We all have conflicting thoughts. Well, I should say we all keep conflicting thoughts for the time being.

Conflicting thoughts are thoughts that are opposite in meaning, yet we believe them both.

Even defining it so plainly reveals how crazy it is to have these conflicting thoughts.

Yet every day we entertain one or more.

Some common conflicting thoughts include:

• “I don’t know why bad things happen to me” vs “I love drama”
• “The mind controls the body” vs “my body is sick”
• “People really are nice at heart” vs “people suck”

The purpose of this article is not to list out all of your conflicting thoughts, but to help you live more in harmony with yourself.

This can be accomplished by first recognizing what your conflicting thoughts are. And secondly, by choosing just one (hopefully the thought aligned with truth).

Let’s jump in!

Others will tell you

We can sometimes become so wrapped up in our own ego that we become unconscious of what we actually believe, think, and say.

Luckily, we have mirrors (those around us) to remind us.

For whatever reason, people love proving others wrong and calling out their faults, especially kids.

So you’re surrounded by amazingly eager participants willing to show you your conflicting thoughts.

When confronted openly about these conflicting thoughts, there’s a tendency to react by directing anger toward the messenger.

But when you see the reality of this situation, you can understand that the messenger just did you a HUGE favor.

They have just brought to light some conflicting thoughts that you were unaware of.

At this moment you have a choice. You can defend your beliefs as if truth itself needs someone to fight for it. Or you can take a moment to reflect and see if there is some truth to what the person is revealing to you.

It takes practice, but you’ll get it.

You find yourself feeling uneasy, angry, or sick

Despite the common belief, sickness is not normal.

Seeing the above statement now is so blatantly obvious to me, but there was a time when it wasn’t. I believed that it was natural to get sick and that there was nothing I could do about it.

I believed that something was natural that could never be natural. It’s like living death, fighting peace, or lying for the truth…obvious conflicts that we’ve merged into one.

Since as so above, so below…what you believe inside is reflected outside.

In this case, this inner mental conflict reveals itself as bodily conflict reinforcing that the mind controls the body. Yet we sometimes believe that the body has a mind of its own. And it does. It’s yours. 

This conflict also reveals itself in anger and uneasiness.

You would only be angry if someone reveals something that goes both against your belief and for your belief.

For example, let’s say someone calls you stupid.

If you’re content in your genius-ness, then you would brush off this attempt at an insult because it’s obviously absurd.

Yet if deep down you believe that you are stupid, then conflict or anger will arise. There’s conflict because you are trying to prove to others that you are smart without having truly accepted it for yourself.

It’s time to start using these perceived anger and/or sick times as triggers to practice seeing the miracle of moving toward a united mind.

Being present with what you’re teaching/saying (the advice you give others)

You are always teaching. You are always sharing. They are one and the same.

If for example, I say, “Eating chicken is bad for you.” You may be quick to teach or share why it is or isn’t.

We unconsciously do this. And by doing this unconsciously, we are setting up our own limits.

We are making the parameters for how we are to live. And if we don’t abide by these, conflict arises.

The conflict is there because you’ve set a rule yourself to live by, but you don’t live by it.

See how sneaky conflicting thoughts can be.

It’s not just there. It’s in the debates you have.

You may be so wrapped up in being right, that you don’t realize you’re righting something that you never wanted for yourself while denying what you do.

Fortunately, the fix is the same.

Be present at this moment.

Observe your thoughts as you think them.

Observe your words as you speak them.

This also takes practice. But once it’s perfected, nothing will ever bother you again.

You will be in perfect harmony within yourself always.

In conclusion

On this harmonic journey, try not to get frustrated if you don’t always succeed at overcoming the conflict.

To get frustrated would be to make further disharmony (more conflicting thoughts).

No more!

Here’s a song of mine to help.

The post How To Recognize Conflicting Thoughts appeared first on JClay.

Reading is more than just a pastime, it’s a great activity that can change your life. An article published by Aleteia emphasized that a good book is the key to leading a joy-filled life. Moreover, it was highlighted that reading books about spirituality can build your character and enlighten your soul.

As such, books are fundamental instruments for individuals who want to deepen their spirituality. In line with that, here are five books that can strengthen your sense of spirituality:

A Course in Miracles

A Course in Miracles was written by Helen Schucman in 1976, but it has been making waves across different spiritual practices decades after its first publication. A previous post entitled The Top “A Course in Miracles (ACIM)” Inspired Rap/Hip-Hop Artists emphasizes that this book is so life-changing that it’s influenced books, films, art pieces, and even rap.

A Course in Miracles has created such an impact because it opens people up to the greatest miracle of all: love. And through reading it, you can gain awareness of love’s presence and guide yourself towards a united spiritual purpose.

The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

Spirituality teacher Eckhart Tolle is the genius behind this best-selling book that discusses the significance of the present moment. Recognizing how thinking about the past and the future can induce anxiety, Tolle wrote The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment to teach people how to embrace the present.

The book’s simple language, as well as the question and answer format, makes it easy for readers to ease themselves into a new state of mind. This makes it a very effective tool in embracing the now and getting connected to an indestructible essence of your being.

The Untethered Soul

If you’d like to know more about Buddhist principles, then The Untethered Soul is a good place to start. This book, which was written by Michael A. Singer, explores how the principle of the Middle Way can help you reach a peaceful state of mind.

Through simple and easy-to-follow language, Singer discusses how you can embrace your existence without any force. This philosophy will help you free yourself from any emotions and thoughts that may be weighing you down. By allowing things to just be, you can experience a more elevated and peaceful existence.

