How to Become Lighthearted (It's Not What You Think)

In The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Czech author Milan Kundera posits that you only live once (social acronym YOLO), and this "lightness" signifies freedom — though it's hard to hold.

But it wasn't until I read Thomas Cowan, MD's breakthrough book, Human Heart, Cosmic Heart, that I realized a conundrum: levity (lightness) means humor, and its counterpoint, gravity, equates to seriousness, tethering us to Earth. If gravity keeps us earthbound, it follows that humor would act as spiritual helium, helping us levitate: soar above our sorrow, at least figuratively.

Yet most people caught in a mirthful moment collapse with laughter, rather than rising into the atmosphere. And when the amusement subsides, the problems remain. What gives?

Cowan suggests far greater import to levity and gravity — one that impacts our very life force. And it's a scathing indictment of how we live now.

Where Levity Is Lost

Referencing the work of naturalist Viktor Schauberger, Cowan writes,

"When one lives almost entirely in nature that is unspoiled by human contact, one often develops strong powers of observation. What Schauberger saw is the force of levity that lives in water. This force of levity flows upwards in vortices in the river. It is in these force 'lines' that healthy trout live effortless lives.

"Of course, these factors only exist when certain conditions are met. That is, the forest must be intact, there must be continuous tree covering shading the stream, there must be no dams anywhere on the stream, and the stream must be allowed to flow in its own path, not a path constructed by water 'experts'. When all these conditions are met, once can observe the forces of levity balancing the forces of gravity, and, if in the river itself, one can experience the blissful life of the trout.

"When the forests are cut down and the streams straightened and dredged, the forces of levity are lost, and the trout has to swim for its life to maintain its position in the stream. Too exhausted to swim by muscle power upstream, it ends up with a life of continuous and useless toil. This is not unlike the plight of industrial man, swimming upstream for his entire life, getting depleted, weaker, sicker by the day.

"The important point here is that this force of levity, which allows for the effortless flow of water, is dependent on certain conditions such as temperature and flow dynamics (spiral- or vortex-based flow patterns). When these conditions are met, life is easy and health is the natural outcome. This state is the natural state of structured water. It is also the natural state of the structured water that is the basis for the flow of blood in our circulatory system."

Out of Circulation

Cowan's explanation unfolds layers of insight about the true cause of illness, on both a personal and planetary level. He describes my mother's life and health to a T:

"This model allows us to see the real cause of varicose veins, congestive heart failure and poor circulation. These ailments occur when the structured layer fails to form properly. It is as if someone cut down our forest, kept us from the sun and Earth, and gave us poor quality nutrients and water."

His analysis blew my circuits. No wonder mainstream medicine is inadequate in resolving chronic, systemic health issues: it doesn't address the root cause.

As above, so below: roots and wings, water and sky. Life's yin/yang is essential for our health and Gaia's health. If our life is not flowing with natural rhythms, health deteriorates. Sequestered from the life force, we remove ourselves from circulation, like a worn-out book, and slowly decay.

A Heart of Gold

Deep into my own healing odyssey, I wrote, "Gold, it has something to do with gold." Cowan answers this as well, with a chapter weaving the gold standard, the illusion of money, and modern alchemy on a higher dimensional loom:

"There is no significant amount of gold, as we know it, in our heart or our circulation. However…there is a 'pure' form of gold known as Orbitally Rearranged Monoatomic Elements (ORME, or ORMUS) that describes a change in form that can occur in gold, silver, and the platinum metals."

ORME is undetectable, nonreactive with other elements, non-conductive (i.e., doesn't get hot) and lighter than its conventional counterparts.

Cowan makes the case that human beings are quantum coherent superconducting phenomena — more than the sum of our parts — and that the ORME, or cosmic form of gold, is the primary superconducting matrix [from the root word mater, or mother] without which nerve transmission and life itself would not be possible.

The Mother of All Levity

To paraphrase Abraham-Hicks, we can always choose to enter the vortex. In Dancing With Water, MJ Pangman and Melanie Evans write, "Vortices bring in raw energy for use in the creative process. They also cause individual elements to spin at velocities faster than the speed of light. These elements take on new traits referred to by some as super energy." And ORME "borders on the etheric." It's a matter [= matrix = mother] of frequency.

Cowan says, "The heart of gold refers to its unique ability to carry out this transformation of an earthly element into cosmic gold, thereby providing the basis for life to exist."

It's what alchemists and sages down through the ages have been attempting to distill all along.

Celestial Call

At the close of 2017, Saturn moved into Capricorn, its home sign, where it will remain for the next three years. The arbiter of form invites us to take responsibility for the structure of our lives; to become their author, owning our authority.

If we wish to add more levity, joy — and possibly time — to our lives, we can infuse structured water into our body, and nature into our soul. When enough of us have done so, lightness will not only be bearable; we'll wonder how we lived heavy-hearted for so long.

