Conversations with Buddha and Zoe: Sparkle and Shine
Buddha: Zoe, there will be times when your energies are down. Times when life doesn’t sparkle and shine. Does that mean that sparkle and shine doesn’t exist if you can’t see it? Of course not. You just can’t see it.
Many of you give up hope because you can’t see the wonder or the beauty in life anymore. Perhaps you feel you have never seen it. This is only because, right now, it is hidden from you. This is not necessarily your fault: it’s just the law of averages. Where your perception sits on this law dictates your experience.
So if you want the sparkle and shine to come back, or indeed be discovered for the first time, go and look for it. Find someone who is currently experiencing that and piggy back their perception. Learn to see what they can see. Learn to live how they can live, and you will be happy. Or at least you will be on your way to find out more about yourself and more about the nature of perceptual reality that surrounds you and often loses you to it’s fleeting and delusional nature.
This is all. Be happy today; or at least be a little happier.
Conversation with Buddha and Zoe: In Times of Fear and Uncertainty Look Within
Buddha: We are living in a time of collective madness. We are living in societies and civilizations, not all but most, where people are living with a collective consciousness below that of hysteria. The threat is believed to come from every angle: from economic downturn, from terrorists, from immigrants, from racial minorities.
Within this context many of you will become uncomfortable, unable to function to the best of your abilities and unable to accept this way of being for yourself, for your community, for your country anymore.
When these times arise there is only one place to look that is not in defensive strategies, that is not in armament either of weapon or money. The time to look is the time to look inside and to learn to become one with what you find there in. There is nothing to be frightened or fearful of inside of yourself. There is nothing inside you that, with focus and dedication, cannot be turned into gold. So during this time look inside without fear. There will be great reticence initially at doing this for what is hidden has been hidden for good reason or so the mind has told you. But it is illusion as I repeat there is nothing that is within any human alive that cannot be turned into gold, that cannot be turned into the seeker and even the finder of better states of being.
I have been asked, “Why look within? Why will looking within and becoming at peace with what one finds be a strategy in uncertain times such as these?”
You are connected to the collective mind, to the consciousness of humanity. For the consciousness to change be the change. If enough people in uncertain times become stable and solid and stalwart then peace will be able to return. Think of a life or death situation that is being faced by a group of people. If there is one that is able to find the peace, the strength, the courage to stay in the moment and to deal with what is happening, that one is able to impact the hysteria of the many; not always successfully but impact would be made.
Now think if there were two or three or four, the odds are getting better aren’t they. So in uncertain times when one is concerned with ones material future switch to ones interior future and begin the work. By creating stillness, by allowing the system to harmonize, you will not only make more logical and grounded steps you will also impact the collective of everyone around you.
Conversation with Master Buddha and TMichael: Faith
TM: What is the nature of faith as it relates to matters spiritual or religious?
Master Buddha: The nature of faith rests on the premise that there are things one can’t know for certain through direct observation, and so one must imagine that given a strong feeling that something must be true, then it is accepted as true. It becomes a belief in one’s truth based upon the strong feeling.
TM: So what we consider to be evidence of truth through direct observation of facts is not faith?
Master Buddha: Well, that is faith also to some extent, because has one ever experienced absolute proof of truth? Can you truly say that even the things you thought you proved to yourself through direct observation have always been really true? Have there been occasions where you observed a thing to be true and later discovered your observations were not so accurate? There is usually some element of doubt and faith fills in the gap.
TM: Aren’t all these considerations about truth relative to time and our progressive understanding of many things that change over time?
Master Buddha: Yes, of course. Your understanding of truth changes as you grow to reach new understandings about yourself, others and the universe. There is always a measure of faith thrown in to close the gaps and to bridge your doubt and what you perceive is truth in that moment. Once you think you have reached some absolute truth, you will soon discover the illusion inherent in that notion. It is better to say, for now I think I know the truth of this matter and I’ll take it on faith as I continue searching for new information, new knowledge, new understanding about this.
There are those people who believe in a mechanistic universe. That there are physical laws that behave in a way that explains all the phenomena that surrounds you. You might say that even for those believers there is a measure of faith to fill in the parts that are missing.
TM: Some people allow more room for faith and some it seems allow less room. But you’re saying that we all allow some room for faith regardless of our beliefs?
Master Buddha: Yes, I’m saying that. As science has progressed, it has revealed the vast knowledge that humanity has amassed in understanding your world. It has also revealed the vast ignorance. If you plot that on a time continuum you can see that the more that you know, the greater your understanding that there is so much more you don’t know. So, you take what you know and you project a little further into the future of the possibilities of things that could be true. That is a form of faith. If you act upon faith by assuming the projections are true, then it is meaningful. To speculate is to explore ideas about truth and to act upon faith that something is true is commitment.
TM: It seems to me that people of religious and spiritual faith rely upon teachings of the past to form their foundation, which requires faith that the teachings were accurately recording and interpreted.
Master Buddha: And that the projections of those truths are applicable to humanity today. There are many new teachings brought forth today and they are received similarly as were the teachings given long ago. There is a resistance to new teachings by humanity, because they cling to the old ones, the ones they were taught are true. There is a lag in time for new beliefs to be accepted.
TM: No way around that is there?
Master Buddha: Not likely it will change any time soon. It is human nature and probably a good characteristic if it is moderate.
