World Beyond

The Impact of Past Lives on the Present

I started the original World Beyond website almost seven years ago.  From time to time I "recycle" earlier messages from that site into this blog.  The following is from a July, 2000 post.

If you look at our reference page, you'll see several books discussing past lives, most written by psychologists or hypnotherapists.  These individuals actually "regress" a patient, through hypnosis, to re-experience significant past life events, in order to help solve a present-life problem.  Now, depending on where you are spiritually right now, this may sound like the biggest load of crock you've ever heard.  Two years ago, that's where I was at.  I wouldn't have believed it.  I will tell you though, they are extremely successful at what they do.

The other neat thing about the books is they all seem to be mutually reinforcing in the truths that are presented.  Sure, there may be small differences, but they are differences in scope really...nothing major.  Many of these cases and studies were conducted decades apart, with no knowledge shared between authors. 

Another way to revisit past lives is through the help of someone with psychic gifts.  Edgar Cayce is perhaps the most well-known psychic practitioner.  A few of the books written by the hypnotherapists even mention the abilities of good psychics (not the 1-800 hot-line type) to help individuals discover their past lives.

Last week, I visited such a psychic.  Wherever you live, I'm sure you can find a sincere person with gifts who can give you a reading.  I won't bore you with all the details of my session, as most of them were a little too personal, but the experience was nothing short of amazing.  Looking at it from the big picture, here's what I discovered:

Did you ever wonder how you got your personality?  You know, the things that make us all unique.  I mean, we're a collection of our previous thoughts, actions and experiences, but hasn't it ever seemed to you that some of your preferences or traits were innate and hard to explain?  I think this is especially noticeable when you're raising children, they are all so different at such an early age.  During my past life session, I discovered many of the traits that made me - me, came from my previous lives.  Your soul retains the information and qualities (good, bad or indifferent) it gains, and it all shows through in this life.  I have a much deeper understanding now about who I am and where I'm going.  The information related to me was so personal, and so appropriate, that the psychic had to be receiving it from a higher source.

I'm excited.  Excited about the prospects that lie ahead of all of us.  I will share one personal thing with you.  I was told my purpose now is to search out and find "my truth" and then share it with others.  Not to convert anyone to "my truth" but to help them each discover "their truth".  That's the real purpose behind this site.  It began with a bolt of inspiration two months ago, and I hope to continue it as long as it's useful.  Please, if any of the information you read here strikes a chord, pass it on.  Share it with your friends.  Post a comment.  Send me an email.  I'll never ask you for money.

It's not about any one person, it's about all of us, helping each other grow.  God bless you.

The reason I chose to recycle this message now, is that I realized it's been almost exactly seven years since that first "bolt" of inspiration.  Although I've gone through some busy periods of life where I haven't been able to devote as much time as I'd like to this project...right now, for a variety of reasons, I'm in a pretty good place and have a nice rhythm going.  I hope it will continue.

Looking back, I'm just as excited now as I was in Y2K.  I feel I've discovered many new (to me), wonderful ideas and have deepened my understanding.  I'm thankful for the seemingly endless supply of inspirational books and websites out there.  I will share them with you as I find them.

Despite the various sources of tragedy we read about in the world, I really do think we're heading for a better place in the years to come.  Seek out the positive...don't wallow in the negative we seem to be constantly bombarded with in the news.

Do what you can to make the world a better place...a World Beyond!

Remembering Mary

My wife was able to attend the funeral of Mary Read, the 19 year-old daughter of a co-worker and friend, who died in the recent senseless tragedy at Virginia Tech. 

I'm out of town and we shared tears over the phone as my wife described the beauty and emotion of the service.  Mary's friends had been able to sign their names and write messages on her white casket during the visitation session.   My wife was able to give Mary's father a big hug...as no words exist able to convey the proper message of love and sadness.

At the service, Mary's father shared a profound message from his daughter.  When confronted with this type of tragedy, forgiveness truly is the answer.

"Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned."  --Buddha

Nothing can be done to ease the pain for this family, and the many others who were similarly affected.  Forgiveness will help them cope.

Even those of us who didn't know her, will always remember Mary.

