OMTimes Magazine August 2021 Special Edition

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AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

Exclusive Interview Originally from Hollywood, California, and a graduate of Stanford University, where she holds a Ph.D. in Psychology, Sadhvi is a renowned spiritual leader and motivational speaker who has served nearly 25 years in humanitarian and spiritual service.

Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati that changed from Hollywood to the Himalayas, currently serves as the Secretary-General of the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance, an international interfaith organization dedicated to clean Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH). She is also the President of Divine Shakti Foundation, which runs free schools, vocational training programs, and women empowerment programs.

Sadhvi also serves on the United Nations Faith Advisory Council on Religion; the Steering Committee For Partnership For Religion And Sustainable Development (PaRD), an international body comprising the Governments of twelve countries (including United States, UK, and Germany), the United Nations, the World Bank, the African Union, and the world's renowned faith-based organizations; and the Steering Committee for the World BankUnited Nations Campaign with international faith-based organizations of the "Moral Imperative To End Extreme Poverty."

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

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Sadhvi has spoken at several United Nations events, including with the Secretary-General and Deputy Secretary-General of the UN, and at many high-level international conferences and summits.

Sadhvi has received numerous national and international awards and recognition for her work with Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, and women's upliftment and empowerment.

OMTimes: For our readers who are not familiar with your work, can you describe your journey in the US and India?

SADHVI BHAGAWATIJI: My journey is truly a journey of grace. I grew up in California in a family and an environment of great opportunity and a great privilege.

I had everything that we are told one needs to be happy. I had wonderful parents, an outstanding education, a great social life, and everything that one could hope for. I graduated from Stanford University and was doing my Ph.D. in Psychology. However, what wasn't apparent from the outside is that I also struggled a lot.

I had experienced significant challenges, suffering, and even trauma in early childhood. And that led me into great struggles in my adolescence and early 20s.

I suffered from severe bulimia as well as anxiety and depressive episodes.

I received the best that our Western model of

I have lived at Parmarth Niketan

psychology and psychiatry could offer, and I

Rishikesh, one of Indias largest

learned to manage these issues.

spiritual institutions and the

But no one ever told me that I could become

largest ashram in Rishikesh. Under

free.

the guidance, teachings, and blessings of my guru Pujya Swami

At the age of 25, I traveled to India with a

Chidanand Saraswatiji,

backpack, not consciously seeking or searching. I agreed to go to India only because

I learned the power of service to

I was a strict vegetarian and loved the food. On

heal and connect us to the Divine.

the banks of Mother Ganga in Rishikesh, India,

We mistakenly live our lives asking

in the lap of the Himalayas, I was given such

"what for me?" while the true

an extraordinary experience of grace and

question should be "what through

blessings that I knew that was where I was

me?" I have spent the last 25 years

meant to stay.

learning how to be an instrument in the hands of the Divine. It has

I was taught how to truly let go, let go of pain,

been indeed an extraordinary and

grudges, and even have the identity as the one

blessed experience.

who had suffered. I learned truly how to be free. For the last 25 years, AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

"My journey is truly a journey of grace. I grew up in California in a family and an environment of great opportunity and a great privilege."

At the age of 25, I traveled to India with a backpack, not consciously seeking or searching.

I agreed to go to India only because I was a strict vegetarian and loved the food. On the banks of Mother Ganga in Rishikesh, India, in the lap of the Himalayas, I was given such an extraordinary experience of grace and blessings that I knew that was where I was meant to stay.

I was taught how to truly let go, let go of pain, grudges, and even have the identity as the one who had suffered. I learned truly how to be free. For the last 25 years, I have lived at Parmarth Niketan Rishikesh, one of India's largest spiritual institutions and the largest ashram in Rishikesh.

Under the guidance, teachings, and blessings of my guru Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, I learned the power of service to heal and connect us to the Divine. We mistakenly live our lives asking, "what for me?" while the true question should be "what through me?"

I have spent the last 25 years learning how to be an instrument in the hands of the Divine. It has been indeed an extraordinary and blessed experience.

OMTimes: What is it that inspired you to write this book?

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

SADHVI BHAGAWATIJI: On the urging, encouraging, and insistence of several very good friends who are bestselling authors and leaders in the transformational world in America, I realized the importance of helping people in this country understand that grace, freedom, and deep, powerful spirituality are available for everyone.

Tragically, too frequently, especially in this country, we feel that we are not worthy of grace. The vast majority of people are moving through the world with a sense inside them that they are not worthy enough, not good enough, not pure enough. We feel like we have to do things better or differently or do more to be worthy of grace and God's love to be worthy of the highest freedom and awakening.

What I have learned and experienced is that that isn't true. Grace is there for you regardless of what's happened to you.

Despite what you have done or any of the decisions or choices you have made in your life—being them either consciously or unconsciously. Grace is there as soon as you open your heart to grace, the same way that the sun is shining, but we are only able to experience it and benefit from it when we open our curtains and our windows.

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Many people look at me and think that I have been cut from a d i f f e r e n t c l o t h. I k n o w I a m s e e n, b y f a r t o o m a n y p e o p l e, as somehow inherently different and that that is why I c o u l d a c c e s s t h e g r a c e, t h e b l e s s i n g s, t h e e x p e r i e n c e s, a n d a w a k e n i n g.

The point of sharing all of the d e e p, i n t i m a t e, a n d v e r y vulnerable aspects of my life was to make sure that people understood that I was not cut f r o m a d i f f e r e n t c l o t h, t h a t I did not come out of the womb e n l i g h t e n e d, t h a t I u n d e r s t o o d s u f f e r i n g, p a i n , c h a l l e n g e s, a n d e v e n t r a u m a.

And that I also understood and e x p e r i e n c e f r e e d o m. A n d a w a k e n i n g. A n d d e e p j o y , b l i s s , a n d i n n e r p e a c e.

A n d t h e r e f o r e, s o c a n e v e r y o n e!

That is what I do sincerely want people to understand for their own lives.

OMTimes: So, what then are the topics and themes of the book?

SADHVI BHAGAWATIJI: The overarching themes are the ones I mentioned above.

The fact that grace is there and available for all of us regardless of what has happened to us. Regardless of w h a t w e h a v e d o n e o r c h o s e n.

Also, there is an important theme of letting go and f o r g i v e n e s s a s a m a j o r, e s s e n t i a l, n o n - n e g o t i a b l e aspect of freedom and a w a k e n i n g. T h e r e a r e a l s o m a n y a d d i t i o n a l t h e m e s, primarily around both healing and transformation as well as around acceptance and e x p a n s i o n.

First of all, one of the most significant themes and topics of the book is that we cannot o n l y m a n a g e o u r s u f f e r i n g, p a i n , a n d f a l s e i d e n t i t i e s, b u t we can be free of it! Before g o i n g t o I n d i a, I had always been told that the very best I could ever hope for w a s t o m a n a g e m y p a i n, c h a l l e n g e s, t r a u m a, a n d t h e u n s k i l l f u l b u t w e l l- i n t e n t i o n e d ways I tried to deal with the p a i n a n d t r a u m a. I w a s t a u g h t t h a t I c o u l d l e a r n, f o r e x a m p l e, t o m a n a g e m y e a t i n g d i s o r d e r, but no one ever said I could be free of it. I was told that I could learn to manage the pain of what I had experienced but was never told that I could be free of it.

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

The healing and transformation that I experienced were not about management but it was about f r e e d o m.

T h r o u g h g r a c e a n d b l e s s i n g s, a n d a l s o , o f c o u r s e, t h r o u g h a l o t o f w o r k , I w a s able to let go of the identity as the one w h o h a d s u f f e r e d. I t w a s a s t h e o n e t o w h o m t h e s e t h i n g s h a p p e n e d, a s t h e o n e w h o w a s a d d i c t e d.

T h a t' s w h e n f u n d a m e n t a l t r a n s f o r m a t i o n h a p p e n s.

Transformation is not about m a n a g e m e n t. I t i s a b o u t a b s o l u t e f r e e d o m.

B u t , a d d i t i o n a l l y, t h e r e a r e m a n y t o p i c s and themes around issues like being a w o m a n i n r e l i g i o u s I n d i a, t a k i n g v o w s o f r e n u n c i a t i o n, b e i n g c e l i b a t e, s e r v i c e a s t h e h i g h e s t s p i r i t u a l p r a c t i c e, b e i n g in a relationship with family members w h i l e o n a s p i r i t u a l p a t h!

OMTimes: So, do you think people have to go to Rishikesh and stand on the banks of the Ganga to have this type of experience?