Background to Conversation with Buddha and TMichael on Smoking Cigarettes
Note from TM: This topic may be a bit off from the typical spiritual topics we talk about, but it’s one that I have been wondering about for some time from a spiritual perspective. Many people I know, including myself, have struggled with trying to quit smoking cigarettes. We all know about the health issues associated with smoking, yet continue. Is there an understanding about smoking cigarettes that could help people quit?
Master Buddha: It’s a good topic because it bridges the material and spiritual realms. On the purely physical level smoking cigarettes is well known to create a physical addiction. That is not so difficult to understand or accept.
It weakens the breath capacity and reduces the nutrients that can be carried by the blood. Additionally, it carries with it potentially harmful chemicals throughout the body. This is the part that is established. Just a small amount of common sense can grasp this and say that it is not necessary to smoke cigarettes to achieve good health and that to the contrary it degrades health.On the emotional and mental levels other addictions are at work. Smoking also creates an illusion of power. And this is much harder to give up than the physical addiction. Power can mean different things to different people, but I mean it I the sense that one feels powerful to do whatever one needs to do. If one feels weak in some way, he will compensate by finding some way to feel powerful. This is why so many people begin smoking as a teenager—a time in which a great sense of weakness is experienced. Others experience the attraction to smoking during emotionally upsetting moments. Still others enjoy smoking when they are drinking alcohol (this is more complicated because the source of weakness is not so apparent).
It should be obvious that real power is not gained from smoking cigarettes, but that is exactly what makes it a illusion. For those who derive power from it, it is real, and thus an effective illusion.
There is a proverb that states, “The best way to eliminate is to substitute”. In order to do this in a way that supports substituting real understanding for an illusion, one must understand that the apparent weakness for which the illusion is compensating, can be addressed through self-awareness and contemplation. Some people, when quitting smoking, will substitute another substance or activity that supplies the power they seek. This could be substituting one illusion for another; perhaps one that is less harmful in other ways. The real benefit will come from a true understanding of the weakness perceived in the first place, and then proceed to cure it. Some people can make the behavioral change without this deeper understanding I’m speaking of, and for them this is a success. For others it requires the deeper contemplation and cure. Most likely the underlying feeling of impotence, or weakness, is affecting them in other ways as well and this approach will be more helpful.
The worst thing that can happen is for one to come from an approach of judgment, self-loathing, guilt, shame or anger at oneself. Be gentle with yourself as you begin to unravel the complexities that lead to behavior that is inherently harmful. At one point, however erroneous, the smoking habit derived from an intent to cope by providing a power that compensated for a weakness. Seeing that error in choice and seeking a new one confirms self-love and care.
Background to Conversation with Buddha, Jesus and TMichael: The Differences between Religions
TMichael: I read this blog post (the differences between Jesus and Buddha on happiness) and asked Masters Jesus and Buddha to comment. What follows is their response…
Master Buddha: It is always amazing to me how the adherents of one religion can so easily dismiss the legitimacy of another religion with the slimmest of knowledge. I’m speaking here of how Buddhists the world over dismiss Christians as being fanatical and emotional. And in this one blog post we learn that isn’t true at all. Christians are just not very smart.
Master Jesus: I couldn’t agree more with you. Buddhists dismiss Christians. And on the scantiest of knowledge. I think it’s clear who is the smarter religionist. And it doesn’t begin with a ‘B’.
Master Buddha: While I fully respect your opinion and right to make such a statement, I think you should take it back.
Master Jesus: Who’s going to make me?
Master Buddha: I can recruit the Hindus you know.
Master Jesus: Well, you’ll need them because we all know what a push over Buddhists are when it comes to defending themselves.
Master Buddha: Your mother wears army boots.
Master Jesus: Okay, that’s going too far.
Master Buddha: Does that answer your question about how we view such topics? It’s petty competition between non-existent differences that make the adherents appear small and weak for engaging in such a waste of time and energy. Why do men and women of such fervent religious beliefs think that they must attack other religions in the way one toothpaste manufacturer attacks the market share of another? Can they not see that the aim of all religions ought to be the elevation of human spirit, which includes all humans?
Master Jesus: We love mankind. Every day we strive to bring humanity closer to the spiritual kingdom. Buddha and I work in tandem. There is no contradiction in our work or in our goals for humanity. I ask Christians everywhere to embrace the love of all religions and reject the pettiness of competition. It isn’t necessary to belittle another religion in order to promote one’s own. There is nothing better that comes from one religion that proves supremacy. It only displays self-righteousness when one attempts to demonstrate superiority of one’s religion.
Master Buddha: We represent love, kindness, compassion and unity for all humanity. That is our mission. Anything else that you imagine coming from us is pure mental illusion. It’s time to forget the differences you perceive. Or least explore the differences from a perspective of positive curiosity, not derision and ridicule.
Master Jesus: Our love is larger than any dispute that could arise over ideas planted in religion or politics. Humanity is sitting on a ticking time bomb. Do you really want to spend your last days on Earth fighting over whose religious teachings are the best? We are unified. It is time for Christians and Buddhists and Muslims, and all religionists to lay down their arms and embrace one another as friends.
Master Buddha: We aren’t naïve. We understand why people fight over religious points of view and affiliation. It’s time to stop. We aren’t going to present eloquent arguments filled with platitudes to persuade people to stop. We just ask. Please stop it now. If you find any love and compassion in any religious teaching, then that is your starting point. Apply it now.
