Step Eleven:
______________________________
Sought through meditation and/or prayer to deepen my contact with essential presence, enhance my creative power, and further align my life with Spirit (and Divine Will).
I will adopt a regular practice of meditation and/or prayer—not to attain anything which I now lack, but to recognize and deepen my conscious contact with the inherent wholeness of my true nature. This direct contact with my true self, which is reached during meditation and/or prayer, will allow me to more easily access and evoke the state of my true self throughout my day. Thus, meditation and/or prayer is not an isolated practice, but one which is meant to inform my daily life with a greater sense of consciousness and awareness.
As a foundation of my meditation and/or prayer, I understood that the will of Supreme Spirit is that I experience the wonder of my own life and more and more of my inherent love, joy, abundance, creativity, freedom, peace, and beauty. I understood that this is the only will Spirit can have for me because this is Spirit’s only will— this is the will that Spirit has for me, for all the universe, and for Itself.
Discussion 1:
Meditation
This step is comprised of two parts: a) gaining an appreciable understanding of the fundamental elements of meditation (and/or prayer) and b) acting upon this understanding in the form of a regular practice. The only way to understand meditation, and learn how to meditate, is by doing it.
Principles of Meditation
You, in essence, are that which you seek. The goal of meditation (which is the conscious self) is already present. We don’t meditate to obtain anything but to realize (or recognize) that which is already (and which has always been) present. We meditate to discover the one who is meditating, the one who is conscious. The foundation of meditation is knowing that your own nature, your own sense of ‘I’—which is and must always be present—is one with the All-Creative Power of the Universe. Thus, the foundation of meditation is to experience the presence and fullness of your own “I,” and to recognize that your own sense of “I”—which is the sense you have of your own self—is one in nature with the Supreme “I,” which is the sense of “I” that Infinite Spirit has of Itself.
Quotes
The true goal of our work is the experience of unity with Universal Presence. It is a meeting between the experiencer of separation, the one who has forgotten its origin, and the light of Creation. This very meeting is the purpose of Creation, the goal of evolution in time, the ultimate meaning in life.
The purpose of our work is not to eliminate anything, as such. We begin from the place of Complete Acceptance. We do not wish to stop the mind, to eliminate emotions or our human needs. Neither do we want to eliminate ego-consciousness which is positive in its essence. All is right as it is but what is missing is a deeper experience of the Self. That=s why, what we need to do [rather than eliminate parts of our self] is to add the lacking part of our wholeness. We must add the invisible, that which dwells beneath the phenomenal reality. . . After reaching the inner expansion, your human nature is not annihilated. The relative part of you, the psyche or personality continues to exist. Your personality always remains as a part of your multi-dimensional existence. Your relative Me is not extinguished but embraced from the depth of your Being. What it means is that you remain as you have always been—an ordinary human being, but the experience of yourself is rooted in the Beyond, in the transcendental state.
The goal of meditation is not to make the mind blank. The aim is to dwell clearly beyond the mind. Therefore, you simply accept the mind as it is. Through this very acceptance, you find yourself already beyond the mind. Even though you accept the mind, you are not giving it energy. To accept the mind is not getting lost in thinking. To accept it is to be beyond the mind. This point is very important. You are neither fighting with the mind nor indulging in it. It is the middle path. When you keep this middle point, the mind will soon become silent without any conflict.
That Me is complete from the bottom up to the top; she is whole. Your Me is already present. . . you are not looking for something outside of what you are. You are looking for that which is present in the heart of your very existence. You are deepening this experience through right understanding, right cultivation, and right effort. The element of effort is indispensable as part of our evolutionary journey—even though you have support from Existence, support from the exoteric dimensions, support from below and above. It is your destiny, it is your responsibility to co-create your own Awakening. If you will not co-create, we assure you that you will remain in a state of painful separation. You will be forever stagnated in a state of limitation, remaining fragmented and sorrowful.
The true goal of the spiritual path is not at all to negate individuality. The aim, rather, is to re-awaken the state of unity with Existence from the perspective of an individual reality.