Learned Optimism

You can deepen your spirituality through the science-backed research studies covered in the book Learned Optimism. In this book, author Martin Seligman discusses the proven benefits of becoming an optimist, such as being more healthy, successful, and happy. Then, the renowned psychologist teaches his readers how to break bad habits and implement new strategies that can enhance their quality of life.

By embracing optimism through these strategies, you can develop a deeper appreciation and understanding of people, love, and life. This will help you serve a more enlightened purpose throughout the human experience.

Real Magic: Creating Miracles in Everyday Life

Best-selling author Dr. Wayne Dyer explores a different kind of magic in Real Magic: Creating Miracles in Everyday Life. This book discusses realistic strategies that can help you experience profound miracles.

While these miracles aren’t the ones you usually see in the movies, they are great life experiences that can help you get past perceptions that have been holding you back. This then allows you to reach a higher level of consciousness where you can experience blessings in your everyday life.

Summary

Through these five books, you can learn how to open yourself up to a deeper spiritual practice. It only goes to show that books are valuable tools of knowledge that can help you gain a deeper understanding of love, peace, optimism, miracles, and the present moment.

The post 5 Books on Spirituality You Should Read appeared first on JClay.

Living in today’s world, death seems inescapable. Many have even accepted it for themselves and look forward to approaching that day at a future time.

However, many have not accepted it for their loved ones. When a death occurs, it can feel like nothing makes sense and that the world is unfair.

If you are a follower of this blog or my music, you know that I don’t believe in death in the way that many others do.

The intent of this article is not to change your beliefs regarding death. That’s what There Is No Death, No Pain, and No Evil is for.

This article is to show how you can be alright at this moment when the thoughts of loss seem too great.

There may be some things in this article that seem to strike a nerve, but continue to read it in its entirety. This will help you.

Let’s get into the 5 ways to easily get over the death of a loved one.

1. It’s All About You

This is going to come as a shocker, but know that I am saying this with love.

When someone dies, it’s not about you.

That person supposedly lost their life, but you didn’t lose anything.

So if you’re going to feel sad, don’t feel sad for yourself. You’re still here and get to live it up.

Instead, feel sad that they won’t get to live it up, which has nothing to do with you. And then, remember that you don’t need to feel sad at all.

I’m not suggesting that you hold back your feelings. Let them out in a huge cry if you need to.

But then celebrate and honor your memory of them by feeling good that you crossed paths and that the best parts of them are with you always.

2. A Loved One’s Purpose

There is a belief that people exist in this world only for your will. I know, it’s a hidden belief.

You lay claim to these people through your words, i.e. your friends, your family, your this, your that, etc.

Within this belief, you think you know what’s best for them all. You know their highest capabilities and even their incapabilities.

Additionally, you know that whenever you call them, it’s best for them to fulfill your request. That request could be to entertain you, make you feel better, be good company, whatever.

But do you really know this? Do you even know that you think you know this?

Everything and everyone that exists has a purpose or else they would not be here.

In terms of items, when you no longer have a purpose for one, you either throw it away or give it away to be repurposed.

Many of us still don’t even know our own purpose, let alone the purpose of another.

How To Discover Your Purpose

What does this mean?

When you perceive a person’s death, you don’t know if their purpose was fulfilled or not.

You also don’t know if the circumstances surrounding their death were a manifestation of their commonly repeated thoughts.

The person may have gotten exactly what he or she wanted out of life and was ready to transition to something else.

Again, you don’t know.

There’s no sense in being mad or sad over something that you don’t know.

Furthermore, for those that believe in God, as I do. Do you really believe that God’s Will could not be done? Trust It. Trust Him.

He knows what’s best for you and He wants to give it to you. But it’s hard to receive something when you’re denying it.

3. Closing Off Yourself From New Experiences

When you’re a kid, everything is exciting because it’s all-new.

Everything is also exciting because it stays new.

No moment is like the previous one nor do you try to make it that way.

But as you get older, you try to recreate past moments that you felt were great. You deny this moment in favor of one that already happened.

You no longer trust that exciting experiences will be brought to you so you invest in what could never be, the past.

When you live in the past, you try to hold on to everything and everyone exactly as they were in that moment.

Yet you know as well as anyone that people’s thoughts, feelings, and bodies change every second of the day.

This means that by holding on, you are essentially setting yourself up to remain disappointed at all times.

It’s almost like your thoughts of choice are, “I want what I could never again have because I know everything about the world including that everything else would suck in comparison.”

If your thoughts, feelings, and body is changing all the time, that means that what you would enjoy changes all the time as well. God and the universe are always wanting to give to you that which you would enjoy.

But by holding onto one tiny moment that happened infinity moments ago, you are choosing littleness instead of abundance.

In doing this, the only thing that can make you happy is that which could never be.

Let go of the past so that you can experience all that the present has to offer in its glory.

This is not to say to forget about your loved one. This is to say to live now for you both.

4. Communicating with Your Loved One

The loved one is still with you now. Who you are is a combination of yourself and their influences over you. So literally, you are no longer just yourself.

In addition to that, you can actually communicate with your loved ones now as if they are here because, in reality, they are.

Here’s how.

Sit in a comfortable position. Relax completely being fully grounded in the present. Feel your toes touch the floor or your shoes. Let go of any past thoughts or experiences. Make only this moment your focus.

Close your eyes and think of the love shared between you and your loved one. Now say what you would say to them either out loud or to yourself.

Listen to what you receive back from them. It may not be heard with the body’s ears, but it’s definitely felt.

You can do this any time of any day for any length of time. So have at it. Enjoy a full dialogue.

