Crystals

We are blessed to have such wonderful natural tools given to us directly from Mother Earth. From as far back as the days of the ancient Mayan, Hebrew and Egyptian civilisations, and Far Eastern and Native American cultures, crystals have been used as aids to healing. For many people they are still a wonderful natural tool that is commonly used today.

What are crystals exactly?    

I have witnessed mixed reactions with people in regards to crystals. When you know what they actually are comprised of, how can they be considered taboo?  Physically they are merely fossilized water.  They are formed naturally when certain elements, pressure, temperatures and energy are combined. The water allows/causes the element to grow as a crystal. 

On a less physical aspect, crystals have certain properties. Quartz crystal amplifies, transforms, stores, focuses and transfers energy. When cut into precise shapes, quartz vibrates at precise rates and transforms electricity into waves which can be broadcast as in radio and television signals. This is also the way we use quartz in watches and computers. An interesting aspect is that quartz vibrates at all of the colour frequencies, a trait which is invaluable in healing. Being originally fossilized water, it is not surprising that quartz and water vibrate at a similar frequency. These vibrations are also very compatible with the human body, not surprisingly, as the human body is comprised of over 70% water. This enables us to use crystals for healing in both the physical and etheric bodies.

Crystals have been used to harmonize relationships, aid allergies and spiritual awakening. Crystals are often used in meditation, laid on the body during various types of therapy.  Elexir’s can be made by placing the crystal in water and drinking it.  You can bathe in water that has been charged with the energy of the crystals. 

Crystals feed the energy to our cells.  The cells can then repair themselves. Extensive research from many respected scientists including Albert Einstein proved that we and everything around us are made up of energy. Within our bodies we have millions of cells, each with its own electrical charge within.  Sometimes when things aren’t quite right within us, or we are ill, it can be because something has disturbed the electrical balance of our cells. 

Crystal healing deals not with the physical body, but the energy systems which create and support that body. We are all an end result of energy. We get energy from food, water, air and from the earth itself.  Take energy away and what happens to us?  Our bodies break down, get sick or even die. When a crystal is held or placed against an affected area, it’s not unreasonable to assume that the tiny electrical charge from the crystal can balance and harmonize the cells within us, giving our body a chance to heal itself. 

The effect of crystals on mental energy is as dramatic as its effects on physical energy. Not only do crystals amplify body energy, but thoughts as well. They create power and clarity in thinking. They also enable thoughts to more effectively influence matter.  In one such experiment, a Kirlin photograph of a crystal was taken, measuring the energy field around the crystals.  A subject then concentrated on projecting loving thoughts into and towards the crystal. The energy field around the crystal immediately more than doubled.   

Our bodies are surrounded by an electromagnetic field (aura), which may be influenced by outside energy. Having a crystal within your field, re harmonises any negative energies.   

Realize too that on different days you may feel drawn to different crystals, depending on what you are experiencing in your life at the time and what energy you need to work with. You may like to keep some crystals within your home or workplace to create specific energy in various rooms or spaces.

You should cleanse your crystals to wear, carry one in your pocket, or sleep with it in your pillowcase for a little added boost. To cleanse a crystal you can use any of the following methods:

•             Hold it under cold running water until it feels clean to you.
•             Hold your stone in the smoke of some incense or smudge stick such as frankincense, sandalwood, sage and cedar until you feel the negativity has been removed. 
•             Place your stones outside in the sun or a window ledge will work fine if you don’t have a safe place to put them.  For added benefits and balance, let them sit for 24 hours so they receive the energy of the sun as well as the moon energy.
•             The vibrations of pure sound can quickly cleanse, balance and re energize your stones.  You can use a singing bowl, a bell, a gong, a chiming bar or a tuning fork.  Sound them close the crystal until you feel the crystal is completely cleared. 
•             Place the crystal on a crystal cluster over night to cleanse, balance and re-charge your stone.

Death and Rebirth... From a Buddhist Perspective

From a Buddhist prospective, there is no need to fear death, as it’s inevitable, as it’s not really the end of life. Death is part of a process, life is a process, where we are born, we live a life, and at some point we die and are reborn again.

In Buddhism, death is not the end, it is the end of the physical presence only.  The spirit is reborn as a resultant karma of one’s past actions.  The person will be reborn in one of six realms which are heaven, human beings, asura, hungry ghost, animal and hell -  according to the severity of one’s karmic actions.  Buddhists believe however, none of these places are permanent and one does not remain in any place indefinitely.  

The fear of death stemmed from the fear to cease to be existent.  It is also the fear of leaving behind your loved ones.   Death is certain, however,  the time is uncertain.  There is no possible way to escape death.  Life has a definite, inflexible limit and each moment brings us closer to the finality of this life.  We are dying from the moment we are born. Death is what separates us from the next life.        

GRIEVING

It is natural to grieve the loss of family members and others we know, as we adjust to living without their presence and missing them as part of our lives.  The death of a loved one is terribly painful, as time goes on and people pass away, and each time we feel a loss, we are reminded of our own journey of life and how impermanent it actual is. 

KARMA

According to Buddhism, our lives and all that occurs in our lives is a result of Karma.  Every action creates a new karma, this karma or action is created with our body, our speech or our mind and this action leaves a subtle imprint on our mind which has the potential to ripen as future happiness or future suffering, depending on whether the action was positive or negative.

If we bring happiness to people, we will be happy.  If we create suffering, we will experience suffering either in this life or in a future one.

This is called the Law of Karma, or the Law of Cause and Effect.  Karmic law will lead the spirit of the dead to be reborn in realms which are suitably appropriate to their karmic accumulations. 