In order to return to the state of unity, in a conscious way, awareness must be awakened. The way awareness operates in an ordinary person is very limited and fragmented. One is fully identified with arising thoughts and the psychosomatic flow of outer perceptions. No center or clear sense of Me can be found in such a reality. This type of semi-awareness is flat, lacking any depth. For this reason we emphasize work with attention. It is to free awareness from its shadow-like existence. Awareness is the light of knowingness which makes everything visible. When awareness is shallow, only the perceived is recognized; the perceiver is overlooked. Only when awareness become conscious of its own light, in separation from the perceived, does the perceiver awaken to its own existence. That is the birth of the real Me. Here, consciousness, for the first time, refers to itself instead of to the outer.
The purpose of the spiritual path, the purpose of meditation, is the dimensional shift from the mind to the depth of Being. In this timeless space you are still present but not as the ego-mind; you are present as the Soul, which is the original light of Me.
The sense of identity behind the mind never changes, it always remains the same. When you recognize the State of Presence—which is the center in the mind—something very significant takes place. Suddenly you see that you are not who you thought you were. You discover that you are made from the light of Awareness.
Meditation is the art of entering an unconditional state beyond the mind. Here, your sense of existence is beyond the movement of thoughts. You are not trying to stop the mind, not at all. You are relocating your sense of Me—from being lost in the mind to the state of AI Am.@ When this experience is stabilized, you will never lose it; it remains irrespective of your life situation. Spiritual expansion aims not at a temporary relief of the mind but at the permanent state beyond the mind.
(Aziz Kristof, The Human Buddha, 36, 28, 32, 48, 53, 55, 69, 71, 84)
Discussion 2:Prayer Pure prayer, divine prayer, is a state where the individual communes with Spirit, where the soul meets the Beloved (in his or her own heart); where a person is not trying to get anything. It is a state of union; the prayer itself is the reward. If we want to look at “prayer” more precisely, we could identify three types of prayer. These types are not the same and have little to do with each other, yet they are all referred to as “prayer.” First there is “beseeching prayer” (or what might be called “petitioning prayer”) where a person petitions God, or some Higher Power, for help, blessings, or to gain some kind of favor. The person wants to gain something and he turns to God, or a power which he feels is greater than himself, in order to get this. (“Supplication may be defined as any technique of dealing with a Higher Power (or Powers) that is believed to be greater than human, and existing on a more elevated plane, outside of human experience. Often the Power seems to be viewed as a sort of “super parent” (or parents) and in comparison, humans are but children. The Higher Power may seem to move in mysterious ways, may seem awesome, frightening, and impossible for a mere human to comprehend. Or, in contrast, it can be merciful, compassionate, protective, and the giver of all life. In any case, such a Power seems to be basically separate from the human entity. A primary response to such a Power has been trying to please, and to get the ‘God on our side.’ —Weinstein, Positive Magic, p. 209) Next there is what might be called “creative prayer” or “affirmative prayer.” This is where a person accepts, as already existing (in a spiritual seed-form and/or in reality) what he wants; he adopts the state of consciousness wherein he feels himself to be in full possession of what he wants, now. This is a state of fullness, where a person feels he has already received what he has asked for, which then attracts a corresponding physical reality. This kind of prayer is not about asking for something, but about appropriating the state of consciousness of already having received what you want. For example, if you win the lottery, you might feel a sense of abundance, power, freedom, relief, etc. But why wait to win the lottery?—you can feel those self-same feelings now. And by feelings those feelings now (the same feelings that you would feel had you won the lottery) you set up a “spiritual reality” which then attracts the outer wealth and conditions that correspond to those feelings and that reality. This type of prayer is used in “Science of Mind” in a systematized, five- step process known as a “Spiritual Mind Treatment.” The creative power of words (backed by the feeling which underlies them), as used by various magical sects, also employs this type of creative or affirmative prayer. Then there is pure prayer or “divine prayer,” which is the state of pure communion between the soul and the Beloved. This type of prayer is the union which unfolds and reveals Love as its primary quality. At the beginning, this type of prayer may take the form of a feeling of devotion, and be directed to some Higher Power which you believe to be outside yourself. Later, when the prayer becomes true, there is no sense of separation; the one praying is the one who is being prayer to. There is no prayer at this point—the prayer is imply a state of union, and in that union is filled with all of one’s inherent qualities—such as love, joy, peace, devotion, gratitude, and beauty.All three types of prayer can attune a person to a higher resonance; they all have their place. Our emphasis is on “divine prayer,” and to some extent, on creative prayer. We do not emphasize