Peter Baksa

Universal Law #4: 'Intend'

2012-11-01T07:24:49-04:00

Article five in a series of six -- "The Art of Manifestation"

In the beginning there was desire, which was the first seed of mind. Sages, having meditated in their hearts, have discovered through their wisdom the connection between the existent and the nonexistent.

At the quantum level of our existence, there is nothing but energy and information. We refer to this as pure consciousness or potential. It is the energy of pure potential from which all is created. The way humans influence this field is via brain waves that are refined or tuned to an intention. This intention is the result of desire.

Everything in existence is nothing but energy and information. As we set an intention, we create waves that cause movement. Before we manifest, this field of information and energy sits ready, waiting for an intention to be set so it can go to work handling all the details for us. It does this if the intention is deliberate and clear or whether it is simply an outcropping of the subconscious mind. Both conscious and subconscious thought function in a similar manner, causing a ripple effect.

Physically speaking, everything is made up of the same recycled elements. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and the rest in minute amounts are at the essence of an intention. The only difference between humans and a plant is energy and information.

Unlike other life forms, humans have the capacity to become aware of the energy and information that make up our physical body. We can experience subjectively based on our own thoughts and emotions. The physical body, on the other hand, experiences this field objectively. At the same time, our body is not separate. We are all connected in a bowl of quantum soup. At the quantum mechanical level we cannot define the borders, as we are merely an extension of the universe in the same way a fish is connected to the water it swims in. A mere flick of the tail creates a ripple that affects every water molecule throughout the oceans. We are connected to our universe in a similar fashion, only replace the tail with a brain wave or thought.

It is the human nervous system that allows us to become aware of the information and energy of its own quantum field. We are able to consciously change the information content, and in the process, change our physical existence. Through attention and intention we can transform our energy field. By setting an intention we transform matter. Through attention, we energize the field and inspire movement to occur. Whenever you take your attention away from something you pull energy away.

An intention set in a field of attention has infinite organizing power.

This all occurs in the zero-point field. There is no such thing as time, in this universe. Time is a man-made concept used to measure only. It is not real. When we set an intention under the scope of attention, we have the ability to organize an infinite number of space/time events in the present moment. Again, since time is an illusion, the present moment is all there really is, everything else is a memory or a projection. Most all theological texts refer to this process as prayer, meditation, chanting. All of these precepts are teaching us how to manifest.

In nature, everything correlates and connects with everything else. Like a set of finely-tuned instruments played by trained musicians in a symphony, the music we call life is played out effortlessly, without control or hesitation. Like in the human body, a single cell carries out as many as six trillion functions in a split second. In a moment of time, it knows what every other cell is doing. It is entangled. It is connected like a fish and the ocean. In quantum theory, we refer to this as the zero-point field.

Our nervous system is what gives us access to the pilot house that allows us to navigate the waters of life, organizing and paving the way through conscious intent. As we set an intention under the guise of attention, we engage source energy -- the same energy that creates worlds from pure consciousness. As you set an intention that is in alignment with the "greater good," you will begin to witness a spontaneous frictionless flow of consciousness that initiates the process of manifestation. As you become in alignment, you will see synchronistic events that bring you toward your intention effortlessly and without fail.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition always honored. Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

Think Yourself Young now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

The information in this post is based on Deepak Chopra's book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams.

Universal Law #3: 'Cause and Effect'

2012-10-25T10:30:54-04:00

Article four in a series of six -- "How to Manifest Anything You Desire".

The operational software that is at the essence of our human experience are memory and desire.

The law of cause and effect works in tandem with these two human functions. By becoming aware of the principles and laws of the universe and aligning our decisions and behaviors, you become a conscious generator of reality.

Our brains are thought refining machines.

A thought is an electrical impulse that is the end result of a processing system that is inherent in all humans. We take in life experiences and we react. We label things good and bad and then we determine desire. The interesting thing about all this is that most of us don't know we are actually forming our reality with this process. Furthermore, we are not aware of the fact that we can alter our reality by simply changing our thoughts. Unlike the Pavlovian dog that lacks the consciousness of a human, we can pivot and change our reaction and thought to a given life situation and thereby change the life situation. The position I am taking in this piece and in my books is:

"Any life situation can be changed by altering our perspective".

I took time during my research and literary review period years back to interview veterans who had returned from the Iraq war with injuries that caused them to become physically challenged. What was interesting to me was that almost all the individuals I interviewed seemed to agree that the experience had changed them in a positive way. I heard the same comment several times; "This was actually one of the most amazing, life-changing experiences I have ever had." They went on to explain the mental transformation they had gone through. They had changed the way they looked at the situation and altered the actual "facts or reality" of the situation. There were a few that were stuck in ego and would not let go. Their view of the experience remained sad and the net result was a depressive state. It was interesting to me that the facts of the situation were actually dissolved and a new set of facts or new perception reinserted by those that were able to overcome ego and return positively to the identical life situation from a point of spirit.

Everything that is happening to us is an outcropping of the way we are processing the present moment.

Our past experiences/memories and conditioning create our current experience. The purpose of this article is to highlight the idea that we are able to choose the way we respond to any given life situation. Even though we have a choice, we have become conditioned reflex machines, constantly triggered by other people and circumstance. Our ego likes to give up our power to others. It can then become a victim. The ego is an illusion -- a conditioned response machine. We are spiritual beings having human experiences. As spirits, we are immortal, affluent structures that have no fear. In fact, fear does not make any sense if we are in spirit vs. ego. In ego, we come from lack; we are fearful of losing, we think that we are our body, our material goods, our personality, our job, or our look. We resist life. What we are is pure consciousness or spiritual energy. When in ego we are unconscious; when coming from spirit, we are conscious.

The way we can go from the unconscious to the conscious realm is to become the seer so as to actually witness -- yourself -- making these robot like decisions.

As you become the witness, you take yourself into the conscious realm and thereby make it possible to pivot your thinking in order to alter your reality. The alternative is accepting anger, sadness, and depression as a normal, reoccurring state of being. As you witness yourself processing decisions, ask what the consequences of taking this approach are. As we do, we connect with our intuition. You will feel in your heart, your gut, what the right thing to do is in any given situation. You will always respond to life with right action using this approach. I spend a great deal of time in my writing explaining the "how to" of getting to this mindset, or what Zen Buddhists call "a clear." It is often not very easy, and we have to repave new neural pathways using meditation and other exercises to get there. As we begin to make decisions about our responses we align ourselves with the universal law of cause and effect. This is sometimes referred to as karma.

By aligning our thoughts and actions with the law of cause and effect we can create wealth, heal ourselves, attract the desired romantic partner, and manifest the ideal lifestyle. It is important that we use this law in ways that are in alignment with our spirit and with other human beings. This will insure that the fruit of your new alignment is happiness and joy.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

Author Peter Baksa interview where he discusses the Art of Manifestation. Click on link:
http://www.liveyourpower.com/Live_your_Power31/Radio_show/Entries/2012/10/24_Peter_Baksa.html

Think Yourself Young now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

The information in this post is based on Deepak Chopra's book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams.

