wellbeing
THE WORLD AS I SEE IT — BY ALBERT EINSTIEN –
(Einstien speaks about Truth)
“How strange is the lot of us mortals! Each of us is here for a brief sojourn; for what purpose he knows not, though he sometimes thinks he senses it. But without deeper reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people — first of all for those upon whose smiles and well-being our own happiness is wholly dependent, and then for the many, unknown to us, to whose destinies we are bound by the ties of sympathy. A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving…
“I have never looked upon ease and happiness as ends in themselves — this critical basis I call the ideal of a pigsty. The ideals that have lighted my way, and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. Without the sense of kinship with men of like mind, without the occupation with the objective world, the eternally unattainable in the field of art and scientific endeavors, life would have seemed empty to me. The trite objects of human efforts — possessions, outward success, luxury — have always seemed to me contemptible.
“My passionate sense of social justice and social responsibility has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities. I am truly a ‘lone traveler’ and have never belonged to my country, my home, my friends, or even my immediate family, with my whole heart; in the face of all these ties, I have never lost a sense of distance and a need for solitude…”
“My political ideal is democracy. Let every man be respected as an individual and no man idolized. It is an irony of fate that I myself have been the recipient of excessive admiration and reverence from my fellow-beings, through no fault, and no merit, of my own. The cause of this may well be the desire, unattainable for many, to understand the few ideas to which I have with my feeble powers attained through ceaseless struggle. I am quite aware that for any organization to reach its goals, one man must do the thinking and directing and generally bear the responsibility. But the led must not be coerced, they must be able to choose their leader. In my opinion, an autocratic system of coercion soon degenerates; force attracts men of low morality… The really valuable thing in the pageant of human life seems to me not the political state, but the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it alone creates the noble and the sublime, while the herd as such remains dull in thought and dull in feeling.
Day 185: The Power of Liberation
24 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment
Ekhart Tolle gives an explanation of “Enlightened Perception” that speaks to the idea of Liberation. But it is presented on Oprah’s website and the site will not allow me to cut and paste the video so you must go there yourselves. The link is:
http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Eckhart-Tolles-Meditation-What-Is-Enlightened-Perception/topic/spirit
Day 180: The Gift of Release
19 Feb 2010 Leave a Comment
in Cleanliness, Uncategorized Tags: personal growth, self-actualization, Self-Empowerment, self-improvement, Spirituality, virtues for wellbeing
Good morning!
Today’s meditation topic is Release.
When reflecting on the virtue in release Cleanliness came to mind. We often think of cleanliness as refering to our outer world, but cleanliness can be our inner world too. Debbie Ford encourages us to let go of all negative thoughts, feelings and emotions that have been in our life. She compares them to little pesticides toxins that are coursing through our viens but how they can be released and cleansed. In this way, we are bringing the virtue of cleanliness into our internal world.
What would that look like in actual practice? When I did this consiousness cleanse last month the negative feelings that I became aware of were around employment and my career. Releasing myself from the feelings of fear or worry freed up some energy that I then used towards building my copywriting business. In this way, “cleaning out” my internal closet that was storing all these pent up negatives released me from the hold they had on me and I was able to embark on a career path that has always excited me but which fear has always prevented me from following.
What negative feelings are with you every day making you feel stuck or trapped in emotional clutter? What can you release yourself from today?
