Nothing is good or bad but thinking makes is so - Ancient Veda knowledge

OCTOBER 2022

Dear Meditators        

This quote comes from Shakespeare's time but is ancient knowledge that comes from the “Veda’s” which means Knowledge.

The Vedic world view is – There is no right or wrong, good or bad, but how we think makes us beleive it is so.
Thinking changes our reality but is this the truth?

As humans we speak and act from the state of consciousness we are in at the time. We analyse, go over and over in our minds to make sense of a situation. We blame others because that is what humans do, right? A person says something to me that I think is bad, another person may say something that is good. It is not until we get insight and the mistaken intellect is corrected (Pragyapradh) that we move in a different directions and the pathways change with different behavious and communication. We let go of old stuff and move from blame and suffering into right doing. Feeling calmness inside while the people around us may be battling with what others are saying.

The way people communicate comes from their own perspective- everyone is reporting from their own state of consciousness. What people say to us is not good or bad, right or wrong. If we react because the mind has gathered up past memories and experiences from that person or from what people have said about the other person then we will mal-adapt and become stressed. Whatever stress is in the Nervous System at that time is what the body prints out.

How is the intellect corrected?
By witnessing our behaviour and coming to the present moment. Inside the present is where everything lies. There is an exercise I like to do. I call it the 3 R’s. Recognise what is happening, Realise through the senses where I am at that moment then Respond appropriately to the situation at hand. Feeling charm from within, the feel good hormones release into the body. Our responses then comes from Being (Pure Consciousness) into Action not Thinking into Action.

Always come back to self. Reactions (stresses) becomes less and we take responsibility, we adapt. Always look to self-first don’t jump to conclusions, look for the truth. Nature will support when we go from Being into thinking and then into action. Then everything flows perfectly.

In this podcast Thom talks about "Truth - That which never changes" Enjoy the wisdom from a Vedic Master.
https://thomknoles.com/podcast/truth-that-which-never-changes/

Until next time
Love & Jai Guru Deva
Liz

Copyright © *2022* *Beyond Thinking-Vedic Meditation*, All rights reserved.

Raising Consciousness through Ayurveda

Raising Consciousness through Ayurveda – The Science of Life.

First let’s think about our own Lifestyle.

What we eat and drink, how we sleep, interact in relationships and in the environments we live?
I know it’s a lot to unpack but these are the building block that unlock insight into our lifestyle. We may think that Meditation twice daily is enough but it’s also important to look deeper at the ways we look after our Health and Well Being? Studying Ayurveda is one way to deepen our knowledge and awareness of the mind and body. To cut through the layers of our not just who we are but what we are.

Ayurveda as a lifestyle practice that sits hand in hand with our Vedic Meditation practice.
Go here to apply for free PDF Booklet.

An Introduction from the booklet –
“Based on Maharishi Ayur-Veda, the world’s oldest and most comprehensive system of natural health.”

Our behavioural patterns of eating, sleeping, work, rest and rejuvenation determine whether we have good
health or start to face a wide a variety of disorders as we age. Health is a choice. However, choice is only powerful if we have the option of choosing right over wrong. This booklet is designed to provide you with the knowledge to enable you to choose behaviours in each major area of daily living that will help you develop the highest possible state of health now and into the future. Too many times as health deteriorates the energy and will to make changes in behaviour also is reduced, creating a downward spiral in health. Physics tells us the world exists in layers. The surface levels of nature behave like particles and are the domain of classical physics. The deeper, subtler levels of nature behave like wave patterns in fields and are the domain of quantum physics. Modern medicine is a health care system based on an analysis of health from the molecular level in classical physics. Maharishi Ayur-Veda is a health care system based on an analysis of health from the deepest quantum mechanical level in nature, the Unified Field.

Ayurveda Time Clock for eating and sleeping well.

Ideally get up by 6am, to take advantage of the end of the Vata period (2am to 6am). The energy at this time of day is light and fresh. If you wake up too far into the Kapha period (6am to 10am) everyday, you will feel duller and more sluggish throughout the day.

Further thoughts to live by, raising Consciousness and Self-awareness.

• Live in the present moment (listen to Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now)

• Be of service in the community (what you give you receive back in abundance)

• Let go of old negative habits

• Be self-referral (come back to the self before blaming everything and everybody else around you)

• Raise my awareness of others by putting myself in their shoes – “What’s it like to be you?”