A quote from one of my favorite books A Course In Miracles (ACIM) perfectly sums up why you are able to do this.

“Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God.“

And in case you want a bible quote, check out Luke 20:38.

“He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to Him all are alive.“

5. Holding Onto Form Weakens You

As I mentioned above, you are choosing littleness instead of abundance.

You already accept that your thoughts, beliefs, and body are endlessly changing. And throughout all of these changes, you’ve still always been you.

So what version of your loved one are you trying to hold? And why would you want them to be stuck in a changeless form for your benefit?

There are so many people in your physical awareness right now that would love for you to enjoy them.

But it’s impossible to experience both loss and abundance. Each denies the other and so only one can be true.

If loss was real, then you would be happy to receive it. However, since abundance is real, even the illusion of loss can be.

To believe that your loved ones are only a body is to believe that you are an insignificant speck incapable of anything real.

This is not true. You are the light of the world. Your rays extend beyond any and everything ever-flowing for eternity.

In Conclusion

In conclusion, your loved ones didn’t die. Only your perception of who they were, died.

Let go of this perception so that you can LIVE with them always.

Enjoy this beautiful selection from, IAMNOBODY, IAMSOMEONE.

The post Easy Ways To Cope With The Death of A Loved One appeared first on JClay.

Happiness. We all want it. We all love to be it. Most importantly, we never want to be without it.

Happy people are just fun to be around unless of course, you don’t feel happy.

Happiness doesn’t mean you have to skip up and down the street singling la la la. But it does mean that you are truly content with life at this moment.

A while back I wrote How To Be Happy All The Time. That article is a very detailed look at what’s blocking your happiness and how to change it.

This checklist is a simplified version. When you’re able to complete this checklist, you’ll know that you are living the best possible life you can.

Living the best possible life does not mean you won’t have goals and new experiences you want to try. It means that whether you meet those goals or not, you’re still happy. It also means that there will be nothing stopping you from pursuing more joy.

You will be free.

I just have one question for you.

Would you complete this checklist if you knew it would lead you to ultimate happiness?

The Simple Checklist for a Happy Life

• I’ve organized my life so that my mornings are happy
• I’ve organized my life so that my afternoons are happy
• I’ve organized my life so that my evenings are happy
• I’ve organized my life so that when I sleep, I sleep well

Happiness Checklist Explained

Just so there’s no mistaking, mornings are from when you wake until noon. Afternoons are from noon until about 5 pm. Evenings are from 5 pm until bedtime. And of course, your sleep time is when you’re sleeping.

This is pretty simple, right?

Yet there are many things at play.

Your morning may be affected by how well you sleep. And your sleep may be affected by your nights.

Each part of your day seems to affect another.

By focusing on one part at a time, you can see the inconsistencies. You’ll see the patterns within your relationships, health, work, and even leisure.

You may even discover that your nights, sleep, and mornings are perfect, but your afternoons aren’t so happy.

In this case, taking action toward improving your afternoons may lead to your mornings declining in happiness.

But that’s what’s great about this. You will start to create holistic solutions so that every part of your life is filled with happiness and not just some.

How To Use This Checklist

1. 1. Write out your checklist (or use this printable Happiness Checklist)
   2. Purposefully reflect on yesterday
   3. Mark a check next to each section that you experienced total happiness
   4. Count the number of checkmarks to get your Happiness Score for yesterday

Happiness Score of 4 – I’m Happy!

If your score is 4, congratulations, you live a happy life or at least lived one yesterday.

Just in case yesterday did not represent your normal routine, repeat the checklist for a day that does. Then compare the results.

If your score is still a 4, then keep on being happy!

Happiness Score of 3 – I’m Pretty Happy

Congratulations! You may have a few things to reorder in your life, but this is still a great place to be.

Work toward being happy in that remaining area and take care to not take any away from the others.

It’s ok to take baby steps.

Happiness Score of 2 – I Want A Happier Life

Half of your days are happy and if you count weekends, you’re over 50%, which is a good start.

However, it’s time to take inventory, but don’t focus on all parts of your day at once.

Start with one and list out what you think prevented you from being happy.

Work toward being happy in that area. This might involve learning some new skills or even unlearning old behaviors.

No matter where this journey takes you, let it take you happily.

Once you reach a score of 3, follow the instructions above.

Happiness Score of 1 – I Need To Make Some Changes

A score of 1 seems bad, but it’s really a good thing because now you know. And since you know, you can do something about it.

Start by asking yourself, “Do I really want to continue living life like this? Is it worth it? How will I know if it’s worth it? How long have my days been like this?”

If you don’t like the answer to any of these questions, good. You are more aware of your needs than you ever have been.

Start small. Don’t make any big changes yet like quit your job and leave your spouse.

Choose the easiest timeframe to improve. Really go at it.

It won’t take long to improve at all.

Once you get your Happiness Score to 2, following the instructions above for that score.

Happiness Score of 0 – I Need To Make Some Immediate Changes

The good news is, your score is only going to go up from here.

Changes do need to be made. Know that you deserve happiness in your life.

Say this right now, “I’m open to the idea that I deserve more happiness in my life.”

Say it once more. “I’m open to the idea that I deserve more happiness in my life.”

Awesome! The remnants of that phrase are now echoing throughout the universe gathering allies to help you realize this.

I’m one of them. Message me here with the subject “I Got A Happiness Score of 0”. In the body of the message, let me know anything you think I need to know in order to help you.

I’ll respond shortly with some assistance.

Stay Happy

Life is meant to be lived happily. Even if your idea of happiness is not the norm, you still deserve to be happy.

