Free Spirit: A Guide to Enlightened Being ~Sundance Burke

Free Spirit is speaking as freedom, which is our Consciousness, the sweet essence of our lives. The freedom spoken here is an inner knowing. We cannot realize this liberation by catering to our bodies, emotions or minds. No, this freedom is spiritual; an altitude of perception that only arises when we are lighter than our surroundings. We can realize this lightness of being if we are willing to abide as Awareness and let go of the ego, the one who suffers mind. For this enlightenment to happen, a quiet mind is all we need. Why do anything for this, when only our stillness will suffice. Be silent, be still, be free.

Within this book you will find answered and unanswered questions, humor, poetic prose, experimentation with consciousness and passages that illuminate the sense that we are more than our thoughts, emotions, senses, body, and energy. The entire venture is directed to our essence, that we might realize our Free Spirit.

Sundance demonstrates the light-hearted wisdom and spontaneous creativity that is the energy signature of liberated Consciousness. Every word in this book is sourced by the power of silent Truth. Without contradicting this source, the writing inspires our active participation in the realization of Spirit, as only our direct experience is of any value to awakening.

For those of us who desire to be free, Sundance takes us by the hand and walks with us through the entire landscape of the egoic mind, until we reach its outer boundary. Here, he invites us to take a leap of Self-faith into simply being awareness. Will we survive?

Sundance says: “Who you think you are will not survive and who you are is never threatened. However, only by the leap can this be realized. Truly, all you surrender is your suffering and Now is the time.”

Sundance Burke was born in Seattle, Washington under the given name, Donald Russell Burke III. He is a graduate of the University of Washington and the Gonzaga School of Law. While traveling for business in 1982, he experienced a profound spiritual awakening that fundamentally dissolved his concept of self. In 1988, he met his future wife, Katie Davis, who had similarly experienced the miracle of Self-liberation. They immediately recognized their meeting as sacred and committed their lives to deepening in Loving Presence. Now an inseparable Spirit, they adventured the awakening in private until 1999 and then began to share the Truth of Being from their home. Soon, they were traveling up and down the West Coast of North America to meet with others. In 2004, Sundance and Katie moved to Maui to marry and write the realization of Beloved Being. Side by side their books took form and expression. Currently, they are traveling throughout the world to share the realization of Free Spirit and Awake Joy.

Sundance Burke – Buddha at the Gas Pump Interview

SUNDANCE BURKE, Spiritual Teacher and Author, was born in Seattle, Washington under the given name, Donald Russell Burke III. He is a graduate of the University of Washington and the Gonzaga School of Law. Sundance is a former lawyer and businessman. He is the father of two children and the grandfather of three.

Sundance Burke is the author of Free Spirit: A Guide to Enlightened Being, published in 2008. He offers public talks, meditation gatherings, video recordings, private meetings, intensive workshops and retreats for those who long to awaken from the fearful dream of human separation and suffering.

While traveling for law business in 1982, Sundance was graced with the profound spiritual experience of being the loving witness to the mind’s dream of personal existence. This awareness of impersonal being completely shattered his former understanding of self-identity and the nature of his world. In the years that followed, he found himself undertaking an intense inward journey into the heart of this realization.

In 1988, he met his future wife and teaching partner, Katie Davis, who had similarly experienced the miracle of Self-liberation. Recognizing their meeting as sacred, Sundance and Katie committed their lives to deepening in loving presence. An inseparable spirit, they adventured the awakening in private until 1999 and then began to share the Truth of Being from their home. Soon, they were accepting invitations to travel throughout the United States, Canada and Europe.

In 2004, Sundance and Katie moved to Maui to marry and write the realization of Beloved Being. Sitting side by side, their books took form and expression. Currently, they are again residing in the Seattle area and they continue to point to our True Presence, as conscious freedom and causeless joy. Katie Davis is the author of Awake Joy: The Essence of Enlightenment. Interviews with Sundance and Katie about awakening are included in the recently published book, Conversations on Non-Duality; Twenty-six Awakenings.

Sundance says, “Your being is not a personal or temporary existence. You are the very consciousness manifesting this life. Thus, you naturally love and embrace every perceived experience without fear. Unborn…you are timelessly awake for all the comings and goings within your conscious presence. Just by the mere turning of your attention to its source and foundation, you can awaken unto the truth of who you really are.”

