A man should learn to watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the luster of the firmament, of bards and sages. Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his. In every work of genius we recognize our own thoughts: they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty. Great works of art have no more abiding lesson for us than this. They teach us to abide by our own spontaneous impression with good-natured inflexibility when the whole cry of voices is on the other side.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

If you identify with your past and all its events, you can become like a robot, performing roles that are created by society. You may identify with the tribal stories that have been told to you from childhood. You may limit your growth, weighing every choice you make against the beliefs you perceive are true. You may be afraid to venture out into the wild blue yonder, creating imaginary boundaries about how you are not good enough, not old enough, etc. Behind these stories and limiting thoughts is the foundational thought that represents who you think you are, the underlying thought of love or fear. This thought creates corollary thoughts, such as “I can’t afford that,” “I am not worthy,” or “there isn’t enough”. However, when you connect with your higher self and receive the true foundational thought that represents You, you know that Love, Peace, Joy, and Freedom are the truth of who you are. As you become more aware of the limiting thoughts you have been carrying around, you can choose to release them and create new ones that reflect your true self.

How you see the world and what opportunities appear to you depend largely on the way you are thinking. When you see the world as a hard place, you will tend to see your life as half-empty. But if you see problems as opportunities, you will tend to see your life as half-full. Depending on your point of view, you can choose to be open to receiving the gifts from the universe or limit yourself by seeing only hardship and suffering. Your potential is unlimited. However, if you perceive yourself as small, you will remain unaware of your power and your connection in an expanded universe.

Perhaps this can be described best by Vilayat Khan, an Indian/British Sufi Master and writer who once said, “Those issues that you face are not fixed in time and space; they are relative to your particular viewpoint and subject to constant change. In fact, much of the pain caused by our problems stems in part from our own unchanging biases in terms of how we interpret our personal difficulties to ourselves.”

Philosophically, the cause of illness is the disconnection from your source, and as the ego’s thought system separates you from others, you tend to make judgments and conjure up stories that you believe are true. When your ego defends itself and you think you are your stories, your body becomes sick trying to maintain this illusion.

It is well known that prayer and laughter have been shown to reverse illness and diseases without resorting to conventional treatments that are relied on in Western medicine. Though there is not a concrete scientific explanation to describe this phenomenon, the fact still remains that prayer and laughter do wonders for the soul. So if you are feeling sick or sad or even helpless, remember that doctors do not hold the cure for everything. In fact, sometimes the best medical cures lie within yourself.

In reality, you are not your body, and so you cannot die. There is nothing you can do that can hurt your body. Attack comes from within, and when you attack another, you attack yourself. Through judgments on others and yourself, you have created the opportunity for attack. These judgments and stories give you the illusion of power, but real empowerment comes from within when you realize that you are not separate, that you are one with your absolute source.

Your thoughts create your reality, so that what you experience is how you perceive the situation. If you believe that you can die, you will perceive the world as attacking you, and your body reacts to your beliefs by growing old and becoming sick. It is your stressful thoughts along with unhealthy diet that cause your body to become weak and vulnerable to attack from pathogens. Furthermore, universal forces are attracted to like frequencies, and if your thoughts are vibrating at a frequency of death and despair, the universe will provide the forces that support death and despair. However, if you think thoughts of peace and well being, the universe will provide situations in which you are at peace.

Often, self-limiting thoughts or judgments create blockages in the flow of universal energy in the body, which lead to stagnation and illness. Holding on to the past and playing a role of who you think you should be leads to live a life that is disconnected from your truth. Self-love, forgiveness, and speaking your truth are the keys to opening up and releasing blockages to healing.

Recipe for Success: Changing Limiting Thought Patterns and Beliefs

This is a very important exercise that will leave you with a much deeper understanding of what holds you back and what you can do to move forward. Remember to write down your answers in your journal.

1. What limiting thoughts and stories do you have?
2. What feelings do you have associated with these thoughts?
3. Examining each limiting thought, what choices have you made based on that belief or thought?
4. What new thoughts or mantras do you want to hold that reflect your true self?
5. What choices do you desire to make to live the life you create?
6. What inspired actions do you have to amp up the energy and carry you forward?

Throughout the day, notice your thought patterns and write them down. What is your foundational thought? Notice your feelings and how your feelings change when you change your thoughts. Praise yourself each time you create a new more positive thought pattern. Keep a journal and note how often you give yourself permission to love yourself. After a while, you will notice positive changes in how you perceive yourself and others. Your transformed thoughts will reflect your authentic self. Welcome to the new YOU!