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AFFILIATIONS:
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What is the nature of appreciation? Well,
Webster does provide some grist for the mill.
Most esoteric truths have their exoteric counterparts, and consulting a
dictionary is a good way to find them (or at least get some hints).
Webster, however, makes no reference to
appreciation being an attribute of
the soul. What do we mean by
this? Well, simply put, it is a
divine quality. It can accurately
be said that whenever you sincerely appreciate anything -- a sunrise, a flower,
a smile -- that in that moment you touch your soul, i.e., that you are elevated
and aligned with subtler reaches of your own Being. Now, we are not speaking here, of noting a simple preference,
but rather of an experience that includes a sense of gratitude.
Common occurrences of appreciation include
the heartfelt enjoyment that arises simply because something, or someone,
exists, the experiences
of places, art, music, and most certainly the experience of "Satori"
-- the "Ah Ha!" that is the discoverer's delight along the path.
We
can say the quality is reflected in your
expression (body/personality) but it truly resides within the soul.
We can say, further, that appreciation and the closely related attribute
"joy," are both in the very nature of Spirit, defining soul as
somewhat differentiated as aspect of spirit.
A more detailed ontological explanation of how soul is an a part of
spirit, while interesting, is unnecessary to grasp the meaning of our theme
that: Appreciation is an
attribute of the soul. We can
validly make certain assumptions regarding personal growth and the acceleration
of development that can take place through
alignment with, and experience of the soul: that the individual's
overall vibration will increase, that
there will be an elevation of consciousness, and consequently, that growth will
be the result. Are you with me,
here? If we accept this
understanding of appreciation we can not properly regard appreciation as an
emotion, but rather as a state of being that both creates and reflects a fuller
knowledge of and integration with, the energies of the soul. Another
way in which appreciation functions as a spiritual tool is that it clears the
path for more of whatever we
appreciate to come into our lives! The
energy of appreciation is so powerful that it produces an energy field between
the appreciated and the appreciator that is can sort of "bulldoze" a
path through whatever obstacles and obstructions stand between us and
experiencing more of that which we are appreciating.
It is important to note, here, that
there is a huge difference between desire,
which has a distinctly lower frequency, and the energies of appreciation.
The smallest amount of contemplation of this truth will quickly reveal the enormous benefits that can be had. One of the most direct benefits will include the
overall strengthening of the immune system, which results, partially from
the spiritualization of the physical body that naturally ensues from
being bathed in energies of appreciation.
The
logical question that follows this understanding of appreciation as a state of
being, a quality of the soul, is: "What
can I do to experience more of it?" The
answers are many, and in fact, you can do a great deal.
If the opening exercise showed you that you do have some
less-than-positive associations with appreciation and/or that, indeed, you do
trivialize it -- you have already begun by beginning to restructure your
thinking. Just recognizing the
limiting mechanism in your attitude, (and its origin of self-protection), you
have taken a huge step! Acknowledge
and appreciate yourself for courage, honesty and effort, and you've taken
another. If affirmation and/or
visualization techniques are a part of your personal growth process, you can
employ them to both plow the field and plant seeds for greater appreciation.
Contemplating each new awareness, every area of unfolding perception,
each and every understanding that you gain with gratitude
can create quantum leaps! You
will find that it takes almost no effort at all to be filled with appreciation
when you think about the distance you have traveled
to be a stage in your growth that you can read this and understand the
implications of what is being said in this article!
Another
easy to practice technique is to make
appreciation an active part of your spiritual practice and engage in it
everyday. We can nurture,
cultivate, and increase "appreciably"
our ability to appreciate through a sincere effort of will.
Though I am not recommending that you rely on a comparison between
yourselves and others such as "I cried because I had no shoes until I saw a
man that had no feet," I
am saying that you could focus on
your feet, noting their serviceability and regard them
well. This may seem like a
subtle difference but even simple, mechanical efforts, and even a few
comparisons are a place to start and those diligent efforts, here, will become a
habit and eventually lead you to higher states of appreciation.
Your efforts towards appreciation can be seen as a spiraling motion in
ever higher realms. Engaging in appreciation is like riding a sidecar along your
path: the more you appreciate
(likened to pushing down on your part) the more you will find in your
experiences to appreciate (Life pushing down on the other side), which in turn
inspires more appreciation. I'm sure you've gotten the picture. Lastly,
I recommend starting an appreciation log. Find
at least 7 things to appreciate in your life each morning when you rise and
seven different ones, before you retire. Find
seven more during the day. If
you're feeling really uninspired you can always start with the fact that you
woke up! That is doubtlessly the most appreciable fact of all.
You could then move on to the fact that you remembered you needed to find
six more because you know that appreciation is a powerful and accessible tool
for your growth and keep on going from there! Today I am appreciating:
this paper for printing this article, the original channeling that
inspired it, I appreciate Arise Counseling for hosting the Appreciation Workshop
I'm teaching in Portland, and the opportunity I have to serve by writing this
article, the success that has
allowed me to buy the computer I'm writing this article on,
the people who have attended other Appreciation Workshops I've taught who
have helped me to refine all the ideas expressed here, and I appreciate YOU for
reading it! (That's seven, isn't it?) |
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