The AWAKE SPIRIT TEACHINGS of Sundance and Katie have helped many people throughout the world to find inner peace, wise love and greater fulfillment in their lives. At the core of this teaching is a spiritual awakening that transcends the ego-based state of consciousness into the harmony and unity of pure awareness, a field of infinite possibility and the sacred heart of all Being.

Interview recorded 5/5/2012.

Transforming the Nature of Health: A Holistic Vision of Healing That Honors Our Connection to the Earth, Others, and Ourselves by Marcey Shapiro,

A provocative blend of personal memoir, new science, and philosophical treatise, this book presents a fresh model for healing by rethinking our relationships with one another, the natural world, our bodies, and our innermost selves. Dr. Marcey Shapiro focuses on eliminating us/them or friend/enemy dichotomies, shifting instead to a model based on enduring values of love, compassion, harmony, and peace. Throughout the book she reevaluates prevailing cultural beliefs about the causes and meaning of illness and offers a vision for a different type of societal understanding of health with a new view of the possible role of medicine in healing.

Interweaving inspiring anecdotes from her experiences of the natural world, in medical training and practice, and with mystical exploration, Dr. Shapiro includes examples of medical advances that honor our interconnectedness and provides practical tools like breathing techniques, tips for self-examination, and methods for expanding awareness.

Transforming the Nature of Health traces the roots of the matter/spirit split in contemporary science and medicine, evaluating its constraints as a paradigm for us as evolving beings. Dr. Shapiro presumes that we are much more than our physical bodies and asks readers to join in co-creating a new language and new science that express the whole of our miraculous existence.

Transforming the Nature of Health.mov

Marcey Shapiro is interviewed by Sedge Thomson on West Coast Live on 4-14-2012 about her new book “Transforming the Nature of Health”.

The Secret of the Blood – Implications for Body, Mind and Spirit by Christopher Vasey

“THE BLOOD’S most important role is to form a connecting link between the body and the spirit. If the body is alive, it is not because of the blood but because of the spirit – the only true living element within the human being – which is connected to the body through the blood.”
Christopher Vasey

Since the beginning of time, human beings have been fascinated with the blood. At one time it was considered to be sacred in relation to our life and our spirit. Today, scientific research has relegated the role of the blood to being only physiological. What is the answer to this? What is the true role of the blood? Is it limited to simply irrigating the body?

In this book , many examples demonstrate that the role of the blood is not only to nourish the cells, but it also serves as a bridge or connecting element between the non-material spirit of man and his physical body. The quality of this connection is directly affected by the variations in the composition of the blood. We can easily understand that all material changes, such as food diets, taking medications or the fluctuations in hormonal secretions can induce particular states of being and likewise influence our psychic state.

The knowledge of this unrecognized role of the blood allows us to have a better understanding of ourselves and opens the door to new therapeutic horizons.

The Secret of the Blood

The role of the blood is not just to irrigate the tissues. It also forms a connecting link between the immaterial spirit of man and his physical body. This unrecognized role of the blood allows us to better understand ourselves and expands our therapeutic horizons.

What is the purpose of the blood?

It is generally accepted that the role of the blood is to irrigate the organic tissues so that the cells are constantly supplied with oxygen and nutrients. We also recognize the role it plays in evacuating toxins as well as transmitting hormonal messages from one cell to another. Furthermore, we know that the blood plays an important role in the organic defence system.

According to this information the blood is the body’s faithful servant that is used to carry out multiple functions. Hierarchically speaking, the body is held in first place and the blood, with its vital, but nevertheless subordinate role, is held in second place.

But is this true? Does the blood really play a subordinate role?

Upon examination of well know facts we will see that this is not the case.

During a 24-hour period of dialysis we can purify 300 to 400 grams of urea, whereas the single presence of 2 grams per litre of blood is considered very dangerous. Since our entire body only holds approximately seven litres of blood, where do the 300 to 400 grams of urea come from? Evidently it was not stored in the blood since the presence of a few grams is mortal, but it was held back in the body, more precisely in the organic tissues, and could only be returned to circulation through dialysis.

If the body is then sacrificed in this manner and must bear the price of intoxication by the urea in order to allow the blood to maintain a stable composition, does this not signify that the blood is more important than the body, and in this case, is the body not serving the blood?

Blood and deficiencies

The blood’s top position is equally evidenced in the opposite way, when the danger threatening the blood’s equilibrium is not an excess of harmful matter as was explained in the previous example, but is a lack of useful material. Normally the blood contains a certain amount of alkaline substances (calcium, sodium…) that it uses to neutralize acids that endanger its pH level, or in other words, its degree of acidity. When the influx of acid is too much and regular these alkaline minerals become depleted and another defence system takes over: alkaline minerals are taken from different tissues in the body. They are taken from the skeleton, the nails, the skin or the hair in order to re-establish the blood’s pH level.