Conversation with Jesus and TMichael: Religions and Religious Organizations
Master Jesus: The role of religion is to share this common knowledge by way of a social support and educational network. Through the human epoch of living as savage beasts to dining in a restaurant there is much suffering and challenge along the way. Religious organizations are educational first and foremost in intent. That they have been corrupted in that aim is not sufficient reason to abandon the concept. The first thing that humans do when they reject religious organizations is form another one in contrast to the one they rejected. There is nothing inherently wrong with religious organizations as an educational facility. There is something wrong in the clergy inserting themselves as the gatekeepers for all that is holy and righteous. Let them stand down and reclaim their roles as leaders and custodians of an institution of learning and comfort.
TM: It seems that there has been a gradual decline in organized religion. Is that true and if so, what’s happening and why?
Master Jesus: It is true and there are several reasons. First of all, it is time for the religious institutions to dissemble and reassemble. What is in decline is the foundation and structure that organized religion has been established upon. This is not the disaster many believe it to be or the mark of justice that others believe. It is the evolution of education.
Religious leaders could have transformed religions without the destructive blow they are receiving, but their historical resistance to change prevented them from doing so.
Religions by their nature tend to naturally erode because they are thought-forms and thought-forms tend to weaken as they age because the environment that would keep them strengthened changes.
So you have that which is intended by those of us who monitor and instigate change in the evolution and advancement of education; you have the failure of the human custodians to be in-sync with that process and resist it, which causes a more severe change; and then you see the natural dispersion of thought-forms over time.
TM: It seems though that many of the religious leaders and a good many in the congregations are doing everything to revive and rebuild based upon the traditions.
Master Jesus: Many are and just as many are rebuilding with new ideas. This has been the way with religions throughout human history. There are always those who disagree then break off and form a new branch or create something completely different. Every generation thinks that the times and events are unique to their generation, which is true on some things, but for the most part the patterns repeat.
What is happening now more than in the past, although not without exception, is that more and more people are claiming spirituality for themselves without a hierarchical intermediary. This has a lot to do with the weakening of the churches. It is also a major part of our work at this time as I have mentioned. Eventually though, religious thought and experience must be shared. It is not just an individual event to be kept in secret. You’re right in that you are witnessing a revival and it’s shaking the roots of religion. The leaders will no longer hold an authoritative advantage over their congregations. All will unite in order to share the blessings and experience of a spiritual life fulfilled.
TM: I feel inspired by this but I’m not sure everyone does.
Master Jesus: In the end everyone will embrace the truth of spirituality as a form of education and then they can understand how much power they have within themselves to do all the things they wish God or their priest, Rabbi or their Lama would do for them. Imagine how their hearts will sing when they realize how precious they are. That will be a day to rejoice.
TM: I’ll rejoice with you. That will be a glorious day for sure. It does seem a long way off sometimes though, and that can be disheartening. I know, I know, patience. Damn, that’s hard though.
A point of clarification for me, if you will. I’m addressing you as ‘Master Jesus’ in these conversations, and that was your name during incarnation. Why do you keep the same name while in spirit form?
Master Jesus: Master Buddha and I are using these names because they are familiar. We are known by many names and it doesn’t matter for these purposes of communication. It is simply easier and requires less acceptance of spiritual complexity for us to present ourselves by these names.
TM: So, others may address you by other names?
Master Jesus: Yes.
TM: Back to the topic at hand. I think it would help a great deal if you will explain how you and the other Masters work with humanity, especially within religion. So many of the folks who write to me after reading these conversations wonder how this is possible since you were to them the Son of God, were crucified, were resurrected, tarried on Earth for awhile with your disciples, then what? And I present these conversations with many things contrary to what they interpret from the bible and I can understand why it’s a bit confusing and confounding.
Master Jesus: It need not be confusing or difficult to embrace if you grasp the essential message behind all my teachings. I am the son of God and you are the son of God and each and every one of you is the son of God. You are born into the flesh and given life on Earth and you die of the flesh and experience death on Earth. You have eternal life in a form unique to the sphere you inhabit as you progress through stages in your universe ascension. Love is the guiding force of this area of the universe; it is the glue so to speak of all that is. As you love yourselves and love others you connect to all that is in this universe. That is at the core and the very basic of what you must comprehend. Everything else is guidance on how to deal with the illusion that you create as an obstacle to getting to this understanding.
TM: And the role of religion is what then?
Master Jesus: As I’ve said, the role of religion is to share this common knowledge by way of a social support and educational network. Through the human epoch of living as savage beasts to dining in a restaurant there is much suffering and challenge along the way. Religious organizations are educational first and foremost in intent. That they have been corrupted in that aim is not sufficient reason to abandon the concept. The first thing that humans do when they reject religious organizations is form another one in contrast to the one they rejected. There is nothing inherently wrong with religious organizations as an educational facility. There is something wrong in the clergy inserting themselves as the gatekeepers for all that is holy and righteous. Let them stand down and reclaim their roles as leaders and custodians of an institution of learning and comfort.
Conversation with Buddha and TMichael: Truth and Trust
TM: I can see upon reflection of what you have said about reincarnation and karma that I had a notion that it was a form of punishment to correct wrongdoing, or reward for good things done. And one has to come back time and time again to get it right. That’s not it though, is it?
Master Buddha: Getting it right, meaning purifying your essence while in material form, and consequently purifying your material form would be one way to see it. Punishment and reward is wholly a human concept.
TM: But we have so many stories of God(s) punishing people for all sorts of things they did wrong, or for disobeying God(s). How do we change our orientation toward that model?
Master Buddha: I don’t know. You could just give it up because it no longer serves you.
TM: Well, that’s just too easily said. Much harder to do I think.