S A D H V I B H A G A W A T I J I : N o t! O f c o u r s e, I always always encourage people to c o m e h o m e t o R i s h i k e s h. I r e m e m b e r t h e f i r s t t i m e m y g u r u, P u j y a S w a m i C h i d a n a n d S a r a s w a t i j i, s a i d t o m e , " W e l c o m e H o m e. "

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

It felt like the most incredible h o m e c o m i n g, n o t o n l y o f t h e b o d y b u t a l s o o f t h e h e a r t, s o u l, a n d s p i r i t. I h a v e seen innumerable people over the last 25 years have that same experience w h e n t h e y c o m e. I t m a y n o t b e t h e s a m e, o f c o u r s e. N o n e t h e l e s s, t h e p o w e r o f t h a t p l a c e, t h e p o w e r o f G a n g a, i s u n d e n i a b l e. T h e r e i s a r e a s o n that Indians travel from all over the world just to come and behold Mother G a n g a' s w a t e r s a n d h a v e a d i p i n H e r w a t e r s.

H o w e v e r, n o n e o f t h i s i s a r e q u i r e m e n t, c r i t e r i o n, o r p r e r e q u i s i t e f o r a n a w a k e n i n g o r f r e e d o m. T h i s i s j u s t h o w it happened for me. It was my dharma t o b e l i v i n g m y l i f e a s a S a n y a s i, a s p i r i t u a l r e n u n c i a t e, i n P a r m a r t h N i k e t a n A s h r a m, i n t h e l a p o f t h e H i m a l a y a s.

H o w e v e r, e v e r y o n e' s d h a r m a i s d i f f e r e n t. T h e r e f o r e, e v e r y o n e' s p a t h w i l l b e d i f f e r e n t. W h a t m a t t e r s i s t h a t , wherever you are, is your heart open? It i s t h e o p e n n e s s o f t h e h e a r t, n o t t h e p h y s i c a l l o c a t i o n o f t h e b o d y, t h a t creates the space for grace to flow in our lives.

OMTimes: So, what advice do you have for someone living, for example, in Los Angeles or New York or any other city of any non-Indian, non-banks of Ganga place if they want to find grace, freedom, and transformation?

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

SAD HV I BHA GAW ATI JI: T h e f i r s t and mos t imp orta nt pie c e i s th at ou r hea rts mus t be op en wh erever we are . T yp ical l y, w h a t hap pens is tha t we get v e r y stu c k, stuc k in ou r wa ys o f th in king, wa ys of bel ievin g, w a y s of actin g, and wa ys of liv i n g.

W e filter ever ythin g th a t h ap pens both w i th in u s a n d i n the ou te r wor ld th rough t h os e pre -prog ramm ed filte rs. T h at i s wh y we keep crea ting an d recr eating the sa me pa tt e r n s i n our lives . T ho se pa tterns o f thou ght and pat terns of b e l i e f, and patte rns of liv ing ke e p u s stu c k.

So rega rdles s of wh ere y o u a r e phy sical, your he art ha s t o b e ope n to th at pr esenc e of g r a c e th a t, very freq u entl y, sur p r i s e s us and take s u s in a wh ole n e w d ire ction. You r ea rs, esp e ci a l l y the inne r ear , ha ve to be o p e n t o the voice s, sign als, and s ig n s o f the univ erse tel ling you ho w t o mo ve and wh at to do. T h i n k o f the cate rpillar.

The caterpillar is crawling along the ground for its entire life, and then one day it hears a voice, or gets a sign, or feels some signal, and suddenly it knows it has to climb the tree. It has never climbed the tree.

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

Rishikesh

It has no idea what to do once it climbs

I crawl on the ground. So, what are you

the tree. But it goes because it listens to

trying to do? Make a fool of me? Make

that voice, or sign or signal. Then it gets

me kill myself? Make me waste the next

another sign, voice, or signal that says,

two weeks of my life?" That's how

"Now go out onto a branch and weave

tragically, most of us react and move

yourself into a cocoon." It does.

through the world. So, the most important piece is to be open and listen

Amazingly! Never having woven a

for that voice truly and then listen to it

cocoon or seen a cocoon, it obeys. Then

when you hear it.

finally, there is the voice, signal, or sign that tells it, "Now you can fly!" And it

The second most important part,

does! Amazing!

wherever you are in the world, is to realize that whatever you are holding

For us, tragically, most of us would

onto is doing you more harm than good.

answer that voice to climb the tree with something like, "Don't you know I'm only

We hold on to these patterns to these

a caterpillar? I don't climb trees or weave

identities because they are familiar and,

cocoons, or fly.

therefore, safe.

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

To be free genuinely free, you have to be

The problem is that our minds, attention,

prepared to let go of those patterns. You

focus, and lives are so focused externally

have to realize that your freedom is more on achieving, acquiring, obtaining valuable than being stuck in whatever

material possessions, more wealth, more

story or drama, or identity you are

success, certain relationships, a more

holding onto. It is more important than

attractive physical body, and so much

waiting for someone to finally come

else. We have forgotten the content in

around and apologize for what they did

our rush to beautify the form! So, what I

years or even decades ago. It is more

would say is that an un-doing is what is

important than your comfort in the

necessary. An un-doing of the present

labels and identities you hold for

ways you identify so fully and completely

yourself.

as your role, title, relationships, and physical body.

Freedom can only happen when we make it our highest and most valuable

There is a beautiful meditation practice

goal.

called "Neti Neti," which reminds us not this, not this, not this. I am not this body. I

OMTimes: You share the incredible

am not the clothes I wear, nor the blood

story of your epiphany and

flowing in my body. We go through, in

awakening, which provides the

this meditation, Through all of the

spiritual basis for your journey. What

different aspects of the physical body.

should a reader waiting for such a moment of spiritual power and wait,

We are even going into our thoughts,

and beauty do to find it?

feelings, emotions, and memories. All of

SADHVI BHAGAWATIJI: It isn't about

electrical activity in our brain. As we

those are products of the chemical and

doing. It is actually about un-doing.

Spiritual truth and beauty and presence

remove the attachment and identify with what we are not, space opens for us to

are always here and always available and experience who we are truly. And into that space, grace flows. accessible.

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

Hollywood to the Himalayas is the enlightening memoir of a reluctant spiritual seeker who finds much more than she bargained for when she travels to India.

Hollywood to the Himalayas describes Sadhvi’s odyssey towards divine enlightenment and inspiration through her extraordinary connection with her guru and renewed confidence in the pleasure and joy that life can bring. Now one of the preeminent female spiritual teachers in the world, Sadhvi recounts her journey with wit, honesty, and clarity and, along the way, offers teachings to help us all step onto our own path of awakening and discover the truth of who we really are—embodiments of the Divine.

AUGUST SPECIAL EDITION

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Health & Wellness

Innovative new approaches to Healing as well as holistic methods for dealing with health issues and personal growth

OMTIMES • AUGUST EDITION

5 NATURAL WAYS TO FIGHT OFF ILLNESS AND STAY WELL If you're experiencing allergies, getting summer colds, or just generally trying to stay healthy, supporting your immune system is one of the best ways to prevent illness.

Your immune system is designed to defend your body against all kinds of diseases and illnesses. On any given day, it helps you fight off countless bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens you encounter as you go about your life.

By Dr. Bradley Nelson The immune system is a complex system designed to fight off infection. It includes white blood cells, antibodies, bone marrow, the lymphatic system, mucous membranes, the spleen, the thymus, liver, and skin.

It is a complex system within the complex system that is the human body, and it functions best when we take steps to keep our overall health in balance.

The immune system consists of two parts — innate and adaptive.

Innate immunity is the first line of defense against illness and includes skin, immune system cells that fight off invading pathogens, and other components such as mucus and stomach acid that trap and destroy pathogens.

Research has shown certain holistic practices can help boost the immune system. These are simple, natural, non-invasive, economical things we can all do.

Think of them as an investment in your good health and give them a try.

Identify and release your emotional baggage — The effect of emotions on our health is often overlooked, but evidence is growing.

Those emotions exert a profound influence on our overall health — including our ability to fight off illness.

Negative emotions may alter immune response functions and are associated with an increase..., a recent Pennsylvania State University study finds.

Energy healing methods such as the Emotion Code® with the Body Code™ are designed to help people remove Trapped Emotions, unresolved and unconfronted negative emotions from traumatic and challenging experiences.

It can facilitate physical and emotional balance and recovery and boost overall health and happiness, which naturally supports a healthy immune system.

OMTIMES • AUGUST EDITION

The adaptive immune system allows your body to identify the foreign substances exposed to overtime and activate antibodies and immune cells to fight them off.

OMTIMES • AUGUST EDITION

Get enough sleep — Sleep and the circadian system exert a strong regulatory influence on immune functions.

In contrast, lack of quality sleep can lead to chronic low-grade inflammation and produce immunodeficiency, both of which have detrimental effects on health.

The importance of sleep in every aspect of your health can't be overstated.

Make sure you're getting around seven to nine hours of sleep most nights.

Rest is a chance for the body to regenerate and can be a natural way to heal yourself every night.

Tips: Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time daily. Make your room darker and quieter. Limit screen time a few hours before bed.