Live what that is for you.

The post Happiness Checklist: Get Your Happiness Score appeared first on JClay.

Questions are just thoughts and thoughts have the power to create or destroy.

That which you think about the most, you experience. Correspondingly, that which you question the most, you also experience.

A simple example would be the question, how can I make $100/day consistently?

This takes just as much effort to question, how can I make $100/day consistently with little effort?

Although the effort is the same in asking either, the answers that the questions yield can seem quite different.

Yet, the answer always lies in the question because the question sets the blueprint for the type of answer you want to receive.

This is why it’s so important to ask yourself the questions that you really want answers to.

I’ve included some questions below that I know will help you achieve and maintain peace and happiness no matter the perceived outside circumstance.

But don’t limit yourself to just these questions. Make your own and share them below in the comments so that we all may benefit.

The Most Enlightened Questions You Can Ask Yourself

Depending on your situation, some questions may resonate more than others.

1. Am I choosing happiness right now?
2. What’s the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary? (from the book The ONE Thing)
3. What am I grateful for?
4. Am I my body, my mind, or something else?
5. What am I holding onto that is more trouble than it’s worth?
6. Is there another way to look at this seemingly troubling situation?
7. Why does feeling happy feel so good?
8. What do I hope to gain by staying mad at a person?
9. Does the answer I’m seeking matter?
10. What is my next question going to be? (I was reminded of this question by Reiki Master
    Charlotte Jackson. Asking yourself this question and searching for the answer is meditating.)

The post Positive Questions To Ask Yourself Daily appeared first on JClay.

Forgiveness is one of those things we hear about all the time that sounds good in theory, but when it happens to us … “I ain’t gone forgive them! They need to pay!”

Why do we give up on our principles so quickly?

Perhaps we never truly believed in forgiveness, to begin with. Or maybe we never understood it but acted as if we did so that we can seem good and noble.

Whatever the case, I’m going to break it down for you here.

By the end of this, you’ll know whether you should join the forgiveness bandwagon or shrug it off forever.

You’ll also understand how forgiveness can give you everything you ever wanted.

And best of all, you’ll be able to explain it to others with ease.

If you stop reading right here then you are stupid!

No, you aren’t. I just wanted to see if you would forgive me and continuing reading.

Besides, you are as smart as the smartest person in the world whether you realize it or not.

What Is Forgiveness?

Forgiveness is the act of one of the following:

• no longer feeling angry or resentful toward a person for an offense, flaw, or mistake
• canceling a debt

Canceling of a debt

Let’s start with the canceling of a debt owed since it’s simpler to explain.

To perceive that a debt is owed is to also be in debt. This is similar to that of a jailer.

To put one in jail, one must also be confined to that jail in order to watch over the other that is imprisoned. This notion explains why besides the prisoners, prison guards spend the most time at a jail.

When you hold a debt over another, it is held over your head as well. Any time you think of the one that owes you, you are reminded of this debt.

Until the debt is taken care of, it is perceived as a loss or else it would not matter. This loss could be one of money, pride, principle, or any number of self-imprisonments.

Thus whenever you perceive that you are at a loss, you act accordingly. You act as one that loses.

To put it another way, you behave like a loser.

A loser sees the world as a place that takes advantage of him or her. He or she makes loser decisions and speaks loser phrases to anyone that would listen.

Yet this loser is not a loser at all. This person is simply living out the beliefs he or she has set forth in his or her illusion (ill-lose-shun).

So if holding another in your debt puts you in a debt that you weren’t in before, does the canceling of this debt really do anything at all?

No, it simply brings you back to your natural state. This is the state you would have been in had you not declared that someone owes you something.

This is how forgiveness works. It restores what was never broken at all.

Are you with me?

Read this section again if you need to and then proceed.

… for an offense, flaw, or mistake

To fully explain forgiveness in this context, let’s start with what would make you angry.

In the above definition, it says an offense, flaw, or mistake. This can also be called imperfections.

To know what imperfection is, you would have to know what perfection is.

Quick exercise: Close your eyes and for one minute, picture exactly what perfection is.

…

Based on what you saw, try to answer the following to yourself about perfection.

What exactly is perfection?

Is it a certain look? Is perfection a way of speaking? Could it be a certain way a person acts?

If what one person calls a flaw, another calls beauty, and vice versa, can anything really be perfect or imperfect?

Since your meaning of perfect can change tomorrow, is what you’ve seen actually perfection or just your idea of perfection today?

If it’s not so easy to identify perfection, why do you believe it’s easy to witness imperfection? Wouldn’t it be, at best, a guess?

…

Yes, these are a lot of questions. Hopefully, you are answering them and seeing just how flawed your idea of perfection can be.

And if perfection is flawed, should it still be called perfection?

Don’t worry, I’m getting to my point in this.

Without truly knowing the outcome of certain actions, it is impossible to know whether something is an offense, flaw, or mistake at all.

It could all be imagined.

Even the word mistake implies a false view. You mistook what happened.

No longer feeling angry or resentful toward a person …

Now that we’ve addressed what can make you angry, which in a way is nothing at all, let’s talk about you feeling angry or resentful toward another.

When you feel angry or resentful toward another, you are the one that is feeling it.

This is obvious.

But if you have full authority and control over your feelings, why ever feel angry at all. The only logical explanation is that you enjoy it.

Furthermore, if you don’t know that what is happening is actually “bad”, then what’s the real purpose of your anger or resentment?

This again brings us to forgiveness. Forgiveness is only about you, not the one you have yet to forgive.