Universal Law #2: 'Give to Receive'

2012-10-18T19:11:44-04:00

Article three in a series of six -- "How to Manifest Anything You Desire".

As I stood at the water's breaking edge, I gazed at the continuous ebb and flow of the tide as it crashed against the rocks. It reminded me of the constant giving and receiving flow of energy found in our universe. I posit that it is our willingness to give what we wish to receive that keeps the abundance of our existence circulating in our lives. Much the way blood must be circulated throughout our bodies in order for the various limbs and organs to function, we must circulate energy in the direction of what we wish to attract into our lives.

The universe acts in dynamic reciprocal. Nothing stands still. The flows of our life situation, money, romance, our health, are all mirrors of our flow of energy in harmonious interaction with our field of existence. Our bodies, our minds, our thoughts, are all in constant and dynamic exchange with the forces of the universe. We are able to accelerate/maintain this exchange by giving exactly what it is we wish to receive. The term "affluence," or affluere, means to flow in abundance. Money is symbolic for energy. It is a form of energy. Like the word "current" when referring to water, currency is a reflection of the term money and its function. It allows an efficient exchange of energy. Hence to hoard or to stop the flow of energy by stopping the flow of money out of our lives mean to stop the flow coming in. Circulation and investing one's energy allows the flow to remain alive and the life and body surrounding it healthy. Giving engenders receiving. If you stop the flow of either you derail your life from its alignment with nature's universal laws and principles.

The more you give, the more you will receive. Even a simple prayer or thought directs energy. It is a form of giving. A simple prayer, a showing of appreciation are ways of directing energy outward. The intention behind the thought must be to create happiness or joy for the giver and the receiver. Like the ebb and tide of the ocean, what goes out always comes back. In fact, the return is always directly proportional to the giving when unconditional and from the heart. More importantly, the thought behind the giving has to be joyful. As a result, the energy behind the gift increases exponentially with each unit of joy. We are bundles of consciousness energy connected with every other bundle of consciousness. Any movement or thought has a ripple effect, touching everyone and everything.

A thought is refined electrical impulse that also interacts with source energy. A thought has the power to transform that which it remains focused on. This includes bringing matter into existence while attracting the right people, situations, and material goods in response to one's desire.

How to apply this in your own life:

If you want joy, give joy to others. If you want love, give love; attention, give appreciation. If you seek affluence, seek to help others become materially affluent. This principle applies to all bundles of energy, including corporations, individuals, families, and nations. If you want to be blessed, learn to silently bless others. Our bodies, when reduced to their essence, become bundles of energy and data. We are consciousness. Life is like a dance choreographed by the laws and principles I am speaking of in my books and these articles. To understand how to dance, we must hear the music, we must respond to the ebb and flow found in the cycles of nature. We activate this flow by giving what we wish to receive.

As you come into contact with another person, make a conscious decision to give of yourself. It can be a flower, a compliment, or a prayer. The most powerful gift is non-material. Caring attention and appreciation are all forms of love. Love comes from inspiration, from spirit vs. ego. When we come from love we activate the most powerful law, principle available to us as humans. Make a decision to give wherever you go.

We are naturally abundant, and affluence is our natural state. We lack nothing because our essential nature is one of pure potential. By directing our thoughts, we can initiate the exchange in any area of our lives. Conversely, by not giving love, trust, appreciation, we allow stagnation to occur and the flow stops, and the complexity and quality of our life experience suffers. As you begin to align from a point of spirit with the rest of the world, you will begin to observe the synchronicities as you point your thoughts, actions and currency in the direction of your desires. As you give, you will see the flow return and your faith in the process I am referring to will grow exponentially as you experience the synchronicities. The more you do this, the better you get at it. At some point, your ability to manifest becomes second nature. At that point, the game changes and you begin enter yet another level of existence. It is an existence where you are one with source energy and it becomes not so much what you desire, but how you deal with the new manifestations as they flow effortlessly into your life.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

This article is dedicated to the lovely Thayamara. One of the most loving, kind people I have had the pleasure of knowing. My constant teacher....

Think Yourself Young now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

The information in this post is based on Deepak Chopra's book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams.

Universal Law #1: 'Pure Potential' -- How to Manifest Anything You Desire

2012-10-18T11:58:02-04:00

Article two in a series of six.

In shop class in the 7th grade I learned about how a potentiometer regulates the flow of energy to a light bulb. It determines the use of potential inherent in the electrical current running through the wires. We are like the potentiometer: We can increase and even direct the flow of energy, of pure potential and create something out of nothing. This source energy comes in the form of pure consciousness; it is our spiritual essence. It can be seen in the form of pure knowledge, experienced as infinite silence, perfect balance, immortality and bliss. It is our essential nature; it is spirit.

The experience of self (our essential nature) is called self-referral, and it points to our internal reference point, our spirit. Object referral is where objects outside ourselves always influence us. We seek approval of others; we always act in anticipation of the response. It is fear-based. This leads to an intense need to control things. When we experience our source energy, our pure potential, there is an absence of fear; there is no compulsion to control or struggle for approval. Control is a sign of the ego at work, not our spirit. Our true self, our spirit, our soul, is completely free of those things. It is fearless and it feels beneath no one; yet is humble at the same time. When coming from spirit you are dealing from a point of love. You draw people to you and you draw things that you desire to you. These responses are initiated as a principle of nature, but we must align ourselves with this principle. The way we align ourselves is through silencing the mind and then setting an intention. We then align our behaviors with this intention and then we are able to detach from a point of spirit or source. The universe begins to put its wheels in motion, handling the details in alignment without pure consciousness.

On the cover of my book The Point of Power, I illustrate the concept of presence and setting of an intention from a point of spirit in the present moment using a droplet heading to a body of water below. Like a stone tossed into a quiet pond of water, its ripple is clear and its effect prominent. We must quiet our mind so that our intention is received by the universe in a similar manner and in the present moment. We cannot be thinking about past experiences, nor can we project into the future. It is only as the stone hits the surface that it has any power. Like the stone we must set our intention as though the intention has already manifested in the present moment and on a flat clean, quieted mind surface. In The Point of Power book I use the example of ordering Risotto from a waiter in a restaurant. We order as if the Risotto has already arrived, we can almost taste it. Maybe we can smell it; we never doubt for a moment it will arrive. The universe responds just like that waiter. If one's mind is like a turbulent river, the intention cannot even be seen let alone be acted on. Set your intention on a quieted mind with a clear, concise intention.

We can more readily access this pure consciousness (pure potential) through the daily practice of meditation and non-judgment. We create new neural pathways by ritualizing the process and building our faith. We still the waters of our thought, our mind. Non-judgment creates silence in the mind. Judging requires us to take a position; once we take a position we are in ego. We create resistance and muddy the waters of manifestation. While I was living among Tibetan Monks at the Lama Temple in Beijing I noticed that they spent their days quieting their minds and constantly reiterating faith in the Buddha. As they did they would literally initiate what I have coined as a Faith Wave. It is from this Faith "brain" Wave that we are able to move to a point of oneness, in the present moment, and with the full power to initiate our manifestation. It is from this state of oneness and not from ego that we begin to connect fully with source energy. It is also at this moment that we learn of our essential nature. As you discover your essential nature, and in that begin to know yourself, it is in that knowing that you can fulfill any dream. There is no distance between you and this field of energy. This field is your truest self -- your spirit. It is from this state of mind that one can manifest anything they desire.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored.

Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

Think Yourself Young now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

The information in this post is based on Deepak Chopra's book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams.

What Are the 5 Universal Laws That Initiate Manifestation of Our Desires?

2012-10-03T17:50:03-04:00

Chapter one, "Introduction to the Art of Manifestation" -- first in a series of six

Unemployed and sitting at home worrying? Marital problems leading you to divorce? Are you stressed and getting sick as a result? Let's turn this around for you in the coming five weeks.

When knowledge is entangled with consciousness, it provides one with the ability to create infinite wealth with effortless ease. It allows the individual to experience success in each and every endeavor. But what is success truly?

Let's redefine success as the continued expansion and progressive manifestation of objectives that are in alignment with one's spirit. Another aspect of success is the ability to manifest desires effortlessly. This is, of course, in contradiction with the hard work, painstaking, stress-filled approach that goes along with the Western European work ethic that many of us grew up with. This series of articles will remain in conflict with this ethic, as it still remains the status quo for a great majority of us.

The approach I am advocating here as a path to wealth and abundance provides for an abundant flow of good things to the individual. With knowledge and practice we become part of the same flow and harmony found in nature, with the essence or core being joy and love.

There are many aspects to success, with material wealth being only one component. Success needs to be a journey, not a destination. Wealth, while sitting in a hospital bed waiting for an ailment to subside, is not success. Our definition of success needs to include good health, passion, fulfilling relationships, creative freedom, emotional stability. Peace of mind and well-being are the crux of a successful person's life.

It is important to point out that even with all these things being present, we will remain unfulfilled unless we nurture the seeds of our spirit. We must look within for answers to achieving a joy-filled life. Truly successful individuals expect the miraculous to be an inherent part of their existence.

So how does this all happen?

Laws and principles sit at the essence of how the unmanifest becomes. It is the process by which the observer becomes the observed. The seer becomes the scenery, by which the dream becomes our reality. Our physical body, the physical universe -- anything and everything that we can perceive -- is the transformation of the unmanifest the invisible into the known the visible.

The universe is nothing but the self curving within itself to experience itself as spirit, mind, and matter. Consciousness in motion expresses itself as the matter of the universe -- our life situations. The source of all creation is the spirit. The process of creation is the mind or our thoughts, with the object of our creation being the physical. The three components are spirit, mind, and body. They all are initiated from the field of pure potentiality, which is un-manifest.

The physical laws are actually the entire process of consciousness in motion. When we apply those laws, we begin to see that we can create anything in the same fashion that nature creates a forest, a star or a human body. It is the same way we bring about manifestation of our desires. In the coming five weeks I will express to you the five basic laws that are the essence of creation. You will be able to apply them in your own life and see results immediately. I will show my readers the "Intend Declare Detach technology" and relate it to each of the five basic laws. I look forward to hearing from you on how this plays out in the lives of those readers that initiate the five directives in their daily lives. I can tell you that you will begin to see synchronicity within days of starting this process, with your desires beginning to become manifest as you follow the directives or laws we will talk about.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored. Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

Think Yourself Young now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

The information in this post is based on Deepak Chopra's book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams.

How to Always Respond With Right Action?

2012-06-27T11:12:08-04:00

We are only peripherally aware of our surroundings, and to an even larger degree, our immediate local surroundings. Since there is nothing new, the little voice in our head absorbs most all of our attention. Some people feel more alive when they travel because sense perception is what fills their conscious state. It forces a sense of presence. When not present, we are in ego. Our perceptions and experiences are distorted by judgments that have more to do with our past then our present. As soon as something is perceived, it is categorized, labeled, interpreted and compared with something else. It is either good or bad, based on some past life experience or meme. This seemingly new life situation is actually a train of thoughts and therefore part of what you experience the moment you think these thoughts. They are not the subject, they are the experience. One can add a thousand thoughts to the train of thought, and you can thereby increase the complexity of the experience of yourself, but you will not end up with the subject -- the reality. The seer is that which is prior to all experience, but without whom, there would be no experience.

This reminds me of the tree that falls in the forest routine, ie., "If there is no one to hear it fall, is there a sound?"

So, who is the seer, the experiencer? As you read the words on this page, who is it that is doing the reading? The answer is consciousness. What is consciousness? I don't know the answer to that. In fact, science does not deal with this concept since it has not figured out a way to measure it. The traditional word is spirit. Since it has no form, and all knowing is within the realm of duality -- subject / object -- then without the knower, nothing can be perceived, felt, thought or known. Only forms can be known, without a formless dimension, form could not exist. And the answer is no, if a tree falls in a forest and there is no one to hear the sound... There is no sound. Form is the luminous space in which our reality in the natural arises and disappears. What happens in this space is relative and temporary, timeless yet eternal and at all times reliant on the observer to exist.

The greatest obstacle to experiencing inner space and discovering the seer is for us to become so enthralled by the experience that you lose the "self," the "seer," in it. It means that our consciousness actually gets lost in its own dream. We lose our presence and get caught up in the life situation, the drama, the emotion. This has been our state since the beginning of time. The allegory of Plato's cave illustrates this idea.

The trick here is becoming self-aware. You cannot know consciousness or even measure it; but you can sense spirit in any life situation no matter where you are. Through a state of utter presence, the words on this page are perceived; and thoughts become manifest. It is the seer, the "I am," that is the under-pavement to every experience thought or feeling. We are spirits having human experiences, not the other way around.

I use breath meditation to create inner space to manufacture gaps in the stream of thinking. Have you ever been unable to get to sleep, caught in a loop of negative thoughts? If you do not place a gap in the stream, your thoughts become repetitive, uninspired, and devoid of creative flow. Being aware of your breathing takes attention away from the stream of thoughts and creates gaps that punctuate the endless flow. This is one way to generate self-awareness. By becoming aware you begin to notice the sensation of breath. One conscious breath is sufficient to create a gap, a pause. I suggest using breath meditation throughout one's day as an excellent technique for bringing awareness of one's consciousness to the forefront, if even for a moment.

Because breath has no form as such, in ancient times, it has been associated with the concept of spirit. The fact that breath has no form is one of the reasons why breath awareness is an extremely effective way of bringing space into your life, and bringing awareness. Whenever you are conscious of breath you are present. Conscious breathing stops your mind and unlike a trance state or sleeping you are fully alert to the present moment. You rise above thinking. You are ready to respond to a new life situation with right action vs. simply reacting with a preconceived, predetermined, pat answer that may or may not have served itself well in the past but is incongruous with the present situation.