Take steps to reduce stress in your life — Research shows that chronic stress suppresses the immune system and impairs the body's ability to fight off illness.

Taking time to relax and rejuvenate is a simple and effective way to boost your immune system, Tips: Try spending time with friends and family or in nature, reading a book, meditating, or anything that helps you feel calm.

Eat a healthy diet — Eating healthy, whole foods is a great way to boost your immune system naturally. Foods that are not processed are rich in nutrients and antioxidants that can help boost your immune system.

Having a healthy gut microbiome has also been shown to benefit your immune system. Foods high in fiber and probiotic-rich are good for supporting microbiome health.

Get enough vitamins — Research has shown that supplementing with specific vitamins, minerals, herbs, and other substances can improve immune response and potentially protect against illness.

Vitamins that help boost the immune system include vitamin C, an antioxidant found in citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruits, strawberries, kale, spinach, and broccoli.

OMTimes | August 2021

Keeping our immune system strong is a key to staying healthy and beating all kinds of illnesses. Given how hard the immune system work to keep us well, it makes sense to do all we can to bolster it by choosing healthy lifestyles that support our physical, emotional, and mental well-being.

OMTimes | August 2021

Dr. Bradley Nelson: Veteran holistic physician D.C., ret) is one of the world's foremost experts on natural methods of achieving wellness. He has trained thousands of certified practitioners worldwide to help people overcome physical and emotional discomfort by releasing their emotional baggage. His best-selling book "The Emotion Code" provides step-by-step instructions for working with the body's energy healing power. A newly revised and expanded edition of "The Emotion Code" is now available from St. Martin's Press. For more information and a free Emotion Code Starter Kit, visit www.emotioncodegift.com

Simply Spiritual To perceive reality from a different perspective is to open oneself to the wonders and unlimited wealth of creation. Simply Spiritual offers the opportunity to visit new places, new methods, and different ways to perceive the vast human knowledge of our Universe.

QUANTUM ANCESTRALITY YOUR ANCESTRAL LINE – THE LOVE THAT TRAVELED THROUGH YOUR DNA

The other day, listening to a lecture by a Spiritual teacher, something left me amazed and intrigued.

He said that we don't have "spiritual karma" but "karma" coming from the body, that is, from the experiences lived by our family DNA. This made me think of some situations and stories that I witnessed in several family constellations that I was present. It seemed, in fact, typical for old family conflicts to be repeated for several generations, unresolved marriages, separations, exclusions, and even forms of love very peculiar to each family group.

A lot of pain comes to us through our ancestral lines.

The strength of ancestry in our lives is much greater than we can imagine.

Although, if before, reverence for ancestors was a cultural movement, now, with the knowledge we have acquired through therapies such as family constellations, we learn that it is possible to dissolve old hurts, disagreements, and energetic knots through the relationship with our ancestors.

We can't explain things looking at our current life because they come from other times, from other people. So much of our pain comes from our ancestors.

Commonly, some feeling you carry is not just hers, but rather a connection to what you have lived and felt with an ancestor, even if you have not known them.

Remember: it lives inside you, in your blood, and it also carries your whole story.

BY HUMANITY HEALING

OMTimes | August 2021

Let's say that you go through a difficult situation and feel abandoned, or even that you fear being abandoned, even for no apparent reason, but that this fear has been with you since childhood and seems completely meaningless or unexplainable.

Still, it moves you to flee of loving relationships.

At some point, your mother may reveal to you that your grandmother or greatgrandmother was abandoned in the marriage, having to take care of the children alone.

Due to this fact, she lived very challenging situations of insecurities and uncertainties, deep feelings of pain and sadness. You don't know why, but it seems that this story touches you, although you consciously don't realize the connection of your emotions with your ancestors.

The Origins of our lives start with our Ancestors.

The first thing we need to learn is that we're only here because of our ancestors. Without grandparents, our parents would not exist.

Without great-grandparents, our grandparents would not exist. And so on.

And it is these ancestors who present us with a heritage that goes beyond genetics: through our DNA, we transmit and receive subconscious beliefs, emotions, psychological and emotional inclinations.

"Forgetting the ancestors is like being a stream without a source, a tree without roots."

Chinese proverb It is important to know that they live within you, and then only you can heal the line, in there, through your healing.

Today, you find in your favor several therapies that work the timeline and are able to cure you of this discomfort and thus release the pain of your ancestor in you. Without this pain, you can walk more freely and happily.

OMTimes | August 2021

And, more than that, having healed in you, your DNA will also receive this new information, and you will free future generations that will come through you from this symptom.

It sounds crazy or magical, but it all has a great positive effect on your life, as there is no other way to heal the past except through the present.

Your ancestor is part of you, and he can only be healed through you as you take care of yourself.

It's all part of a significant connection, a system, or a quilt whose stitches are interconnected.

Please stop and think for a moment. Besides having all the information from the past in your DNA, you also have it in your psychological and mental planes. The stories lived in the family always bring beliefs, values, and tangible experiences that were told and passed down from generation to generation.

Note that today many of the situations that you attract, or repeated events that you play with and say are "my karma," can carry energies from past events that shaped behaviors and actions that always bring the same answers or the same choices, like an internal computer program that you cannot control or understand, and that keeps repeating itself.

"Often, unknowingly, we are haunted by the terrors of our ancestors. We are influenced by the wounds of humiliation, exclusion, abandonment that they experienced. The pain generated by these shocks can reverberate for generations.

So, sometimes, we suffer without understanding why" Sri Prem Baba

OMTimes | August 2021

The Importance of Our family on our Spiritual growth The family we are born into is chosen and is part of the plan of our incarnation.

If nothing is by chance, why would our family be? It is through the relationship we have with them that we can develop.

That's why they're our heaven and our hell. That's why the offices are full of people with family-related emotional issues.

Through them, we learn about forgiveness, about union, about abandonment, about abuse, about differences, and, mainly, about unconditional love.

That's what we came here to do: learn to love.

Perhaps a good way to start changing all of this is to accept that you are the sum of many.

A sum of those who have lived before and that these experiences are part of who you ARE. They are physical and psychological, and when your Self wants to go in a direction and create amazing things in your life, maybe these other "I's" are holding you back from growing and flying because you are hurt and offended. So, it's up to you to take care of everyone who lives inside you.

Only then, with everyone well, you can have the strength to go into the future in new surprising adventures.

THE QUANTUM CONTEXT OF ANCESTRALITY We receive much more from ancestors than we realize and discovering this is accessing our wholeness as beings.

It was Rupert Sheldrake who opened the door to the awareness of what he calls Quantum ancestry.

English biologist, biochemist, parapsychologist, writer, and lecturer Rupert became known for his theory on morphogenic fields: morph comes from the Greek word morphe, which means form, and genetics comes from genesis, which means origin.

Morphogenetic fields are form fields, pattern fields, order structures produced by many species, and accessed by them to evolve. It is a field formed by collective memory.

When we talk about family constellations, for example, this "field" brings the answers and allows for healing through this therapy.

OMTimes | August 2021

According to Sheldrake, we live immersed in a vibrant ocean of energy that communicates with each other. We can access these vibratory fields and interact with them.

Therefore, the energy information fields of the ancestors are always present and alive in our life.

We receive the energy charge from the way we think, feel and act from our ancestors.

And that energy system can be in balance or out of balance, order or disorder.

It depends on the history that was written by our ancestors, who they were, and what they lived.

OMTimes | August 2021

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FEELING SPIRITUALLY LOST? Here How to Find a Sense of Direction!

Life can put you through a series of different experiences and circumstances. As long as you have your purpose and goals, it's easy to push past the hard times to accomplish your biggest dreams.

Although, you may wonder what you should do when you're feeling lost and lacking a purpose.

Where do you go when you don't know what direction to take in your life?

Being spiritually lost and not having a sense of direction for your life can cause anxiety, fear, and confusion.

Using these tips will help you rediscover where you are meant to be.

Remember Your Passions If you're feeling lost, spiritually?

You have lost interest in what you are currently doing or are losing your passion for life in general.

The key to getting back in the rhythm of life is to rediscover what ignites your spirit. Do you love any specific sports?

Do the performing arts drive you?

What is it that excites you? Surely you can recall a few passions when you dig deep inside of yourself.

Just find things that ignite your spirit and incorporate them into your life once again.

Get in Touch With a Psychic

Find the Purpose of Your Day

Getting a psychic reading can be the route to figuring out what you should be doing with your life if you want to take a more direct approach.

Life isn't always about reaching a definitive happy ending or a final destination. It's about the journey. So, if you're trying to wait for that big promotion in your job, try reframing your mind to be joyful where you are at the moment.

Psychic readings are great because they allow another person to give you a fair idea of where you should take your life.

Besides, psychics can provide you a look into what direction you are headed based on the energy you give. If you are ever having trouble making an important decision, consider seeking some guidance to make a choice that you will be happy with.