beseeching prayer, yet it may provide some benefits (if it is approached in the right way, with the right attitude). If you pray from the position of being someone who is weak, in a state of lack, needing help and rescuing from some Higher Power, you have already defeated yourself. You have used your supreme power to create and perpetuate a low self-image—and place your creative power upon some image outside of yourself. It is only because you fully believe in an impoverished version of yourself that you pray for help in the first place. Thus, the whole basis of your pray, and the one who is praying, is amiss; it is a denial of your own power as an individual and as a creative center of God’s Power. If, however, you ask for wisdom, guidance, and a pure heart—those things that increase your union with God—from a position of loving wholeness—then such a prayer will be of great benefit. Spirit is full, alive, and joyous (with nothing whatsoever lacking)—yet it always seeks to be more full, more alive, more joyous. Praying for more fullness, more aliveness, and more joy does not imply a lack but may be a natural overflow of your own nature; in this action you are outpouring the qualities of your own self into your own life, just as Spirit outpours itself (and all its qualities) into all of Creation. Discussion 3:Affirmative Prayer or “Spiritual Mind Treatment”The essentials which underlie Affirmative Prayer, as used in a Spiritual Mind Treatment, are: 1) an understanding and conviction that Spirit is the Totality (and of the nature of Infinite love, joy, creative power, intelligence, abundance, beauty, etc.) and, through its infinite power has effortlessly brought everything into creation. 2) an understanding and conviction that you are a creative expression of Spirit, containing every quality of Spirit, including creative power; thus, one in every way with Spirit, you, through the power of your own creative conscious, can direct Spirit, and its creation, as you will (with no reason, whatsoever, to ever place a limit upon your creative power),3) From this state of unity and creative power—and in full alignment with the goodness of Spirit—affirm what is already yours, what you want to create; not only imagine what you want, but enter into the spirit of what you have imagined and feel that what you have created, through your consciousness, is now manifest. 4) Experience the joy and gratitude of being in full possession of what you have creatively imagined. Feel the joy and expansion of it. Feel a sense of appreciation for having received exactly what you have asked for. 5) Release the treatment or prayer by having the feeling that the manifestation is complete and that there is nothing more for you to do. Thereafter live in full confidence and conviction that the spiritual reality you creative, through the creative, one-with-Spirit power of your own consciousness, is a reality that will, and must, come into manifestation (just as a seed, once planted, will eventually sprout into a fully realized plant). Having the conviction that your prayer is complete, and that is will manifest in concrete reality (in accordance with the spiritual seed you have created) there is nothing more to do. Is it the same conviction you would have had your wish been fulfilled. For example, say you wished for and won the lottery (if that was your wish) and had just cashed the ticket and all the money was in the bank. You would have a certain feeling of it being completed, that there was nothing more to do in order to win. Likewise, an affirmative prayer in this regard would be completed by having the same feeling as having already won. If you had won the lottery, you would not then continue to pray for money, or continue to wish that you would win, or feel impoverished and contracted, or continue to worry about money issues—all of which would confirm, to your subconscious mind, that you had not won. (And notice that all of these concerns are future-related states and not a present-related state—and it is in the present where all one’s creative power lies). Likewise, when the prayer is complete, and the reality of your creation believed in, all these types of thoughts would also be moot, and not arise. Again, if these mental creations arise (after your prayer-creation was complete) they would simply affirm (to your subconscious mind) that you have not won. These types of contracted thoughts would undermine, and neutralize, the spiritual reality you had created though the prayer. Thus, you would create one thing with your conscious mind and completely neutralized it with your subconscious mind. Thus, you would end up with nothing. As part of the completion, to realize the fullness of the prayer, you must enter into the reality and feeling of having already won (just as you would, in reality, feel had you actually won) and then, think from that position, shift all your thoughts to accommodate and realize this state of having won. Make that state of ‘having won’ be the reality upon which you base your thoughts and actions; let your thoughts be created upon that affirmed reality. Think and feel in accordance with that reality; be convinced of that reality. Those feelings and actions, based upon the certainty and conscious conviction that you won, sends a message to your subconscious mind—and once it gets this message, it, with all its creative power, sets about making your conviction into a concrete reality. Doubt will send a message of doubt; certainty will send a message of certainty. Spirit creates this entire universe with certainty, with a single focus, without itself divided against its own creation—this, too, is the only way that a human being can co-create with Spirit.