While I was living in Beijing, China at the Lama Temple, I witnessed an exercise in the power of presence. I met a monk named Nyima Passan. He was 63 years old and had been studying martial arts for the larger part of his life. I watched an interesting exercise whereas Nyima was at the center of a circle of 10 of his best martial arts students, all wielding wooden practice swords. The students were instructed to take blows at the master at random. The exercise lasted for approximately three minutes, during which time the master evaded or blocked blows consistently the entire time without a mark on his body. They explained that the technique required the master to become present and focus on the energy of each blow vs. watching the students and reacting. The reason he focused on the energy of the blows was because Nyima had been blind since birth. By quieting his mind and responding from feeling, his focus was always on the next on coming blow. He explained that in reality he need only be concerned about one blow at a time. Unlike the ego, the spirit is able to focus on the true reality vs. the illusion most of us perceive as real. The ego is always distracted by its own needs, desires, and fears. Had Nyima come from ego, he admitted he would have been struck repeatedly by his students who far outnumbered him.

The ego asks, "How do I make this work for me?" The answer is typically fear-based, full of judgments, distractions and riddled with bad data from a past experiences that do not really reflect the current situation. The other answer comes from a genetically programmed response like "fight or flight." Using presence as a state from which to respond, one need not even ask the question. When you refuse to react directly from ego and instead respond from presence, we merge with the situation. We can then bring space around the question, we listen, we observe. The solution arises out of the situation itself. If action is possible or needed, you take "right action" that is appropriate to the whole. Once the situation becomes resolute -- alert, spacious -- presence remains. All creativity comes out of inner spaciousness, from spirit. Spirit needs no credit and always comes from a place of love, compassion, quiet presence, even in times of battle. Ego comes from a poverty-based, fear-induced consciousness that typically is ineffective, if not, at best, inefficient as it responds.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored. Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Are We Addicted to Drama?

2012-06-21T13:40:21-04:00

"The Tau leader practices detachment; while others are collecting.
I alone have nothing; in their eyes the fool.

While they are clever and confident, I appear indifferent, drifting at sea; without a compass.
They march forward with purpose while I remain detached, delighted by distant harmonies, nourished by source."

--Lao Tzu, Tau #20. 500 BCE

While living in Beijing, China recently, I spent my days at the Lama Temple interviewing Tibetan monks for my recently-released book, Think Yourself Young. An elder monk approached me one day as I sat next to the Laughing Buddha statue. He told me a story that goes back to the time of Lao Tzu (the founder of Taoism), 400 BCE, that has stuck with me ever since.

It goes like this: A beggar stood at the gates of the temple with his hand out asking for coins from the monks that came and went. On this particular day an elder monk approached the beggar. The beggar responded by putting his hand out. The elder replied, "I have nothing to give you, however, I have a question. Have you ever looked inside the box that you have been sitting on all these weeks"? The beggar said, "No, why? It's an empty box." The elder monk suggested that the beggar take the time to look inside. He went on to suggest that should he do so, he would find it filled with gold. The story is analogous to our propensity as humans to look outside ourselves to seek happiness, fulfillment, joy, etc. I spent the first half of my life as a beggar. I was always looking for the next architectural design project, business opportunity, college degree, or sports trophy for fulfillment.

I was, like many humans, addicted to the adrenaline rush of the next life situation. Many of us are still beggars moving from one life situation or person to the next seeking the next high. Some of us fill our lives with drama and crises, fulfilling our need for emotional stimulation. I found myself attracting partners that needed to be rescued. Charging to the rescue, I would feel needed. This did not require much introspection, and I was not forced to look at myself since the constant drama and crises kept my attention focused and my awareness muted. My excuse may have been love, and my fix, the rush of the situation. My reality was mostly a hidden within a fear-based initiative -- fear because by remaining focused on others, I allowed myself to remain above and outside, always preaching reason and logic to the insane drama that would transpire as a result of another 's less-than-practical thoughts and actions. I could remain safe and untouched from any normal or healthy introspection that a balanced healthy relationship would require of me.

Some might see this as philanthropic, affording affirmation; I call it the hero effect. The reality is that I was stunting my own growth, remaining safe in my isolation with all the attention placed on the drama, and of course the other person's obvious malaise. From my vantage point, this was a silly exercise in inefficiency. It most certainly detracted from the depth and complexity of the life situations I was attracting. The drama acted like a drug to keep my senses dulled and -- like the beggar in the story -- outwardly focused. The obvious need for a level-headed, logical approach that I always would bring allowed me to remain unaware of my own addiction, hence lack of introspection seemed normal since I was the sane one, at least from one vantage point. The reality is we are what we attract. I was as much a part of the drama as anyone. Had I been more aware, I would have seen this.

"P.A.I.N. -- Pay Attention Inward Now" -- Iyanla Vanzant

Most drama and/or ongoing stories that we tell ourselves are typically a way of dealing with pain. They are the story we are addicted to. The drama is our fix. It is the high that allows us to remain unattached from reality, much like a drug addict or a dry alcoholic.

When confronted with the next drama beginning to unfold, the answer might be to take two steps back and quiet the mind. Focus on your breath for a minute or two. The truth of the interaction will surface, and right action can be taken vs. just any action, or an action derived from an unhealthy pattern of addiction. Most of the time we are fixated by what is in front of us, but in reality the causal effect is built into our brain. A past trauma or life situation that we need to forgive may be the true requisite action for us to be released from this internal loop of action and reaction. Unconsciously, I was hooked on the drama and the resultant opportunity to get my fix. The moral of the story is for us to recall the monk's advice to the beggar. Rather than looking outside ourselves for happiness, joy, money, love, we need to begin to look within. Look inside the box we have been sitting on while here in the natural for the answers. Look inward.

By looking within, we can find our center. From our mental and physical center we can care without becoming a caretaker. One can be responsible to people without becoming responsible for them. The net result is that one no longer needs the stimulation of the recurrent drama. In Eastern philosophy, we are taught to substitute dharma -- spiritual truth -- for the ensuing drama. We begin to see that small is beautiful and less is actually more. We begin to appreciate the subtle, profound beauties that exist all around us. We seek the subtle spark in others and seek to help ignite it.

Next time you are confronted with an opportunity for drama, ask what hidden rewards are there for you. Are you using this crisis as an excuse for not facing something else? Are you ready and willing to change this unhealthy pattern? Is there a person or situation from your past that you need to forgive?

Restructure your life to include more time for personal renewal. Shift your motivation from the energy of anxiety to the energy of joy. Regular exercise and meditation may help produce biochemical changes that will support the new behavior patterns you are creating. Practice quieting your mind. Focus on your breathing and center yourself before entering new life situations. New neuro pathways will be scripted and your life will begin to change.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored. Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on mindful living, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

Is Respect Key to Creating Greatness?

2012-06-19T19:01:31-04:00

Wise actions flow naturally from the right principles. When respect directs our daily choices, all our interactions are in harmony with our greater good. Respect for ourselves, one another, and for life itself should be at our core lighting the path for us. Knowing this basic principle, wise actions and words flow naturally. Founders of the Myers-Briggs personality test suggest that no matter how much people differ in background or temperament, three basic qualities underlie any enduring relationship, and they are: understanding, appreciation, and respect. Buddhism teaches compassion for all living things, Confucianism upholds jen, "human heartedness," respect for others as a foundation of all virtue.