• Surrendering my preferences in my relationships gracefully and without resentment

• Giving to others what I want to give to myself i.e., if I want affection then give affection first, if I want attention then give others my attention first. Whatever I want for myself -give it first.

• No expectations, no judgment, no sarcasm, no negativity

• Give freely, without keeping score

Everything is conceived, structured and perceived in our consciousness.
Remember what I put my attention on grows so be mindful of what you are attracting into your life.
One of my favourite sayings - “As you think so shall you be”.

Until next time
Love & Jai Guru Deva

Moving out of my comfort zone

I hear people say they are fearful of the future and for our young people.  Fear of how our world is going to survive.  Regrets about what they wish they had done.  
 
A few thoughts to ponder over:
What happens when we have negative thought patterns, negative old habits and regrets?  For example- “I can’t do that because..… (self-doubt or fear of failure) or I’m still angry with that person who said blah blah blah to me 10 years ago, or I wish I could change but I can't because..…. or I wish I hadn’t made that promise I couldn’t keep.  Using words like “I should have...or, what if….,or if only I had…….etc. etc. These thoughts are about regrets and are negative, they can spiral into suffering, unhappiness and anxiety. They are thought patterns that do not serve us and we need to let them go.  The mind is always looking for greater happiness so why not ask for bliss, happiness and contentment to come instead.

Some of our emotions and feeling come from thought patterns from the past (Premature Cognitive Commitments or PCC’s).  When negative thoughts cause pain and suffering, something needs to change - we need to move out of our comfort zone and feel some discomfort. Staying in our comfort zone - having the same music playing inside will only continue if we allow those negative thoughts to persist.  If we stay in a rut, not growing or moving forward then what happens next is that Nature takes control and we can be forced into change. 
 
With the support of our twice daily Meditation Nature supports us to find the right answers, to move forward easily.  Change that feels warm and comfortable can bring bubbles of bliss and happiness.  This change feels charming (feel good hormones) which moves us in the direction of greater happiness.  

Letting go of fears, regrets, anger and doubt is not easy.  Change is not easy.  Changing thoughts from fear to fearlessness takes courage and discipline.  Our reward is we gain self love and understanding of ourselves.  Love everything about ourselves- the good as well as the things we don’t like about ourselves.  Love everything and watch what happens.
 
We are over half way through 2022, it's the perfect time to write down our achievments so far this year. What is still left on my to do list for this year? Have I been meditating twice daily?  Has fear, regrets or doubts consumed me? What’s stopping my progress?  Reflecting is good practise to take me out of my comfort zone. Don’t hold back this is very freeing.

Remember life is full of endless opportunities and possibilities. 
"You deserve the best.  Never feel unworthy or not justified in having the best.  I tell you, this is your heritage; but you have to accept it. You have to expect it; you have to claim it.  To do so is not demanding too much." Guru Deva, Swami Brahmananda Saraswati’s quote. 

Today I will take time to reflect – I will write down the things that stops my progress and wellbeing.  Today I will give myself the opportunity to create my highest potenial.  To find my bliss bubble inside and to tune into what Nature will have me do next.
 
Love & Jai Guru Deva
Liz   

Witnessing my reactions

Dear Meditators

What does witnessing my reactions mean, particularly for meditators?  It means to consciously stand back from a situation to see it from a different perspective.  Reacting from a different perspective gives us time to calm down and to think differently. 
Asking the questions – What am I really reacting to here?  Am I reacting from my own feeling’s and not seeing the bigger picture?  Remember everyone reports from their own state of consciousness, this includes us. 
 
As daily meditators we may feel what is happening in our environment more deeply. 
Perhaps waking up feeling depressed or sad but not knowing the reason for this.  With each meditation our senses become more sharpened which means we feel deeply and pick things up quickly.   Therefore, it is perfectly normal for us to feel anger and sadness when atrocities happen.  We must also remember that these things are not happening to us personally.  We are witnessing and feeling what is happening on a Universal consciousness level. We recognising that Nature is calling on us to support those who are suffering. 
 
Through daily meditation we sharpen our sensory perceptions which expands the boundaries around us with greater awareness of what is happening both inside and outside of the body.  Over time the sensors can become so highly sharpened that we sense what is happening within another person (this is Unity Consciousness.) “What’s it like to be you?”
 