When the pH unbalance is not resolved, the continual removal of alkaline minerals depletes the body of its mineral composition and transforms it into a real state of ruin: the bones decalcify and become porous; the teeth decay, crumble and fall out; the skin cracks, etc.

Here once again, the primordial importance of the blood is clearly observed by the veritable sacrifice of the body in favour of the blood. In order to maintain an ideal blood composition in alkaline minerals, the minerals are taken from the tissues and the organs even though these can be severely injured.

These two examples are neither exceptional nor unique. The same defence reactions take place where other wastes, besides urea, are concerned and with other nutritional substances other than alkaline minerals.

Contrary to popular belief, the blood is therefore not present to serve the body but rather the body is there to serve the blood.

The unrecognized role of the blood

The examples given earlier demonstrated what happens in extreme cases, when the organism in its entirety, body and blood, is threatened by danger. The priorities were clear; the body was sacrificed in order to save the blood. The blood, therefore, was more important. Yet a fundamental question begs to be asked: if the body is there to serve the blood, what is the blood there to serve? In fact, if the blood is more important than the body, the element that the blood serves must be more important still. But what is it?

The most important reason why the blood exists is to serve the spirit. The role of the blood is to form a connecting link between the body and the spirit. Without the blood the spirit could not incarnate nor stay incarnated in the physical body that serves as its instrument or tool. The spirit therefore is not connected to the body but to the blood and through it, the body. We can now understand why the body works so vigorously for the blood, that it is even willing to sacrifice itself for the blood. Without the blood there is no connecting bridge and therefore no physical life. If the body is alive it is not because of the blood but because of the spirit connected to the body through the blood.

New therapeutic horizons

The fact that the blood plays the role of bridge signifies that the spirit can be reached through its intermediary. Because food regimes or special diets react upon the composition of the blood, this can change the «spiritual» state of man and alter his state «of being». The many people today who suffer from undefined, yet persistent fears, depression and disturbances can therefore be treated without pharmaceutical remedies that act upon the nerves and the brain, but by returning the blood to its ideal composition. The treatment utilized is simple and natural. It involves giving the blood what it is missing through a food regime and taking vitamins and minerals adapted to each particular case, as well as by purifying the blood through short-term diets and draining techniques (with plants for example). In this way, not only will the body feel better, but also the spirit.

Christopher Vasey

“The Secret of the Blood” Part 1, Interview with Christopher Vasey

Part One of an interview with Naturopath and author Christopher Vasey on the unrecognized role of the blood.

“The Secret of the Blood” Part 2, Interview with Christopher Vasey

“The Secret of the Blood” Part 3, Interview with Christopher Vasey

“The Secret of the Blood” Part 4, Interview with Christopher Vasey

Christopher Vasey is a naturopath living in Chamby-Montreux, Switzerland.

He studied at a naturopathy school in Paris under the supervision of P.V. Marchesseau and Alain Rousseaux

In 1979 he started his own practice. Alongside his therapeutic work, he continued his formation by studying the works of famous naturopaths such as Dr Paul Carton, Shelton, Robert Masson, R. Jackson, Kneipp, etc.

From 1981 he organized his own introductory courses to naturopathy for the public and started teaching in various health-oriented associations (natural medicine therapists, the staff health shops,…).

From 1990 onwards, his many books on natural medicine books have been published by Editions Jouvence, Geneva, Switzerland. The following books are now available in English, published by Inner Traditions, Vermont, U.S.A.: “The Acid Alkaline Diet” (2003), “The Water Prescription” (2006), “The Mono Detox Cure” (2006), “The Whey Cure” (2006).

Some of Christopher Vasey’s books are also available in German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish.

Since 1994 he has also written books with a spiritual approach to health and nature. Available only in French (published by the Editions du Graal, Paris) the books discuss the mystery of the blood, laws of nature, and elemental beings.

Christopher Vasey gives talks in Switzerland, France, Belgium, Quebec, Germany, Austria and in the U.S.A. He takes part in Book Fairs and natural medicine exhibitions, as well as participating in radio programs. He writes for several nature- and health-oriented magazines and spiritual publications, one of them in English: “GrailsWorld”.

