Believe it or not, my friends, every moment of every day we are reacting to something. This is what our emotional self does. You see, we have preferences as to how we would like to feel, of how we would like things to be. This is normal and as it should be. If something doesn’t seem quite right, our feelings will indicate this to us. Because we want to be in a balanced state, we become aware of an impending change of some kind, that is necessary for us to return to that very sense of balance and well-being. What we fail to understand is that our feelings are simply a guide to help us know that movement is in order, an adjustment needs to be made. But, this movement cannot happen within the emotional state we find ourselves in, for the feeling we are having has already done its job. What we need to realize, then, is the adjustment that must occur, must take place within our mind. Remember, it is the mind that is the creator. It is our thought process that is capable of change and adjustment. To continue to pay attention to how we’re feeling will not get us to where we want to be. What we must do is pay attention to the thoughts we are having instead, for it is these thoughts which create the feelings we have. You see, our emotional self is simply a responsive or reactive mechanism. It is simply a way for us to understand what our mind is creating. If we want a balanced state of consciousness, a more pleasant experience of living, our thoughts, which are born of our beliefs, need to be corrected.
My dearest companions, if you believe you can change your feelings, by feeling something else, failure is a guarantee! Again, it is not the feeling that is the problem. If you haven’t figured it out already, the judgment of the unpleasant emotional reaction you are having will intensify its effect. This is a trap. So, it needs to be clear to you, acceptance must happen first. Welcome the bad feeling, for it opens the doorway to solution. You see, our emotional self has no directive capability, only our mind can do that. Our emotions are unpredictable, unreliable, and if we attempt to navigate through them to find an answer, we have no control as to where we end up. The feeling we’re having can only lead us to the next feeling, and more often than not, the next one is usually worse. Even if it is better, it will not last. Accept the feeling, and then enter your mind. Our goal is to rise up to a higher part of ourselves, the part that has the real and only power. Meditate, contemplate, and discover the thoughts and beliefs which are creating your reality. In this way, you are fully engaged with the creative process, for it is you as the thinker who has all control.
This process is a difficult one, and it takes a long time to master. Some days, my friends, we’re just going to feel pretty shitty, and there won’t be a lot we can do about it. It’s ok. Accept what is, and tomorrow is a better day. Every part of our reality is temporary, and we must see this to be our greatest gift. All things can and will change with a required willingness on our part. What we’re trying to find in our experience is consistency, and this is what takes a while to establish. This is the better reality we are attempting to create. The only way to accomplish that is to delve deeply within our own psyche, in order to discover what it is we believe about the reality we have already created, and the reality we would like to be so. When you reach the point that you discover something you didn’t even know you believed to be true, but is not true, then you are well on your way to creating the better reality you seek. Changing our thoughts, by interjecting new ones, this is the way. A constant emotional reaction is not the way, for this will only reinforce the incorrect beliefs we have. And, to believe that we must be perfect along the way, will only reinforce a constant judgment of the necessary feelings we must have in the process. This is how we get nowhere fast. Acceptance creates the pathway to the mind, where everything can be ours. We are learning how to work with ourselves. With practice and patience, we will begin to trust ourselves. And, my friends, we must allow this for all others. If someone is emotionally reacting, and this is almost always the case, and it will be for a long time yet, then we must let them go right ahead. The opportunity to find our own way is born of love. Love allows others the same.
The biggest problem humanity faces today is living in a miasma, a fog, of constant emotional response and reaction to temporary conditions. This is what we have created. Unfortunately, it has been created unconsciously up until now. Today, we have the opportunity to learn how to use our mind. It is the mind which holds the light. It is the light which dissipates the fog. Humanity engages with a subtle, but powerful, addiction. It is an addiction to the belief that constant emotional satisfaction will lead us to freedom and peace. The Buddha says, forget about that, it will not work. Rise to the level of mind, and create the reality you seek to live in and be in. The emotional self is then understood as a vehicle of response to how we are proceeding in this great venture. A negative feeling simply indicates a need to return to the mind and make an adjustment. When peace and freedom are consistently established in our mind, humanity and the world will naturally follow. We must believe in love. We must believe in hope. We must believe in the power of mind. We must believe in possibility. We must believe in ourselves. If things aren’t going well, if all is looking bleak, we simply need to say, “So what!” Only we can change our minds. We are indeed the creators. All will be well when we say it is so. In this way, we are encouraged to proceed and do the best we can. The door opens wide.
The Buddha says,
The power of mind cannot be found through the suppression of feeling
It is the acceptance of feeling which allows love to enter
It is the feeling of love which propels one upward
Upward into the creative agencies of mind
It is here that the soul lives and breathes
It is here where all are one
All my love and support, be well