Whether you are at a personal crossroads or you need to evaluate your career, a psychic reading can point you in the right direction.

Reframe your reasoning for each day by having a reasonable standard for what is considered a good day. Nothing needs to be perfect or go exceptionally well for you to go home grateful.

The purposes of your life are the things you go through every day. Talking to your parents over the phone, helping your child with their homework, applying for a new job, or simply cleaning the house are all different things that make up your life.

They are all a part of your purpose.

Start acknowledging that you don't need to have a complete plan to have a sense of direction. Instead, live each day with intention. Do things that bring you joy. Set small goals that will make you feel accomplished. Most importantly, rediscover your passions and start pursuing them.

Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger.

She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan

OMTIMES MAGAZINE

Hollywood to The Himalayas BOOK EXCERPT

Rishikesh is laid out on two sides of the Ganges (correctly, Ganga) River, a bustling downtown on the western side and a quieter area on the eastern side. The southeastern quarter centers itself near Ram Jhula, a swinging footbridge named after Lord Rama, the divine hero of the Ramayana, while the northern part is centered around Lakshman Jhula, a similar bridge named after Lord Rama’s brother, Lakshman.

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Lakshman Jhula is where most of the hotels, shops, and restaurants for tourists are.

The Ram Jhula area, also known as the Swargashram (literally, Heavenly Abode) area, is lined with ashrams.

In September 1996, the Green Hotel was the only hotel in the Swargashram area of Rishikesh, sitting on a small lane that runs parallel to the Ganga, just behind the ashrams.

Of course, Lonely Planet did not mention that in order to reach there, you have to schlep your bags across a nearly half-mile-long footbridge.

So, when we arrived at the Ram Jhula taxi stand to discover that our hotel was across the water, the driver instructed helpfully, “You cross the bridge.” No mention of the large, convenient motorboat that pilgrims can use to travel easily from bank to bank of the river, no offer to find a coolie—the driver pointed his finger toward the swinging footbridge, more than 300 yards past where he had to drop us off.

You couldn’t find a hotel that doesn’t require schlepping our bags across a river? I berated myself as we found ourselves sharing a bridge, barely two feet wide and precariously suspended a hundred feet above the water, with stray cows, sugarcane-laden bullock carts, fruit and vegetable vendors, motorcyclists, and two-way foot traffic.

I was sure we had walked onto the Indian version of The Bridge of San Luis Rey set.

Finally, hot, sweaty, and already done with India, I followed Jim through the doors of the Green Hotel.

“How do you get back to the river?” I asked the clerk after we’d checked in and dropped our backpacks in the sparsely furnished room. The Ganga called me. As we had crossed Ram Jhula, our luggage strapped to our backs, the river flowed quickly and deeply below.

Each year in the monsoon, the water level rises tens of feet, and her springtime gentle flow becomes a rush of summer waves. By mid-September, the rains subside. A brief afternoon storm in Delhi was our only experience of the tail end of the monsoon.

However, the Ganga was still brimming from mountain rains and melting glaciers.

The hotel clerk directed me down a narrow alley that ran in front of the hotel between two large ashrams until it dead-ended at a small road lined with tea stalls on the banks of the river. I did not want tea, however, or any of the jewelry or religious statues for sale in the marketplace. I wanted to put my feet in the river. After walking upstream along the riverbank a few hundred feet, I found clean marbled steps leading down to the river.

Pilgrims gathered on the lowest steps, pouring water over their heads from small brass pots or grasping tightly onto chains while they dipped themselves once, twice, thrice in the rushing river. Parents held their naked children close to their chests, scooped up water, and let it drip through their fingers over their children’s bodies. Rubbing the holy water onto their own and their children’s heads, backs, stomachs, and legs, they chanted, “Jai Gange!” “Jai Gange!” (Glory to Mother Ganga), and the children squealed. At the far end of the long row of steps sat some meditators with malas (strings of beads) in their fingers, palms open on their knees.

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As I walked down the marble steps to the river, I eyed a spot slightly downstream, far enough from the bathers to protect me from their splashing children. So, I stood, staring at the flowing water and the dark green mountains on the opposite bank.

And then it happened—an experience that, twenty-five years later, I still struggle to articulate. From the landscape of rivers, mountains, steps, and bathers came an image of the Divine.

Woven into and out of the treads of my visual field, occupying every frame of perception, out of the light and colors and shapes and hues and textures of the world I had been watching came a divine form, an image of divinity that blended into and yet stayed distinct from the background.

The next thing I knew, I was seated on the steps without remembering how I went from standing to sitting. I was sobbing, breathless, yet with no experience of either the sadness or happiness that typically accompanies tears.

The tears were not foreign or external, not due to some effect or impact. Instead, they were myself flowing out of myself as the waters of Ganga flowed by my feet. Waves of water outside and waves inside.

The image of the goddess Ganga formed out of every color, shape, texture, and aspect of my visual spectrum. Here She was. And here I was.

Yet, it wasn’t a Her; rather, it was an All and Everything. And I, I was part of that Everything.

There was nowhere I ended, and All began.

There was nowhere. She wasn’t. I stared—eyes open into Her form over the flowing river. I had come home.

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I sat on the cool marble steps, crying into the river. They were tears without thought, not the type I usually cried. These tears were not connected to any idea or memory or anything someone had said or done.

They were simply tears of being in the presence of truth.

Minutes, hours, days, and lifetimes passed while I sat beside Ganga’s flowing waters. My mind had become nonverbal. The only thought that arose periodically was, Oh, my God. It came not as an intellectual thought but as an outburst. Oh, my God, it is amazing!

Oh, my God, it is so beautiful!

As I shifted my eyes from the river to the families on her banks, to the marble steps, the background of my visual field changed—first, flowing water, then, bouncing children and pious parents, then, the inanimate structure of the steps.

My visual field had become split into foreground and background. The background changed based on where I looked and what I was looking at: a person, a pillar, a rock, a statue. But the image of the Divine stayed as the foreground of my visual field and did not change. So whatever I saw—a child, a mother, a marble pillar—I cried. Each varying background was the undulating canvas of color and energy on which the Divine was painted.

At some point, Jim came down. “Hey,” he said in words I no longer understood.

“Pretty beautiful, no?” My mind was still nonverbal—all senses and awareness and knowledge had dissolved like salt dolls into the watery soup of my consciousness. I was unable to tease apart the various ingredients from the rest of the soup. Words, too, blended into the soup, unable to be extricated.

I looked at him and cried as I smiled.

“Wow,” he said as the tears poured out of my eyes, onto my clothes, and onto the marble steps between us. He sat down quietly next to me.

OMTIMES |AUGUST 2021

HOLLYWOOD TO THE HIMALAYAS: A Journey of Healing and Transformation (Mandala Press; August 3, 2021) by Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati Excerpt Published with Permission from Mandala Press.

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OM Living For those living a more Conscious Lifestyle

Learn all you need to know to make your Zen Garden.

OMTIMES| AUGUST

The Zen Garden, also known as the Japanese Garden, is recommended to bring calm, tranquility, and well-being to the environment and people.

You can deploy it in your home or office in miniature mode.

It is very versatile, can be made in different sizes, and will help you restore physical, emotional, and mental balance.

The Zen Garden or Japanese Garden, which immediately announces its origins, is a space beyond unique.

Usually made of gravel, stone, and fountains, it is the perfect place for those looking for mental rest or a moment of meditation.

With each passing day, Zen gardens are becoming more popular in the West as well.

His drawings in curved lines, so characteristic, are the heritage of Zen monks who wanted to have spaces designed in stone and the inclusion of aquatic elements.

Easy to maintain, as they have a stone base, they are so simple to create that you will quickly realize that the primary concern during their implementation will only be choosing materials.

Thankfully, we have ten excellent reasons for wanting to have a Japanese garden at home.

ZEN GARDEN: ITS ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS The main characteristic of a Zen Garden is its simplicity. It is, in fact, the simplicity with which it must be built that must be transported to daily life.

This element will help you live it in a more peaceful way and with more selfknowledge.

Remember: the Zen Garden is where you can hear what your body and inner self have to say.

Sand Sand represents the sea and is related to the peace and tranquility of spirit and mind.

In the sand, with the help of the rake, you can create waves.

The waves designed in a more extended, curved pattern symbolize rough waters, while straight lines represent calmer waters.

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Stones The Stones represent the rocks where the waves of the sea crash, symbolizing movement and continuity. They also refer to mountains, predominant elements of nature.

Curiosity: in the Zen Garden, the stones must be in odd numbers and asymmetrically placed.

Plants and flowers Plants and also flowers represent nature and, therefore, life. Therefore, give preference to the most common species in Eastern philosophy, such as magnolias, azaleas, cherry trees, and small shrubs.

MINIATURE ZEN GARDEN – STEP BY STEP You will need: One shallow container. Its size depends on where you want to place it.

Granite, fine gravel, and white sand Decorative elements such as stones, plants, statues, etc.

