Fear is the beginning of wisdom

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil. . .

The media is filled with frightening information. Violence and threats of violence are everywhere. The economy is struggling. Our leaders seem to be dysfunctional. It is easy to become frightened. Fear is uncomfortable. And, with the amount of fearful events reported every day an underlying fearful state of being seems normal. “Be frightened about your life, your money, your health, your family,” seems to be the constant mantra of the news and our friends.

To recognize that we are experiencing fear is to know that we are walking “through a valley of dangerous shadows” and this is the first step – the beginning of wisdom.

While it is not possible to just stop being frightened, it is possible to stop being frightened of fear. After all, it is just a very uncomfortable feeling – not the real stuff of life.

. . . I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.

Who or what is the "Thou" that is “with me” and not frightened of fear or evil? The "Thou" is the ever-over-flowing soundless voice of inspired wisdom.

Thou preparest a table before me in the midst of mine enemies.

Fear, the emotional and physiological reaction to being threatened, is the “enemy,” as living a frightened life is self-destructive. When frightened we cannot be aware of the “table of good” intelligent ideas laid before us. We cannot see the “green pastures" of good pathways through our problems we are being led to.

It is not panic that will safely guide us through difficult situations – it is creative inspiration that flows from Thou into us, just as the river feeds the trees.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Does The Squeaky Wheel Get the Grease?

I grew up hearing my mother use this phrase often. She offered up many examples confirming it through her encounters with school administrators, health bureaucracies, etc. But, is it a guide to harmonious living? Is it a right idea? Maybe it’s just me, but it seems that there are more and more “squeaky wheels” in the media and in politics. While they may or may not get the “grease” they sure seem to take up space while generating agitation.

Yet, if one doesn’t “squeak,” will needs be met?

When the overriding concern is “having my needs met,” whether it is stated loudly or silently, there will be conflict, agitation and frustration. The mental climate becomes a stage where the needs of one struggle to dominate, or subvert, the needs of another.

The healthy alternative is to see our selves not as independent people struggling against each other, but as individual expressions of an infinite larger whole. Do the leaves of the tree struggle with each other for resources?

The truth is that each unique leaf, engaged in being, is part of the health of the whole tree – with no drain on its individual wellbeing.

I can hear the question right now: “This sounds very nice, but, where is this infinite whole and where do we plug in to have our needs met?” “Has God ever sent me a check?”

The Infinite Whole is invisible to the eyes, ears and brain. Yet we can become aware of it. We cannot see harmony, intelligence, or honesty, yet we can be aware of their presence.

Just as the mental focus on “getting my needs met,” will manifest tension, conflict and frustration, the interest in wholeness, harmony, intelligence, benevolence, honesty and other spiritual qualities will manifest effortless harmonious living where all needs are met.

Fine Print: There is a “catch-22.” If one attempts to be interested in wholeness, harmony, etc. with the idea that then their needs will be met – it won’t work. As the bible says: “God will not be mocked.” The Infinite Whole is a Truth system – only when there is complete recognition and appreciation for the truth that we are here to “be” what already is, not to “get,” what we do not have, will we open to the true blessings of existence.

Let The Dust Settle

This commonsense phrase refers to the futility of attempting to clean while dust is still filling the air. It also has within it all the truth anyone needs to know to live a peaceful, happy life. Like much folk wisdom, it transforms an everyday activity into a universal truth. The saying has been applied to what often occurs when a group of individuals begin to solve a challenging situation. In this case, the “dust” symbolizes all the opinions, expectations, demands, political posturing, personal views, pre-conditioned ideas, etc. that seem to need to be expressed before a clear view of the issue and it’s solution can be seen.

The phrase applies equally well within a single individual. The very nature of a “challenging” situation reveals that there is the “dust” of expectations, personal history, assumptions and fears, preventing a clear view of the issue.

What a relief it is to know that what is needed is to just let the dust settle. There is no amount of convincing, cajoling, maneuvering or influencing that will elevate the “dust” to something that will lead to a real solution. It is just dust.

There are two things we need to know in order to “let the dust settle.” First, we need to know that clarity will arise when the dust settles. Secondly, we need to know that the dust is just dust, and that it will settle if our attention is withdrawn from it. If we don’t know these two truths yet, we can at least hypothesize that it might be true and be willing to experiment to find out for our selves.

Once the futility of mucking around with the dust is discovered, the “experimental” approach becomes worth trying.