Quotes
O Lord, let others ask for every kind of gift, with more and more prayers. I ask for but one gift with but one prayer: “Lord, grant me a pure heart.” How blessed are the pure of heart. By the power of their faith they see God within themselves; they see Him above and below, in all things, at all times. They become the instruments of His divine play, as God guides them everywhere and leads them to all things.
A pure heart and good intention—the one foundation of every spiritual attainment.
(Jean Pierre de Caussade)
“All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye have received them, and ye shall receive them.” (Mark xi. 24) The difference of the tenses in this passage is remarkable. The speaker bids us first to believe that our desire has already been fulfilled, that it is a thing already accomplished, and then its accomplishment will follow as a thing in the future. This is nothing other than a concise direction for making use of the creative power of thought by impressing upon the universal subjective mind the particular thing which we desire as an already existing fact. In following this direction we are thinking on the plane of the absolute and eliminating from our minds all consideration of conditions, which imply limitation and the possibility of adverse contingencies; and we are thus planting a seed which, if left undisturbed, will infallibly germinate into external fruition.
(Troward, Edinburgh Lectures, Ch., 5)
Prayer is not petition: prayer is giving thanks. You don=t get down on your knees and petition anyone outside of yourself. There is no intermediary between yourself and Self. You need no priest, no so-called healer; you need nothing on the outside—it=s all within [your own] Self. What would the feeling be like if it were true [if you already had that which you were praying for?] Catch that feeling and then work yourself into that state; feel it and keep feeling it until all of a sudden you are relieved. There is a release within you and then it=s done. You can=t do it a second time. It=s done. [What you have been praying for is felt to be yours, and so there is no longer any need to keep praying for it].
I tell you, [your] prayer will be answered. All prayers are answered if you know how to pray. Remember, prayer is not begging. You don=t petition; you give thanks. You aren’t going to give thanks to something that isn’t [yours, therefore, you must have the feeling that what you pray for is already yours before your prayer can be steeped with gratitude and joy].
You are told, “When you pray, believe that you have received, and you will.” Can you pray in that form? —for that=s the only successful prayer in the world. Begging is not going to do it, for when you beg you are confessing you don=t have it [the thing you are praying for]. You’ve got to appropriate it. It is a subjective appropriation of the objective hope. That=s praying.
(Neville, Immortal Man, p. 66, 68, 235)
Prayer—the art of believing what is denied by the senses—deals almost entirely with the subconscious. Through prayer, the subconscious is suggested into acceptance of the wish fulfilled, and, reasoning deductively, logically unfolds it to its legitimate end.
To pray successfully you must have clearly defined objectives. You must know what you want before you can ask for it. You must know what you want before you can feel that you have it—and prayer is the feeling of fulfilled desires [the feeling that you already have what you wish for].
(Neville, The Neville Reader, p, 141, 151)
Prayer is not a foolish seeking to change the mind of Supreme Wisdom, rather it is an intelligent seeking to embody that wisdom in our thoughts so as to, more and more perfectly, express it in expressing ourselves. Thus, as we gradually grow into the habit of finding this inspiring Presence within [or as] ourselves, and of realizing its forward movement as the ultimate determining factor in all true healthful mental action, it will become second nature to us to have all our plans, down to the apparently most trivial, so floating upon the undercurrent of this Universal Intelligence. Thus, a great harmony will come into our lives, every discordant manifestation will disappear, and we shall find ourselves more and more controlling all things into the forms that we desire. (Troward, The Hidden Power, p. 60-61)
Prayer is nothing but the essential connection of the created being with the Light, Love, and Intelligence of Creation.This connection is found at the point in the middle of the chest by the design of the human body. . . Prayer, fundamentally, is the feeling of the Beloved in the Heart, which includes an intention.This intention can be unconditional, where the Soul surrenders herself to the Beloved, in the experience of love and unity. Or, it can involve a more personal communication in which our desires, fears, and longings are expressed. . . . Prayer is part of the blueprint of being human. It means that it is expected by the Divine. It is the Beloved=s wish to be communicated with in this way.