The Real Challenge of Our Times: The Need for a New Worldview By Anne Baring

Neither do men put new wine into old bottles; else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles and both are preserved. Matt. 9:17

To reclaim the sacred nature of the cosmos – and of planet Earth in particular – is one of the outstanding spiritual challenges of our time. Diarmuid O’Murchu, Quantum Theology

The threat of global warming, the urgent need to free ourselves from dependency on oil and the current financial crisis could be the triple catalyst that offers us the opportunity of bringing about a profound shift in our values, relinquishing an old story and defining a new one. Our lives and well-being depend upon the fertility and resources of the Earth, yet in relation to the Earth, it would seem that we have been autistic for centuries. Now, instead of treating our planetary home as the endless supplier of all our needs, without consideration for Her needs, we could rethink beliefs and attitudes which have influenced our behaviour for millennia.

Because of those beliefs we have come to look upon nature as something separate from ourselves, something we could master, control and manipulate to obtain specific benefits for our species alone because ours, we were taught, has been given dominion over all others and over the Earth itself. It has come as a bit of a shock to realise that our lives are intimately bound up with the fragile organism of planetary life and the inter-dependence of all species. If we destroy our habitat, whether inadvertently or deliberately by continuing on our present path, we may risk destroying ourselves. We have developed a formidable intellect, a formidable science, a formidable technology but all rest on the premise of our alienation from and mastery of nature, where nature was treated as object with ourselves as controlling subject.

Yet now, the foundation that seemed so secure is disintegrating: old structures and beliefs are breaking down. It is as if mortal danger is forcing us to take a great leap in our evolution that we might never have made were we not driven by the extremity of circumstance. Many people are defining a new kind of relationship with the Earth, based not on dominance but on respect, responsibility and conscious service. Because our capacity for destruction, both military and ecological, is so much greater today than it was even fifty years ago, and will be still greater tomorrow, we have only decades in which to change our thinking and respond to the challenge of this evolutionary leap.

There is a second problematic legacy from the past: the image of God shared by the three Abrahamic religions. This has presented God as a transcendent creator, separate and distinct from the created order and from ourselves. Western civilisation, despite its phenomenal achievements, developed on the foundation of this fundamental split between spirit and nature—between creator and creation. Only now are we brought face to face with the disastrous effects of this split.

Once again, as in the early centuries of the Christian era, it seems as if new bottles are needed to hold the wine of a new revelation, a new understanding of reality which could heal this split. But how do we create the vessel which can assimilate the wine of a new vision of reality and a different image of God or Spirit? How do we relinquish the dogmatic beliefs and certainties which have, over the millennia of the patriarchal era, caused indescribable and quite unnecessary suffering and the sacrifice of so many millions of lives?

I cannot answer these questions. But I do know that as the new understanding, the new wine comes into being, we have to hold the balance and the tension between the old and the new without destroying the old or rejecting the new. It must have been like this two thousand years ago when the disciples of Jesus tried to assimilate what he was telling them, something so utterly different from the belief-system and the brutal values which governed the world of their time. Even today, the revolutionary teachings and the different values he taught have barely touched the consciousness that governs the world of our time, however much political and religious leaders proclaim allegiance to them. What would Jesus have thought of WMD, depleted uranium and cluster bombs, and the massacre of helpless civilians in war, let alone the destruction of vast swathes of the Earth’s forests to supply crops for biofuels? What would he have thought of the fact that colossal sums of money are spent on the military when 17,000 children die every day from hunger and disease?.

The need for a more conscious relationship with both nature and spirit, bringing them closer together, is intrinsic to the creativity of the life-impulse itself—urging us to go beyond the boundaries of the known, to break through the concepts and beliefs, whether religious, scientific or economic, which currently govern our culture and constrict the expansion of our understanding and our compassion.

What is the emerging vision of our time which could offer a template for a new civilization? I believe it is a vision which takes us beyond an outdated paradigm or worldview where we are held in bondage to beliefs and habits specific to race, nation, religion or gender, which have led us to exclude and devalue those who are different from ourselves and neglect our relationship with the Earth, our planetary home. It is a vision which offers us a totally new concept of spirit as an energy field — a limitless sea of being — as well as the creative consciousness or organising intelligence active within that sea or field, and a totally new concept of ourselves as belonging to and participating in that incandescent ground or sea of consciousness.