A rake (rake) STEP 1 Look for a foundation suitable for the size of the Zen Garden you want to install. We recommend something between 2 and 10 cm in height, preferably made of wood.

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It is not mandatory. It can also be of other materials. You can also assemble it in your container.

STEP 2 Remember to check that your container does not have any space that will empty the sand. Please place it in a flat, stable place. I prefer a calm, peaceful environment with little movement of people to favor meditation.

STEP 3 Fill the container with sand, fine gravel, and granite. Spread until evenly distributed throughout the container. If there are impurities mixed in, remove them, especially if there are weeds.

STEP 4 Place the stones on the sand.

Remember not to place too many stones as they can overwhelm the energy of your Zen Garden. And don't place them symmetrically either. It's better to put them intuitively without thinking about equal proportions.

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STEP 5 Decorate your Zen Garden surroundings as you like. You can add small plants (no exaggeration to maintain the essential simplicity of your Zen Garden).

You can place small statues representing your desire for wellbeing, incense, candles, and whatever else you want. Always remember not to overload the place. It needs to be simple to generate tranquility and calm.

STEP 6 Use the rake to make small waves in the sand around rocks and other elements, as if they become waves in the sea. By creating these waves, you naturally relax, releasing all your energy and stress.

10 GOOD REASONS TO HAVE A ZEN GARDEN They are great for relaxing.

Because you can have one anywhere and in any space.

Zen Gardens are easy to make and maintain.

They can be built-in miniature.

A Zen Garden is an excellent excuse to meditate.

These gardens don't need much work.

Because they are perfect spaces to be daydreaming.

Zen energy stimulates the imagination.

They are perfect for taking care of bonsai.

All gardens are great for making you connect with nature.

OMTIMES| AUGUST

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Bringing More To The Spiritually Conscious Omtimes.com/iom

ANIMALS CAN BE MEDIUMS MEDIUMSHIP IN ANIMALS Can Animals be 'Mediums' like Human beings?

We all know what it means to be a Medium.

Some of us are aware that animals can be very sensitive beings, and sometimes they are very good judges of characters.

With all of this in mind, we ask ourselves: Would it be so strange to consider that our animals may have some medium abilities?

Nevertheless, this is a complex and controversial issue.

Evidence shows that animals have a sensitivity as heightened (or even more) than many sensitive people.

Have you ever heard someone say that your pet seems to understand your thoughts or feelings? In fact, they are not exaggerating. Animals do possess unique psychic abilities that have not yet found an explanation in science.

CAN ANIMALS REALLY BE MEDIUMS? Animals are sentient beings; they have a special and unique stream of consciousness that may differ from Human consciousness. Still, Animals have a specific type of intelligence that is already proven. We know that each species has a different degree of brain development capacity.

OMTimes Magazine August

However, some capabilities are difficult to ascertain due to the difficulty of communicating with them.

Have you ever heard that dogs and cats could see spirits?

Many people claim that it is accurate, and whoever is a spiritual or medium and manages to contact beings from other dimensions confirms this theory. There are many reported studies about animals' life, communication, and impressive experiences.

Such experiences include the materialization of animals in experimental sessions.

On some of these occasions, they reported dog yelps being heard by several people at the same time, without a dog in the vicinity.

Faced with these statements, we can think about whether animals have the capacity to act as mediums or not.

In fact, a "mediumistic phenomenon, in the fullness of its semantic connotation, is the one of an intellectual effect.

OMTimes Magazine August

It is an occurrence in which the sensitive person or an empath really works as the communication channel between incarnated and disincarnated".

It is challenging to consider an animal as a medium for this concept because despite having intelligence, they do not have the intellectual capacity to express their feeling, at least not directly.

"For intelligent communication, there is a need for an intelligent intermediary, and this is the spirit of the medium."

Some people affirm that animals cannot be mediums.

Between the spirit and the medium, there must be necessary and sensitive elements in their brain to interpret and reproduce a message.

Still, no matter how trained it is, an animal cannot reproduce this transmitted thought, so it cannot serve as an interpreter. Still, nothing indicates that they do not have the mediumistic capacity.

What they cannot reproduce in an intelligible way for us humans.

But again, we can disregard their ability to see and feel things because we don't share the same protocols and methods of direct communication.

Animal Mediumship: Mediunity and Trained Animals Mediunity or Mediumship is the practice of purportedly mediating communication between spirits of the dead and living human beings.

OMTimes Magazine August

Practitioners are known as "mediums" or "spirit mediums".

There are different types of mediumship.

The limitation resides in the concern that the animals may be unable to transmit the content received psychically and reproduce it or teach it.

But science (especially an animal behaviorist one) is advancing and proving otherwise.

Scientific studies done with chimpanzees and gorillas show that they are able to learn modern sign language.

The couple Allen and Beatrix Garner, both faculty scientists at the University of Nevada, USA, taught a gorilla this language.

OMTimes Magazine August

She articulated grammatically correct sentences and expressed feelings such as anger, compassion, solidarity, jealousy, and a sense of humor.

The transmission of knowledge was also achieved.

In its relationship with the puppies and other group members, the gorilla taught the learned human language.

Therefore, the research was able to prove the gorilla's ability to reproduce information.

Nothing is yet proven, but this leaves doors open to the possibility that animals are also mediumistic and highly empathic beings.

We all believe that animals have these empathic qualities ( animal mediumship) and a profound ability to understand our feelings.

Therefore, it is not far fetching to investigate further and believe that they might have spiritual abilities that we, humans, may not yet understand.

We may think that someday in the future, we would be able to transcode their communicating system, allowing us to interpret and understand their message transmission more effectively.

OMTimes Magazine August

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Relationships

The interconnectedness among all human beings and, consequently, the relationships among us are the focus of this section. The dynamics of the web of connections we make is one of the most prominent aspects of human existence: how we interlace with each other’s existence in a meaningful way.

HOW INTROVERTS AND EXTROVERTS Can Start Safely Socializing Again

By Marcia Sirota, MD

Socializing is a skill.

With the mass distribution of vaccines against COVID, the world is slowly reopening. Unfortunately, many of us have spent the last sixteen months relatively isolated.

Those who live in a family unit have only been in contact with the same few people all this time.

Those who live alone have had minimal contact with anyone.

Socializing is a skill that we develop over time, and it’s a skill that we can lose if we aren’t practicing it.

After all this time, with hardly any in-person socializing, our social skills could be pretty rusty. So how do we get back to enjoying a healthy social life after being out of practice for so long?

Before I answer this question, I want to talk about the different reactions of introverts compared to extroverts to many months of forced isolation.

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Introverts need to push themselves to get back out there.

For them, it’s going to take a lot of self-discipline to push themselves out of the comfortable shell they’ve crawled into and to start trying to connect with others.

So, I’m starting to have talks with these patients, helping them to navigate their re-entry into the world of in-person socialization more comfortably.

Introverts vs. extroverts: I have a few patients who are extreme introverts or very socially awkward. For these individuals, all the time alone has felt like something of a relief because they didn’t have to struggle with trying to navigate the ins and outs of social interactions.

Unfortunately, these people need all the practice they can get in developing and maintaining healthy relationships. All this time on their own has set them back considerably, and they’re likely to find themselves that much more awkward and uncomfortable in their upcoming in-person interactions. They could be tempted to withdraw even further, avoiding the stress of having to start building their skills all over again, but this is not a healthy choice—even the socially awkward need for human contact and intimacy.

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For many extroverts, the isolation has been unbearable. For example, someone I know is a highly social thirty-something who lives alone in a small studio apartment. She has suffered terribly from the COVID restrictions, and now she’s very excited about getting back to her previously active social life.

For people like this, the temptation could be to overdo it – to stay out too late, drink too much, and in general, neglect their selfcare. But going from zero to one hundred so quickly can be a shock to the system.

Also, extroverts can get out of practice as much as introverts do.

Everyone who socializes has a repository of social knowledge and social selfcare techniques.

Unfortunately, these skills might have been forgotten or buried deep over the past sixteen months, which could lead to some poor social choices and some potentially distressing consequences.

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Extroverts need to pace themselves.

Extroverts should take things slowly and somewhat cautiously. As much as they’re dying to get out there and connect with others, they need to give themselves some time to remember and rebuild their social self-care skills to socialize safely – on both a physical and emotional level. I see a lot in people who have been isolated for a long time because of the tendency to be overly intense when a social opportunity arises.

They’re so desperate to commune with someone else that they might overshare and reveal things that they later regret having said.

Or they might become too close, too soon, before they know the other person and before they know if they can trust them. They might be developing close bonds with the wrong people in their rush to connect, and this could result in them getting hurt.

Some people could be jumping into sexual or romantic relationships in their desperation to have some loving contact. But, again, it’s advisable to take your time and get to know the other person. Maybe they’re a decent human being, but perhaps they’re a predator who is capitalizing on everyone’s sudden desperation to connect and who is ready to exploit, abuse and gas-light you.