Master Buddha: You have to make that choice whether to hold on to what you once knew and cherished as truth or to embrace a new idea that better suits your current state.
TM: How do you know when it’s time to do that?
Master Buddha: Ask yourself, what is the worst that could happen if I embrace this new thought? Can you not retrieve the old one? Who gave you all these rules that you must rigidly follow?
TM: I suppose at some point I accepted them as truth and have clung to them because I want to live according to truth.
Master Buddha: Truth shifts with you. It is not a fixed thing that you can cling to and drag it around. Truth represents reality. But remember that your journey on Earth in material form presents you with an avalanche of illusion. You must be adaptable and truth seeking, not truth-clinging.
TM: Don’t you have to have something to hold onto for just a little while? I mean, isn’t truth-seeking a truth to follow? When would you give that up?
Master Buddha: As soon as I believe it no longer serves me. And service to me could mean something very different than when I adopted truth-seeking in the first place. You like many others are afraid of losing control and so you place limits; you reduce meaning and experience. Reincarnation and karma allow for a non-judgmental experience of life in material form. If you are fluid enough in your orientation you can experience all that there is in the world of illusion in a very short time. If you’re not, then you can take a long time to spin around in the same space until you realize that is what you’re doing.
TM: How do we know which truths to trust and to follow?
Master Buddha: You don’t know based upon trust do you? You know based upon deliberation in a mental process. You know based upon what has been handed down through the ages in the form of teachings and social norms. You know according to your familial orientation. And you know according to what serves your ego.
If you knew based upon trust, you would not need those other inputs would you?
TM: So you’re implying that I need to find trust first?
Master Buddha: The ego does not trust; it scans. It searches high and low for signs of agreement or disagreement with its agenda. It will play any role that serves to maintain its primacy. It is, in fact, the most worthy foe of any one you could meet. And it is who you think you are.
Trust is incongruent with ego. That is, unconditional trust is in congruent with ego. Trust based upon conditions and waivers abound with the ego. To seek truth with such a handicap is nearly impossible if not maddening.
In ancient cultures, trust was based upon instinct. With modern civilization, the mental faculty has replaced instinct. Beyond the mental faculty you will discover the true seat of trust for your purposes of living on Earth. Then you may choose truths based upon trust.
Conversation with Jesus and TMichael: Health and Balance
TM: Can you speak to issues of health?
Master Jesus: Yes.
TM: How is human health affected one way or another by our degree of spiritual awareness?
Master Jesus: As you become spiritually aware you make different choices. You will make different choices regarding things directly affecting your health as well as those things that affect your health indirectly. We have talked about the role of judgment. Even those at the higher levels of spiritual awareness can possess the characteristics of judgment, which can adversely affect their health. That’s an example of how choices that may seem unrelated can affect health issues. The more obvious choices most people know about, but they may choose to continue unhealthy behavior. Or they may become so opposed to those behaviors that they develop unhealthy reactions to themselves or others engaging in those behaviors.
It’s not so easy to provide a list of do’s and don’ts. Having a set of rules seems the right thing for many people, but in the long run it only runs a greater danger of producing intolerance and a judgmental nature, which can and is more dangerous to the health of humanity.
Spiritual enlightenment is not so much about one right way for everyone as it is about discovering the right way of living for each one. There will indeed emerge a set of principles to guide society in everyday affairs, but I wish to point out that without a spiritual awareness on the individual level, the societal guidelines will suffer. As individuals progress in understanding and spiritual intelligence, they will raise the standards of societal behavior. Society cannot rise higher than the largest group of enlightened beings in its ranks.
TM: How does disease, as we describe it, and the health issues you’re describing intersect? Aren’t there viruses and bacteria that wreak havoc with our bodies that have nothing to do with spiritual enlightenment?
Master Jesus: There is a host of factors to consider when examining the full spectrum of human health issues beyond spiritual enlightenment. But that will be the bedrock that all systems can be built upon. Bacteria and viruses are living organisms as are humans and animals and plants and so on. If you truly want to understand the role of each organism in the evolution of Earth, then study the past. If you want to know the future roles of organisms study the present. Humans have so upset the balance in nature that microorganisms are reacting in record numbers. You have only begun to see the potential of these organisms. The present path will force a collision of humans and microorganisms on a scale that is beyond your imagination. Much of this is unavoidable at this point, but much can be done to avert disaster on a large scale.
TM: Are you talking about epidemics?
Master Jesus: Yes. You remember our discussion about Armageddon? This is one of the ways it will work out. This is a result of humanity’s actions, not that of a vengeful God punishing you.
TM: I remember a quote, “You are not punished for your sins as you are by them. And the same for your virtues, in that you’re not rewarded for them as you are by living them.” So, how did we create the ground for epidemics?
Master Jesus: Ecosystems are in balance when all living organisms operate within their sphere and natural tendency. Humans have taken the role as lead and dominant species because of divine right. With that right comes responsibility. Humans are made up of all that exists in the world; so, there isn’t a thing that isn’t you.
TM: I must interrupt. You’re saying by divine right? What does that mean?
Master Jesus: Let me restate that to say by divine order. There is a hierarchy of life, both on Earth as there is in the universe at large. The hierarchy is determined by characteristics inherent in each species that create specific roles to maintain harmony and balance in the whole system. It allows that there are times of disharmony and imbalance, but the correction comes as a result of each species finding its role. Despite the belief that the universe is largely random and chaotic, which it certainly appears to human observation, there is an order beyond your comprehension.