(Aziz, Transmission of Awakening, p. 49)
Meditation
This step is comprised of two parts: a) gaining an appreciable understanding of the fundamental elements of meditation (and/or prayer) and b) acting upon this understanding in the form of a regular practice. The only way to understand meditation, and learn how to meditate, is by doing it.
Principles of Meditation
You, in essence, are that which you seek. The goal of meditation (which is the conscious self) is already present. We don’t meditate to obtain anything but to realize (or recognize) that which is already (and which has always been) present. We meditate to discover the one who is meditating, the one who is conscious. The foundation of meditation is knowing that your own nature, your own sense of ‘I’—which is and must always be present—is one with the All-Creative Power of the Universe. Thus, the foundation of meditation is to experience the presence and fullness of your own “I,” and to recognize that your own sense of “I”—which is the sense you have of your own self—is one in nature with the Supreme “I,” which is the sense of “I” that Infinite Spirit has of Itself.
Quotes
The true goal of our work is the experience of unity with Universal Presence. It is a meeting between the experiencer of separation, the one who has forgotten its origin, and the light of Creation. This very meeting is the purpose of Creation, the goal of evolution in time, the ultimate meaning in life.
The purpose of our work is not to eliminate anything, as such. We begin from the place of Complete Acceptance. We do not wish to stop the mind, to eliminate emotions or our human needs. Neither do we want to eliminate ego-consciousness which is positive in its essence. All is right as it is but what is missing is a deeper experience of the Self. That=s why, what we need to do [rather than eliminate parts of our self] is to add the lacking part of our wholeness. We must add the invisible, that which dwells beneath the phenomenal reality. . . After reaching the inner expansion, your human nature is not annihilated. The relative part of you, the psyche or personality continues to exist. Your personality always remains as a part of your multi-dimensional existence. Your relative Me is not extinguished but embraced from the depth of your Being. What it means is that you remain as you have always been—an ordinary human being, but the experience of yourself is rooted in the Beyond, in the transcendental state.
The goal of meditation is not to make the mind blank. The aim is to dwell clearly beyond the mind. Therefore, you simply accept the mind as it is. Through this very acceptance, you find yourself already beyond the mind. Even though you accept the mind, you are not giving it energy. To accept the mind is not getting lost in thinking. To accept it is to be beyond the mind. This point is very important. You are neither fighting with the mind nor indulging in it. It is the middle path. When you keep this middle point, the mind will soon become silent without any conflict.
That Me is complete from the bottom up to the top; she is whole. Your Me is already present. . . you are not looking for something outside of what you are. You are looking for that which is present in the heart of your very existence. You are deepening this experience through right understanding, right cultivation, and right effort. The element of effort is indispensable as part of our evolutionary journey—even though you have support from Existence, support from the exoteric dimensions, support from below and above. It is your destiny, it is your responsibility to co-create your own Awakening. If you will not co-create, we assure you that you will remain in a state of painful separation. You will be forever stagnated in a state of limitation, remaining fragmented and sorrowful.
The true goal of the spiritual path is not at all to negate individuality. The aim, rather, is to re-awaken the state of unity with Existence from the perspective of an individual reality.
In order to return to the state of unity, in a conscious way, awareness must be awakened. The way awareness operates in an ordinary person is very limited and fragmented. One is fully identified with arising thoughts and the psychosomatic flow of outer perceptions. No center or clear sense of Me can be found in such a reality. This type of semi-awareness is flat, lacking any depth. For this reason we emphasize work with attention. It is to free awareness from its shadow-like existence. Awareness is the light of knowingness which makes everything visible. When awareness is shallow, only the perceived is recognized; the perceiver is overlooked. Only when awareness become conscious of its own light, in separation from the perceived, does the perceiver awaken to its own existence. That is the birth of the real Me. Here, consciousness, for the first time, refers to itself instead of to the outer.
The purpose of the spiritual path, the purpose of meditation, is the dimensional shift from the mind to the depth of Being. In this timeless space you are still present but not as the ego-mind; you are present as the Soul, which is the original light of Me.