Living respectfully is an essential leadership principle. I posit that respect is the key to personal power. Our real power as humans comes when we can relate to others from our hearts rather than from our brains. Our energies contract when we concentrate on ourselves and the way we look. (See my book, It's None of My Business What You Think of Me.) Instead of self-consciously posing or performing, I suggest that one takes a "host" mentality, focusing on how to serve others. Instead of talking -- listen, observe, and seek the spark of greatness in the person you are with. We inspire others by making that spark come alive.

We are flooded in the media with the stereotyped hero, often violent, flashy, tough, emotionally repressed and ultimately unreal. Real strength is strength of character. Real heroes combine courage and compassion living respectfully and transcending difficulty to create new possibilities, like bamboo, flexible yet strong. How can we be more gentle and kind -- now this is true strength and the mark of a true hero.

In this competitive, confusing world that emphasizes the bottom line and short-term economic gains, we see our leadership rise and fall with each cycle. Those who rise above draw on deeper principles, inspiring trust and loyalty in the people around them. Without respect, life is like a roller coaster ride from one sensational experience to the next. Relationships are superficial, and people become ruthless. Without mutual respect, the alchemy of cooperation and creativity cannot exist. Without trust that engenders respect, we will not take risks. The new paradigm of cooperative leadership is impossible without respect.

The lesson of respect is holistic. We can only love another to the extent that we love ourselves. One way to increase self-respect is through advancement in self-discipline. We must unlearn self-limiting habits by replacing them with healthy ones. Self-respect requires self-discipline -- in fact, self-discipline is the backbone of self-respect. I have been running three to five miles per day since the age of 14. I often head out in the middle of January along the shores of Lake Michigan with the Chicago windchill factor falling below negative 14 degrees. My neighbors and the doorman at my building are often shocked as they see me either leaving or coming back from these painful runs. I find that this ritual has a positive effect on my self-esteem and self-respect, and is an example of how I ritualize my advancement of self discipline. The trick or ritual I offer up here is very simple. Make your exercise routine slightly tougher than you would like it. Make it a daily ritual vs. an on-and-off idea that you can skip if something comes up. This ritual must become a part of your life vs. a diversion. I also suggest setting routines for any other area in your life that you seek improvement in. You will find that by ritualizing, you leave out inconsistency as a factor and your advancement is tenfold.

Self-respect requires time for regular tending. I use the example of tending to yourself as though you were tending to a garden. Like a plant that requires water, pruning, or further cultivation, take time daily to affirm your spiritual connection and affirm your physical health -- and most importantly, we must tend to the other humans in our life. By tending to others, we begin the cycle of giving; we put gratitude into action. When gracious, we cannot be fearful or angry at the same time. By making this into a habit, we begin the transformation process of the soul. We alter our frequency, our consciousness, and we begin to attract better, matching life situations, people and circumstances. We are spiritual beings having human experiences. It is crucial to acknowledge this fact to remain close to our source. Separation is when we are in ego, when we believe we are our bodies. When in ego, we respond with anger and fear. When in spirit, we respond with love, compassion, understanding. Like water removed in a cup from the ocean (its source) and placed on a table in the sun, it changes form, evaporating into the sky always to be returned to source (the ocean). We are like the water, always in spirit, always connected but in a different form. As we recognize that we, like the water, are always the same as source, we see our power. We are spirit; we are God; we are immortal. This is self-respect; this is self-esteem at the highest attainable level. It is from this level of consciousness that we can move mountains, attract miracles, heal ourselves, love our neighbors and our partners more aptly. Be gracious, be humble, be open -- you will begin to see the synchronicity as your self-discipline turns into self-esteem and how the quality of life immensely improves as a result of this newfound ritual and higher level of self-respect.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored. Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on spiritual development, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

Can We Consistently Redirect Conflict to Our Favor?

2012-06-11T14:59:17-04:00

Lead with the Tau and negativity has no power. The energy is not repressed but redirected so that it does not harm. -- Lau Tzu, Tau 60.

Physics and Eastern theology converge in one important insight: that all creation is comprised of dynamic energy patterns. Everything, including our bodies, our emotional responses and our physical movements, is energy. Through this knowledge we can redirect anger, hostility or any other type of negative energy. If we recognize when we are experiencing anxiety, it allows for an affirmative defense. We can pivot our thinking and thereby alter the reality of the current life situation. If you are aware of your trigger points you are less likely to act them out.

I was introduced to this lovely girl in Chicago; most would consider her a 10 physically and mentally. We had endless conversations on the phone and had so much in common. We were both finally in the same city and were able to have dinner at my favorite Chicago restaurant. Dinner went well, and the chemistry was obvious, and so date two was set up. Same experience. I was excited -- someone who loves my writing and enjoys discussing like-minded topics endlessly. This could be the one, I thought. Then a few dates down the road, I noticed her energy would change. She would get defensive, and this turned into aggressive, critical words. She would then break things off.

The first time I was left bewildered. She had responded to something said but the gravity of the conversation was so lighthearted and superficial that it did not match up with her response. I took the lower position, centered myself, and accepted full responsibility, apologizing profusely. Within 24 hours we were back in the saddle again, enjoying amazing conversations, holding hands as we gazed into each other's eyes. This "break it off pattern" happened three more times in the next few dates. I realized that this young lady was not reacting to me; she was reacting to trigger points that were being touched, resulting in what I would term the "let me end this before you do" response. I believe in academic circles this might be referred to as fight or flight. She chose fight first and flight moments later.

We were obviously a great pair: She was lovely, and I am amazing. The closer we got the clearer the rise in fear level became. Each time I used the same approach of taking the lower position, as I was taught by my elders. Each time the fight and flight response became more elevated to the point, in my mind, this relationship was sadly over. Too inefficient, I thought. Couples therapy before even dating a month? Not so much.

Uncomfortable situations almost always contain valuable information or a lesson. I have found that if I ask what lies beneath my discomfort I discover more about myself and how I relate to others. A few questions I ask myself:

When were the circumstances of the last interchange, and is there a pattern at play?

What specifically about the situation upset me?

What can I learn from this interchange?

One response that I learned while doing research in ancient Eastern martial arts was centering. Drop down to center and literally focus your energy into your "hara," a spot two inches below the navel. Place your attention at the hara and then move it down and up through the entire body, relaxing muscles as you go, until the entire body is relaxed. Centered and relaxed, we can meet any conflict with power and grace. The Eastern paradox that is used in the art of war and martial arts is to maintain the strength of bamboo, being both strong and soft. In doing so we are able to blend with the energies around us. We can transcend dualism -- I am right and you are wrong -- and perceive new creative options, allowing us to prevail in difficult situations. When we respond from ego, which is fear-based and judgmental, we are always off-center and offer up negative energy.