TM: Beyond our comprehension or beyond our ability to see?
Master Jesus: Both. It is something you must take on faith, or belief without evidence. Among those of us who witness wonders in the universe beyond anything humans see, we can barely glimpse the order even as we comprehend it.
TM: Suddenly I feel like the dumbest kid in class.
Master Jesus: Someday humans will comprehend it, but first things first. For now, and this is what makes it such a challenge to teach as well as to accept as truth, it will be a matter of faith. Humans do as well with matters of faith as any being. It always comes down to trusting the motivation and knowledge of the source.
TM: Back to what you were saying, there is nothing in the world that isn’t us. I skipped too many science classes to understand that one.
Master Jesus: There are basic qualities of energy that compose life on Earth, which are in turn reflected in the chemistry of material existence. Humans are composed of all those basic qualities of energy found in every species on Earth. The two most abused beliefs by humans are that humans have dominion over all species and survival of the fittest species. The unremarkable intelligence that springs from those simplistic notions is creating your own Armageddon. Your role as steward has been usurped by your pride as being superior. Your role as spiritual leader has been sabotaged by your fear of spirit. Without a turnaround in these conditions, you will have to experience the consequences of these beliefs carried to their natural conclusion.
TM: To clarify, are you saying that humans don’t have dominion and that survival of the fittest is inaccurate?
Master Jesus: Humans have reduced the meaning of those truths to rationalize behavior that is inconsistent with the integrity of those truths.
TM: So, what I’m gleaning from these discussions is that we’re pretty much screwed on a number of fronts from economics to epidemics if we don’t change our ways. Is that it?
Master Jesus: You will experience the reality you have created. The masters and I want to give you every opportunity to recognize that you are creating the reality and that you will experience it as you create it; so, pay attention to what and how you’re creating.
TM: When you say masters, that sounds very Eastern. It may not be understood in the West.
Master Jesus: It means teachers. We use it as a way of deference to one who has achieved a high degree of understanding and enlightenment. And while some prerogatives of authority come with the title, it is largely a title of achievement.
TM: Whom do the Masters teach?
Master Jesus: They mostly work with disciples on the spiritual plane, who in turn work with disciples on the physical plane. However, we have begun to teach directly to those on the physical plane as a matter of expedience and some small measure of experiment.
TM: What kind of experiment?
Master Jesus: We want to see how rapidly humans can assimilate spiritual knowledge if a master administers it directly. If this successfully accelerates the process, then we will organize group sessions for those who are ready.
TM: Is this the first time this has happened?
Master Jesus: Periodically we test for receptivity along these lines. This happens to be one of those times.
TM: Lately I feel these discussions have taken on a stream of consciousness, that is, flitting from one thought to the other without ever finishing one thought. I wonder if this will deter from what you need to convey.
Master Jesus: What would you like to conclude?
TM: All this Armageddon business spurs more questions than answers to me. Please summarize the health issues relative to spiritual progress.
Master Jesus: I’m expressing these ideas in the most accessible way for most people to understand it. It’s time to expand beyond ideological boundaries and reach common understanding.
Spiritual progress is needed on the individual and group levels at this time. The time is critical due to the fact that humans have created a reality that is headed for disaster. Before it reaches the point of no return, you are given a chance to become aware of your actions and the consequences. Then you must decide what you will do. Health issues are wrapped up in the whole system. I can’t separate them for you or explain their nature out of context. Deterioration of human health is and will ensue at an increasingly rapid pace despite the illusion of medical advancements to cure disease. The root cause of this can only be corrected at the spiritual level, because it is from there that the physical level will conform to new understandings.
TM: People don’t understand disease and “why me” is the big question. I know folks who live very pure lives; healthy attitudes and diets, and yet they suffer through all sorts of physical maladies. How can you tell them the root cause is something spiritual?
Master Jesus: I can’t tell them the cause of their illness is spiritual unless I know them. I’m speaking in broad terms for the bulk of humanity, not for specific individuals. Having a healthy diet and being spiritually inclined is helpful, but there are so many variables that can trigger an illness. Often, for spiritual people, an illness reflects a clearing that they are ready for; meaning that they have reached a point that they can clear energy from their body that they have been carrying for a lifetime perhaps. It may be clearing from past lives. Very few people are so spiritually advanced that they create a shield from illness. But they can handle an illness better than if they were spiritually ignorant. And healing is about understanding spirit and using it practically.
TM: Does prayer help?
Master Jesus: Yes it does. But really the person who is ill must have a will to heal or nothing is going to heal him or her. Healing begins within. External assistance then accelerates healing by strengthening that which already exists and is in motion. There are some excellent studies addressing these claims.
TM: What’s happening in cases where the ill person wants to heal and his family and friends are praying for healing, yet he dies anyway?
Master Jesus: Again, you’re asking a very specific hypothetical question that really is impossible to answer. I know you want to know these things and yet I can’t provide the answers. This puts the burden on you to investigate for yourself in these very specific cases.
TM: How would I do that?
Master Jesus: Truly know the person fitting the description above. Do you really know what is in his heart? Do you know what is fear of death and what is true yearning to live? Do you know the guilt one feels as one nears death, and that it is at times unbearable? Do you know the longing for a life fulfilled and whether he is satisfied this is done, or there is more to be accomplished? Is there a gentle acceptance of death? Does he feel the pull of loved ones to keep him in this life for their sake? You must ask these questions and many more to fully understand an individual case.
TM: Are natural disasters prompted by humanity’s decisions too?