It is a vision which recognises the sacredness and indissoluble unity of the great cosmic web of life and imposes on us the responsibility of becoming far more sensitive to the effects of our decisions and our actions. It invites our recognition of the needs of the planet and the life it sustains as primary, with ourselves as the humble servants of those needs. It invites us, as Einstein asked us to do, to widen our circle of compassion, to look upon every child as our child, every woman as our daughter or our mother, every man as our father or our son, every creature as our responsibility. Above all, it is a vision which asks that we relinquish our addiction to weapons and war and the pursuit of power; that we become more aware of the dark shadow cast by this addiction which threatens us with ever more barbarism, bloodshed and suffering—ultimately with the possible extinction of our species.

From this perspective, the crisis of our times is not only an ecological and political crisis but a spiritual one. The answers we seek cannot come from the limited consciousness which now rules the world but could grow from a deeper understanding born of the union of heart and head, helping us to see that all life is one, that each one of us participates in the life of a cosmic entity of immeasurable dimensions. The urgent need for this psychic balance, this deeper intelligence and insight, this wholeness, could help us to recover a perspective on life that has been increasingly lost until we have come to live without it — and without even noticing it has gone — recognising the existence of nothing beyond the parameters of the human mind. It is a dangerous time because it involves transforming entrenched belief systems and archaic survival habits of behaviour that are rooted in fear, as well as the greed and desire for power that are born of fear. But it is also an immense opportunity for evolutionary advance, if only we can understand what is happening and why.

For a rapidly increasing number of us, there is the possibility of choosing whether to follow in the tracks of the past, continuing to live our lives in servitude to the power principle and the institutions which embody it, however subtly expressed. Or to live and act from a different relationship with life and commit ourselves to the immense effort of consciousness we need to make to understand and serve its mystery.

Surely, after so many billion years of cosmic evolution, it is simply unacceptable that the beauty and marvel of the earth should be ravaged by us through the destructive power of our weapons, our insatiable greed and the misapplication of our science and technology. It is inconceivable that our extraordinary species, which has taken so many million years to evolve, should destroy itself and lay waste to the Earth through ignorance of the divinity in which we dwell and which dwells in us.

Reversal of Aging Part 8 & 9: Higher Consciousness/ Part 9: Make Pure Consciousness Your Identity ~ Deepak Chopra

Reality is different in different states of consciousness. Read Deepak’s latest book War of the Worldviews.

Reversal of Aging Part 9: Make Pure Consciousness Your Identity

Your real identity is Pure Consciousness. Read Deepak’s latest book War of the Worldviews.

Reversal of Aging Part 6 & 7 Passion & Detachment / Limited Beliefs

Attention Intention Detachment Passion are key to aliveness.
Read Deepak’s latest book War of the Worldviews

Reversal of Aging – Part 7: Get Rid of Your Limiting Beliefs

Reversal of Aging Parts 1 to 5 ~ Deepak Chopra

Timeless Mind

Our relationship to time influences our biological clock

Reversal of Aging Part 2: Resetting your Biological Clock

Reversal of Aging Part 3 : Experience your body as energy & information field

Phytochemicals are healing & anti aging. Read Deepak’s latest book War of the Worldviews

Reversal of Aging Part 5: Maintaining Biological Rhythms

Entropy and Life compete. Read Deepak’s latest book War of the Worldviews

The Power of Perspective ~ Dr.Terri Kennedy

What is your perspective? What type of lenses are you looking through? Do you generally see problems or possibilities?

With fluctuations in the economy, the backdrop of multiple wars and the tempestuous weather showing us evidence of global warming, change is clearly in the air. For many people the uncertainty of what will come can be quite stressful. However, as the Chinese saying goes: “Crisis is an incipient moment (when something begins or changes).” The outcome will depend on your perspective, which in turn will drive your choices.

As John Lobbock said: “What we see depends on what we look for.” In fact, this is true. Psychologists call it selective perception. Since there is so much stimuli coming at us we choose what we hear and see to suit our needs. Just as a photographer uses various lenses to show “reality” in different ways, we each have a set of filters — experience, culture, economic status, mental and physical health, etc. — through which we see the world. Therefore, if life constantly looks dismal to you, it could be your perspective.

Your viewpoint shapes your thoughts, decisions, actions — and ultimately, your feeling of success. For example, have you ever wondered why people in some of the poorest parts of the world seem happier than those in the wealthiest nations? It’s probably because they view life through the values-lenses of health and family versus wealth and fame. Of course, those choices are not mutually exclusive. However, if you lose the latter you can recover, if you lose the former you’re truly lost. Remember a time when your perspective changed dramatically, such as falling in love or a death in the family. In an instant, your orientation shifted. What you placed in focus was different. The world may have looked brighter, or dimmer. You may have been prompted to action. If you just welcomed the birth of your first child, for example, you may start thinking about the quality of the local school system or have the impetus to leave work earlier.