Life is mystery
Tears of joy, tears of sorrow
We learn from it all
Are meant to share with others
Loving kindess...enjoy each day

Making A Difference

I've been quite fortunate over the past 25 years to be able to travel to and live in many different parts of the world.  Right now, I'm in Kazakhstan.  I've been here for about one month and from what I've seen so far, and learned from the people I've talked with...most folks seem happy and have enough money to meet their needs.  I've seen lots of school-age kids and university kids who look pretty much like their counterparts in the US, just in slightly different clothes. 

The other day I was in a fairly large town, waiting in a car for someone who'd gone into a store.  For the first time, I saw a child begging.  When I first noticed him he was at my window, and he asked if I had any change for bread.  I'll be honest...in my surprise, combined with my slow speed in processing his request (my Russian isn't the greatest) I initially just shrugged my shoulders and he moved on.

He was about 5 years old, blond and serious...he moved quickly from person to person asking for change.  As I finally realized what was going on, I was struck by his appearance.  Other than lacking my gargantuan head, (I was known as "Cinder Block" as a child) he could have been me at that age.   

I reached into my wallet for a bill the equivalent of a couple dollars, caught the boy's eye and handed it to him.  His face lit up bright, he carefully rolled it up and ran across the street, I imagine toward home.  My only regret now is that I didn't give him more.

How long has it been since we've been truly grateful for what we have?  I know it had been a long time for me...and this was a quite personal reminder.  I'm sure many of us give money to those less fortunate, whether on a street corner or through a church or charity...but do we also have the right motivation or desire in our heart as we do so?  Are we doing all we can?

The same day I encountered my childhood lookalike, I finished reading the book Beyond the House of the False Lama by George Crane.  While it's not as good as his earlier effort, Bones of the Master, it did have an excellent section discussing a Buddhist nun named Ani Jinpa, and her struggle to feed 50-60 children daily at a monastery in Outer Mongolia...all on a budget of $5000 per year.  The woman is a saint.  She had traveled to Mongolia several years earlier, saw the need, and stayed to help.  With a rather small amount of money and a great deal of effort on her part, she is making a huge difference. 

Right now I have a passel of kids to support...college, weddings...the usual stuff.  I'm happy to have them...happy to help them, but I do look forward to the near future when they are independent and grown and I can devote more of my time, money and energy to other good causes.  Right now I'm encouraging the kids to make a difference as well, maybe join the Peace Corps after college, or find some other way to give something back, as so many out there are doing. 

It may be a simple career choice.  I'm proud of our oldest daughter, who will soon graduate with a degree in Social Work...and has already spent a year working in a Middle School helping kids at risk.  But there are many other professions (such as medicine or teaching) that are also built around service.   And you may not need to travel to somewhere as exotic or faraway as Mongolia to do it. 

Open up your heart
Listen to the universe
Give unselfishly
Follow heart's knowing whispers
To fulfill your destiny

To those who are doing so already, I pass along my thanks and encouragement.  To those (like myself) who aren't quite there yet, I issue a challenge to work harder toward that goal.  Set some personal goals to really make a difference.  Give what you can now, and prepare to give more in the future.  That's where true happiness will be found.

God, Darwinism and Creation

Are your spiritual beliefs troubled by Darwinism?  Are you bothered by the theory of evolution, a theory many believe to be fact?  Let me recommend a wonderful book, Darwin's God by Cornelius G. Hunter (see right hand side of page for more info) that could help set your mind at ease.

Hunter is a biophysicist with an interesting way of looking at Darwin's theory.  In his thoroughly researched and scholarly written book, he argues that all evolutionists from Darwin himself down to his modern apologists, are heavily influenced by their metaphysical concept of God.  In Darwin's instance, a very Victorian, Protestant concept of God.  In many cases, their "proofs" of the theory of evolution are nothing more than the concept that "God wouldn't do it this way."  While Hunter doesn't present his idea of how life developed on this planet, he does demonstrate that there are other belief options out there.  To get all the details, I recommend you read the book yourself.