As twice daily meditators we bring calmness and understanding to a situation from our inner quietness, we bring (Being) into Action.  Action can mean many things but if we are picking up on negativity from the environment then what we do is change our thoughts.  Come to the place inside that feels love, empathy and compassion for those who are suffering.  No longer needing to feeling anger towards those who commit the crimes. 

Until next time,

Love & Jai Guru Deva
Liz  

Words of Wisdom

From a long time Meditators point of view, a daily practise is the single most important thing to do. It is a fact that when we Meditate twice daily we gain maximum release of stress, tension and fatigue, life flows and becomes frictionless.

Life is good when we are in touch with our inner Being and with Nature simultaneously –from the Absolute (our inner most quiet place) to Relativity –(life in Action.) Sanskrit wording “Yogatha Karoon Kamani” – Estabilished in Being perform Action.

Words of wisdom from our Guru Thom Knoles (Maharishi Vyasananda Saraswati)

The world is for us as we can be for it. Your own state of consciousness is all you know; to change the world, change your own state of consciousness.You cannot stop a collective from behaving in accordance with its state of consciousness. You, too, behave only in accordance with your own state of consciousness.Your suffering is the result of your inaccurate expectations; it is not the responsibility of another. Nothing new happened that did not exist already; it is a shame to be surprised when a walnut tree produces walnuts. Act accordingly.”Leaders” are the mirror of the average state of collective consciousness; “leaders” are led by, and constrained by, a collective alone (there is no “leader” without enthusiastic followers). Raise the average; be personally exemplary of a higher consciousness state; until, personally, you lift the average, the collective behaves simply predictably. Don’t expect “leaders” to lift a collective; that is grass-roots activity, it is your activity.

Until next time, be the change that you want to see in the world.

Love & Jai Guru Deva
Liz

Present moment, Ayurveda, Agni & Ama

Dear Meditators

The thought manifests as the word;
The word manifests as the deed;
The deed develops into habit;
And habit hardens into character.
So watch the thought and its ways with care,
And let it spring from love
Born out of concern for all beings.
As the shadow follows the body,
As we think, so we become.
Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha,
The Dhammapada

Awareness of thoughts and actions -
After learning to meditate we begin to have awareness that our state of mind creates our world. There is no world outside of ourselves just the interplay of our consciousness. We learn that what we think, how we behave, what we perceive, how we interact and attract are all within our own consciousness. If we think in a particular way for example – Poverty thinking brings lack of abundance and the opposite is having affluence and abundance with
endless opportunities. We can think anxious thoughts bringing worries and so on.

Always remember “As we think, so we become.”

Some present moment awareness exercises -
*What is my consciousness state right now?
*Can I feel the backdrop of calmness inside & outside of me?
*What is my level of suffering right now?
*What is my body printing out – adaptability or stress release? It helps to write these down.
*Am I knowingly ignoring what I’m feeling right now? Do I ask Nature for more information?
*Can I improve my awareness of the body? Absolutely Yes – through Meditation and Ayurveda

My present moment awareness for me today - I found myself thinking about sticky Ama and my Agni -
The Ayurveda sight below I found to be very interesting with lots of really good information about Ayruveda, Ama and Agni.

https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/

Ama: The Antithesis of Agni - Ayurveda | Banyan Botanicals
What is Ama?
Ama is a Sanskrit word that translates literally to mean things like “unripe,” “uncooked,” “raw,” “immature,” or “undigested.”1 Essentially, it is a form of un-metabolized waste that cannot be utilized by the body.1 To some degree, the formation of small amounts of ama is a normal part of the digestive process, provided it is efficiently removed. But when it is not regularly cleared and eliminated, ama becomes hugely problematic. In fact, ama is
said to be the root cause of all disease, and amaya, a Sanskrit word for disease literally means “that which is born out of ama.”2 The connection between ama and the disease process makes perfect sense because the qualities of ama are in direct opposition to those of Agni. And remember, strong Agni is essential to the maintenance of proper health. In other words, when Agni is compromised and when ama accumulates, our health suffers, and the two situations are mutually reinforcing…… Banyan Botanicals

Other Ayurveda practitioners worth visiting-

Jes Chev - https://www.jeschev.com/

Vital Veda - https://vitalveda.com.au/

Let me know how you go answering the questions above and what other insights you may have found.
Jai Guru Deva

Liz

Conscious Awareness

As Meditators we have a unique gift with our Meditation practice that allows us to go deep within to reach the source of who we are -with our unique thoughts, memories, feelings, sensations and the environment we live in.