If you are experiencing a challenging time right now, think about how you can shift your perspective. If you’ve lost your job, maybe it’s an opportunity to go back to school or turn your hobby into a business. If you must reduce your spending, maybe it’s an opportunity to streamline your entire life and spend more time around the dinner table with your family. If you have received a diagnosis, perhaps it’s a reminder of the importance of healthy living. Taking an optimistic viewpoint of the chaos in our external world, maybe it’s time for all of us to go inside ourselves and reevaluate our core values. It may even usher us into a new spiritual paradigm where the currency is how many people we can inspire versus how many things we can acquire (see “The Power Living Manifesto”).

The Yoga Sutras teach us that the entire world is our own projection, and that things outside neither bind nor liberate us; only our attitudes toward them does that. For example, think about the belief that “life is hard.” If you operate from this assumption, everything you do will seem like a struggle. You look for challenges in every situation, potentially creating your own roadblocks. Instead, if you turn that around to “I am meant to succeed,” then you open your mind to new ideas. As my yoga lineage guru Sri Swami Satchidananda said, “There’s nothing wrong with the world. You can make it heaven or hell according to your approach.”

The ability to reframe a situation is an important skill that can transform your life and our world. Today, take time to clear your lenses so you can view life from a higher perspective.

Action steps:

Choose to take at least one action to make a difference in your life today. Here are some suggestions:

Be a neutral observer. When a situation occurs, don’t immediately judge it. Take a deep breath and take yourself out of it. Try to see it from multiple angles.

Take an optimist viewpoint. Look for the opportunity in a seemingly “bad” situation.

Deliberately test out a new perspective. Next time you are in a traffic jam, don’t fret about “wasted” time. Use it as a chance to meditate or do some isometric exercises.

Be grateful for what you have. Next time you think you have it bad, think about those who have it worse. Remember the Denis Waitely quote: “I had the blues because I had no shoes until upon the street, I met a man who had no feet.”

Offer your services to someone who could benefit from your talents. This may change their perspective as well as your own.

Keep a “belief journal.” Write down your core values and beliefs. Determine which ones serve you and which ones don’t. Constantly review it and make adjustments.

Affirmation:

The second principle of Power Living is “Tune Your Mind to the Positive,” and one technique we use with clients is affirmation. Here’s one to help shift your perspective:

Today, I have an optimistic view on life. I look for the opportunity in every situation. I accept new ideas and viewpoints. I know that all is working for my highest good. I understand that the outside world is based on my thoughts and mental attitude. If I control my mind and frame of reference, I have controlled everything… in my control. Today, I have an optimistic view on life.

Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy – “Dr. Terri K.”

What do you get when you cross a Harvard MBA and a Doctor of Philosophy in World Religions with a Holistic Health Counselor?

Quite a bit of yin-yang! After almost dying from an ulcerated digestive system in her twenties, Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy realized that her Type-A workaholic tendencies might be good for the bottom-line, but not for her spirit or health. The process of rebuilding herself – mind, body, and spirit – unveiled her calling. A few years later, when she decided to leave her lucrative media career to become a social entrepreneur and health advocate, most people thought she had lost her mind. Instead, she found her Self. Now, her mission is to help people from all walks of life, live better lives.

She is President of Power Living Enterprises, Inc., a business & lifestyle consulting company which helps individuals, businesses and communities make purposeful choices that create long-term sustainability. She is also the Founder of Ta Yoga, which operates one of the first yoga studios in Harlem, and Chair of the Board of Yoga Alliance – the internationally-recognized non-profit organization that sets standards for yoga teaching in the United States. A leading expert on Health and Productivity Management, she was named National Ambassador for the American Heart Association in 2008 representing them in the media with a focus on their “Search Your Heart” campaign.

“Power Living is being spiritually connected, mentally focused, physically energized, emotionally engaged, and environmentally supported. It is a way of being that allows life to flow. It is committing your energy to what you care about on a day-to-day basis.”

The practice is guided by Five Principles, each of which represents the five dimensions, which are all inter-related:

1. Live on Purpose (spiritual)

2. Tune your Mind to the Positive (mental)

3. Honor Your Body (physical)

4. Be a Humble Warrior (emotional)

5. Sanctify your Surroundings (environmental)

The Power Living Pledge

I live on Purpose every day;

I look to my Creator to show me the way.