Master Jesus: Humanity has an impact on the environmental well-being of Earth. Weather patterns are most affected by humanity’s impact as the population grows. Earth is a living entity and as such has its own physical responses to that life that will occur with or without the presence of humanity. Earthquakes for example are purely geologic events. Global warming though is largely caused by humanity’s impact, but in other times has been naturally occurring. So while humanity must take responsibility for its impact on the health of the planet, it is in your own best interest to do so for your health. You are not separate from Earth.
TM: I know I’m asking questions out of the realm of education and religion, but I’m curious.
Master Jesus: I can speak on a number of topics, but I will bring it back to spirituality. This is the time for education to take center stage; otherwise, the age of synthesis will be missing parts to compose the whole picture. Humanity must see the whole picture.
TM: There are a lot of new spiritual books, conferences and workshops. Are they right in what they teach? Some of them seem to contradict other teachings, or at least present diverse ways of accomplishing the same end. How do we know which ones are accurate?
Master Jesus: Choose the ones that feel right for you. There is so much diversity because there is diversity among humans. Do you really believe for a moment there is one right way for everyone? At the same time, while you are choosing the right method for yourself, allow others to do the same. Blend your way with others. Any method that teaches that it is the only way is the one to avoid.
TM: We’re such social creatures though; we like to belong by identifying with sets of values. But then we make the mistake of thinking our way is superior and we want everyone to follow that way. If we could accept what you are suggesting I can see how it would work. I don’t see how to undo what is done.
Master Jesus: It will be undone by substituting a new understanding; the one we’re discussing; one that allows each person to select his or her inspiration without judgment or ridicule. The social connection must be viewed from the perspective of identification with the whole of humanity rather than the provincial identification. This is happening already within many circles and it will expand with time.
Ancient civilizations could not imagine human organizations spanning the entire world- they had no definition of the entire world beyond what they could see, and what they could see was limited. This civilization sees into the universe and yet still suffers the myopic view of its own insular world made up of petty prejudices and grievances. This will change. It will change because of a disaster that will create an environment that forces unity, or it will occur because of an enlightened populace. You choose.
Conversation with Buddha and TMichael: Fear of Death and Life
TM: How does one accept death and the will to live at the same time?
Master Buddha: That’s not so easy to explain or understand. The reason is because of attachment to living and then attachment to accepting death in order to be free from fear. There is, in between the actual truth of acceptance of death and the first step, a period of elation at no longer sensing any fear around dying. When the fear of dying has so long ruled the physical life it is quite a relief to no longer walk in fear of it. However, there will come a test. And that test will present an option to die or an option to live and that is when you’ll discover how attached you are to the notion of dying versus the notion of living and which one actually carries the most fear. There are two parts to the fear aspect of living in the flesh. The first is fear of dying and that preoccupies all your thoughts, emotions and energy to avoid its actuality. Then there comes the fear of living, which exposes all the painful self-inadequacies. That’s enough to make one embrace death, now no longer feared, as an escape from the fear of living.
Just as one has to face the fear of death, one has to face the fear of living. The fear of living is the more difficult of the two because it is more difficult to imagine. Death is universally the same, except perhaps in the actual method or circumstances of death. Living on the other hand can be a slow form of death or a joyous expression of all that is. You can choose which it is. Again, just because one has the power to choose doesn’t make it easier. You must understand what it is that you are choosing and have the skills to choose according to your individual nature.
TM: So, my question assumed there was no fear of living, only fear of dying. How does the will to live then resolve with the fear of living?
Master Buddha: The will to live requires no effort because it is your innate spiritual will, which in the flesh is instinctual. The fear of living is concerned with those matters of quality and choice. How shall one live? What occupation shall one choose to provide the essentials of living? Shall one create a family, a marriage? What will engage my thoughts and my energy? Those are the questions of living that determine the quality of one’s life.
TM: Where do the self-inadequacies come in?
Master Buddha: That is the lifetime struggle for most humans. It depends greatly upon the wisdom of one’s parents and the living environment that one is exposed to during one’s formative years. But even under the best of circumstances it is unavoidable to deal with self-inadequacy to some degree. In the middle, that which is normal, one sees that before a child reaches school age already the seeds of self-inadequacy are planted and many more shall also be planted during the years of attending school. This is a tremendous challenge to change because parents are still struggling with their own self-inadequacies while trying to raise children, schools are populated with adults who are struggling with their own self-inadequacies and of course the children are in the thick of it as well.
TM: So, if I understand what you’re saying, it is self-inadequacy that is the root of our fear of living, not fear of dying.
Master Buddha: Fear of death is first, but it’s a mask for fear of living based upon self-inadequacies. One must first confront fear of death and then begin the process of awareness of self-inadequacies and correction in order to reach the joy of living instead of the fear of living.
TM: What similarity is there between self-confidence and self-adequacy? In Western culture anyway, adequate is mediocre and not good enough if one is to get ahead in life. So where does this reconcile?
Master Buddha: Well, adequacy is a relative term in this case. If the standard in Western society is excellence then that is what is meant by adequate, that is one must be excellent to be self-adequate.