What Forgiveness Is and Isn’t

Forgiveness does not say that you are a bigger person than the one you are forgiving? It does not say that you have authority over another to absolve them of their actions.

Forgiveness simply brings you back into the awareness of reality instead of what never was.

It is giving up these feelings of anger and/or resentment so that you can be restored to your natural state of peace.

So what forgiveness is saying through you is, “I give up these unwanted feelings caused by what I have no idea about.”

If you are giving up unwanted feelings, you are giving up nothing. Nothing wanted is sacrificed.

What you receive in return is the awareness of what you’ve always been…love, abundance, joy, peace, etc.

Technically, forgiveness doesn’t do anything because it undoes what never was. What never was never needed forgiveness.

An Even Deeper Look at Forgiveness

I know right now many are reading this and saying, “Ok JClay. I get it, but these people really hurt me and did unspeakable things that should never be forgiven.”

There are few things at play when you think similar to this.

First, at this moment you would rather re-live this supposed wrongdoing instead of being happy.

Even though there is never a reason needed to be happy, you could still be happy that this situation is not occurring right now.

You are presently in a safe space. At least it’s safe enough where you can read this article.

Secondly, you are acknowledging that others have control over you and your wellbeing.

This can never be true because the mind controls the body and you control your mind.

By not giving away control of your mind to outside forces, your body is under your complete control always.

I’ll use this example to better illustrate it.

That which you chase will often run away.

Every relationship is a partnership whether it’s a romantic one, friendship, or one of an oppressor & oppressed.

In this example, this is an agreement between the chaser and the one being chased.

Right now if you were at a store and saw a couple of people running toward you at full speed, chances are you would run.

You would have fully accepted your role as one being chased.

However, if in that same situation you instead start running toward those people at full speed, there would be hesitation on their part. They would reassess the terms of the relationship and choose instead to be the ones being chased.

Most likely the original chasers would think, “This person is crazy and must know something that we don’t. Let’s get out of here.”

Similarly, in cases where someone has “wronged” you, you have given him or her full permission to do so.

And since the authority of what happens to you rests solely on you, then you can never truly be mad at another. You can only be mad at yourself.

To be mad is to be crazy. To be crazy at another is to still be crazy.

Don’t be crazy. Forgive them for what they did not and cannot do.

The Mind/Body Relationship Revisited

It’s been understood that the mind controls the body, but what isn’t fully understood is how much.

Your height, muscle mass, “illnesses”, facial expressions, weight consumption, etc are all in your control.

By your control, I don’t mean physically. This is totally relating to the mind.

Your body bends to your intentions of how you want to use your body.

For example, basketball players are usually the tallest in their families despite genetics because they have a habit of reaching for a higher height (the basketball goal).

Likewise, gymnasts are usually the shortest in their families despite genetics because the tighter and stronger their core, the better they can whip their body around.

It doesn’t end there. Your body loses about its weight in normal cell reproduction every year^[1], which means physically you have a brand new body every year.

But what blueprint does cell regeneration follow? If you didn’t have these same attributes or illnesses as a child, why are they regenerated now?

It’s because you have created a purpose for this and your body embodies this purpose.

So if your body isn’t real in the sense that it can be regenerated to your likeness at any time, why ever be concerned with what happens to the body?

Cause and Effect

The body is an effect where the mind is the cause. Effects always follow their cause.

Bodies can seem to attack, but minds can never attack.

So when you feel you are wronged, it’s in relation to how you view yourself as a body.

To state it another way. It’s like you’re playing a video game.

When your video game character is hurt by another video game character, you think it means the end of you.

It may only mean the end of your character, but never you.

You can create infinite characters with infinite attributes at will by your beliefs and intentions.

The source of your pain is never rooted in reality because pain does not really exist.

Forgiveness is just the acknowledgment of reality. It’s saying that you forgive another for what they could not do.

How easy is that?

How Forgiveness Heals

Pain is just a manifestation of guilt.

I won’t go into the many causes of the guilt illusion, but this song will help you become and stay guilt-free.

People project guilt onto others so that they won’t have to blame themselves. It’s part of that relationship agreement we spoke about earlier between you and the “guilty” party.

It makes sense because would you rather spend all day being mad at yourself or at another?

Right, at another.

The problem is that what you give, you also receive. So instead of being free of this guilt, you multiply it because you witness the guilt every time you see those you projected it onto.

When you forgive others, this guilt is no longer seen on the faces of those you projected it onto.

Since you don’t witness it, you enjoy the guilt-free world you live in. You also think of and treat others, whom you’ve forgiven, with respect.

And if these individuals don’t already treat themselves with respect, your respect is enough for them to start respecting themselves.

They can now begin forgiving themselves and others so that this healing process can continue with all of mankind.

This is all because of your forgiveness.

In Conclusion

I didn’t want this article to be too long, but I wanted to address as much as possible related to forgiveness.

Message me directly on IG @jclay1st with any personal questions related to forgiveness. Also, pre-order IAMNOBODY, IAMSOMEONE. This album will help you forgive and be healed with very little effort.

The post It’s Not Hard To Forgive, It’s Hard To Keep Lying To Yourself About It appeared first on JClay.

Everyone wants general wellness and it’s no secret that a daily meditation routine will help.

But with everything going on, who has time to meditate?

Luckily, some of these meditations only take 1 minute to do.

You don’t have to be a pro to begin meditating and receiving its many benefits.

Below are some of the ways you can start to meditate now.

Just choose at least one and go with it.

1. Guided Meditation

Time: 3 minutes to 3 hours

Meditation is all about relaxing and letting go of any perceived stress.