I choose thoughts that nurture my mind;

I eliminate views that are negative and unkind.

I honor my body as the temple of my soul;

I choose foods that are nourishing and whole.

I serve my Self, and others with Love;

showing gratitude to my Source above.

I seek order, simplicity and peace,

creating space for my blessings to increase.

I choose wisely in all I do, prioritizing

my energy to live authentically and true.

I pursue every task with conviction;

I view unconscious inaction as an affliction.

I am fully Present, living as if,

this is the last day for me to enjoy my Gift.

I take time to Pause and Play,

giving balance and joy no delay.

I live these power-filled principles every day;

I do my best to get out of the way!

Purposeful and Powerful, indeed! :-)

What Drives YOU? Take Our Core Values Quiz ~John Tsilimparis

Whether we know it or not, we all possess core values that drive our existence. These values are the pillars that support the infrastructure of our lives. They are the reason why we get up in the morning. They are also the fabric of who we are as individuals, because our values — things that are important to us — give us meaning and a sense of identity. Through the years, our core values tend to be neglected or put aside, especially if we have become depressed or preoccupied with excessive worry over life’s unavoidable difficulties. As a result, our self-esteem takes a big hit because we have lost our sense of direction. And, without that direction and purpose we don’t know who we are. Realigning ourselves with our core values will gives us insight into where we can begin to put our energy immediately, and what to begin focusing on as part of the process of rebuilding our self-esteem.

When we rediscover our core values and make a conscious decision to live by them as best we can, we gradually begin to see changes in our lives. And, over time, we start to feel better because we are in harmony with ourselves.

When I give this assignment to my patients (“Rediscovering Core Values”), many report the exercise brings up discomfort because the direct and deliberate focusing on the “self” feels overly indulgent. For example, feelings of shame are inspired, perhaps from the many years of deflecting personal attention. In many cultures it is the norm to put oneself second to the needs of others and to think of you as part of a whole, instead of a separate individual.

But one of the many aspects of building self-esteem is in fact, identifying and acknowledging our separateness in relation to others. But we need to keep in mind that the healthy separateness we are discussing here is not intended to mean indifference or even contentiousness with others. If we can appreciate our uniqueness and value as a person, we may be able to appreciate that in others too.

Exercise

The following is a list of possible life values that may inspire ideas about our own personal core values that are important to us. Keep in mind that “life” itself cannot be used as a value for this exercise because it is too broad. The idea is to get as specific as possible.

Material things are also not workable for this exercise because they are not the kinds of values we are talking about. Therefore, things like money, 401k’s, real estate, cars even our iPods and smartphones are not considered values.

Please place a check mark next to the values that feel right for you. Or as mentioned, come up with your own:

_____Commitment to Family _____Commitment to Spouse/Partner

_____Commitment to Community _____Commitment to God

_____Spirituality _____Health

_____Nutrition _____Exercise

_____Integrity _____Responsibility

_____Self-Respect _____Honesty

_____Self-Reliance _____Sense of Humor

The next step is to think about what it means to begin living into at least two of these values one time per day. In other words, what actions are we willing to commit to taking each day that are in accord with these values?

For example, if one of our identified core values is our sense of Integrity and we are going to align our behaviors with that value, we may decide to make amends with a friend or an acquaintance we have fallen out of communication with in the past. We may call up a family member and perhaps open up a dialogue about an issue that is unresolved between us. Or we may be inspired to follow through on a task or a goal we have put off for a while that has been eating away at us and making us feel inadequate.

If another identified core value is say, our spirituality and we are making a conscious decision to align our behaviors with it, we may choose to engage in some mindfulness meditation in the morning before work or afterwards. We may choose to attend services at a place of worship, we may even pick up reading materials that inspire us and reconnect us to whatever our higher power is. We may decide to be in the presence of nature such as walking in a park, on the beach or hiking in the forest. Or we may even decide to just sit somewhere quietly during our lunch break and take in the sights around us.

So, after identifying two of your most important core values, use the following exercise to begin:

Example:

Core value #1 – Spirituality or connecting to higher power

Actions I will take today:

1) I will practice mindfulness and/or meditation exercises every morning for 15-20 minutes before I go to work.

2) I will attend church, synagogue or mosque, etc., 1 time per week for services and
while I am there, I will engage in conversation with 1-2 new people.

3) I will do 30 minutes of mindfulness walking in nature at a park, beach, forest, etc.