Here's my take on the subject of evolution/creation.  (Note: my "take" is influenced by my Mormon upbringing as well as the ideas of several authors, Michael Newton foremost among them.)  Some principles of evolution may be at work on this planet, as a way to make the world function somewhat autonomously...but there is much more involved than that.  Did God create the world in seven days?  No.  Is God (or Allah, Vishnu, the Great Spirit, the Goddess, whatever you call him/her) the moving force behind life and the universe?  Yes!  Did/does God have help?  Yes.  Who are the helpers?  Souls just like you and me.  Probably souls that are further along in their advancement than we are, but maybe not.

In between our incarnations in the physical world, on this and other planets, we continue our training in the spiritual realms.  Part of this training involves creating things.  All things are created spiritually before they are created physically.  The most complex things we create are living things.  We experiment in the spiritual world with our spiritual creations, and as some point, when our skills are great enough, our creations are transferred into physical reality.

The universe is full of planets in various stages of development.  Souls assist God in the on-going creation of the universe, from organizing planets to creating life-forms to populate them.  We may start with something "easy", perhaps inanimate, like a rock or Don Imus.  Then progress to creating a flower or even a cockroach.  These skills take ages to develop, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of earth years, but luckily, we have all eternity.  Again, you and I may not possess these skill sets yet, but we're working on them.  Once we perfect our spiritual creation skills, we assist in the creation of physical worlds. 

Obviously we have to work within certain parameters.  Life forms are developed for each planet based on the characteristics of that planet.  For example: gravity, atmosphere, available resources, temperature, etc., all play a role in what can be created and survive on a particular planet.  Think for a moment of all the types and varieties of life on this planet alone, from exotic fish surviving in the depths of the oceans to majestic birds soaring skyward.  Then multiply that by the thousands of life supporting planets throughout the universe, and imagine the possibilities.

Worlds and ecosystems are created to operate as independently as possible, but they may require an occasional nudge.  For thousands or even millions of years, life would seem to evolve and progress naturally.  At certain periods however, corrections may need to be made.  Wouldn't this be a possible explanation of the catastrophic elements in the fossil record, where many life forms appear and disappear almost overnight (in geological terms)?

The goal of creation is to produce a world capable of supporting life-forms that are developed well enough to house our souls.   On this planet, such life-forms are humans.  (Not cows, cats, dogs, or mosquitoes...just humans.)  On another planet, the higher life forms may be different (we might have wings and be able to fly.)  By entering a physical body in the physical universe, our souls can experience and learn from the physical world.  These physical "lessons", be they pleasurable or painful, are a necessary part of our overall soul growth.

Please keep in mind that our bodies may have been formed through evolutionary processes...but our hearts, spirits and souls were not.  Our eternal "being" is separate from this physical existence.

Eventually, after many lifetimes, we reach the point where physical incarnations are no longer required for growth, but even then, we continue our spiritual progression, until ultimately, we become one with God.  I believe the creation and growth will never cease, as new souls are organized and begin their growth process.

Whew!  We covered a lot of metaphysical ground here.  A least I admit to my metaphysical underpinnings, unlike the Darwinists.

Here's another problem I have with Mr. Darwin.  He was a negative person, focused on explaining the "evils" of creation, such as "Why are there parasites that eat the flesh of living animals?"  Much like St. Augustine was a negative person, who believed the idea of reincarnation was a "revolting opinion" that souls be required to "return again to that burden of corrupt flesh to pay the penalty of torment."  My beliefs spring from a more positive outlook on life and creation.

I hope this rambling opinion makes some sense to you, dear reader.  I'm not asking that you agree with it wholeheartedly.  I'm simply asking that you consider the ideas.  Think about other possibilities.  Study, meditate, pray and use inspiration to develop your own beliefs, instead of blindly accepting those the evolutionists...or the fundamentalist creationists promulgate.  May God bless you on your journey.

Pearls Before Breakfast

How many of us take the time to really appreciate life?  I think all of us, from time to time, get so caught up in the "rat race" that we lose sight of what is truly important...we miss the beauty that is all around us, if we only would take the time to look, or listen.  The Washington Post Magazine recently ran an excellent article on this subject,  Pearls Before Breakfast by Gene Weingarten.