Sometimes you don’t want to think about how not to think.

This is where guided meditation comes into play.

Guided meditation is a meditation ranging from a few minutes to several hours where another instructs your mind where to go.

This individual also tells you how to sit and what to focus on so that you don’t have to think about anything at all.

It’s usually led by a yoga instructor, a religious guide, or a cool YouTuber.

Resources:

• 40-Minute Guided Meditation
• 10-Minute Guided Meditation
• 3-Minute Guided Meditation
• Guided Rap Meditation

2. Mantra

Time: 3-30 minutes

Mantra meditation is when you repeat a word, sound, or phrase to help release your mind.

That’s it. You just sit comfortably and repeat the mantra either out loud or to yourself.

Helpful Mantras:

• “I am not a body. I am free. For I am still as God created me.“
• “I am not the body, I am not the mind.“
• “Om“

3. Breathing Meditation

Time: 1 minute to 30 minutes (3 to 100 deep breaths)

Breathing meditation is when you focus only on your breath.

A breath is a complete inhale and exhale. The slower and deeper you breathe, the more relaxed you will feel.

You can do these anywhere and at any time (ie in the car, standing in a long line, holding a crying baby, etc).

Whenever you are most relaxed, you breathe slowly. So by practicing breathing slowly, you will be most relaxed.

For extra credit, try to get to 100 complete breaths where you only focus on breathing. If your mind wanders at all during the count, you must restart your count.

Noted Benefits:

• Ability to handle extreme weather
• Multi-orgasmic
• Anxiety free

4. Clear your mind

Time: 1 minute to 30 minutes

Although all meditation is geared toward helping clear the mind, this meditation is focused only on that.

To achieve this, you sit comfortably with your eyes closed, and you clear your mind.

When a thought arises, let it go.

In the beginning, you may find yourself dwelling on these thoughts for a while before letting them go. It will get easier with practice.

Great places to clear your mind:

• In a warm or hot bath
• Sitting on the toilet
• In a dark closet

5. Solo Activity Outside

Time: 5 minutes to 3 hours

There’s something about being in nature alone that gets your mind working on a higher level.

Yes, thoughts will come. The difference is that these thoughts will be clear and helpful.

When you are both alone and not listening to anything through headphones, you let go and become one with your nature.

You notice what you hadn’t before and can even experience a state of bliss.

Activities that may spark higher level relaxed thought:

• Riding a bike
• Eating fruit
• Running
• Walking
• Fishing
• Sitting

6. Music

Time: 3 minutes to 2 hours

Music meditation can take many forms.

Alone, music can help lift your spirits and slow down your breathing.

When combined with meditation, it can multiply the benefits. This all depends on the type of music and the frequency at which you listen.

Many prefer to use slow, melodic music that you could fall asleep to.

This keeps you calm and acts as a prompt for you to relax.

Since access to music is not always available when you want to meditate, try not to rely heavily on it.

Unbeknownst to many, music with words can act as a guided meditation.

So if the music you listen to reinforces the thoughts of distrust, loneliness, and even depression that led you to seek relaxation through it, then you could be canceling out its effects.

Resources:

• Healing Rap Music
• 741 hz Music
• Slow Music

7. Silence

Time: 1 minute to 2 hours

Silence meditation is just what it sounds like. You sit in silence.

You can focus on your breath if you want, but it isn’t a requirement.

When you meditate in silence, you sit and let whatever happens, happen.

You may find yourself dwelling on a thought or asking yourself a question. It doesn’t matter.

What is important is that you allow yourself to sit quietly with your eyes closed in silence.

Resources:

• Shh

8. Body scan

Time: 2 minutes to 1 hour

Body scan meditation is where you make yourself fully aware of your body.

You do this by closing your eyes and bringing your awareness to either your feet or your head. Then you trace through every part of your body filling it with love and healing energies.

Many guided meditations will often start with a body scan. It can lead to you relaxing muscles you didn’t even know needed relaxing.

Resources:

• 30-minute guided body scan
• 8-minute guided body scan
• 2-minute guided body scan

9. Visualization

Time: 1-10 minutes

Visualization is all about focus. It’s an extreme focus on a feeling or goal that you want.

Visualizing your goal allows you to practice having it.

Success will no longer be a scary thing because you would have practiced it multiple times in your mind.

You can use visualization to practice being happy, to see yourself fully healed, or even living in a new place.

You’re only limited by your imagination.

Resources:

• Your imagination

10. Giving love

Time: 1-10 minutes

A giving love meditation is very similar to Visualization and even body scan.

This is where you sit quiet and visualize yourself or another, and send huge amounts of love toward him or her.

The best results come from sending love to someone you feel is toxic or an enemy. So much healing comes from this exercise.

You can also use this technique to send love to your job if you don’t love it yet.

Resources:

• Love

11. Reflection meditation

Time: 3-30 minutes

Reflection meditation is great for entrepreneurs. It’s also great for those seeking true answers.

The idea is that you sit quietly with your eyes closed. Then you ask yourself a question. Next, you simply wait for an answer.

However, don’t force or demand an answer. Let it come naturally.

This practice can take your mind to many places. You may even want to keep a notepad handy for all of the ideas that might come to mind.

Starting questions to ask:

• What’s the one thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?
• Am I my body, my mind, or something else?
• What am I grateful for?

12. Yoga

Time: 10 minutes to 2 hours

If done mindfully, yoga combines exercise with meditation. Yoga can sync your mind, body, and spirit together for a single purpose.

If you’ve never done yoga before, seek help from a professional.

There are many great yoga teachers in your town and on YouTube.