Fear is the Beginning of Wisdom: How Can This Be True?

A fearful mind is in great danger, as it is liable to believe itself. There is less danger when one is aware that fear is being experienced. It’s a little like being offered something you “know” is too good to be true. Will “awareness” be the guide or the pleasure of seduction? Will “fear” be the guide, or awareness that something seems “frightening?”

Thus, knowing that “I am frightened,” is the beginning of wisdom, for only then is the door to liberation also present.

Join the Mentors’ Roundtable on this subject Thursday, July 15th, 11amPacific time/2pm Eastern time. Registration is free.

You can add your stories and questions about “fear” by leaving a comment here.

Can Prayer Help the Oil Spill?

On C-Span radio this morning, one gentleman called-in to suggest we try “praying to God” to stop the oil spill. The radio host responded by moving on to the next call. My first reaction to hearing this was “God cannot stop the oil spill as God is not a person, nor is he/she an “oil stopper.” But, then another thought came. What is God? And is there any way prayer could be helpful? Within a few moments of that thought, BBC radio aired an interview with Luis Eladio Perez, an ex-Senator in Columbia who had been kidnapped and held hostage in the jungle, for 6 years. When AK-47’s were first pointed at his head he went “deep into my essence, which is in all of us, and belongs to God. . .” He went on to share that during a particularly difficult moment “ . . .I felt the temptation to be arrogant and proud. I realized that that would be exactly as if I was doing that to God, questioning God for this ordeal. At that moment, I fell down into the mud, and said very quietly to myself: ‘God almighty, I love you, and I offer you humbly, this predicament.’ A ray of light took me over – there was no more anger, no more pain – I was unbelieveably happy, and full of mud. At that exact moment, the head guerilla sent someone with a light to help me.”

This sounds very religious, yet it is useful to see if we can understand what took place in this moment of revelation. He did not pray to God to take away the situation he was in, as frightening and humiliating as it was. He prayed to heal his anger, so that he could be fully present to the situation, to whatever was being asked of him. This prayer is existentially valid, in the words of Metapsychiatry. It recognizes that God Is, and we are part of It. God is the capacity we all have to live by Divine intelligence, joy and love in any moment.

With that realization, he was no longer here to “survive,” he was here to bring the spiritual resource of his essential nature to whatever was happening. This kind of prayer establishes conscious awareness of his identity as a spiritual being, capable of love, compassion, intelligence and strength beyond anything merely “human.”

There is much more to this story, so go to BBC.com to hear more. For now, let’s apply his insight to the question of: “Can prayer help the oil spill.”

There is a world-wide wave of anger in reaction to the oil spill. Anger is an emotional outburst expressing: “ I don’t want/like what is happening.” The flipside of that thought may not be expressed, but it is there nonetheless: “The situation seems hopeless and I’m helpless against it.” “Helplessness” looks to either blame someone, or look for a savior. Either way, it’s a mental context where ones well-being is dependent on others: oil refiners; oil cleaners, government agencies, etc.

The truth is, we, as individuals, are helpless to stop the oil spill, and at the same time we are dependent on using oil every day of our lives. The complexity of oil refining points to our complete dependence on the intelligence and good will of others – no matter how conservative and frugal we may be with our own use of natural resources. This is an embarrassment to our “independent” egos, so it seems best to just stay angry and blame others, or pray for someone, like God, to come and fix it. (Yes, but how does one stop being angry when one is angry?)

Now we have the example of Senor Perez. What if, in the face of pain, turmoil and chaos, we give our complete attentiveness, including our concerns about this predicament, over to the underlying Intelligent-Love that is the substance of life. This is not wishful thinking, hoping for a miracle – this is spiritual clarity that the source of solutions is not in anger, blame or wanting, but in inspired wisdom accessible to all. Everyone is part of God, whether they know it or not, and, everyone can receive inspired, intelligent solutions – even armed guerillas.

Is Perseverance the Right Idea?

There is a story made famous in the book: “Think and Grow Rich,” describing a gold miner who dug and dug and dug looking for gold. He gave up and sold the land to someone who within one day, dug a little deeper and found the layer of gold. This story is used to support the idea that we need to persevere toward our goals and never give up. If a door is closed – bang it down! But, is this the right idea? Does it really work? What is assumed in this story, without question, is the goal to “get the gold.” In other words, the purpose of life is to get what we want, and if we want gold, or to make a sale, or to find a spouse, then all we need to do is persevere. But, this does not work. And, many of us spend whole lifetimes pursuing “getting what we want,” and ending up unfulfilled and unhappy. Even if we “get what we want,” in the form of material goods, a spouse, and career success, there is still dissatisfaction.