My date was not seeking resolve in her outbreak; she was running scared, like in Don Quixote, swinging at windmills. You need to be centered within yourself to respond with right action. Centering requires a positive sense of ourselves. The greater our self-esteem the more centered we feel. Practicing the process of becoming centered enhances our sense of self. We then respond to life situations from a place of love and compassion, seeking creative options and always seeking positive resolution. This may sound like weakness to some, but I can assure you the strength of bamboo is both soft and strong while remaining highly functional. Even today the Chinese use bamboo for scaffolding that goes up 20-30 stories.

Centered and strong, we become more aware of the energies around us. We move to the side and get out of the line of fire (conflict). Then we move forward to transform conflict by blending with our opponent, redirecting their energies. In physical confrontations, blending means actually moving with the other person's body to redirect energy of their opposing power. In Aikido, graceful movements send the opponent rolling away in gentle spirals, overcoming without harming the aggressor. The same response works in non-physical confrontations.

Honor all energies both negative and positive, as you do; no harm is done and our essential character is affirmed and elevated. All energy has the potential for either good or bad. Like electricity, it can either kill us or light up our homes. When we start judging, remember that saints and sinners are always exchanging notes and one cannot be without the other. A saint was once a sinner, and a sinner creates a job for a saint.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored.

Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on mindful living, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

Answer to Any Problem In 48 Hours or Less?

2012-06-06T15:35:49-04:00

Thirty spokes met at the wheels axis; the center space makes the wheel useful. Form clay into a cup; the center space is what gives it purpose. Frame doors and windows for a house; the openings make the house useful. Therefore, purpose comes from what is there because of what is not there. -- Tau 11.

An accomplished young monk named Erdijanzi came to his master seeking enlightenment. The master poured tea as the young man introduced himself. Erdijanzi spoke of his life and his accomplishments. The master continued to pour as Erdijanzi spoke. The tea began to pour over the sides of the cup. Erdijanzi cried out "Stop, don't you see what you are doing?" The Master replied with smile and twinkle in his eye. "You cannot fill a cup that is already full."

To learn, to truly receive, we have to empty our cup. We must empty ourselves of preconceptions, suspend judgment, clear away clutter. The Japanese refer to this as "white space" or yohaku. Adding balance to the whole is as important as the image itself. It is the space at the center that makes wheels, a cup, a bowl, a house and even our own minds useful. The space invites us to participate in the creative process, to draw on our imagination. Yohaku is the space of insight and creativity.

My research led me to describe the creative process as a period of conscious work -- i.e., setting an intention, a pause followed by another period of conscious work. I would suggest four stages: preparation, incubation, inspiration, and verification. What this looks like for an architect or artist: a sketch, notes, preliminary research, then a pause -- a time of conscious presence. A quieting of the mind. Then back to work, allowing the subconscious mind to go to work while the conscious mind "allows" does not step in and hinder the process. A sudden inspiration or insight will occur followed by recording and fine-tuning.

It is the period of incubation -- yohaku -- which leads to the inspiration. I believe that this is where the mind connects with what physicists call the "zero-point field." This is where we gain access to a data base of all information and to what some call God. This is where we have to go to "ask and it shall be given." This includes answers to most questions, as well as creative processes that lead up to new solutions. Meditation is the most powerful tool I have found to gain access to this vast well of knowledge.

History has proven that this process works. Samuel Coleridge wrote his poem "Kubla Kahn" after awakening from a dream, Dimitri Mendeleev awakened with a vision of the periodic table of elements, Thomas Edison was known to take naps in between experiments, which ended with him awakening to a new approach, leading him to many new patents including the electric light bulb. As a painter and a writer, I find that this works like a charm.

The interesting thing is that most of us approach a problem or a question by going into a mental loop we call worry. This leaves us mentally paralyzed instead of allowing a solution to surface via yohaku like those geniuses in the previous paragraph. We do not respond with "right action." In fact, quite the contrary. Lawsuits, divorce, anger, road rage, bar fights are all very ineffective, inefficient and expensive life management tools. They are all ego-inspired, fear-based responses that lead to the creation of poor solutions and more expensive, inefficient outcomes.

Most of us are urgency-addicted, compulsive humans, and it is hard, if not impossible, for us to imagine that working less and paying attention to "being" can possibly work for us. I was one such human, which lead me to do this research. I am an expert at what not to do. We can be more effective humans by being mindful of the space around us, the way we spend our time, and how we use our senses. Knowing when to exert effort and when to pause can help us become more effective humans, bringing greater joy to our lives. The process causes us to change the story we are telling ourselves while opening us up to a vast database of knowledge that contains all the information we need to create anything we desire. Empty your cup and allow the universe to fill it while you quiet your mind in thoughtful mindful awareness.

Many thanks for your "likes" and thoughtful commentary. Your participation is appreciated and your recognition is always honored. Best, Peter

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on mindful living, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

Are You Still Renting Space in Plato's Cave?

2012-06-01T13:00:17-04:00

Last week we discussed the concept of god and how we may exist in a biocentric universe that contains many parallel universes. A perspective where material form and space is an accepted illusion and TOE (Theory of Everything) is being sought. The story I wrote and the thoughtful discussion that the article evoked from my readers made me think of Plato's Cave.

Plato realizes that the general run of humankind can have thoughts, communicate, interpret, etc., without any awareness of true form. The allegory of the cave is supposed to explain this. Plato likens people as unaware/unschooled in the Theory of Forms. He compares them to prisoners chained in a cave, unable to turn their heads. All they can see is the wall of the cave. Behind them burns a fire. Between the fire and the prisoners there is a parapet, along which puppeteers can walk. The puppeteers, who are behind the prisoners, hold up puppets that cast shadows on the wall of the cave. The prisoners are unable to see these puppets, the real objects, that pass behind them. What the prisoners see and hear are shadows and echoes cast by objects that they do not see. Like the reflections of light or photons perceived by our retina, the objects and surfaces we see as reality, the idea of happiness, all illusions and just like the prisoners in Plato's cave, we stand blind. So blind that we will stand in righteous indignation, rebelling against any data coming in from any other ego or channel that suggests that the shadows and echoes are just that.

Just like human beings living in the year 2012, the prisoners would mistake appearance for reality. They would think the things they see on the wall (the shadows) were real; they would know nothing of the real causes of the shadows. When the prisoners would talk, what would they talk about? If an object -- a book -- is carried past behind them, and it casts a shadow on the wall, and a prisoner says "I see a book," what is he talking about?

When we look out at our reality and we think we see an opposing viewpoint that threatens our ego's existence, when we see another standing in the way of our success or our happiness, is this just like when the prisoner thinks he is talking about a book? He is talking about a shadow and echo but he uses the word "book" to describe his reality. We use the term G-d to describe an entity, a force that is all knowing and omnipotent. What if the term G-d is just like the shadow? What if our idea of happiness is merely an echo? If a prisoner says "That's a book," he thinks that the word "book" refers to the thing he is looking at. He is wrong... yes? It is only a shadow. To see the "real book" he would have to turn his head around and look at the puppeteer holding the "real book."