The sense of identity behind the mind never changes, it always remains the same. When you recognize the State of Presence—which is the center in the mind—something very significant takes place. Suddenly you see that you are not who you thought you were. You discover that you are made from the light of Awareness.
Meditation is the art of entering an unconditional state beyond the mind. Here, your sense of existence is beyond the movement of thoughts. You are not trying to stop the mind, not at all. You are relocating your sense of Me—from being lost in the mind to the state of AI Am.@ When this experience is stabilized, you will never lose it; it remains irrespective of your life situation. Spiritual expansion aims not at a temporary relief of the mind but at the permanent state beyond the mind.
(Aziz Kristof, The Human Buddha, 36, 28, 32, 48, 53, 55, 69, 71, 84)
Discussion 2:Prayer Pure prayer, divine prayer, is a state where the individual communes with Spirit, where the soul meets the Beloved (in his or her own heart); where a person is not trying to get anything. It is a state of union; the prayer itself is the reward. If we want to look at “prayer” more precisely, we could identify three types of prayer. These types are not the same and have little to do with each other, yet they are all referred to as “prayer.” First there is “beseeching prayer” (or what might be called “petitioning prayer”) where a person petitions God, or some Higher Power, for help, blessings, or to gain some kind of favor. The person wants to gain something and he turns to God, or a power which he feels is greater than himself, in order to get this. (“Supplication may be defined as any technique of dealing with a Higher Power (or Powers) that is believed to be greater than human, and existing on a more elevated plane, outside of human experience. Often the Power seems to be viewed as a sort of “super parent” (or parents) and in comparison, humans are but children. The Higher Power may seem to move in mysterious ways, may seem awesome, frightening, and impossible for a mere human to comprehend. Or, in contrast, it can be merciful, compassionate, protective, and the giver of all life. In any case, such a Power seems to be basically separate from the human entity. A primary response to such a Power has been trying to please, and to get the ‘God on our side.’ —Weinstein, Positive Magic, p. 209) Next there is what might be called “creative prayer” or “affirmative prayer.” This is where a person accepts, as already existing (in a spiritual seed-form and/or in reality) what he wants; he adopts the state of consciousness wherein he feels himself to be in full possession of what he wants, now. This is a state of fullness, where a person feels he has already received what he has asked for, which then attracts a corresponding physical reality. This kind of prayer is not about asking for something, but about appropriating the state of consciousness of already having received what you want. For example, if you win the lottery, you might feel a sense of abundance, power, freedom, relief, etc. But why wait to win the lottery?—you can feel those self-same feelings now. And by feelings those feelings now (the same feelings that you would feel had you won the lottery) you set up a “spiritual reality” which then attracts the outer wealth and conditions that correspond to those feelings and that reality. This type of prayer is used in “Science of Mind” in a systematized, five- step process known as a “Spiritual Mind Treatment.” The creative power of words (backed by the feeling which underlies them), as used by various magical sects, also employs this type of creative or affirmative prayer. Then there is pure prayer or “divine prayer,” which is the state of pure communion between the soul and the Beloved. This type of prayer is the union which unfolds and reveals Love as its primary quality. At the beginning, this type of prayer may take the form of a feeling of devotion, and be directed to some Higher Power which you believe to be outside yourself. Later, when the prayer becomes true, there is no sense of separation; the one praying is the one who is being prayer to. There is no prayer at this point—the prayer is imply a state of union, and in that union is filled with all of one’s inherent qualities—such as love, joy, peace, devotion, gratitude, and beauty.All three types of prayer can attune a person to a higher resonance; they all have their place. Our emphasis is on “divine prayer,” and to some extent, on creative prayer. We do not emphasize beseeching prayer, yet it may provide some benefits (if it is approached in the right way, with the right attitude). If you pray from the position of being someone who is weak, in a state of lack, needing help and rescuing from some Higher Power, you have already defeated yourself. You have used your supreme power to create and perpetuate a low self-image—and place your creative power upon some image outside of yourself. It is only because you fully believe in an impoverished version of yourself that you pray for help in the first place. Thus, the whole basis of your pray, and the one who is praying, is amiss; it is a denial of your own power as an individual and as a creative center of God’s Power. If, however, you ask for wisdom, guidance, and a pure heart—those things that