Resources:

• 25-minute yoga
• 20-minute yoga
• 10-minute yoga

THINGS TO REMEMBER

You don’t have to be perfect with any of these. Giving your mind a break for even a minute works wonders for your mental and general health.

Many of these meditations can be used together or in a sequence.

Experiment and see what you like.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

• IAMNOBODY, IAMSOMEONE – rap album
• ACIM Book – workbook

The post 12 Ways to Meditate (Most of These are Easy) appeared first on JClay.

Parables are stories that are used to illustrate spiritual lessons and truth.

Jesus was reported as using parables when he taught of God.

This particular parable that I will be presenting to you is my second one ever. The first is on the song “I Can’t Do This Without You” featured on my album IAMNOBODY, IAMSOMEONE.

The painting in the cover photo is courtesy of Kris D. of Kris D. Photography.

Without further ado, the parable of the painting.

The Painting

A painter paints a painting for a purpose.

The painting becomes conscious and starts to judge the world and thus itself.

The painting perceives negativity, wrongness, and hate.

But how could the painting know all of this? It is not the painting’s purpose to judge.

So the painting becomes miserable & unhappy. Everywhere the painting seems to look, it perceives more danger.

Yet the entire time, the painter is marveling at the painting’s beauty. The painter hangs the painting high for the world to see. The painter makes sure the painting is protected and always clean.

The painting feels guilty because it thinks it is unworthy of the painter’s praise. It tries to hide itself. It creates a world that only it sees filled with negative paintings and colors.

The painting no longer hears or sees the painter, but knows deep down that the painter is there.

Finally, the painting has enough and commits suicide. But how? The painting cannot die as that is not the painting’s purpose.

With wiped memories, the painting repeats the cycle of judgment and death over and over again until finally, it has a revelation.

The painting realizes it can only be beautiful because that is what it is made for.

The painting forgives the judgments it made about the world and realizes that the painting itself is the world. The painting began to extend its painter’s love to all and saw the world of a new color.

The painting began teaching this to other paintings and pretty soon they all noticed how masterful their gallery was. They even could interact with the painter again to influence the painter to make more.

The end.

Explanation of the parable

In The Painting parable, the painter is God. You are the painting.

In reality, you cannot do anything outside of your purpose, but in your own mind, you try.

You also cannot be harmed, but again in your own mind, you try.

In this trying, you manifest your own world in which you act out these things. You make characters to play your enemies, even among those you love.

You continue this cycle because you love what you have made just as God loves what He created, you.

Although what you have made seems to always be a slave to time, you continue to try to make what is temporary permanent.

This is a fool’s errand because what is temporary can never be permanent and what is permanent can never be temporary.

Until you realize what you have made can never last, you will be consumed by it.

By practicing forgiveness and forgetfulness of what you have made, you can be in full remembrance of both God and Yourself.

And with the knowledge of God, what is there that you could ever be without?

Nothing.

What is nothing is not real.

You are something. You are real. You are a perfect creation made by a Perfect Creator.

The Parable in Song Form

The post The Painting: A Modern-Day Parable appeared first on JClay.

Raise your vibration and keep it high. Well, why?

Your mind is like a tuning station. When you focus on a particular thought, all thoughts of a similar frequency will come into your awareness.

Thoughts of joy and peace are of a high frequency or vibration. Thoughts of pain are of a lower one.

The higher your vibration, the lighter you feel mentally, physically, and emotionally. You are above all perceived problems because they are no longer pulling you down. You’ve let them go.

This article is straight from the gurus / master teachers that help us to remain “high”.

1. “If you wish to find Love, don’t look for the object of love but rather for the source of love. There you will find the Beloved.” —Mooji

Yeah, Mooji! I could end this article right here. Love is the one thing everyone loves. It’s kind. Love is beautiful. It’s what you are.

People have a habit of looking for love every except where it always is, within. Love is never without because you are never without love. What is out is just a reflection of what is in.

Seek the real thing, never the reflection.

Find out more about Mooji at https://mooji.org/.

2. “Do not try to fix whatever comes in your life. Fix yourself in such a way that whatever comes, you will be fine.” —Sadhguru

Sadhguru just gave the key to happiness.

You are an abundant being in an abundant universe. If there are such things as problems, then you know that there will be an abundant amount.

Do you really want to fix an abundant list of problems? That just sounds exhausting.

Instead, you can fix this one problem of thinking that you have to fix problems.

Start to love all and accept all as it is. You will begin to ascend above all. You will be free to experience life how you intended.

Find out more about Sadhguru at https://isha.sadhguru.org/.

3. “I am not my thoughts, emotions, sense perceptions, and experiences. I am not the content of my life. I am Life. I am the space in which all things happen. I am consciousness. I am the Now. I Am.” —Eckhart Tolle

Eckhart Tolle just gave the ultimate affirmation and explained life in simple terms.

Thoughts and emotions come and go, but through it all, you remain. This means you are not these things. You exist beyond them.

To belittle yourself into believing you are your thoughts and emotions is to lower your vibration. You also lower your vibration by holding others to their thoughts and emotions as well.

You are Life. You get to experience one thing at this moment and then experience a completely different thing in another. None of it truly matters.

Never let matter keep you limited. Life knows no limits. Be Life.

Find out more about Eckhart Tolle at https://eckharttolle.com/.

4. “The people who trigger us to feel negative emotion are messengers. They are messengers for the unhealed parts of our being.” —Teal Swan

Teal Swan just exposed the role everyone plays toward each other.

You are all saviors. You get to show your fellow human his or her beliefs that they are holding onto.