To raise our awareness and state of Consciousness- first we check in with ourselves. Here are a few daily questions to ask ourselves.

How I am feeling right now? What am I thinking about? What sensations/emotions/feelings am I experiencing? What will it take to raise my awareness of “self”? Am I listening to the cues that Nature is offering me?

Here are some daily practices to help kick start the day and raise Conscious Awareness of Mind, Body & Spirit.

Ayurvedic Morning routine:

1. Ideally wake by 6am, to take advantage of the end of the Vata period (2am to 6am). The energy at this time of day is light and fresh. If you wake up too far into the Kapha period (6am to 10am) everyday, you will feel dull and more sluggish throughout the day.

2. Go to the Bathroom

3. Before eating or drinking – brush the teeth and scrape the tongue to remove toxic residue that builds up from the digestive system during the night.

4. Drink ½/3 glass of filtered water (luke-warm/ hot), limewater/ ginger water/ honey water (not hot).

5. Pranayama & Meditation or for those familiar with Rounding can do one Round.

6. Take a shower.

7. Eat breakfast.

Continue the day with some suggestions…..

• live in the present moment (listen to Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now)

• be of service in the community (what you give you receive back in abundance)

• let go of old negative habits

• be self-referral (come back to the self before blaming everything and everybody else around you)

• raise my awareness of others by putting myself in their shoes – “What’s it like to be you?”

• surrendering my preferences in my relationships gracefully and without resentment

• giving to others what I want to give to myself i.e. if I want affection then give affection first, if I want attention then give others my attention first. Whatever I want for myself -give it first.

• no expectations, no judgment, no sarcasm, no negativity

• give freely, without keeping score

Everything is conceived, structured and perceived in our consciousness. Remember what I put my attention on grows so be mindful of what you are attracting into your life. One of my favourite sayings is “As we think so shall we be”.

STATE OF CONSCIOUSNESS AND SOCIAL CHANGE
EPISODE 26 - THOM KNOLES
DECEMBER 25, 2019
“You cannot stop someone from behaving according to their level of consciousness.“
Listen to Thom here.

What will Nature bring us in 2022?

For me the picture above symbolizes simplicity, beauty, life, timelessness, transparency, love, peace, serenity and fearlessness. What does it symbolize for you? What is your true Nature?

The answer to these questions is different for each of us. I call Nature “God”, my inner Being. The silence within when meditating and when in dynamic Action. It is the source of my individuality. It is the Big Self and the small Self, joining together which is called Consciousness. The Creative Intelligence which brings light to the darkness,
Bliss and Happiness are the results. As Anand Mehrotra describes so beautifully –
“In every moment I am the expression of incredible creative intelligence”.

FOLLOW THE VOICE OF YOUR HEART – ANAND MEHTROTA

theanandmehrotra
“You are in this very moment an expression of incredible creative intelligence. Pause and pay attention to how you are simply arising in the here and now. Effortlessly so. There are infinite variables balanced in perfect harmony for you to be expressing and experiencing yourself back ... just the way you are. This is pure Love. Eternal. Unconditional. Never born and never dying. Contemplate on this. Pay attention to the miracle that is you. .”

When we least expect something to happen Natures organizing powers comes to fill in the gaps. The more we practice living in the present moment and being receptive to what Nature is offering us we can expect amazing things to happen. Trust that all is well and wisely set in place.

Some thoughts and quotes for the new year.
Live every moment - As we let go of the previous year, we clear space within ourselves and embrace 2022- welcoming in new opportunities. Breathe deeply the gift of being alive and present in every waking moment.

Love - "Love opens all doors no matter how closed they may be, no matter how rusty from lack of use. Your work is to bring unity and harmony, to open all doors which have been closed for a long time. Have patience and tolerance. Open your heart all the time." Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

The secret of attraction is to love yourself. Attractive people judge neither themselves nor others. They are open to gestures of love. They think about love, and express love in every action. They know that love is not a mere sentiment,but the ultimate truth at the heart of the universe. ~Deepak Chopra

Laugh – Take time to laugh each day, laughter is food for the soul. It’s infectious and uplifting to be around.