Self-confidence can be genuine or a rationalization that one has created to cover for self-inadequacy. There are only a handful of truly self-confident people, those who have mastered the fear of death and the fear of living. Most people are spread along the spectrum of self-confident, yet still self-inadequate underneath, to self-inadequate as a constant in their daily lives. The meaning of self-confident is to be truthful with one’s self. So, in that case, there can be a conscious level of self-confidence and fears around self-inadequacy at the same time. What I mean, is that you can be aware of your perception of self-inadequacy and still be self-confident in an honest way. That is the point of transition that many people find themselves now. They are exploring self-awareness, which leads to coming face to face with their self-inadequacies, which is giving them a genuine self-confidence that they are progressing toward joy in living. It’s not always perfect and there is still illusion, but it is in the right direction.
TM: Can any of us really be inadequate?
Master Buddha: That’s for each person to determine.
TM: Yes, but we’ve determined for the most part that we are inadequate and you’re saying that’s a problem. So, clearly we’re incapable of making this judgment.
Master Buddha: And by what standards have you determined that you are inadequate?
TM: We set the standard by looking around us and seeing the ones among us who are adequate and then compare ourselves to them.
Master Buddha: And how do you know what makes someone adequate?
TM: We’ve determined through our social consensus the traits that are desirable and those are the ones that form the foundation of our adequacy. Then there are individual traits that one can have that deviate from the social norm that enhance our adequacy.
Master Buddha: So, under your system the guidelines are derived by social consensus and then measured by each of you as you see it in others in contrast to yourself. Do you see others who are less adequate than you are?
TM: Of course we do. There are others who are more and some who are less.
Master Buddha: Have you ever heard someone say really flattering things about you and you felt those things weren’t true?
TM: At first it feels good to hear those things, but there have been times then when I doubt those things are entirely true, maybe a little.
Master Buddha: Do you tell yourself about your qualities that make you adequate?
TM: Not often, but sometimes.
Master Buddha: Do you tell yourself about the times you are inadequate?
TM: Probably more so than the other way.
Master Buddha: Why is that?
TM: Because I’m inadequate more often than not?
Master Buddha: Well, you were a good sport to fall into my trap on this one. Although I know that a part of you believes there is much truth in what you said. It’s hard in this world to counter the many messages of self-inadequacy. And that’s what everyone wants the most, to feel adequate and have others recognize them for this. It’s understandable that if you are telling yourself than you are inadequate that you would turn to others to get the feedback that you are adequate. What happens though when they confirm your belief that you are inadequate?
TM: That’s the worse when it all coincides to tell you that. That’s the worse kind of depression and despair I think; to feel worthless and incapable of living a good life.
Master Buddha: You have a fairly simple prayer that you recite to accept yourself as you are and know you are loved. Because ultimately adequacy has to do with being lovable, don’t you think?
TM: Are you saying they are synonymous?
Master Buddha: I think so, even though adequacy has to do with a performance of talents that in total can make you lovable, what is someone if they are adequate but unlovable? Are they happy? What if they conform to all of the social standards of adequacy, yet they don’t feel others see them in that light and they don’t experience love in their lives?
TM: Well, that pretty much sucks. So you become bitter or you try harder and harder to prove your adequacy, and lovability I guess.
Master Buddha: What is the prayer that you recite?
TM: It’s Love in Abundance. There’s one line in particular that resonates with me in terms of self-acceptance and self-love. “I am that I am and thus receive the blessings of love in abundance.” If I’m feeling critical or judgmental of myself, I often recite that line with a substitution for “that I am”. It could be, “I am selfish and inconsiderate and thus receive the blessings of love in abundance.” It has the effect for me of embracing the worse things I could think about myself in love and then I just feel love and not the power of the criticism or judgment.
Background Conversation with Jesus and TMichael: Love and Loneliness (Part 1)
This is the third conversation with Masters Jesus and Buddha. I’m never sure how it’s going to start. I sit. And wait. I think of things to say but they’re not really the things to say only forced ideas that my mind impatiently pushes into the foreground to get it going. But then a question springs up and that’s the beginning.
Conversation with Jesus and TMichael: Love and Loneliness (Part 1)
TM: Why are people in my culture so lonely and are people in other cultures lonely too?
Master Jesus: That’s a good question. Relevant for many people, yet misunderstood in this age of plenty and hectic daily living. As I look at the times that have passed and note that throughout human history and human suffering, never has there been as much loneliness relative to so much material and social progress. How could this be?
TM: That was my question.
Master Jesus: Don’t you have an idea why it is so?
TM: I don’t really know. I observe people who are lonely and I feel sad for them. Sometimes I see people who are surrounded by friends and family and still they are lonely. They’ve somehow lost contact in a way that they don’t know if they exist or not I suppose. I’ve had moments when I felt alone, but they seemed fleeting like a day or two and then I remembered something that connected me and I was back.
Master Jesus: Do you imagine hope has anything to do with the feeling of loneliness?
TM: I don’t think so, but since you brought it up I imagine that you think it has something to do with it. Do you?
Master Jesus: No I don’t. But I can tell you that people who are experiencing loneliness feel as if there is no hope for them. They are hopelessly isolated.
TM: If that’s so, then hope does have something to do with it.
Master Jesus: Really? And how is that?
TM: Well, if there’s an absence of hope, then hope has something to do with it then hope has something to do with it—the reason why they’re feeling lonely.
Master Jesus: What if they’re wrong? What if hope is just something that fills the gap in a perception of life filled with holes? What if hope merely replaces for a moment the underlying sense of despair that is the theme of a disjointed view of life?
TM: Yes, but that is the point of hope. It’s sort of a wild card, a get out of jail free card. It bails you out when you don’t know exactly what has you down, whether it’s loneliness or depression or sadness. Hope is a handy antidote.