increase your union with God—from a position of loving wholeness—then such a prayer will be of great benefit. Spirit is full, alive, and joyous (with nothing whatsoever lacking)—yet it always seeks to be more full, more alive, more joyous. Praying for more fullness, more aliveness, and more joy does not imply a lack but may be a natural overflow of your own nature; in this action you are outpouring the qualities of your own self into your own life, just as Spirit outpours itself (and all its qualities) into all of Creation. Discussion 3:Affirmative Prayer or “Spiritual Mind Treatment”The essentials which underlie Affirmative Prayer, as used in a Spiritual Mind Treatment, are: 1) an understanding and conviction that Spirit is the Totality (and of the nature of Infinite love, joy, creative power, intelligence, abundance, beauty, etc.) and, through its infinite power has effortlessly brought everything into creation. 2) an understanding and conviction that you are a creative expression of Spirit, containing every quality of Spirit, including creative power; thus, one in every way with Spirit, you, through the power of your own creative conscious, can direct Spirit, and its creation, as you will (with no reason, whatsoever, to ever place a limit upon your creative power),3) From this state of unity and creative power—and in full alignment with the goodness of Spirit—affirm what is already yours, what you want to create; not only imagine what you want, but enter into the spirit of what you have imagined and feel that what you have created, through your consciousness, is now manifest. 4) Experience the joy and gratitude of being in full possession of what you have creatively imagined. Feel the joy and expansion of it. Feel a sense of appreciation for having received exactly what you have asked for. 5) Release the treatment or prayer by having the feeling that the manifestation is complete and that there is nothing more for you to do. Thereafter live in full confidence and conviction that the spiritual reality you creative, through the creative, one-with-Spirit power of your own consciousness, is a reality that will, and must, come into manifestation (just as a seed, once planted, will eventually sprout into a fully realized plant). Having the conviction that your prayer is complete, and that is will manifest in concrete reality (in accordance with the spiritual seed you have created) there is nothing more to do. Is it the same conviction you would have had your wish been fulfilled. For example, say you wished for and won the lottery (if that was your wish) and had just cashed the ticket and all the money was in the bank. You would have a certain feeling of it being completed, that there was nothing more to do in order to win. Likewise, an affirmative prayer in this regard would be completed by having the same feeling as having already won. If you had won the lottery, you would not then continue to pray for money, or continue to wish that you would win, or feel impoverished and contracted, or continue to worry about money issues—all of which would confirm, to your subconscious mind, that you had not won. (And notice that all of these concerns are future-related states and not a present-related state—and it is in the present where all one’s creative power lies). Likewise, when the prayer is complete, and the reality of your creation believed in, all these types of thoughts would also be moot, and not arise. Again, if these mental creations arise (after your prayer-creation was complete) they would simply affirm (to your subconscious mind) that you have not won. These types of contracted thoughts would undermine, and neutralize, the spiritual reality you had created though the prayer. Thus, you would create one thing with your conscious mind and completely neutralized it with your subconscious mind. Thus, you would end up with nothing. As part of the completion, to realize the fullness of the prayer, you must enter into the reality and feeling of having already won (just as you would, in reality, feel had you actually won) and then, think from that position, shift all your thoughts to accommodate and realize this state of having won. Make that state of ‘having won’ be the reality upon which you base your thoughts and actions; let your thoughts be created upon that affirmed reality. Think and feel in accordance with that reality; be convinced of that reality. Those feelings and actions, based upon the certainty and conscious conviction that you won, sends a message to your subconscious mind—and once it gets this message, it, with all its creative power, sets about making your conviction into a concrete reality. Doubt will send a message of doubt; certainty will send a message of certainty. Spirit creates this entire universe with certainty, with a single focus, without itself divided against its own creation—this, too, is the only way that a human being can co-create with Spirit.
Quotes
O Lord, let others ask for every kind of gift, with more and more prayers. I ask for but one gift with but one prayer: “Lord, grant me a pure heart.” How blessed are the pure of heart. By the power of their faith they see God within themselves; they see Him above and below, in all things, at all times. They become the instruments of His divine play, as God guides them everywhere and leads them to all things.