When someone seems to anger you, you’re never angry at them. You are just angry at the thought you held about what they had to say.

You are not that thought and neither are they. That person is not your enemy. They have just shown you a miracle if you would but accept it.

By seeing what seems to be angering you in its true form, you can let it dissipate into the nothingness that it is.

Never be angry when others show you what needs to be healed. In it lies the key to keeping your vibration high.

Find out more about Teal Swan at https://tealswan.com/.

5. “If you pay attention to the patterns of your life you’ll realize everything always works out. Everything always takes you to a greater destination. You always grow and the things you think you can’t survive you somehow divinely make it through. That’s life. Always remember that.” —Idil Ahmed

Idil Ahmed speaks the truth.

If you must leave this moment and re-visit the past, really look at all of it. Nothing that happened to you was every permanent. Ever.

All things change, except for one. You always remained no matter the circumstances. You will always remain.

Hold this truth to heart. Know that no matter what, all will work out.

Find out more about Idil Ahmed at https://idillionaire.com/.

6. “Need nothing and then see what happens.” —Gangaji

Gangaji just gave a practical action to raising your vibration, need nothing.

“Well, how do I make myself need nothing when I need everything?”

Stop needing it.

“What?”

If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve tried to change your behavior before. This could be eating or not eating certain foods, spending less money, sticking to a workout regimen, or hanging out with different people.

What always happens as soon as you decide to change a behavior? You get enticed by many for your old behavior.

Try to stop eating candy, everyone is offering you free candy. Choose to save money, your favorite stores release deals on products you’ve always wanted. Start working out, your body says no and produces aches & pains.

You get the point. Decide to stop needing anything and watch how you’ll not only have access to it, but you’ll have access to everything.

Find out more about Gangaji at https://gangaji.org/.

7. “What we don’t recognize is that holding onto resentment is like holding onto your breath. You’ll soon start to suffocate.” —Deepak Chopra

Deepak Chopra gave a beautiful analogy.

Who wants to sit with their breath held all day? All things are give-and-take, even breathing. You must give of yourself to receive from others.

By holding onto anything, especially resentment, you are cutting yourself off from life.

Let go. Yes, let go.

Find out more about Deepak Chopra at https://www.deepakchopra.com/.

8. “Love is never absent – the only choice is whether to be aware of It or not.” —David Hoffmeister

David Hoffmeister is the man for this one.

It is impossible to be aware of both love and fear at the same time. The presence of one negates the other.

Where love is, fear can never be. Where fear is, love can never be. This goes with all the wonderful things synonymous with love (joy, hope, peace, abundance, gratitude, life, etc) and with fear (despair, hopelessness, scarcity, death, etc).

Hold love in your awareness always. Share it with others. Extend God’s Love as it was extended to you.

Not only will you be aware of Love’s presence, but It will also be present everywhere you look.

Find out more about David Hoffmeister at https://davidhoffmeister.com/.

9. “Love yourself and your expression, you can’t go wrong.” —KRS-One

KRS-One continues to share wisdom.

When you love yourself, nothing else matters. Despite the perceived circumstance, you are love.

You could be in the most boring of places and it would not bother you because you know what you are and you get to express it.

Everyone loves love. It’s the one thing that all things share. So it is always welcomed.

Love that about yourself and love yourself.

Find out more about KRS-One at https://www.krs-one.com/.

10. “Don’t dwell on your weaknesses, everybody else is already doing that for you.” —Gary Vaynerchuk

Gary Vee cares not for the weak; he cares for you.

You are strong. It is only your attention to the weak that makes you believe that you are part of what you consider to be weak.

You have at least one strength. It’s love. You can use that strength to birth many more.

Focus on your strengths and watch them expand. Watch it influence everything around you to become just as strong, which influences you to remain strong.

Find out more about Gary Vaynerchuk at https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/.

11. “Remind yourself that you cannot fail at being yourself.” —Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

Dr. Wayne W. Dyer just cured me with this quote.

It’s tempting to look at life as a series of successes and failures, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.

What seems like failure is always part of success. You can’t learn how to walk unless you’re willing to fall. But even the act of trying to walk is a success in itself because you are just being you.

In other words, no matter what you do, you are successful. You are an expression of life. Every thought, every choice, every emotion is all a success. You are a success.

Find out more about Dr. Wayne W. Dyer at https://www.drwaynedyer.com/.

12. “Enlightenment is a destructive process. It has nothing to do with becoming better or being happier. Enlightenment is the crumbling away of untruth. It’s seeing through the facade of pretense. It’s the complete eradication of everything we imagined to be true.” —Adyashanti

Adyashanti just brought us to reality.

Enlightenment is the raising of your vibration. You become light. Nothing is holding you down. You have let go of the world that consumed you.

From the perspective of someone with a lower vibration, they don’t want to see their world end. They complain about all, but they love complaining. Conflict rules their lives, but it’s the safe space they’ve created for themselves.

When you bring things to the light of truth, you see that what you thought existed was never really there. It was an illusion made in the dark. You saw a shadow and gave it meaning. Yet in the presence of light, all things are seen as they truly are.

Are you ready for the truth? Truth is not to be feared, because truth is Love.

Love ends all conflict. It ends all hurt. Love ends all form because It exists beyond it where the beginning and end meet. It is the Alpha and Omega. God is Love.

Find out more about Adyashanti at https://www.adyashanti.org/.

It’s Your Turn

Think of the most helpful quote that you can. Bring it to the light of truth to make sure it is true. Now share with the world. Start with the comments below.

The post 12 Raise Your Vibration Quotes by Gurus & Masters appeared first on JClay.