Please follow the link and read the entire article, it's a little lengthy, but extremely well written and worth your time.

I came away from the article with two "lessons learned".   First, I found it most interesting that children always recognized the beauty and were willing to stop and listen.  We need to maintain our childlike wonder at the world.

Second, those who had taken the time at some point in their life to develop their creativity and talents were more likely to recognize the talent and beauty that was present even in the most dreary and mundane surroundings.  By developing our talents, whether it's music, painting, sewing, writing poetry, or whatever, we'll not only benefit personally through our creativity, but we'll also develop a greater appreciation of the beauty that exists all around us.   

Enjoy your day!!

A World Beyond

One of the books I recommend reading is "The Gnostic Gospels" by Elaine Pagels.  (See link at right of this page.)   It's a wonderful book discussing the origins of Christianity based on the discovery of ancient texts at Nag Hammadi.  These Gnostic writings offer a new perspective to the Christianity many of us are most familiar with.  If you can find the time, I recommend you read it. 

The book tells the story of the Gnostics, and their rival Christians, those who founded what became the Catholic church.  The Catholics eventually persecuted the Gnostics to the point of extinction.  Gnostic texts were burned, and until the discovery at Nag Hammadi, little was known about their beliefs.  What really stood out to me were the different perspectives of the two groups.  While the future Catholics extolled an organizational hierarchy and outward ordnances, the Gnostics focused on internal spirituality and a personal relationship with God.  The foundation for either approach can be constructed based on New Testament texts.

The same conflicting perspectives have appeared in different religions.  Within Christianity, Judaism and Islam, a variety of mystic or spiritual movements have contended with the orthodox.  These rivalries have existed over thousands of years, and continue in our day.

Today, how many times do we hear a particular religious group boast of their membership figures, or the number of new churches or temples they've constructed?  What about the hearts of their members?  Are they still filled with prejudice and disdain for those holding different beliefs?  Do they look down on those who worship differently, or do not share the same moral rigidity?  Do they accept people with different colored skin, or sexual preferences?

The world has had enough of intolerance, close-mindedness, and authoritarian structures.  In the recent past, we've seen the end of many of the last vestiges of authoritarian political control, as the Communist regimes of Russia and Eastern Europe disappeared seemingly overnight.  Dictatorships throughout Central and South America have also fallen by the wayside.  The few authoritarian regimes that remain  face many challenges as they continue to suppress their citizens.  Their days are numbered.   Authoritarian religions may not be far behind.

Although the term has fallen somewhat out of favor, I believe we've entered a "new age".  Or as the Theosophists believe, we've re-entered a period of great spiritual development and power, leading to our evolution and eventual reunion with God.  Take a look at the books available today, where the same basic spiritual beliefs are currently espoused by psychologists, rabbis, monks, scientists, psychics and educators.  Clearly something is going on.  People everywhere are beginning to awaken to the potential that lies within them.  This time, personal spirituality will not be extinguished as it was during the early years of Christianity.  There are too many books to burn, too many ways for like-minded individuals to share beliefs.

This new age will lead to a World Beyond the one we now know.  A world where loving-kindness, not hatred, dominates.  One where many paths are tolerated, where other's opinions are respected, where each individual grows spiritually, according to the dictates of their hearts.  I hope we can all find the strength of purpose to do whatever it takes to further our spiritual growth and further the creation of this World Beyond.

 

The Power of Love

The power of love. How many times have we heard this phrase? Too many to count and when we do, it's in one ear and out the other, without even making a blip on our conscious mind. That's how I was until recently. Reading the books listed in our "What to Read" section of our blog, the reference section on our original website, and some recent experiences have altered my thinking.

The power of love is as real as the power of electricity. While electricity powers the physical world, love powers the spiritual world. When we tap into love as a power source, we can accomplish things that seem miraculous. Just as someone traveling back in time to the Middle Ages, with an electric motor or a video camera would appear to perform miracles. Over the past two hundred years, science has conquered the physical world. Now it's time to turn inward, and use the power of love to conquer the spiritual world. By balanced use of power in both the physical and the spiritual realms, we can truly change the world.