The general terminology used to describe physical objects are not the names of the physical objects that we can see. They are the names of things we cannot see. Things that we can only grasp with the mind. In fact, in Plato's cave when the prisoners are released they can turn their heads and see the real objects and realize their error. Plato overturns stones for us in his Republic and illustrates what is necessary to achieve this reflective state. But even without the suggested introspection and mindfulness it remains true that our very ability to think and speak depends on the forms (as shadows and echoes).

It is the forms (illusions) and the process of naming them that allow our language to have meaning. The prisoners may learn what a book is via their experience with shadows of books. However, they would be mistaken if they thought the word book refers to something they have seen. Just like the word honey has no true meaning until and after one tastes or "experiences" the flavor of honey. It is then the taste along with the word that make up the meaning of the word honey, but even this is a perception not a truth. We will continue to acquire concepts by our perceptual experience of physical objects. However, we, like the prisoners in Plato's cave, will be terribly mistaken if we think that the concepts that we are able to fully grasp are on the same level as the things we perceive as reality. Observe your thinking and be sure to evaluate this difference. Whatever we end up thinking becomes our reality. Believe it or not.

"The wound is the place where the Light enters you." -- Rumi

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on spiritual development, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now available on Kindle -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011, 2012.

Who or What Is God?

2012-05-26T00:13:24-04:00

"The most beautiful and deepest experience a man can have is the sense of the mysterious. It is the underlying principle of religion, as well as, all serious endeavour. He who never had this experience, if not dead, then at least blind. To sense that behind anything that can be experienced, there is a something that the mind cannot grasp; whose beauty and sublimity reaches us only indirectly; this is religiousness. In this sense I am religious." -- Albert Einstein

The laws of physics have conspired to make collisions of atoms produce plants, trees, animals and humans. In fact, these laws produced collections of atoms that don't just obey Newton's laws in a passive way. Some jump, mate, run and think. The laws of physics, working through Darwin's natural selection, have produced these gigantic collections of apparently purposeful beings who look as though they have been designed. Once Darwin determined how to get complicated, designed beings from the simplest of forms, he gave us an intellectual foothold to begin to see a process that we refer to as evolution. We know since 1859 how this all happens.

Math and science use principle-centered, complex frameworks to describe and understand phenomena on all scales of time and space. Reality, on the other hand, operates at all intervals simultaneously. Our existence, as we see it, is an illusion.

"We are spirit having human experiences not the other way around."

A starving child, longing for food, has no clock to measure the movement of the sun and the earth around their shared center of mass. Looking down from my high-rise in Chicago I often look over the hundreds of people mulling about on the beach, each existing from a particular point, their own universe if you will. A fly's eyes have hundreds of different facets. It is able to detect the briefest flickers of movement, perceiving reality under a completely different guise than we humans.The mind of an Alzheimer's patient cannot use the human construct of time. For such a person, the chronology of existence is broken, living without the element of time or memory to assist in formulating their reality. Time is an illusion, as is space.

There is a disconnect between our subjective impressions and observations of time and the universal time that can only be perceived by a god. In my work, I attempt to describe this using contemporary quantum theory as a general thesis or foundation. Having an understanding of the universal synchronicity that connects us at every scale of time and space will allow us to be more sensitive to our interconnected universe -- a cosmic Jello that is both sub-atomic and vast. Because its nature changes with the size of the phenomenon being observed and the observer, we must begin to realize that there are multiple universes or realities going on all the time.

Using quantum theory to prove the non-existence of God is not man's ultimate challenge. Indeed, in order to prove God did not exist, we would need to have the kind of universal, all-seeing perspective that only a god can possess. But we can refine our definition. We can use what we know to be true to formulate a new story that places us at the helm as we navigate the waters of life in the natural.

Why is this a crucial point for human kind to evolve?

As I reviewed ancient theological texts and cross-referenced them with modern quantum theory, the correlation became obvious. As I interviewed generations of Tibetan monks while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China, it became evident that the life we live is the story we tell ourselves. Part of this story evolves from our consciousness, the way we see ourselves and the universe we live within. Jesus Christ, the Buddha, Lao Tzu, the Dalai Lama, Rumi, and other spiritual leaders are all pointing to a star that holds the answer for us manifesting the absolute best life that we can live while here in the natural. Quantum mechanics illustrates how God works, but only to a limited degree. Darwin started this process and gave us a foothold, but it is now up to us to expand our consciousness beyond the human constructs of time and space, beyond the materialistic perspective we have inherited.

What is the story you are telling yourself? How does this story keep you stuck, fearful, angry and arguing for more of the same? Why unendingly fight with your spouse or continue to fund a lawsuit that will get you nowhere in the end. Are you a beggar? Are you begging for the next life situation, person, or thing to maintain the illusion of happiness? Are you looking to others to make you happy? Do others need to change in order for you to be happy? Change this story to one that starts from gratitude, openness and love. Engage the universal energy that creates worlds from nothingness. Begin each human transaction by giving thanks and paying it forward. Watch how your life expands and you attract more and more of the same. Love begets love; positive thoughts manifest themselves in positive life situations. The opposite is also true. Observe your thoughts, be humble, be open, be gracious.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on spiritual development, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now for sale -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011,2012.

Can We 'Imagine' Ourselves Into a New Reality?

2012-05-07T08:00:45-04:00

Henry David Thoreau, in the mid-19th century at Walden Pond, offered up:

"If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours."

Dreams and imagination are the paints, the colors, used to create the portrait we call life. Choose them wisely. We do this by observing and adjusting our thoughts to align with our intention.

Be willing to dream and imagine yourself becoming all that you wish to be. Be open, be humble, and be gracious. If you live from those imaginings as though they have already come into existence, the universe will align with you in bringing all that you wish, even more. Elevating one's ordinary level of consciousness, or what Thoreau calls "common hours," means elevating the level of success that you will be able to attract. All that now exists was once imagined. It follows that what you want to exist in the future must now be imagined.

The intensity of one's intention becomes at issue when manifesting. When I was in Beijing, China living amongst the Tibet monks, studying at the Lama Temple, I met with Erdijanzi, a Tibetan monk 23 years old. I asked Erdijanzi how much time he spent each day in meditation. He replied, "I do not know". After a few minutes of cross-examination I realized that in between questions the young monk went back to his Mala beads to quiet his mind. In doing so he was in essence training his brain to become present.

It occurred to me that any intention set over the top of this clean slate (brain wave) must effect the quality and the velocity of the intention. This process would eliminate the noise that most of us suffer from in setting a manifestation into motion. As a painter, then student of architecture and landscape architecture, I learned to look at the world and see things differently. Natalie Alpert was an instructor who explained during my first architecture design studio that by the time we graduated we will have learned to look at the world through different eyes. We would actually train our brain to "look up," as she put it.

In essence, Natalie was suggesting that we look through "the noise" of our environment and seek out that which was beautiful. I have been blessed to have manifested an amazing life using this process and have written several books on the topic. The process that I posit includes setting a clear intention, aligning one's behaviors, then detaching. Detaching includes giving up control and having faith.

I was raised in a Lutheran German household that included three days in church a week, choir, alter boy service and orchestra. Some of this was fairly tiresome, and we were taught that pain, effort, and being on time were a precursor to success, since these activities built self-discipline.

