Stepping Out of Thought Hypnosis & Into Inner Peace – Newsletter February 5, 2017
Do you sometimes feel like you’re in the wrong movie while old patterns catch up with you? Discover why these challenging times are a profound gift and how you can free yourself from the power of your thoughts through self-inquiry.
February 5, 2017
Namaste and hello my dears!!
After many months, I finally want to reach out to you again. The past few weeks have been and continue to be very challenging for many of us. Old patterns have resurfaced with great insistence. If you have asked yourself, “Am I in the wrong movie?” or “Is this really me? This issue seemed long since resolved, processed, and let go,” then know that you are not alone! Even looking at the world stage can fill one with “astonishment.”
When issues present themselves so sharply and exaggeratedly as they have in these last weeks, it is a great gift; because now we can truly see it and can no longer overlook it or look away. So if an old issue has shown up strongly for you once again, take a close look at what you are THINKING in this context. What are your interpretations: about yourself and about the people, organizations, animals, countries, governments, etc., involved? What beliefs come to the surface within you, what judgments, what prejudices? Write it down, let it all out, and put it on paper without censorship.
All suffering stems from the belief that our thoughts and beliefs are true and reflect reality, which is a misconception. We believe that we are right, that we know “what’s going on,” and that the world would be a better place if only everyone acted and thought like us ;-). When we examine our thoughts more closely, we find that our thinking is often know-it-all, rigid, self-righteous, critical, and judgmental. To put it crudely, this can be described as “being at war.” This war can be directed against ourselves through self-accusation, against our neighbors, our bosses, friends, relatives, or against God and life itself.
What helps us? What is the way out?
The way out is to gain access to our true essence, which is stillness, peace, and love. Our true essence IS peace, stillness, and love. It is not a state that comes and goes like: “now I feel love, now I experience stillness, and then I fall back again.” These states come and goes for the I/ego, while our true being simply IS: like a silent space that, neutrally, lovingly, and openly, simply welcomes whatever is. Our true self knows no war. It is in harmony with everything that appears and happens. Our ego appears WITHIN our pure self;
Why do we so rarely perceive our true essence? Because we are mostly hypnotized by our thoughts, because we believe what we think and identify with it… as soon as we believe our thoughts, we go to war; even if we have positive thoughts that do not directly reflect the nature of our true essence. Thinking and beliefs lay over our pure essence like a veil.
So how can we gain distance from our thoughts and free ourselves from this hypnosis?
It is not about replacing negative thoughts with positive ones—which may feel better and can certainly be a good first step, but to free yourself completely from the hypnosis, it is important to question all thoughts and to sink beyond thinking into the inherent love and stillness that are already always present right now.
There is a wonderful tool for self-inquiry to end this hypnosis that many of you certainly know: “The Work” by Byron Katie. Katie was severely depressed and addicted when she woke up one morning and was liberated, resting in her true self. She realized that all suffering comes from holding our thoughts to be true. It is impossible to stop thinking, but it is entirely possible for each of us to question our thoughts!
From her clear vision, Katie developed a simple method she calls “The Work.” You can find a German website here: http://thework.com/sites/thework/deutsch/index.asp The Work is a very simple and effective method for examining our thoughts. You take a topic that upsets you, stirs you up, or makes you unhappy, and fill out a “Judge-Your-Neighbor” worksheet. You can download this worksheet for free here: http://thework.com/sites/thework/deutsch/downloads/Arbeitsblatt_UrteileUberDeinenNachsten.pdf
To work with this worksheet, it is best at first to choose a situation where you are upset with someone else, rather than something where you are at odds with yourself. As soon as you have finished filling out the worksheet, you go through EACH individual statement on the sheet in writing using the following questions:
1. Is it true? (Here you can only answer Yes or No. If the answer is No, you can move on to question 3)
2. Can you absolutely know that it is true? (Again, the only possible answers are Yes or No. Even if the answer is Yes, you then move on to question 3)
3. How do you react when you hold that thought to be true? What actions, feelings, and behaviors result from it? (This step is very important because it shows us that we react with feelings, judgments, and actions regardless of whether our interpretation is actually true!)
4. Who or how would you be if it were impossible for you to think or believe that thought? How would you feel and act?
5. Now turn the statement around. For example, if my statement was: “He treated me badly,” then there are several turnings: He did not treat me badly AND I treated him badly (e.g., how I reacted) AND I treated myself badly. Find at least 2 pieces of evidence, reasons, or examples for each of the 3 turnings showing that this statement is just as true. When we turn beliefs around, we restore wholeness, because every judgment DIVIDES unity into right and wrong.
6. This entire process of filling out the worksheet, questioning, and turning it around (also in writing!) is a meditative procedure. Ask the question and give your inner wisdom time to answer instead of rushing through the exercise. Wait, be still… and you will repeatedly be astonished at what is revealed to you!
Byron Katie has also published several books in English and German: among others, “Loving What Is” (introduction), “I Need Your Love—Is That True?,” and “Who Would You Be Without Your Story?”. I truly recommend applying these simple questions daily and practicing them for a few weeks like a “cleansing cure” for the mind. There are also many videos on YouTube where you can directly experience how Byron applies the Work with people. (YouTube search: “Byron Katie”). There is also a video of Byron doing the Work with a woman regarding her fears about Donald Trump: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulOFJB0AfLo It is very interesting to watch this woman’s transformation process and how she finally recognizes her victim mentality and lets go of it. Many people will surely relate to the thoughts this woman has regarding Trump… a very valuable video.
By the way, Katie often says that the Work is called “the work” for a reason, because our mind often stubbornly holds onto beliefs, and freeing ourselves from them and lifting the veils requires effort and action; it doesn’t happen with just a snap of the fingers.
I also briefly want to give you some tips for the dark season, which in our latitudes unfortunately lasts for practically 6 months. These tips correspond only to my personal experience and are NOT a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or psychotherapy. If this resonates with you, please consult your trusted doctor, alternative practitioner, or psychotherapist to determine what makes sense for you. Light therapy, daylight lamps, and high-dose vitamin D can positively influence seasonal sluggishness or low spirits (noticeable for many people after just one or two days!). Many people also have a B12 deficiency, which can similarly lead to depressive moods and many other symptoms. I cannot give information on dosage, etc., but simply want to draw attention to the fact that simple remedies can have a big impact.
Today I also want to show you my new website, which I created over the last few months. It can be reached at www.awenlucia.com. If it does not display correctly, it is because your internet browser is not updated. The Chrome browser has no issues.
From the bottom of my heart, I wish for all of us that we increasingly leave behind the hypnosis of thoughts and beliefs, immerse ourselves in our true being, and act and create from it.
Light and love, healing and peace, to all people, all beings, all existence!!
May all beings be enlightened!!
With love, Awen Lucia