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Our social muscles get flabby like our biceps and deltoids.

The gyms have been closed for many months. If you used to be a regular but haven’t been working out lately, you’re going to be out of shape, and your muscles will be stiff and floppy. You’re going to have to get back into the gym and gradually, carefully build up your strength and your flexibility. If you push it too hard or too fast, you’re probably going to get injured.

The same applies to your social skills.

Again, you’re going to have to rebuild these abilities slowly. If you jump in too quickly or too deeply, you’re likely to get hurt emotionally and physically.

All the social restrictions and isolation brought on by the pandemic have wreaked havoc on our social lives. Many of us don’t even realize how hard it has been on our health.

Isolation is bad for our physical and emotional well-being.

Isolation can cause an increase in anxiety, depression, and addiction – as we use food, substances, or other behaviors to selfsoothe or distract ourselves from our painful loneliness.

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It depresses our immune system and leaves us more susceptible to inflammatory conditions and chronic illness. Studies have shown that socially isolated people live shorter lives than those with a solid social support system.

We all need to be with one another – we have to get back to it in the right way.

As I said above, the two main reactions to the many months of isolation are increased social withdrawal and jumping back into socializing too fast. We need to be aware of our tendencies to do one or the other and find that balance.

For extreme introverts, it means pushing yourself to gradually re-enter the social scene. For extroverts, it means holding back to some extent and slowly getting back into it.

If we can find that happy medium is starting up our social lies again – the Goldilocks principle of not too cold and not too hot – we can begin enjoying all the benefits of increased socialization with a minimum of the pitfalls that this might entail.

Love has been described as an intangible connection between two people that feels exceptionally good, and yet, the word and experience of love cannot be easily defined.

AND MANIFEST YOUR SOULMATE

There is wild, crazy “being in love,” and there is the love of a child, friends, family, pets, co-workers, neighbors, community, etc. Then there is “divine love” and connection to God, Goddess, or whatever higher power you subscribe to.

By Arielle Ford

But I think we can all agree that having and being love is a good thing.

The entire Universe is made up of energy, and we impact this energy field with our thoughts, feelings, emotions, beliefs, and actions. All of us are vibrating, all the time, at various frequencies.

Omtimes/August Special Edition

When we are in fear, self-doubt, judgment, or anger, we vibrate at a low frequency.

When we focus on love, inspiration, doing good for others, we are vibrating at a higher frequency…. the frequency of love.

Think of yourself as a radio tuner with many stations. Do you want to stay tuned into the FEAR channel or the BLISS channel?

Of course, you have the power to change channels at any time.

However, it requires that you remain aware of your thoughts, feelings, and emotions, rises to the challenge of being an emotionally mature adult, and turn the dial from the negative to the positive.

Many of you have heard the saying, what you put your attention on grows.

When your attention is on love, you magnetize even more love.

Omtimes/August Special Edition

Omtimes/August Special Edition

Suppose your heart desires to manifest the love of your life, and you are willing to dedicate your time, attention, and intention to make it happen. In that case, I invite you to join me for a weekend at the beautiful Art of Living retreat center in North Carolina, September 24 -26th, and discover how to manifest your soulmate. It works! www.aolnc.org/soulmate

Arielle Ford is a gifted writer and the author of eleven books, including her latest Turn Your Mate Into Your Soulmate and the international bestseller, THE SOULMATE SECRET: Manifest The Love of Your Life With The Law of Attraction. She has been called “The Cupid of Consciousness” and “The Fairy Godmother of Love.”

She lives in La Jolla, CA, with her husband/soulmate, Brian Hilliard, and their feline friends. www.arielleford.com

Omtimes/August Special Edition

Metaphysics

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One of the traditional beliefs of spirituality is about the Karma we carry over our lifetime.

Besides our own personal karmas, it is possible to be the bearer of your family's Karma.

Some spiritualists believe that the younger generations pay for the sins of the older generations in their families.

FAMILY KARMA: WHAT IS IT AND HOW TO GET FREE? Karma, from Sanskrit कम, literally means "action." As a term, it is used in several philosophical and spiritual currents, such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and spiritualism.

THE HERITAGE OF FAMILY KARMA It doesn't sound very comforting, but it is a firm belief in some parts of the world, mainly where traditional and family values are highly respected.

Signs You are Carrying Family Karma To understand this concept, it is essential to know the relationships of primary Karma and micro macrocosms. Simply put, every action reacts. That is, everything we do has consequences.

They say that when a butterfly flaps its wings in Japan, it can cause a hurricane in Florida.

Karma is that.

KARMA: PLURAL VISIONS According to Hinduism, Karma is the result of our actions during our earthly lives. When we die, it begins to develop within us, within our soul.

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As time goes by, it starts to show itself and moves on to subsequent reincarnations.

In Buddhism, the action of Karma is seen above all as our intentions. That is, what motivates us to take action, whether good or bad. They generate consequences and, as an intention, they are also responsible for our will, our life link, our desire to stay alive.

FAMILY KARMA: WHAT WOULD IT BE? One idea that is intrinsically linked to Karma is family karma. It has a genetic characteristic as it passes from generation to generation. Often an aspect of us is not from our past life, but from our parents' lives. But how is this possible?

HOW DO I KNOW IF I HAVE FAMILY KARMA? Well, we all have at least some family karmas. It does not always mean that Karma is dreadful.

Often our family karma is so positive that actions in our future lives cause us to evolve much faster as light beings.

However, when you carry heavier karmas from past families, some symptoms are the most common.

Among them, we can highlight: – You find yourself much more sensitive to your current family and may even feel patterns in your ancestors that go – and repeat themselves – in your current parents.

– Discussions or strange events within the family will involve you in most cases. This is because your family energy and your Karma are in constant dialogue.

– You feel heavy and have many responsibilities.

It is exceptionally normal, as your subconscious needs you to evolve and consolidate the familiar Karma of your life, either to relive them in later lives or to say goodbye to them.

– You feel different. Many people even say they think they are adopted; they are so different.

This phenomenon is explained by the level of spiritual maturation towards the family.

There is a great distance between you and your mind and that of your current family.

Sometimes you need to learn to disconnect from your old family and fulfill your current mission in turn.

– High spiritual development.

You have, even in your countenance, a spiritual aura that pleases those who love you.

Your mind is more connected with the issues of spiritualism, and you feel more prepared to discuss several subjects that go beyond human understanding.

The Problem with Generational Karma Even if we are healthy spiritual beings, these evils can also contaminate us if we have spiritually sick parents.

Parents who have been abused, traumatized, and living with problems may even unwittingly pass these negativities into our future lives.

When someone carries great Karma, they can pass it on to the next generation. Modern psychics and spiritualists argue that older generations pass Karma to younger generations through negative energy, thoughts, feelings, and actions.

When the Karma is too strong, its effects are visible.

It is possible to lack love, focus, attention, etc. You will notice something is wrong.

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE YOUR FAMILY'S KARMA? You tend to get sick out of nowhere and sometimes feel like the world is on your shoulders.

In spiritual matters and selfawareness, you stand out in your family.

Bad luck always accompanies you, and you get involved in the worst situations in your family.

You seem to be different from your family members, and you may feel this even if you don't know how you differ from others.

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You have the feeling that your family karma exists and that you are unconsciously looking for a way out.

You often find yourself worried about taking Karma to the next generation and harming your family.

You think bad Karma is hurting you, and you get paranoid about it.

The concern with being positive enough and having the correct frequency vibrations always goes with you.

Spiritualists attached to the concept of Karma have become your obsession, and you dedicate your life to being better.

You are hopeful that your family's Karma may be improving.

If you identify with most of these signs, you are likely to carry your family's Karma. But that doesn't mean your family is bad.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO ELIMINATE BAD KARMA FROM YOUR FAMILY? Eliminating bad Karma from the family is not easy, and there is no ready-made recipe for it.

However, we do have some important tips on overcoming negative Karma and growing as a person shielded from the Karma of your lineage.

– Mediate and determine the core of the most recurrent problems.

– Understand the behavioral patterns that are taking place and change them.

– Learn to control your energy and soul, becoming the bearer of your own Karma.

When you see yourself as the owner of Your own life, and with this power to be yourself in your hands, you will realize that you shouldn't be dealing with unresolved problems in your family, but you should learn how to forgive and release trapped feelings and situations. That is the great secret of purification of Karma.

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VEDIC ASTROLOGY

By Lalitha Donatella Riback

CAN HELP CREATE A BETTER REALITY Quantum physics tells us that there isn’t an objective reality and that the only reality is the mind.

Let’s look at a tree, for example. When we fall asleep, there’s no tree.

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The tree reappears promptly when we wake up. So where did it go when we were sleeping?

It simply didn’t exist for us.

Like most of us, you have perhaps felt at times entirely alone in the world.

