Abundance
Ritual In A Modern Spiritual Lifestyle
Rituals, rites and ceremonies are the oldest forms of spiritual practice and essential aspects of all religions and belief systems. A ritual is a meaningful or symbolic action or series of actions that has a standardized format or sequence and can therefore be repeated in exactly the same way by individuals, groups or even communities.
The metaphysical energy generated when we focus our intent using symbols, tokens and metaphoric activities during a ritual that has special meaning for us personally can be highly transformative! Whether you practice ritual in a group or solo, it can supercharge your manifesting ability and aid in any mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual healing processes you may be going through.
When some people hear the word ‘ritual,’ they tend to imagine darkened, smoke-filled rooms with mysterious people in long robes, chanting strange refrains perhaps, all choreographed with everyone knowing their roles. I’m sure there are people who practice rituals in this way and elements like incense and chanting can indeed be party of a rite or ceremony. But a ritual can also be more simply crafted in a way to fit into a modern lifestyle and everyday spiritual practice.
In my own practice, I created a little ‘altar’ for myself. A small sacred space where I have placed a few candles, some incense, crystals, feathers and a few other symbolic tokens which hold special meaning for me. I also added a picture of my mother and a statue of an angel given to me when my grandpa passed away. In this way I created a sacred space that has deep meaning for me personally and brings me into a spiritual mindset.
You don’t need to have a lot of room for this in your home. So, you can even create a small sacred space for yourself on the corner of a dresser or table top. As my practice has evolved, I now find that any spare surface or quiet corner in the places where I have lived can become a nook for little spiritual treasures that I find during my adventures. Once you start creating a sacred space, the Universe will send you little gifts to help you along.
The Importance Of Self-Investment
When I was younger, I thought of self-investment as ‘self-indulgence.’ However, as I grew spiritually, my guides made me aware that this was far from the case. In fact, I have learned that self-investment is a necessity – particularly in today’s world!
What can self-investment do for you? Well, it helps to calm your emotions and ground your energy. You feel more in control of your overall situation – whatever that may be.
It can also help prevent burnout by reducing stress, inducing a sense of calm, and minimizing anger, frustration, and depression, while boosting self-esteem! It may further help increase your sense of focus, aid concentration and thus help you deal with any current tasks.
Self-investment also helps you feel much more optimistic and increases your sense of happiness, thus attracting more of the good that the abundant universe has to offer you. It aids you in tapping into your higher self, connecting with the Divine, and utilizing your fullest potential in life.
Sounds great, right? But how does one go about implementing self-investment in a modern, busy life? Consider the following strategies:
Manage Your Time
Most people feel that they cannot self-invest as they never have the time to do so. However, why not draw up a timetable for your week and schedule some me-time? Taking time to do so will pay many dividends for your overall well-being, and what is more important than that?
Drawing up such a schedule will allow you to incorporate healthy habits, and it is the correct kind of habits when it comes to self-nurture that have the most impact. Schedule it: whether you like singing in the bath, cooking delicious healthy food, taking a brisk walk before bedtime, or planning for an early night!
Choose To Contribute, Even In Difficult Circumstances
Over the recent Easter holidays, spirit has once again been making me aware of the dire need for gratitude and generosity in our world. Spirit asks us to reflect on those less fortunate who live in war-torn countries where they must survive daily atrocities.
Also, we must think of families closer to home who, due to illness or work issues, don’t have enough to live in appropriate housing, or even know where their next meal is coming from. It is our spiritual duty to volunteer or donate to charities to help those currently living in adverse circumstances.
It is also important to give thanks for what we have, even if we are currently hoping for so much more in the future. Irrespective of our current circumstances, we can still radiate kindness and generosity. We can give our time to help others or just listen to someone in need of a confidant.
Meanwhile, regardless of where we stand right now, we can continue to visualize the outcomes we are expecting, for just a few quiet minutes per day. Remember to set achievable goals and give yourself a timeline to follow.
Stay focused. Stay committed. Stay strong. Lead by example. Smile and act as if your gifts have already arrived. Be excited by the small accomplishments and the little wins as you aim higher and stronger.
We all face challenges in life, and sometimes they can seem insurmountable. Instead of giving in to fear and worry, focus on something that makes you happy or someone who lights up your life. Stay the course and maintain balance as much as possible, while you work through those challenges.
When it comes to conversations and relationships, remember that we either contribute or contaminate with every interaction. Make the effort to choose to contribute, even in difficult circumstances. Solve disagreements without resorting to posturing and name-calling.
Less Stress, More Meditation
We do our best to not be in a state of constant stress, toxic environments and unhealthy situations. We try so hard to keep our life in a state of contentment and happiness.
We intuitively know that if we keep our stress levels down, we sleep better and we think more clearly. Being in a state of zen is our original state.