Sources:

1.   Human Heart, Cosmic Heart, Thomas Cowan, MD https://www.amazon.com/Human-Heart-Cosmic-Understand-Cardiovascular/dp/1603586199/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514497705&sr=1-1&keywords=human+heart+cosmic+heart+by+dr.+thomas+cowan

2.   A New Sacred Geometry: The Art and Science of Frank Chester https://www.amazon.com/New-Sacred-Geometry-Science-Chester/dp/0988749203/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514497857&sr=1-1&keywords=A+New+Sacred+Geometry

3.   Dancing With Water MJ Pangman, MS & Melanie Evans https://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Water-New-Science-Second/dp/0975272632/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1514497746&sr=1-1&keywords=dancing+with+water+2nd+edition

4.   The Chestahedron: The Wonder of Seven presentation by geometrician, artist, sculptor and teacher Frank Chester https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQMpEAsNHmY

© Copyright January 2, 2018 by Amara Rose. All rights reserved.

Of Two-Way Streets and Enriching Dichotomies

  

Our world of apparent duality offers a wealth of disguised enrichment opportunities. Consider:

A cyber buddy who currently lives creatively without residence wondered why a stranger would open her home and heart to her. She emailed, "I don't understand why she's being so amazingly generous. I keep telling her she just blows me away."

I responded, "You never know what her own journey is…she may have needed to serve someone in exactly this way, and you are providing a golden opportunity, so it is a mutuality."

This is the way energy works. When my lifelong friend Ellie fell and broke her hip at 96, requiring a lengthy convalescence in a rehabilitation center and later at home, I initially despaired about why Spirit didn't simply call her Home.

Then I had a flash of insight: the enforced passivity enabled my fiercely independent friend to learn to receive, and blessed those who assisted her with the joy of service. I told her, "You would never have allowed it otherwise." With wonder and her trademark humility, Ellie exclaimed, "Amara, you're right!"

The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful

What appears adverse can be advantageous. I needed to park my car on a different street due to an upcoming festival, and planned to be out of town the following week. I gave the young man who acts as my "car surrogate" the spare key, and asked him to please move the car back once the festival was over.

Unbeknownst to me, a road crew was about to repave the street; tow-away signs went up the day after I left. If the festival hadn't been scheduled (and, therefore, if I hadn't given Danny my spare key) my car would have been parked in its normal spot — and towed during the week I was away!

More profoundly: A dear friend was in a near-fatal motorcycle crash earlier this year. After a month in the ICU, he learned he'd need a walker once out of bed, and would have only minimal use of his right hand for the rest of his life (he's a southpaw, but still…). Eight months later, Rick says, "The accident was the best thing that ever happened to me."

During his convalescence he lost seventy pounds, and began exercising several hours a day as part of his physical therapy program; the combination reversed his adult-onset diabetes. He's grateful every day for the gift of life, and more open than he's ever been. He says, "I cry if I'm happy, I cry if I'm sad.

"And you know what? It feels amazing. I have nothing to hide now; what others think of me is no longer my concern. I can be emotionally honest. I feel like this is another piece of the silver lining surrounding that terrible trauma."

Sustained by his new outlook and the outpouring of love and support from friends and family, Rick's regained almost full use of his right hand, and returned to work — as a practicing physician. Practice makes perfect.

Once you've been through the fire, you're recast as pure essence; the superficial no longer holds sway in your life.

How Your Light Is Spent

Milton's sonnet, When I Consider How My Light is Spent, exemplifies the nature of life's dichotomies, and how we choose to interpret our time here. The full text reads:

When I consider how my light is spent

Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,

And that one talent which is death to hide

Lodg'd with me useless, though my soul more bent

To serve therewith my Maker, and present

My true account, lest he returning chide;

"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"

I fondly ask. But Patience to prevent

That murmur, soon replies: "God doth not need

Either man's work or his own gifts; who best

Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state

Is kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed

And post o'er land and ocean without rest:

They also serve who only stand and wait.

"Apprehension" means both anxiety ­and understanding. If you apprehend the meaning behind Milton's final line, you will understand that simply being is what matters most.

Whoever or whatever your messenger is, listen deeply. Once you apprehend the message, invite yourself to let go, so that you may embrace this wisdom farther along life's spiral. Allow yourself to be amused by the alchemical nature of any apparent dichotomy that shows up in your life. And know there's an invisible cosmic trampoline beneath you, so you can rebound from pain's mirage, spread your wings, and fly.

© Copyright September 2017 by Amara Rose. All rights reserved.

Spirituality? Is That Like Religion?

When I moved to California in 1981, spiritual exploration was still in my future. I had my first astrological reading that year, and the astrologer, who twelve years later would provide a reading that helped redirect my life during my awakening, referred several times to "spirituality." She recorded the session, and on the recording you hear me asking in a perplexed tone, "What's spirituality? Is that like religion?"