On the other hand, “giving up,” doesn’t work either. Both ideas: “giving up” and “persevering” are reactions to wanting something. We can either “give up” wanting and feel deprived, or “persevere” toward getting what we want and be agitated that we don’t have it yet.

While I was not present when the first gold miner gave up, nor was I there when the second miner found the gold, I suspect what is missing from the story is the mental climate that was present. For each, this was a moment in a larger story of their life journey. For all we know, the miner that “gave up” discovered something more fulfilling and meaningful, and the miner that “found the gold” may have succumbed to a life filled with fear of losing his fortune.

Often, when one does "let go" of pursuing a non-fruitful endeavor, a realization of greater meaning, direction and purpose of their life unfolds.

The purpose of life is not to get what we want. Pursuing our "wants" by definition, means a life spent in pursuit of a fantasy future.

The purpose of life is to wake-up from living a life based on what we've been conditioned to, and become aware of who and what we are in the eternal now.

Waking-Up occurs in consciousness. We can become interested in what is "really going on," and the gift of awareness will come. It may come with either a major or minor shift in the circumstances of our lives, but who cares? Getting on the right track is worth any price.

New Year "Purpose of Your Life" Special

Carol Adrienne, author of "The Purpose Of Your Life," asked me to be part of her January "New Year" opportunity for readers of her web/blog site: Carol Adrienne You are welcome to take advantage of the January Special, as copied below.

WHO: NANCY ROSANOFF is the author of The Intuition Workout. From 2001-2008 she hosted and produced the television talk show: The Listening Place, where she interviewed over 250 individuals about their spiritual life and philosophy. WHAT: During January, Nancy is offering a 45-minute consultation, in which she applies the insights of meta-psychiatry (developed by reknowned Dr. Thomas Hora) to your current life question--for only $50. WHAT: Nancy's approach to your situation helps reveal the “meta view” of whatever difficulty, decision, or issue you are facing. The “meta view” involves discerning the difference between what seems to be happening and what really is. WHY: Nancy shows you how to see if you are stuck in the six "futile questions" (such as, "Why is this happening?") She helps you begin to clear away obstacles by shifting attention to purpose, meaning and the intuitive next step. HOW: Visit her web/blog site to find out more about her and her work: www.themetaview.com and email her Nancy@rosanoff.com

What’s Good about Our Health Care System?

It’s easy to be critical of health care professionals. The pedestal of “life saver” that their position represents makes them vulnerable to public criticism, as well as to personal boasting. Although I’ve avoided going to hospitals and doctors until absolutely necessary, I have often been surprised by the attentive, loving individuals who have come to my aid in times of extreme need. It makes me realize that the vast majority of health care professionals in this country are inspired by a caring interest in serving the needs of others. They appreciate the opportunity to respond to real needs of individuals who come to them in vulnerable circumstances.

It also seems apparent that most individuals facing debilitating symptoms are open for guidance and help to relieve their distress. We may not like it when something is “wrong,” and we may resent that we need to ask for help, but when we finally recognize that something is needed, we have the option to look for good advice and care.

While every health care technique, method and medicine has helped someone somewhere, it is also true that every health care technique, method and medicine has hurt someone. They may be useful in the relief of symptoms and perhaps they support healing to occur, but techniques, methods and medicine are not the underlying healing force.

What is the Universal Healing Solvent common to all healing?

Love & Intelligence. Love is the quality of being where the primary orientation is toward understanding and intelligence is the open-minded attention that listens, observes, and recognizes the right idea when it appears. The orientation toward these qualities of consciousness in both the caregiver and the receiver allows healing to occur.

It seems self-evident that when the primary orientation of individuals is toward understanding the presenting issue, and seeking intelligent solutions to problems, the better the solutions, the better the system, the better the living. It also seems evident that most individuals go in and out of this orientation.

What Interferes with Good Health Care?

Caregivers have been trained with the idea that they need to “fix” whatever complaint is presented to them. This approach is also at the basis of how health care is rewarded. They get paid to “fix.” Therefore, the faster they fix something, and the more “fixes” accomplished, the more rewards received. This is an unhealthy system as it does not encourage or reward in a practical way the use of Love-Intelligence.