When we are at peace, we are more able to hear that inner voice telling us what to do, and not do. It is what I call our inner GPS. We can hear it much more clearly when I we are centered and grounded, and not stressing.
I have found that only through meditation can I fully achieve this state of ‘less stress’ in my life. Of course, we can never eliminate stress completely, but meditation does empower me to achieve that state of contentment more easily.
After many years of practice, I can even achieve this within a few moments by simply focusing on my breath. But it is best when I take a good 30 minutes to go through my meditative steps. This includes breathwork and visualizing my body relaxing from my toes to top of my head.
During my destressing meditation I also take some time to send out love, light and peace to everyone that I know and love, including those who I don’t necessarily like very much. I also visualize the things I want to manifest in my life.
Stay True To Your Own Best Karma
You may have heard of someone ‘getting their karma’ for something bad they have done, or of wishing bad karma on another for their transgressions. Most people use the word ‘karma’ in this negative sense, usually believing that a person that hurt them will be on the receiving end of the same hurt (or worse) because of their deeds.
But wishing negative karma on another is a dangerous practice. What we think, say and do tend to come back to us, instead of another person. So, when you say something like, “Oh, I can’t wait until they get their karma and someone breaks their heart like they broke mine,” you have in fact declared it for yourself (again).
Karma happens when it happens. Never, ever wish it on another in a negative manner. Your thoughts, words and actions determine what you attract to yourself.
Karma can instead be invoked in an amazingly positive way. Wish everyone good things, positive actions, and uplifting results in their life – even those who wronged you.
Congratulate that person who got the promotion that you wanted. Offer the person who stole from you a blessing. Forgive the person who broke your heart and wish them only happiness in their future life.
This will open the flood gates of good reactions to your actions. There is a cause and effect for everything, so the moment you choose to you’re your thoughts, words and actions all positive and loving, that is what you will attract in return.
Empowering Life Lessons From My Abusive Father
My father Jim had to grow up quickly in the tough pre-war years. He was the eldest of six children and he did not have an easy childhood, nor tolerant parents.
But life became even more challenging for Jim as he reached adulthood. My parents were married at the age of 21 and had three kids by 23, and another baby at 34.
Jim faced many challenges. As a result, to vent his frustration and process all the stress, he often took it out on those closest to him, namely his wife and children.
Let’s just say my father was not always the ideal husband and parent. It became so bad by the time I was an adult that he would do whatever he could to disrupt my life and my family in any way that you might imagine. The sad part was that he actually wanted to hurt us, as doing so gave him a bizarre sense of satisfaction and control over those closest to him.
I first became fully aware of my father’s desire to disempower his kids when I was about 22 years old. The year was 1982, and jobs were very hard to come by in the United Kingdom in those days. I had an office job but wanted something better. So, I decided to attend school for a year to learn shorthand and typing at the local technical college.
One day, I asked my dad if I could get a ride with him to college, because I had to sit an important exam at 2pm that day. He said I need not worry, as he would drop me off in plenty of time. But then he proceeded to make every excuse not to leave the house!
By quarter to two, I started to panic, as I could not possibly walk or catch a bus from my house to the college with so little time. At ten minutes to two, he finally agreed to take me to sit the exam, but then when we got in the car, he said he needed to go to the garage for gas. I looked at the fuel gauge and saw the car’s tank was full.
I suddenly realized he did not want me to sit the exam, as he did not want me to pass it and better myself and become more independent. Thankfully, his sabotage attempt failed, as I did pass the exam and went on to get a higher paying job.
How To Set Intentions That Manifest
Not long ago, I was going through some storage boxes and out fell a little scrap of paper. Curious, I picked it up, unfolded it and read the words I had written over a year earlier.
Now, I do not remember writing this little note, or saving it for that matter. But what I found grabbed my attention and pulled me immediately into the present moment.
It was a wish list. I had written things like, “do fulfilling work that feeds my soul,” and “a home with by the ocean, mountains and forest.” As I read through the items on this list, I realized that all of them had meanwhile become a reality in my life. I was amazed, and filled with gratitude!
Like most people, I also too often forget to take stock and honor moments of gratitude for the many blessings in my life.
While this wish list shook me back into gratitude, it also got me thinking about something else. The power of intention.
I always say that life is like driving – you need to look where you want your car to go. With the general busy-ness of life getting in the way, it can be challenging to stay focused on where we want to be versus where we are now.
I have found the following three strategies help to bring me back into full presence and awareness in the current moment, as well as setting intentions like a ‘map’ of where I want to be headed.
Envision The Broad Strokes
It is vital to understand that universal energies seek to help us manifest that which is our highest and best good. With this concept as our framework, we allow these energies to work within our lives in ways we may never have expected.