I needed to live my own spiritual journey before I understood. The terms can be synonymous, but often they are not.

The Difference Between Spirituality and Religion

The Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of the Tibetan Buddhist community, has said, "My religion is kindness."

The word religion derives from the Latin religare, which means "to tie fast" or "to bind together." One dictionary definition of religion is, "a set of beliefs, values and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader." This would seem to suggest that religion is a subset of a larger rubric called spirituality.

Yet defining spirituality is a bit like describing color to one who has never known sight. Perception will vary according to your beliefs. Of the myriad online resources attempting to answer the inquiry, "What is Spirituality?" a Unitarian Universalist minister offers this view:

Spirituality is being concerned with things of the spirit — the big questions of meaning, metaphysics, existence. Being spiritual is thinking about, wondering about, and exploring the deepest aspects of reality, values, morals, and meanings.

Spirituality is mis-defined if it is equated with super-naturalism, which tends to be the mistake I find when I hear people object to the word. Nothing about a search for values, morals, and meanings implies faith instead of reason, or emotion instead of intelligence. Spirituality can be all those things, and it is to some people, but not exclusively so. After all, 'spirit' simply means 'breath,' as in 'inspire', 'expire' or 'inspiration.' Spirit is about being filled with life. It's about all the ways that we try to make sense of our living, and our attempts to make good from our lives.

Thus, the Dalai Lama's statement, like his work in the world, broadens the scope of religion to embrace its spiritual essence: both begin with how we think, feel and behave.

How What We Believe Affects Our Health

In recent years, scientists have demonstrated in the lab what mystics and spiritual teachers have been saying for centuries: consciousness creates reality. Renowned neuroscientist Candace Pert, featured in What the Bleep Do We Know!? and author of Molecules of Emotion: Why You Feel the Way You Feel, established that emotional communication begins at the cellular level, with tiny proteins called peptides.

Breakthrough cell biologist Bruce Lipton, author of The Biology of Belief, confirms that our attitudes and thoughts create our physical bodies. He writes, "Cells respond to perception by activating either growth or protection behavior programs. If our perceptions are accurate, the resulting behavior will be life enhancing. If we operate from 'misperceptions,' our behavior will be inappropriate and will jeopardize our vitality by compromising our health."

In a nutshell: think negative, create warped DNA. Change your mind, change your body!

During the past few decades, medical science has also begun documenting the "faith factor" in healing. Physician Larry Dossey, a pioneer in exploring the role of prayer in healing, says, "I used to believe that we must choose between science and reason on one hand, and spirituality on the other, in how we lead our lives. Now I consider this a false choice. We can recover the sense of sacredness, not just in science, but in perhaps every area of life."

Stepping Onto the Path

So, how does spirituality "happen"? Awakening is a journey, and just as with literal travel, this metaphorical passage is different for everyone. For many people, the call to embark on a spiritual path is preceded by a period of questioning or difficulty, when one or more aspects of your life no longer flow smoothly. This was what my summons looked like.

Being willing to surrender into the unknown is a huge, scary — and necessary — initial step, because you can't "figure out" spirituality in a linear fashion. You might begin a spiritual exploration by reading about the world's religions, or sampling various types of spiritual services. Some people seek out a teacher or guru. Some learn to meditate. Others go on retreat in the wilderness. There are as many ways to claim your spiritual truth as there are people. A formal practice isn't required, although this can be a useful way to "get out of your head" in the early stages.

Ultimately, the journey to Spirit will be unique to you.

Spiritual vs. Material

Of course, it's important to balance spirituality with the 3-D world. You don't need to take a vow of poverty in order to live a spiritual life! This is a frequent misconception among both spiritual and religious aspirants: that a dedication to spiritual service requires one to renounce worldly possessions.

People often find that committing to a spiritual path dramatically changes their lives. Material resources may fall away, but this usually has little to do with religious or spiritual doctrine. It's more likely a result of a desire to pare down possessions in an attempt to discover what's necessary and valued, to release aspects of one's life that no longer serve, or a deep-seated belief that it's somehow "more spiritual" to be poor. Role models from Jesus to Gandhi to Mother Teresa have ingrained an unintentional link between spiritual service and self-sacrifice in our collective consciousness.

Those who possess spiritual wealth know that love and compassion are the true sources of sustenance. As the Dalai Lama so eloquently expressed, the most devout religious belief can be embodied as kindness. A person overflowing with goodwill towards others is incalculably richer than someone with a big bank account and a stingy spirit.

Full Circle

Fourteen years after wondering aloud what spirituality was, I was discussing my personal growth odyssey with my Dad. After I'd shared passionately for a while, he said, "You know, honey, when you say 'spirituality', I have no idea what you mean."

My heart swelled with recognition. I took a thoughtful breath, and began to frame my reply.

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Copyright © 2009 - 2016 by Amara Rose. All rights reserved.