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| “Spiritual Regeneration through Spiritual Cleansing” December 3, 2002 Daniel M. Clark, BA, MHT As each of us moves through life on our various paths, we encounter an endless array of obstacles that test us. These obstacles test our ability to stay focused on our spiritual path and adhere to our morals, values, beliefs, motivations, and personal goals. Sometimes things can get so cluttered and our true path in life is not so easy to find. Several factors can contribute to the breakdown of our spirituality, some include: money and materialism, negative situations, negative conversations, negative people, and negative emotions. Ourselves and other people around us can generate the negative examples. Frustration in any one or more of these areas can provide significant roadblocks that can impair our ability to stay on our individual path. The effect becomes similar to that of being pulled by an invisible rope in directions that do not necessarily coincide with our life path. In order to get back on track we must recognize and cultivate the light within ourselves. A helpful starting point to aid in the Spiritual Regeneration process can be achieved through Spiritual Cleansing. Spiritual Cleansing is a process of intensive prayer where all of the negative influences that currently affect a person are identified and released. By releasing the negatives we can then allow our true light within to shine bright. A critical part of the release process is the identification aspect. Through identification we can learn how we played a part in taking the negativity upon ourselves, as well as how others may have had influence on us. Once a person has gone through a spiritual cleansing it’s important to recognize and identify the areas where our light within gets weakened. Through the learning of our mistakes, and recognizing the negative sources of energy in our life, we may effectively prevent the same energies from affecting us again. It’s important to remember two catch phrases that are prominent in the mind/body approaches to health and wellness: First, “all thoughts are energy.” They do have an effect on us and directly affect the path we are on. Second, “what the mind represses, the body expresses.” With this in mind, each day our reactions to negative people, negative conversations, and negative situations all have the potential to create some form of emotional response that may distract us from our path. Negativity that is generated by us, the environment or other people has the power to weaken our spiritual light within. I am reminded of a Chinese adage that seems to say it very simply: “Control your emotions or they will control you.” A simple rule to follow that goes hand in hand with controlling your emotions is to be kind and considerate toward others. This may seem too simple, but if ignored it can contribute to a kind of karmic return now or later. In psychology, the terms internal locus of control and external locus of control are factors used to describe if a person is motivated by self or driven by the outside environment and other people. If we allow ourselves to be focused primarily on our internal locus of control with the goals of our spiritual self as a source of motivation, enthusiasm, and optimism, - then we are much more likely to withstand the daily negativity that we encounter. We are naturally kind and considerate toward others because we know that’s how we want to be treated. Pay attention to how it makes others feel when you are kind and considerate to them. Then notice how good you feel inside because you have contributed to strengthening the light within yourself. The key ingredients for success in keeping the light within yourself strong are: self-discipline, commitment to spiritual principles, and regular practice of those principles in your life. Once a person has undergone a spiritual cleansing it is important to practice regular maintenance to keep yourself strong and clear of negative interference. Numerous studies involving mind/body approaches and holistic health have repeatedly demonstrated the positive effects of prayer, meditation, hypnosis, yoga, tai chi, and qigong, to name a few, on the mental and physical health of people. The reason they achieve such positive results is because they all contribute to developing the light within. They are calming, relaxing, and require that you clear your mind of negative things and focus on the “now” moment. In addition, your body is also strengthened and rejuvenated by a phenomenon known as the “relaxation response.” The “relaxation response” is a state identified by Dr. Herbert Benson, an associate professor at Harvard, as the exact opposite of the adrenaline rush, fight/flight mode that people often experience in times of stress. By activating this state, your mental, physical and spiritual health all receive the beneficial effects of relaxation and rejuvenation. Again, the key to any good self-maintenance plan is discipline, commitment, and regular practice. Even just a few minutes of meditation each day can be very relaxing and provide you with positive feelings to help you to maintain strength and resilience in times of stress. A simple, yet effective, short meditation that helps to keep your energy strong and strengthen your spiritual focus would be: “Visualize or imagine a bright white light in the center of your chest. (If you have a hard time visualizing, then just imagine a gentle feeling of warmth.) Take a deep breath, and as you slowly exhale, focus your concentration and awareness on this light, it begins to expand throughout your entire body. Imagine this light slowly filling every part of your body. Take another deep breath, and slowly exhale, and imagine the light expanding outside of your body, encapsulating you with a bubble of bright white light. Take one more deep breath, and slowly exhale. Now imagine the bright light beaming all around you from the center of your body.” Doing this simple meditation everyday is a good follow up to keeping your “now” energies focused and strong after undergoing a spiritual cleansing. Reservar Hoteles ArendalWhen you keep yourself spiritually centered, with your light strong and bright from within, you are able to stay on a path that you truly desire. Your connection to the higher power is strengthened and your intuitive thoughts flow more freely. Through attentive maintenance to the needs of your mind, body, and spirit you can experience “Spiritual Regeneration.” hotel rooms MontpellierDaniel M. Clark is a Master Clinical Hypnotherapist. He has Advanced Hypnotherapy Certification with the American Board of Hypnotherapy and his Master Clinical Hypnotherapy Certification with the National Board of Professional and Ethical Standards. He has Specialized Certifications in the areas of Stress Management, Past Life Regression, Learning Enhancement, and Smoking Cessation. Web Address: http://www.memergy.com For more information call 440-205-9549 or email: He can be reached at 440-205-9549 for appointments. | |||||||||||||||