Exercise: List of Actions/Actions

(The list will comprise of planned actions/activities you will schedule or commit to one time per day.)

Core value #1___________________________________________________

Actions I will take today:

1)_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

2)_____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

3)_____________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Core value #2____________________________________________________

Actions I will take today:

1)_____________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

2)______________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

3)_______________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

If we do this exercise one time per day, every day for one month, we may notice a change or a shift in our thinking about ourselves and about our place in the world.

John Tsilimparis is a writer and psychotherapist in Los Angeles and was featured on the hit TV show “OBSESSED,” where he treated individuals with OCD on camera. The show aired on A&E and received a great deal of exposure and success. John has also appeared on television as an expert on addiction and other psychiatric conditions. He was featured on “Larry King Live,” “The View,” Fox News, KTLA-News, and ABC News. He was also featured on several radio programs in the Los Angeles area.

In his psychotherapy work, he treats individuals suffering from anxiety disorders, particularly OCD, depression and addiction, and also specializes in bereavement counseling. His approach is a cutting-edge theoretical orientation called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which focuses on changing individuals’ personal thinking and belief systems about every aspect of life.

John is a former staff clinician at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Bever

Spiritual Lessons From Steve Jobs ~Dennis Merrit Jones

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

~ Steve Jobs

“The man of genius inspires us with a boundless confidence in our own powers.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

As I sit here staring at my Mac computer to which my Mac iPhone and Mac iPad are docked, I find myself feeling extraordinarily connected to the man who created the company. The company which created these devices, which are now available to me and the rest of the world. Steve Jobs passing has affected me in a deep way. This man has reminded me of how important it is to stay anchored in my own authentic power, and to stay connected to what is real and important by staying true to myself.

Many in the media are referring to Jobs as a creative genius. There can be no question that he had the ability to tap into a creative flow of ideas that were indeed genius. Many also credit Jobs’ monumental success with Apple to his being a rebel of sorts. I suppose that is because he was willing to color way outside the lines of the “norm” and go where the “herd mentality” has traditionally feared to tread — on the road less traveled. Perhaps there is a link between one thinking for themselves in such a fiercely independent manner and their ability to access the creative genius that lies within their being waiting to be called forward.

I wonder how many people spend their lives living someone else’s idea of what their life should be because it is easier, and perhaps safer. It is easier to follow the well trodden path of least resistance rather than forge ahead into new and uncharted territory, creating ones own unique path based on their own genius and original, innovative thinking. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” This is an admonition worth heeding, and yet being an original thinker in a copycat world is a risky thing to do.

Anytime we raise our heads above the trenches of common opinion, we put all of who we are directly in the line of fire of every critic and naysayer of individuality; but then again, that is where true leaders excel — on the firing line of life. They know that new and innovative thinking can come only after they have stepped outside of the box of the known, where uncertainty reigns supreme.

It’s safe to say that regardless of the direction our intuition and passion takes us, there will always be others who will tell us we are wrong. (That is what Apple did to Jobs when they fired him from his own company in May of 1985, only to rehire him as CEO in 1997 because the company was tanking.) It can be tempting to buy into the opinion of our critics because it feels good to be loved and approved of, especially when there is also financial security at stake. To set our course against the prevailing winds and follow our own inner compass requires tremendous faith and courage.

From a spiritual perspective — irrespective of what other’s opinion may be — when we have the courage to follow the conviction of our heart and stay the course, there seems to arise from within an intuitive knowing of what to do and how to do it. Steve Jobs clearly had accessed his intuitive guidance. This aligned him with his own creative genius, which gave him the courage to rise above the din of his competitor’s and critic’s wagging tongues. He was a classy guy who left the planet a far better place than it was when he arrived here because he refused to be anyone other than who he came here to be.

May we all learn from Steve Jobs’ willingness to be the authentic being he was, to seek our own uniqueness and live confidently, courageously and creatively from that sacred place of true authenticity. The take away for me is this: Your time really is limited because no one has tomorrow, so don’t squander it by living up to (or in some cases down to) someone else’s idea of who you should or shouldn’t be.

If you have the courage to do so, following the North star of your own heart will lead you to your own creative genius — to your own unique greatness. Steve Jobs was a true visionary and an independent thinker; he was not afraid to go where his heart led him. It’s true, the man of genius can indeed inspire you with a boundless confidence in your own powers if you are willing to color outside the lines, take the road less traveled, listen to your intuitive guide and be who you have come here to be.