Vedic astrology affirm that we’re all connected, a belief shared by Carl Jung, the famous Swiss psychiatrist.

So we create our reality. And if we don’t like our reality? Then, we can perhaps give astrology a chance and try to change our life, turning it into something more to our liking.

Astronomical and Astrological Phenomena Cause Events on Earth Vedic astrology, the traditional predictive system of India, is the only astrological system in the world to be considered a science in its country.

In 2004, the Supreme Court of India confirmed a Bombay High Court ruling that declared Vedic astrology is a science “as accurate as computer science.” The University Grants Commission followed suit, and now anyone after the necessary studies can acquire a Ph.D. in Vedic astrology.

While this verdict was based on observable and repeatable results (which is our scientific method) in the case studies analyzed, it quickly aroused the indignation of some scientists deeply skeptical about the intangible aspects of the planets, including predictions, prayer, intuition, past lives, reincarnation, and other spiritual topics.

Yet, we can’t deny Vedic astrology’s countless case studies collected over three thousand years showing how planets and life experiences are interconnected.

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Moreover, we can’t help wondering why in India so many scientists, medical doctors, and other educated professionals use V... to make sense of their reality, predict market trends, identify ailments even before they appear as symptoms in the physical body, and much more.

An Astrologer Can Help You Speed Your Success Vedic astrology is older than Babylonian, Greek, Mayan, Persian, and Western astrology.

But all the above predictive systems and wisdom traditions are based on the principle that what’s in the macrocosm (the sky and celestial bodies) is also in the microcosm (our body and mind). In other words, as above, so below.

Vedic astrology understands the planets as the constellations in the sky that you’d see if you were using a telescope. This completely sidesteps the modern controversy that all signs have moved due to the precession of the equinoxes.

And Vedic astrology is based on 27 fixed constellations that haven’t moved significantly for thousands of years.

So, it’s a more accurate system.

These fixed stars can speak volumes about your nature, likes, dislikes, tendencies, and dreams, helping you solve stubborn problems and manifest the life you want.

Thanks to these stars, you can use astrological power times to achieve desirable results, based on another core principle: An action you begin during a positive astrological time is more likely to lead to your desired outcomes.

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It’s believed, for example, that the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 10th, 11th, 13th, and 15th waxing lunar phases are very auspicious and can be used for important activities from which we want long-term success: weddings, religious ceremonies, inaugurations of buildings, business launches, financial investments, spiritual initiations, healings, and even spiritual growth.

The entire 15th waxing moon is considered a full moon, a powerful time to transform our emotions into strongly positive beliefs to fulfill our wishes.

Also, the above lunar phases can: Generate a more positive inner state and increased self-confidence.

Attract help from a variety of individuals inclined to assist us in reaching our cherished goal

Bring us good luck and even miracles (or unforeseen circumstances leading to our desired achievements).

Astrology Can Help You Say Goodbye to Destructive Patterns Planets are said to make our consciousness. In the Vedic or yogic tradition, there isn’t a thought that doesn’t originate in consciousness, which means that a thought comes to us when our level of consciousness allows it.

Even Ayurveda (India’s traditional medicine) is interconnected with Vedic astrology.

Ayurveda tells us that nothing happens in the body that hasn’t originated in the mind.

And some thought patterns causing ailments can be traced in the horoscope of an individual

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So, with the help of a qualified astrologer, we can identify the planets causing problems and end unhelpful emotional and psychological patterns or habits that cause stubborn relationships, financial or health issues.

In a simple mathematical equation of sorts, we could write: Planets = Consciousness = Mind = Thoughts = Reality

Or in the words of Einstein: “A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.”

Vedic astrology can help dispel the illusion of separation that is, according to the yogic tradition, a profound source of suffering.

Lalitha Donatella Riback is a Vedic astrologer and author. She holds a B.A. in Vedic arts and science from the American Academy of Vedic Art and Science.

She is the creator of ShreemLab, which helps women entrepreneurs create a successful life. Her book Bliss Lab: How the Ancient Yogis Acquired Supernormal Powers and How You Can Too, #1 in Amazon New Releases in Eastern Astrology and #2 in Astrology categories.

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Personal Growth & Development We grow as individuals as we face challenges and overcome life’s obstacles. This section is dedicated to helping you chart your course.

How Do You Re - Present Yourself to You?

by Melvin D. Nix It's Time For Personal Reflection We spend a lot of time reflecting.

It's become a way for us to observe life, correct actions, and find personal healing. What I've discovered is that a lot can be revealed to you when you start to observe the many layers of life and the results that are present.

For example, when you contemplate making a change in your life, it is amazing what input you can receive from yourself when you note your thoughts, internal dialogue, and words. How we represent ourselves to ourselves is the driving force behind everything we do, react or respond to situations, and make our decisions.

Who Do You See In Your Internal Mirror?

We all have an inner mirror. It is composed of our self-reflection and personal thoughts. The unfortunate thing is that the image we see internally isn't an accurate representation of who we are.

Omtimes magazine| August 2021

For example, who we've come to know as our authentic self is made up of information given to us. It's a reflection of the perception of others. You may have started in life with huge dreams and aspirations, but you made the mistake of revealing your heart to the wrong people. When they heard of your dreams, they may have told you that you aren't good enough, smart enough, or capable of achieving them.

They sowed a seed of doubt and unbelief in you based upon their limitations and lack of drive. Once this occurred, it caused you to see yourself in light of their perceptions and beliefs rather than the truth.

Often seeds of doubt can take root in us because the people who sowed them into our hearts were people we loved and trusted. Those individuals may have had good intentions.

However, their words and actions created a lid over your potential. Once you allow the suggestions of others to take root within, it isn't easy to see yourself differently. When you think of the quality of life you want, the image of their doubt overshadows your beliefs, and you begin to reflect their words to yourself, and your inner image of YOU becomes distorted like looking through a funhouse mirror. It may look like you, but it's not an accurate representation.

Omtimes magazine| August 2021

Your Inner Recorder Is Always Capturing Information The power of suggestion is very real.

We are surrounded by things that are feeding us recommendations 24/7. We are bombarded by information that tells us how inadequate we are. A lot of us don't understand that if we aren't intentional about what we allow into our consciousness, we are receiving erroneous data and storing it within ourselves. As a result, we allow fear and other negative emotions to drown our progress and keep us from moving towards what we truly desire.

What has been stored within us is always recalled when we face a difficult situation. When trying times come our way, instead of rising to the challenge with faith and courage, we shrink away and surrender because we never plucked up those seeds sown by others. We often don't understand this dynamic because we never knew that we are constantly receiving information at a subconscious level.

Omtimes magazine| August 2021

If left unchecked, the suggestions will reshape and mold our beliefs in a way that is contrary to who we actually are. It usually creates internal conflicts because our hearts are engaging in a battle with misinformation. We fundamentally know what we can achieve, but we have taken on a lesser role in our minds, and usually, we are back away due to fear.

Your Inner Dialogue Is Always Speaking Think of the last time you wanted to make a lasting and impactful change. You may have started strong and committed, but over time you completely lost interest and quit. What were the thoughts that came to mind? How did you see yourself when you thought of the actions you would take? What words did you speak to yourself when you thought of moving in the direction towards it? Of course, what we say to ourselves is more potent than anything someone else says to us, but we have to work with this principle.

When was the last time you told yourself how beautiful you are?

When you had to work on a complex project, did you see yourself as the solution to the problem, or did you yield to someone else you knew wasn't as capable as you were to resolve the issues?

We must understand that whom we have come to know as ourselves could be a misrepresentation created from our parents, environment, religion, and other external factors. It takes a commitment to self-analysis to determine if the beliefs you carry within are even yours.

To reverse the tainted image of you, there has to be a time of reflection, redirection, and renewal that occurs within. You must become very intentional about life and what you allow into your heart. Internal beliefs shape and fashion our destiny.

Time must be spent observing your thoughts and internal representations with the intent to remove and replace any information that doesn't resonate with whom you know you are. The world can't tell you who you are. You must know yourself and make sure your internal image, dialogue, and actions are in alignment. If you believe YOU can or can't achieve something, in either instance, you are right!

Melvin D Nix is a spiritual teacher, author, and motivational speaker. He currently hosts a weekly broadcast called "Putting On The Pneu You" (pronounced New You) Visit pneuyou.com for information.

Omtimes magazine| August 2021

Positive Thinking EASY AND EFFORTLESS

Let's be honest. There are days when one gets a little weary of the continual message to 'Think Positive.' However, since the release of The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale many years ago, the advice to keep one's thoughts upbeat has pervaded self-help books too numerous to mention.

It is even a cornerstone of specific spiritual disciplines and practices.

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First, is it worth the effort?

Though it can be hard some days (and we may even gripe), keeping a positive outlook on life is indeed something worth pursuing.

Years ago, the influence of my thinking on the events in my life became ever harder to deny.