"They" were two-thirds right. Step one and two -- intend and then declare. Step three, detach -- not so much. Detaching involved a deeper feeling we call faith. It means actually giving up control and allowing the universe to do "its" thing. Unfortunately, most of us, including me for many years, tend to be self-critical -- we judge, we disallow. These particular thoughts are in precisely the opposite direction of initiating a manifestation of our intention. These types of thoughts and actions are about being in ego vs. in spirit or inspired and dilute the manifestation process.

Thoreau called this process advancing confidently in the direction of your own dreams. (I call it intend, declare, detach.) Carlos Castenada called this "connecting" to an intention. Wayne Dyer, a much-lauded self help lecturer and public television celebrity, was strongly influenced by Castaneda's last book, The Active Side of Infinity. Dr. Dyer writes in his book The Power of Intention that he experienced "satori" or instant awakening when he read two sentences in Castaneda's book. This Satori was his realization that the power of intent was not just a self- help, personal technique that one does, but rather a force that actually exists in the universe as an invisible field of energy that we connect to.

When coming to a human transaction from a place of spirit or being inspired we are engaging forces that exist beyond ourselves. It is these forces that Thoreau, Max Planck, Albert Einstein, C.G. Jung, Carlos Castaneda and many others refer to when speaking on the topic of connecting to an intention and then allowing it to become manifest. Observe your thoughts, set a clear intention, align your behaviors with this intention, then detach. Whatever reality you seek can become manifest using this process.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now for sale -- I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing, China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in its tracks, with the net result being a high-quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written The Point of Power and It's None of My Business What You Think of Me! available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of The Point of Power.

Follow Peter Baksa on Twitter: @PeterBaksa

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview.

Copyright 2011.

How to Create Harmony Out of Uncertainty

2012-02-17T12:44:03-05:00

The poet John Keats said that "negative capability" is a key ingredient for any artist. We demonstrate negative capability when we allow ourselves to remain present in the face of uncertainties, doubts and fear without emotional outbursts, bringing drama or reaching for fact or reason to use as a scapegoat or a life rope. When we, humans, are at our best, we become the artists of our personal life portraits. We can then be at the helm of our own ships, navigating the waters of life, able to overcome impatience and abstain from the need to control.

The Tao Te Ching tells us that all nature follows this process moving from conception to creation one step at a time.

A tree that grows beyond your reach
Springs from a tiny seed.
A building more than nine stories high
Begins with a small mound of earth.
A journey of a thousand miles
Begins with a single step. -- Tao #64 Lau Tzu 500 BCE

As we develop greater strength of character, we're able to face the unknown and to create new possibilities for ourselves. We begin to learn to detach and to recognize the cycles and the patterns that are always evolving within us and around us.

Everyone has moments of self-doubt when facing the unknown. Many of us are facing financial problems, some losing the family home to foreclosure. Some marriages are facing dissolution, either as a part of this sort of situation or due to some other marital malaise. The key is to remember that life is a journey, and we are always charting new paths. The more complex our lives, the more our courage, faith and resolve are tested. The question becomes, can we stay centered and keep moving forward?

The life process is much larger than we are. Conflict, challenges and the unknown will always be a part of the human experience. When faced with uncertainty, re-label this "bad feeling situation" as "contrast." As my old track coach use to tell me, when faced with a limit, a block or a disappointment: "Train through it." Be aware that contrast is a normal and healthy part of life's journey. Whether it is an illness, a financial problem or a familial issue, the key is not how to avoid problems, but how we face them, how we respond. Once faced with uncertainty or fear, "train through it." Set a clear intention; declare a set of behaviors in alignment with what you really want to have happen or become manifest. Listen to what the universe sends you back in response. Then detach and allow things to unfold or adjust your intention, and declare a different set of behaviors. Relish in the journey of life in the natural. The only reason that something "is" or "feels" bad "is because" we were taught that it should. (See my book, Its None Of My Business What You Think Of Me.) This is only our ego asserting itself. Don't buy into that if at all possible. You are spirit first, mind and body second. With that in mind, we are already immortal. (So, check that off your list.) It also means that changing one's perception changes the reality of any given life situation. Every life situation is a good one. Life without our bodies (portal into this universe) is pretty boring. No sight, no hearing, and no music to dance to. The life situations that we experience are just that, music to dance to. Be the intentional painter, artist; each day you add yet another color, another shade to the portrait called your life.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on consciousness, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now for sale - I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in it's tracks with the net result being a high quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written "The Point of Power," & "It's None of My Business What You Think of Me!" available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of "The Point of Power."

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview. Copyright 2011.

How to Begin to Achieve Your Dreams Right Now

2012-02-03T15:42:23-05:00
Ecclesiastes affirms that "to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven."

Is everything related? Does everything run in cycles? By watching the cycles in our lives we can become mindful of how our actions naturally lead to larger consequences. One can begin to see the wisdom of small actions. Cultivating healthy habits sets up self-reinforcing positive cycles. Taken individually these tiny actions don't seem like much; however, the cumulative effect of their presence or absence is undeniable. These cycles can be ignored but they cannot be denied.

Everything in nature moves in cycles. While navigating the waters of life in the natural we must know how to blend these cycles in our lives and in our work. It can be illustrated by knowing when to speak, when to pause, when to act, when to remain silent, and when to wait. Empowered by this understanding one can anticipate and prevent problems and pave the way to a particular desire or end goal.

One of the habits of our fast-paced lives is to neglect to see the wisdom of small action. In my books I refer to this as incremental intentioning. Often times we set large goals that often seem outlandish from today's perspective. Resolving a financial problem, saving a marriage from dissolution, healing a disease, placing yourself in a position to buy the house of your dreams, attracting the romantic partner you have always desired are all reachable goals and should be set straightaway. But that is not enough.

Rather then becoming overwhelmed by the new objective and either standing static or giving up, ask yourself the question, "What is the right reaction or action that I can take right now?" If you are attempting to lose weight and seem to always fall back into old habits of eating or physical passivity, set your intention for that moment, that day, to stay on course and eat healthy, to do research on the effects of various foods, to do something in the way of exercise. Now, rather than initiating these behaviors "when you think of it," make them a part of your daily routine and do them every day. When you have successfully blended this pattern into the rhythm of your life, you will begin to feel the victories each day and see the synchronicities that are an out cropping of this new found life style design tool.

For more by Peter Baksa, click here.

For more on mindfulness, click here.

"Think Yourself Young" now for sale - I discuss diet and meditational techniques according to the Tibetan Monks that I was able to interview living amongst them while at the Lama Temple in Beijing China. These folks appear to be able to stop physiological time dead in it's tracks with the net result being a high quality life beyond 120 years.

Peter Baksa has written "The Point of Power," & "It's None of My Business What You Think of Me!" available now on Amazon.

Bonus: Like Peter on Facebook today and receive a free chapter of "The Point of Power."

Follow Peter Baksa on Facebook.

Follow Peter Baksa's blog.

Check out this live interview. Copyright 2011.