Master Jesus: That’s an interesting way to view it. I see love fulfilling that promise. So is hope a bridge then to something else?
TM: I guess so in a way. It’s getting out of someplace, an emotional place that feels yucky. I’d say it’s more of an escape “out of” rather than a bridge. Although I think in order for it to work, obviously it has to be a bridge to something better than the thing that one is getting out of. But since you brought up love, how is that different from hope? Isn’t it the promise of something better but in a more generalized way?
Master Jesus: Love is more than the promise of something better. It is all there is. Any other state is a creation of someone who isn’t connected consciously with the only state there is. So that that doesn’t confuse you, let me state it another way. When you are experiencing loneliness, fear, doubt, depression or sadness, you have created those states, but they’re not real. They’re illusions. Love is real and the only state.
TM: When you say they’re not real and love is, what do you mean? What does ‘real’ mean?
Master Jesus: The limitations of language are real. ‘Real’ means the genuine thing, the enduring, absolute thing. It is the be all, end all. There can be no other. Something is unreal when it poses as something real. Sadness poses as reality, and so does loneliness. Those states pretend to be real to give you the experience of what it would be like if they were real.
TM: That’s fine for you to say, but how can we know that is true? When people are lonely or sad they are those things. That is a real experience.
Master Jesus: I see how you trap yourself in believing that those states are as real as love. Let’s say that only one thing can be real. Let’s also say that everything other than that thing is unreal. The only reason you would believe that the unreal things are real is that you believe the real thing is unreal.
TM: Now you’re messing with my head. I don’t follow you. I know love is real. When I experience love I know it and it’s real. Then there can be a moment when I experience loneliness and it’s different than love and for that moment it is real and love isn’t activated or present, at that moment, so the other thing is and it’s real. Why can’t they all be real?
Master Jesus: So, by your reasoning all things are real and none are unreal?
TM: Yes, I guess that’s true.
Master Jesus: But only one of them can be real at one time, is that it?
TM: For the most part, yes. But I think there are times when I experience more than one state at a time, or there’s some overlap. Often I can sense the transition from one state to another.
Master Jesus: What causes the shift then, from one to another?
TM: I don’t know, it just shifts. Thoughts trigger the shift I suppose.
Master Jesus: And you create the thoughts, is that correct?
TM: Yes.
Master Jesus: And you create the thoughts with the intent to shift from one state to another, or is it involuntary?
TM: Well, mostly I think if you’re depressed or lonely then you’re motivated to shift out and so it’s a conscious act. If you’re in a happy or joyous state and you start to slip into another state it seems more of an unconscious act. I mean people basically want to be happy and so they strive to stay that way. If they’re sad they try to get to the happy state.
Master Jesus: I noticed you used happy and joy, not love. Why is that?
TM: I remember what you’ve said, that happy and joy are states of love.
Master Jesus: So does that make love a meta-state?
TM: Could be I guess.
Master Jesus: If love is a meta-state and happiness and joy are states that reflect love, then what meta-state does loneliness and despair reflect? Or do you consider them to be meta-states?
TM: I consider them to be undesirable states. But I don’t know the answer, maybe they reflect evil.
Master Jesus: Now we’re getting somewhere. So, you believe then that love and evil are the meta-states and from those the others come into momentary reflection?
TM: I wasn’t aware that I thought that, but maybe I do or maybe I just don’t know and you’re putting words into my mouth. I have never thought that deeply about it. I guess I’m like most people I just live my life from one state to the next trying to stay a little longer in the good ones and avoiding the undesirable ones.
Master Jesus: Well, that’s an honest answer and one that represents the majority, if not all, the human race. But surely you have thought deeply about these things, as have others. Is it that you don’t trust the conclusions you’ve reached?
TM: I think it’s more like I’ve never really concluded anything. I resort to the old story of love and evil, good and bad, happy and sad, because that’s easier than risking a new story that may not be true. And at least the old one is accepted by nearly everyone.
Master Jesus: It’s time to risk a new story. I think you already have, but you’re not sure whether or not you want to tell it. What if you’re wrong, right? Then you’ve duped yourself and everyone else who believed you. I’ve told it and others have told it. It gets changed a little here and there so that it looks more like the old story to make it more comfortable for everyone. So, I’ll tell it again.
TM: Please do. I’m willing to listen. Is this going to answer my original question about loneliness?
Master Jesus: Yes, and more. Love is all there is in this universe. It is the meta-state. Every other state of emotion you experience is either a reflection of love, or it is a state you have individually and collectively created in order to experience that which isn’t love. Evil is the creation of humanity and is unreal. It appears real because you believe it is as part of your collective agreement to do so.
You experience life one moment at a time on Earth. You experience life on more than the Earth dimension. The meta-state of love is on all dimensions. You create within the realm of Earth during your incarnation here. Your creation does not extend beyond this dimension. You can choose to create with love or you can choose to create with that which is not love. At the point when your creation is purely from love then your boundary of creation will expand. That is the moment we are all waiting and working for.
The challenge of humanity is to synthesize all that is in your human nature with all that is in your spiritual nature. Love is in both and will temper the fusion. Give up your addiction to your own creation when it isn’t in alignment with love.
So if you want the sparkle and shine to come back, or indeed be discovered for the first time, go and look for it. Find someone who is currently experiencing that and piggy back their perception. Learn to see what they can see. Learn to live how they can live, and you will be happy. Or at least you will be on your way to find out more about yourself and more about the nature of perceptual reality that surrounds you and often loses you to it’s fleeting and delusional nature.