There are many ways to manifest love. Sharing, kind deeds, a big hug, a caring look, a loving touch, taking the time to listen. When someone you love is far away, think warm loving thoughts about them, and you'll both feel the benefit. Think about what someone did to make you feel loved, and then think of what you can do to show someone you love them. If you take the time, your heart will tell you what to do. Then act on the feeling.

The power of love can lift our spirits, brighten an otherwise dark and dreary day. When we are receptive, love can change us. The power of love can heal the wounds of a soul. Love can smooth out our rough spots, and make us better people. Love can bring a never-ending joy to our lives. Share love, experience love, be healed by love and then look around for others to lift up and help. As more people turn from the material things, focus inward and let love flow through them, the world will be changed. The world will be changed, not by some cataclysmic event, the world will be changed one heart at a time.

100 Words

In a little more than a month from now, my oldest daughter graduates from college and five days later gets married.  She's always been very efficient.  :)  For the past few months I've been trying to come up with something to say at the wedding dinner.  I didn't want it to turn into a rambling, bawling, mess.  In about five minutes last night, (yes there was bawling involved) here's what the universe gave to me:

100 Words

From day one, Rachel, like all my children, taught me about true love.

She's always been a very special person and has shared her love with many others.

Today, she chose Colby as her partner in life and love.  She couldn't have picked a finer young man.

Together, they'll continue to build on their life of love and be an example to those around them.

Someday, they'll learn more than they ever imagined about love through children of their own.

And the cycle will continue.

That's what families are for:  to teach love.

May God bless them on their journey.

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Now if I can only speak these words on May 10th without crying like a little girl myself.

Building A Strong Foundation

One summer during High School, I worked at a small concrete company. It was hard, dirty work and most evenings I came home with nostrils full of cement dust. At the time, I thought the only valuable lesson I was learning from this job was, "Go to college!"  Looking back, I see there may have been others.

Concrete is a material not often pondered, but can you imagine a world without it?  Roads, housing foundations, entire skyscrapers, dams, are just a few of the structures built with concrete we take for granted.  Concrete is made from four ingredients: cement, gravel, sand and water.  Skip an ingredient, or add the wrong amount, and your mixture is useless for building.

Our lives too, need something solid like concrete to build upon.  I believe this "spiritual concrete" is also created from four critical ingredients: desire, faith, humility, and love.  Like physical concrete, each of these ingredients is required or our strength will be inadequate and we'll crumble.

One of the best examples of desire is attributed to the one of this world's great philosophers. A young man approached Aristotle and asked to become one of his students. Aristotle led the young man into a nearby lake, and when in the water up to their chests, forced the would-be student's head under the water for what seemed like an eternity, then released him. As the young man came coughing to the surface, struggling for breath, Aristotle replied, "when you desire knowledge as much as you just desired air, then you may become my student."  How badly do we desire further knowledge and spiritual enlightenment?

Faith is another critical ingredient required for building a strong spirit. Faith in God, a supreme being or intelligence, who created and maintains this amazing universe we live in.  Faith that our individual lives have a purpose.  Faith that we can discover that purpose, and that the power lies within us to truly become god-like.

Humility is also required. A healthy understanding of how little we really know. An ability to acknowledge our faults and weaknesses. Not viewing ourselves as being better than other people.  A humble nature will allow us to learn the truly important lessons required for our development.

Finally, love is necessary. Love for all people.  Each day we need to express this love through thoughts, words and deeds.  Love for mankind is one of the central tenets of all religions.  Developing and sharing this love (a concurrent process) is what will transform us as individuals, then our communities, then our nation and ultimately the world.

Keep these four ingredients in mind.  Develop and maintain large stockpiles, use the ingredients liberally as you continue to evolve.  Then, at the end of this life, the wonderful edifice you construct will not be a simple physical monument, destined at some point to be replaced or destroyed by others, but a magnificent soul, eternal in nature, growing ever nearer to God.

Forgiveness

The following is an excerpt from the book "Creativity" by Osho.  I definitely recommend it.  This passage really touched me.  It's a great explanation of a concept so many of us have trouble with:  forgiveness.