Good actions are an excellent way to prepare for our death.  Not performing evil deeds, keeping our heart and mind pure, doing no harm, no killing, no sexual misconduct or lying, not using drugs or alcohol has very positive merit which enable us to die as we have lived.

Improving the moral and spiritual quality of life, in the bigger schemes of things has more value than medically trying to prolong it. 

PREPARING FOR DEATH

Live a responsible and compassionate life, fully aware of the impermanence, with a loving attitude towards all living things, with no regrets when death approaches trusting that in your moment of truth you will find grace.  In Buddhist traditions, a dying person will wish to have spiritual friends read prayers and chants from Buddhist Scriptures and this is important for them as it will be the last thing they hear and therefore in their final moment of their present life, the right state of mind has been generated within the person and they can find their way into a higher state of rebirth as they leave the current life.    

In fact, Buddhists don’t want anyone to even touch the body for 3-8 hours after breathing ceases. Buddhists believe that the spirit of the person will linger on for some time and can be affected by what happens to the corpse.  It is important that the body is treated gently and with respect so the spirit can be at ease, not angry or confused.

NIRVANA

According to Buddhism if a human does not obtain nirvana or enlightenment, to separate themselves from egotism, the person cannot escape the  cycle of death and rebirth and we are destined to be reborn into the 6 possible states beyond this our present life, these being in order from the higher to lowest:

Heaven:  In Buddhism there are 37 different levels of heaven where beings experience peace and long lasting happiness without suffering in the heavenly environment.

Human Life:  We can be reborn into human life over and over, either wealthy or poor, beautiful or not so, and every state between and both as it is served up to us.  Anything can happen, as is found in human life and society all around us as we are already familiar.  What we get is a result of our Karma of what we have dragged with us from previous existences and how it manifests in our temporary present lives.

Asura:  A spiritual state of Demi- Gods but not the happy state experienced by the gods in the heavens above this state.  The Demi-Gods are consumed with jealousy, because unlike humans, they can clearly see the superior situation of the gods in the heavens above them.  They constantly compete and struggle with the gods due to their dissatisfaction with their desires from the others.

Hungry Ghost:  This spiritual realm of those who committed excessive amounts of evil deeds and who are obsessed with finding food and drink which they cannot experience and thus remain unsatisfied and tortured by the experience.  They exhaust themselves in the constant fruitless searching.

Animals:  This realm is visible to humans and it is where spirits of humans are reborn if they have killed animals or have committed a lot of other evil acts.  Animals do not have the freedom that humans would experience due to being a subject constantly hunted by humans, farmed and used in farming, also as beasts for entertainment.

Hell:  This realm is not visible to humans.  It is a place where beings born there experience a constant state of searing pain and the various types of hell realms reads like a variety of horrific torture chambers.  Those with a great deal of negative Karma can remain in such places for eons of time.

To conclude, none of us can avoid death, however, the only thing that can help us at the time of death is our mental and spiritual development.   Practise the spiritual path and ripen your inner potential -  by cultivating positive mental qualities and abandoning disturbing mental qualities.     All that goes on to the next life is our mind with its karmic positive or negative imprints.

Resources: 

Death and Dying in the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition:  Compiled by : Ven. Pende Hawter

Buddhist view on Death and Rebirth.... Ven Thich Nguyen Tang   www.urbandharma.org/udhama5/viewdeath.html

Just Be!

Stop . . . and look at where you are at right now!   

Since you began to accept your spiritual path, look at how your perception has altered. Realization of your soul is the beginning.  Finding the “freedom” that comes with acceptance of “soul purpose” is another step to evolving.   

The biggest obstacle to freedom is US!

We spend far too much time being  “left brained” looking at logics and being concerned about every day stuff,  like expectations, ours and those of others.  Our perceptions often distorted.  

We need to learn to live in a state of “being” which is our deepest  true self, where life force energy  can flow through us connecting us from the physical plain through all the plants, animals and everything else that is and back through the cosmos directly to Source.  There is no need to force things to happen, if its within the contract, by just “being” everything falls into place.    

So, what is simply “being”?

You can not mentally interpret it, because you put thought into it.  It is the stillness of “now”.  It can be felt.  Find the empty spot in your head – that is it!  Our mind is a superb instrument if used rightly, however, can be destructive when wrongly used. The truth is your mind uses you!  So beware.

The beginning of freedom is the realization that you are not the possessing entity – the thinker.   Recognize the thinker.    The moment you start watching “the thinker” a higher level of consciousness becomes activated.  You begin to separate your self from your mind, you awaken to all that is! Love, creativity, joy, inner peace all arise from beyond your mind.

When you just BE, you realize the more dots that you connect the more vivid the pieces of the “bigger picture” become apparent. Be patient, insight will come to you with Divine order.  What you will notice first is the synchronicity of life experiences. To just BE, find the stillness in your mind, where there is an inner guidance called intuition.  It is the way to discover what the wisdom of your higher-self has to offer for you.  And surprisingly, many of the journeys led by intuition will enable you to really do what you enjoy doing, something that many describe as “going with the flow of the universe”.

An excellent way to encourage this intuition is through experiencing the stillness – as in a meditation.  Calm the mind, becoming quiet and relaxed.  In fact, it can be doing anything where you experience calmness and an activity where you can empty your thoughts.  When surrounded by calmness and stillness, without expecting anything, intuition will make its voice heard. It could be a sudden thought that pierces your mind or a gut feeling evolving from within. 

With experience, you will perceive the way that intuition – or your inner voice – makes itself noticed and you then begin to appreciate its guidance throughout your day to day life.  Sudden thoughts are a tell tale sign for your intuition. It is important to differentiate between the supportive voice of intuition and your no so supportive ego.