At first, we may see that things didn't go as well on days you were in a bad mood.

However, obstacles that had once seemed impossible (first, potty training my children, and later, paying for college) could be conquered, provided we could maintain a sense of calm and confidence.

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Later, I'd see the bigger theme of how my views about various areas of my life, such as health, relationships, and work, were influenced by beliefs and feelings I'd held since I was a child.

Why is it hard sometimes?

Yet, it's not that easy. We can remind ourselves with phrases like 'This too shall pass or 'Everything will be ok when the dog throws up on the carpet or when the kitchen plumbing springs a leak an hour before cherished guests arrive for dinner.

But if you are like most people, you have a set of nagging, limiting beliefs that run through your head more of the time. The voice speaks these limiting beliefs from your subconscious mind.

The voice is not that loud, most of the time, perhaps, but there are those times when the voice is really loud. Maybe the voice screams 'I don't belong,' 'No one loves me, or some other equally ridiculous message that reflects our limiting beliefs. Whether the voice is soft or loud, the limiting beliefs always affect us, holding us back and hindering our full enjoyment of life.

Where do these limiting beliefs come from?

Most long-held limiting beliefs arise from childhood experiences that upset us at the time.

The experiences we have had as children strongly affect the perceptions we hold as adults.

You might've decided that you didn't belong when you weren't invited to a sleepover or birthday party, or that you're not important when your parents were too tired to play with you when they came home from work.

The beliefs can be a bit more detrimental but are just as quickly released in physical or emotional trauma. In all cases, the beliefs that we hold are arbitrary and can be changed. Afterward, it can become considerably easier to think positively.

So, how do we do it?

Think about a problem you are experiencing. It could be that you can't find that partner you've wanted in your life or that you can't get the job you've wanted for a while. Sit quietly with the problem and ask yourself what upsetting childhood experience in your life is most related to the problem you are experiencing today. Then see what occurs to you.

The odds are that the way you feel today is very similar to how you felt at the time of your upsetting childhood experience. Write down how you felt in that situation and what limiting beliefs you think you learned. There are usually just two or three fundamental feelings and beliefs in this 'old' event. The next step is to recreate this 'old' event, in your mind's eye, in a new way that makes you feel happy, loved, and included.

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Maybe you imagine getting invited to the sleepover or birthday party or being the center of your parent's attention when they come home from work. Then, and this part is easy, play the 'new' event you've just created over and over in your mind – let it make you feel fantastic.

Does this work?

It does. The trick is to realize that the 'old' event is no longer happening, yet your mind and body respond as if it is because the subconscious mind does not distinguish the passing of time. We only imagine the 'old' event now, as it is no longer taking place.

We only imagine the 'new' event, so why not imagine the event that makes us feel good?

The power is in our hands. The more we imagine the 'new' event, its roots will take hold in our subconscious minds. We can replace neglect with inclusion, sadness with happiness, scarcity with abundance, or as some Buddhist traditions purport, compost with flowers, and positive thinking becomes automatic and effortless.

How do I know if it's working?

In my experience, life gets a little easier and less stressful over time. I feel better and better, and my mood has become increasingly immune to things I previously considered to be problems. True, life still has its days, and this method is not a miracle cure. The dog still throws up on the carpet from time to time, and the plumbing still springs a leak at the least desirable moments. Yet, still, I can maintain a relative sense of calm and a positive outlook. And, over time, I'll probably even eventually stop griping.

Leigh Ann Lipscomb, Ph.D., is both a Certified Resonance Repatterning practitioner and a Shamanic Energy Medicine practitioner in Chico, CA. Her website is www.leighannlipscomb.com, and she works online with clients worldwide to help them make new memory imprints of negative earlier experiences, release limiting beliefs, and manifest their hearts' desires.

When people remember the great Austrian psychiatrist and psychotherapist Viktor Frankl, they don't usually think of the genius who developed the psychological approach known as logotherapy. Instead, they, justifiably, think of the Holocaust survivor who gave new meaning to the word freedom.

In Frankl's classic book Man's Search for Meaning, he famously said, "When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves."

What Life Expects from Us

By Debra Poneman

Frankl said that each of us has total freedom because freedom is not dictated by our outer circumstances but rather determined by our inner state. Suppose Frankl could experience freedom in a concentration camp where the absolute worst of human depravity was inflicted on the inmates. Can we not experience it when we feel trapped in a job or relationship or life circumstance and are, more often than not, prisoners of our own making?

If we learn nothing else from Viktor Frankl, freedom is a choice we must make at every moment—and there is always a choice.

So let's look at some things we might be able to do in our own lives to achieve the type of freedom that seems unattainable by us mere mortals.

HAVE A PURPOSE GREATER THAN YOURSELF One of the observations Frankl made was that the prisoners who survived had a purpose that inspired them to keep going no matter what—a responsibility to something greater than themselves.

For some, it was a child whom they managed to send off to a country where they were safe or a spouse, they believed would be waiting for them once they were liberated. For others, it was an unfinished book or piece of art or a scientific work they had begun. Yet, they knew their contribution would make the planet a better place and needed to complete it before they died.

Those who held a vision of what they wanted to create in the world, even if it just lived in their hearts, were the ones who made it out alive. The vision gave them the courage to live and a sense of inner freedom.

In his teachings, Frankl often refers to the words of Nietzsche: "He who knows the 'why' for his existence will be able to bear almost any 'how.'"

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SHARE YOUR BANANAS In my life, I've often worked and played amongst the wealthy and successful. I mean, I'm not BFFs with Warren Buffet or Elon Musk (although I did once go on a private safari with Richard Branson and his extended family), but most of my associates are statistically in the top 1 percent of the world's wealthiest individuals.

But are they most free? Although I hesitate to be the judge of how free they consider themselves to be, I'd say that some of the people I've grown to know and love who live in mud huts in Haiti are far more free. Why? I believe the answer is aptly illustrated in something Marianne Williamson said to me. I had just returned home from a developing country. I told her about my visit to a community of people who lived under tarps in a junkyard but seemed so happy.

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She said, "The reason these people are happy is that if they have two bananas, they will always give one away.

The reason so many people we know are so miserable is that they have all the bananas they want, but they have no interest in sharing them."

Frankl saw men who had everything taken away from them, including their families, homes, livelihoods, and possessions— even their names that became numbers tattooed on their arms— but they never lost their freedom to share their bananas.

We who lived in the camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread.

They may have been few, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's way.

Frankl even recounts a time when a guard, at significant risk to himself, secretly gave him a piece of bread. "It was far more than the small piece of bread which moved me to tears at the time. It was the human 'something' that this man gave to me— the word and looked which accompanied the gift."

BE A DECENT HUMAN BEING Yet, Frankl says, at the same time, the senior warden, who was a prisoner himself, beat other prisoners at even the tiniest indiscretion, leading Frankl to conclude, "The mere knowledge that a man was either a camp guard or a prisoner tells us almost nothing. Human kindness is present in all groups, even those which as a whole it would be easy to condemn."

Frankl speculates that there are only two types of people: decent human beings and indecent human beings—and both can be found everywhere. They exist in every group and every society.

I look at them as free human beings and captive human beings.

Those who are bound by hate are not free.

However, those who can find a way to love and be decent humans even in the most unbearable circumstances are free.

That is the type of freedom that each of us has the opportunity to experience every day of our lives.

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Frankl eventually concludes that there is no final answer to the question: "What is the true meaning of life?" He says that we all need to answer that question for ourselves.

But he does say that life essentially tests us at every moment, and the answer is revealed in how we respond.

He says that freedom is not found on some mountaintop but is found daily and hourly in our choices.

We had to learn ourselves and teach the despairing men that it did not matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us.

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Books

Hollywood to the Himalayas is the enlightening memoir of a reluctant spiritual seeker who finds much more than she bargained for when she travels to India.

As a Stanford grad in the midst of getting her PhD in Psychology, Sadhvi Bhagawati Sarawati was comfortable with her life. Despite years of grappling with an eating disorder and trauma from her early childhood, she felt as if she was successfully navigating her way through early adulthood. When she agreed to travel to India to appease her husband - and because she loved the food - Sadhvi would have never imagined that she would be embarking on a journey of healing and awakening.

Today, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati is one of the preeminent female spiritual leaders of our time and a renowned writer, speaker, and social activist. Sadhvi recounts her journey with wit, honesty, and clarity and, along the way, offers teachings to help us all step onto our own path of awakening and discover the truth of who we really are—embodiments of the Divine HOLLYWOOD TO THE HIMALAYAS is her fascinating story, detailing her time of learning, sacrifice, unbridled joy, deep challenges, ecstatic experiences, and peaceful contentment in India. Unique and powerful, and colored by a range of emotions including laughter, sorrow, anger, faith, longing, delight, and love in its purest form, it is an inspiring, unforgettable, uplifting read.

For more information, or to purchase the book, click the cover or visit:

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