A pure heart and good intention—the one foundation of every spiritual attainment.
(Jean Pierre de Caussade)
“All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye have received them, and ye shall receive them.” (Mark xi. 24) The difference of the tenses in this passage is remarkable. The speaker bids us first to believe that our desire has already been fulfilled, that it is a thing already accomplished, and then its accomplishment will follow as a thing in the future. This is nothing other than a concise direction for making use of the creative power of thought by impressing upon the universal subjective mind the particular thing which we desire as an already existing fact. In following this direction we are thinking on the plane of the absolute and eliminating from our minds all consideration of conditions, which imply limitation and the possibility of adverse contingencies; and we are thus planting a seed which, if left undisturbed, will infallibly germinate into external fruition.
(Troward, Edinburgh Lectures, Ch., 5)
Prayer is not petition: prayer is giving thanks. You don=t get down on your knees and petition anyone outside of yourself. There is no intermediary between yourself and Self. You need no priest, no so-called healer; you need nothing on the outside—it=s all within [your own] Self. What would the feeling be like if it were true [if you already had that which you were praying for?] Catch that feeling and then work yourself into that state; feel it and keep feeling it until all of a sudden you are relieved. There is a release within you and then it=s done. You can=t do it a second time. It=s done. [What you have been praying for is felt to be yours, and so there is no longer any need to keep praying for it].
I tell you, [your] prayer will be answered. All prayers are answered if you know how to pray. Remember, prayer is not begging. You don=t petition; you give thanks. You aren’t going to give thanks to something that isn’t [yours, therefore, you must have the feeling that what you pray for is already yours before your prayer can be steeped with gratitude and joy].
You are told, “When you pray, believe that you have received, and you will.” Can you pray in that form? —for that=s the only successful prayer in the world. Begging is not going to do it, for when you beg you are confessing you don=t have it [the thing you are praying for]. You’ve got to appropriate it. It is a subjective appropriation of the objective hope. That=s praying.
(Neville, Immortal Man, p. 66, 68, 235)
Prayer—the art of believing what is denied by the senses—deals almost entirely with the subconscious. Through prayer, the subconscious is suggested into acceptance of the wish fulfilled, and, reasoning deductively, logically unfolds it to its legitimate end.
To pray successfully you must have clearly defined objectives. You must know what you want before you can ask for it. You must know what you want before you can feel that you have it—and prayer is the feeling of fulfilled desires [the feeling that you already have what you wish for].
(Neville, The Neville Reader, p, 141, 151)
Prayer is not a foolish seeking to change the mind of Supreme Wisdom, rather it is an intelligent seeking to embody that wisdom in our thoughts so as to, more and more perfectly, express it in expressing ourselves. Thus, as we gradually grow into the habit of finding this inspiring Presence within [or as] ourselves, and of realizing its forward movement as the ultimate determining factor in all true healthful mental action, it will become second nature to us to have all our plans, down to the apparently most trivial, so floating upon the undercurrent of this Universal Intelligence. Thus, a great harmony will come into our lives, every discordant manifestation will disappear, and we shall find ourselves more and more controlling all things into the forms that we desire. (Troward, The Hidden Power, p. 60-61)
Prayer is nothing but the essential connection of the created being with the Light, Love, and Intelligence of Creation.This connection is found at the point in the middle of the chest by the design of the human body. . . Prayer, fundamentally, is the feeling of the Beloved in the Heart, which includes an intention.This intention can be unconditional, where the Soul surrenders herself to the Beloved, in the experience of love and unity. Or, it can involve a more personal communication in which our desires, fears, and longings are expressed. . . . Prayer is part of the blueprint of being human. It means that it is expected by the Divine. It is the Beloved=s wish to be communicated with in this way.
(Aziz, Transmission of Awakening, p. 49)
Links to Guided Meditation (and Cultivation of Presence)
by Aziz Kristof (Anadi)
1. The Essence of Consciousness
http://www.anaditeaching.com/rec/The%20Essence%20of%20Consciousness.mp3
2. From Mindfulness to Presence
http://www.anaditeaching.com/rec/From%20Mindfulness%20to%20Presence.mp3