Happiness –Be happy, healthy and let all that love flow through your heart.
"The world is as you are." Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

Meditation is at the basis of all Love and Happiness. Every time we sit in silence to embrace the most subtle areas of thoughts within - we tickle our consciousness and wake up the creative intelligence that lies deep inside. It is truly the most powerful tool you will ever have in your life.

INVITING HAPPINESS FOR THE FESTIVE SEASON

INVITING HAPPINESS OVER THE FESTIVE SEASON

This can be a happy time of year for some and for others a challenging time. Many philosopher’s and Guru’s have written and spoken about how to be happy.
Today I have a few more thoughts for you to ponder over as the Festive Season begins.

A few questions:
*What are my expectations of myself and of others?

*Am I suffering because of blame, speculation or judging others?

*Am I needing/expecting others to make me happy?

*Am I oversensitive to what people think of me?

*Am I over thinking my thoughts and inflicting suffering onto myself?

How do I invite Happiness/Bliss into my life?

*By following Nature’s intentions and listening to the voice within.

*Come to the present moment by coming to my senses –What do I hear, see, touch, taste, smell.

*Making my twice daily Meditation a priority, letting go of appointments in favour of keeping up my Meditation practice.

*Realising that people are always reporting from the state of Consciousness that they are in at the time.

*Letting go of my expectations of others - coming back to self first.

*Giving Service - creates a warm atmosphere around us and brings in feelings of happiness and wellbeing.

*Following Charm. In other word’s coming to my fine level of feeling, my Creative Intelligence, my Being.

*If I feel unhappy- first, ask the question why?
Then come to self-referral and realise that this is my choice. There could be outside influences that are out of my control however what I do have control over is my own individuality. Change the Neural pathways of the Nervous System on the inside and my vibration toward others changes on the outside. Sometimes this feels impossible, however by practising and being aware of the content of my thoughts through daily Meditation I can choose to change my perspective and eventually change the Intellect and my thought patterns. Letting go of old stuff and letting in the new. That’s Freedom…..

Navigating relationships

Over a lifetime we encounter many different kinds of relationships. - Families, friends, work colleagues, acquaintances, etc. Each relationship has many layers within it according to how much attention and time we give them.

The different types of relationships - the loving, the Intimite, some are long lasting and some are short, some we have on a personal level and tell all, then the kind we discuss the weather and don’t give away much information about ourself. Historical relationship - held together because of past experiences and the connections made that bind us.

Let’s break this done further and talk about traumatic and destructive or sometimes called toxic relationships. Why they keep repeating themselves and why we continue to suffer, sometimes for many years afterward. If there is no understanding of our part (self referral) in these relationships then there is no chance to reconcile and heal the layers within. The memories are held in the cells as Premature Cognitive Commitments. The way we react/adapt in situations come from these PCC's deep within the sympathetic nervous system. The cycles may keep repeating themselves with the same or similar scenarios taking us down the same pathways. This can be detrimental to our health and well-being, mentally, physically and spiritually.

How we might respond to the suffering in relationships -
When negative emotions and feelings come to the surface we have to make some choices. Either we ignore the feelings and hide them away for another time or we choose to release them. I call this the three R's, Recognise, Realise and Respond. It takes courage and discernment to look at ourselves first and to work through the old layers and challenges. The benefits are that the memories held within the cells begin to dissolve. We can begin to highlight and delete the old memories resulting in new beginning, new relationships free from the old baggage of old memories.

Moving forward is sometimes difficult, but we can make a start by placing our attention on ourselves. Being honest with ourselves, because the truth sets us free. Healing and love can begin to take place, set ourselves and the other person free. If we don’t choose this way then the suffering will continue. We have a choice to not be a Loving Controller but rather a compassionate, loving human being.

Within every layer of a relationship and at the source of everything is LOVE.

You have all heard me say - the most important person you will ever know is YOU.

If you are interested in gaining more Vedic Knowledge with the amazing Exploring the Veda Course - I will be starting another course early next year. It only takes a few people to begin the course. Go here for more information.

Jai Guru Deva

Liz