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Yesterday somebody insulted you.  Again he comes across you today.  The factual memory is that "this man insulted me yesterday."  The psychological memory is that seeing that man, you start boiling up.  And the man may be coming just to apologize; the man may be coming to be excused, to be forgiven.  He may have realized his mistake; he may have realized his unconscious behavior.  He may be coming to befriend you again, but you become boiled up.  You are angry, you start shouting.  You don't see his face here now; you go on being affected by the face that was yesterday.  But yesterday is yesterday!  How much water has flowed down the Ganges?  This is not the same man.  Twenty-four hours have brought many changes-and you are not the same man either.

The factual memory says, "This man insulted me yesterday," but that "me" has changed.  This man has changed.  So it is as if that incident had happened between two persons with whom you have nothing to do anymore-then you are psychologically free.  You don't say, "I still feel angry."  There is no lingering anger.  Memory is there, but there is now psychological affectation.  You meet the man again as he is now, and you meet him as you are now.

A man came and spat on Buddha's face.  He was very angry.  He was a Brahmin and Buddha was saying things that the priests were very angry about.  Buddha wiped off his face and asked the man, "Have you anything more to say?"  His disciple, Ananda, became very angry.  He was so angry the he asked Buddha, "Just give me permission to put this man right.  This is too much!  I cannot tolerate it." 

Buddha said, "But he has not spat on your face.  This is my face.  Second, just look at the man!  In what great trouble he is--just look at the man!  Feel compassion for him.  He wants to say something to me, but words are inadequate.  This is my problem also, my whole life's long problem-and I see the man in the same situation!  I want to relate things to you that I have come to know, but I cannot relate them because words are inadequate.  This man is in the same boat:  he is so angry that no word can express his anger-just as I am in so much love that now word, no act, can express it.  I see this man's difficulty-just see!"

Buddha is seeing, Ananda is also seeing.  Buddha is simply collecting a factual memory; Ananda is creating a psychological memory.

The man could not believe his ears, what Buddha was saying.  He was very much shocked. He would not have been shocked if Buddha had hit him back, or Ananda had jumped on him.  There would have been no shock; that would have been expected, that would have been natural.  That's how human beings react.  But Buddha had feeling for the man, seeing his difficulty...The man went, could not sleep the whole night, pondered over it, meditated over it.  Started feeling a great hurt, started feeling what he had done.  A wound opened in his heart. 

Early in the morning, he rushed to Buddha's feet, fell at Buddha's feet, kissed his feet.  And Buddha said to Ananda, "Look, again the same problem!  Now he is feeling so much for me, he cannot speak in words.  He is touching my feet.  Man is so helpless.  Anything that is too much cannot be expressed, cannot be conveyed, cannot be communicated.  Some gesture has to be found to symbolize it.  Look!"

And the man started crying and said, "Excuse me sir.  I am immensely sorry.  It was absolute stupidity on my part to spit on you, a man like you."

Buddha said, "Forget about it!  The man you spat upon is no more, and the man who spat is no more.  You are new, I am new!  Look-this sun that is rising is new.  Everything is new.  The yesterday is no more.  Be finished with it!  And how can I forgive?  Because you never spat on me.  You spat on somebody who has departed."

Consciousness is a continuous river.

When I say drop your memory, I mean psychological memory; I don't mean factual memory.  Buddha remembers perfectly that yesterday this man had spat on him, but he also remembers that neither is this man the same nor is he the same.  That chapter is closed; it is not worth carrying it your whole life.  But you go on carrying.  Somebody had said something to you ten years before and you are still carrying it.  Your mother was angry when you were a child and you are still carrying it, and you may be seventy years old.  These psychological memories go on burdening you.  They destroy your freedom, they destroy your aliveness, they encage you.

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This is a supremely important point, and goes beyond the topic of forgiveness.  We need to rid ourselves of ego, rid ourselves of the psychological baggage of the past, and stop worrying about the future.  By truly being present in this moment, by setting aside the "monkey mind" (as a friend of mine describes it) we will awaken to the true nature of our consciousness, bring ourselves in tune with the universe, and then be able to accomplish all that we've been sent here for.