There is a tendency to look for a system that does not need individual consciousness – a mechanism that “anyone” can apply: a “pill” or “procedure” for instance. Yet, loving consciousness is the source of and solution to our problems and there is no way around that. Tools and techniques, when seen as an extension of intelligence and love can be immensely useful and valuable.

Patients are afflicted with the idea that someone needs to do something to make them better and take away their pain. This idea robs the patient of their capacity to discern between potential treatments for themselves and often blinds them from learning and growing from whatever disease they are experiencing.

A Solution?

As we accept the idea that health and healing require a context of love, intelligence and attention, our health systems will reorganize in healthier ways. While this may be a long arc for the whole health care system, individuals can see the wisdom of this idea immediately. Love-Intelligence does not need a prescription. It helps to know that it is available to any receptive consciousness no matter how challenging the circumstances.

MetaView asks the question: What is Health?

The road to creating good National Health Care may well begin with first answering this question.  There has been much confusion, conflict, money, airtime and fear surrounding the debate on national health care reform and this has a meaning.

Clearly this means that we are confused about the fundamental nature of the problem we are attempting to solve. 

The basic questions of health care reform depend upon a valid understanding of health: what is it, how does it happen, how is it lost.  If we have a clear idea about what health is, then we will know how to support it.

The first challenge in answering this question is that the answer may not be instantaneous.

I can hear someone saying: “Yes, this is a great question, but I don’t have time to answer it now, as I’m in too much pain and I just want relief.”

This is the attitude that is often reflected in the current approach to health care reform.

It reminds me of a recent conversation with someone in a whirlwind of “to do” tasks saying: “Once I’m done with these tasks I’ll be able to relax.”  She even laughed upon hearing herself say this, as she recognized the fallacy of ever being done with “what needs to get done.”

So, engaging with the question: “What is Health?” means first of all, to consider this question as we face the health care crisis as consumer, leader, provider or decision-maker. This does not require us to stop the activity of reforming health care, but if we include this question in our inquiries, new useful ideas and directions may emerge to help us find the right answers.

What is Poverty?

When Peter LeJacq, Maryknoll Missionary doctor to the poor and ill in Africa was asked: “What motivated you to give up a comfortable, middleclass lifestyle here in New York to live poor in Africa?” he answered: “I’m not poor. I may not have material things in my life, but I’ll never be poor. I have an education and I have self-esteem. The poor that I serve in Africa and in other places around the world have neither and they suffer.”Go to Video Interview In business circles it is said: “My bank account may be empty, but I’m not broke.” This is an important distinction between the amount of a current material commodity, and the unlimited resource of who we are.

Father Peter points out that poverty is not about a lack of material things, it is about a lack of accessibility to the internal resources that are possible. Without being educated with the idea that it is possible for an individual to learn, reason, see the larger perspective, communicate ideas and be inspired, there is hopelessness. These capacities, while available to all, need to be encouraged, uncovered, mentored and realized in every individual.

With all the fear generated around the loss of money and the loss of jobs in the current economic climate, it’s valuable to remember the resources that cannot be lost: intelligence, clarity, attentiveness, integrity. These qualities cannot be bought or sold and they cannot be downsized. Although we have noticed that they can be ignored, even by the most educated of us!

When recognized and valued, it’s these internal resources that allow us to become aware of good ideas, solutions and the recognition of opportunities. This is our real wealth, both individually and collectively. It is the application of these qualities by individuals in both small and large situations that will turn around this economic crisis. Without these, no matter how much money is poured into the problem, our economy will remain “poor” and “broken.”

When overwhelmed with fearfulness that often prevails when money and/or a job is seen as the main resource of life, we lose awareness of our internal resources and we become unavailable to good ideas, solutions and opportunities already present. We stop being attentive to the tasks at hand and dwell in the land of worried distraction.

All that can result from a fearful state is more fear. This is the poverty of consciousness. We become focused not on the issues, but on “poor me." “Something bad is happening to me!" “Who is going to help me?" “Who is to blame?"

When there is awareness of the unlimited resourcefulness of our being we focus on the issues: “What is happening? What is needed? What is the intelligent, loving, honest response?”

Often the most honest response when job, money, health, or other is lost, is to recognize that we don’t know what to do – So the intelligent response is to take internal action – be still, know that “not knowing” is the beginning of wisdom. Your internal resources will begin to show up when given room. This is wealth. What happens with this awareness is a broader, more enlightened perspective of the situation and with this come inspired ideas.