Life

Actually, since your mind is usually in contact with your soul, that is not the issue. The problem is that you are almost always in "send" mode. You are so busy sending thoughts, including everything you see, hear, feel, etc., that your mind is never in "receive" mode. If you have hopes of actually receiving anything back from your soul, you have to learn how to listen.

I want to tell you about my technique for making contact with the other world. If you have some other method that works for you, great, because the method you use is not important.

Sometimes I position myself sitting comfortably, and other times I choose to lie flat on my back. It is helpful to create an environment with as few distractions as possible. When I had my revelation I was on my back, on my bed, and in the dark.

Close your eyes and place your hands together in front of you, and adjust them until only your fingertips are touching. As a side note, if you sit in meetings with your hands steepled this way, you will appear more intelligent. Each finger on the left hand should touch the corresponding finger on the right hand. If you don't have two hands for this step, then you could actually use one finger touching a spot, such as your forehead. (My grandfather lost one of his hands in an accident when he was a boy.) If you are unable to use even the alternate method, then perhaps you can grasp the concept as I explain it, and come up with something that will work for you. I repeat, the exact method is not important.

Imagine that your hands are attached at the fingertips. Focus on the feeling where they touch. Feel the energy flowing between your hands. It should be flowing down your arms and pushing your fingers together, slightly more than you intend. I can feel this energy far more quickly and easily now than I could at first, so don't be discouraged, even if you feel nothing.

Now, remembering that your fingers are attached at the fingertips, slowly pull your hands apart. If you are imagining successfully, then your fingertips should draw closer together. At this point, your fingertips should not separate. This is not a very big motion. Then try pushing your hands together slightly. I usually keep my palms from touching, as in one classic praying position, because it dampens the energy flow through the fingertips. You can push and pull your hands so they look like a spider doing push-ups on a mirror. When your fingertips come close together, gathering to a point, don't push them together in a bunch, because this has a similar effect, although less than, pushing your palms together.

After some practice, I found that I could usually focus very quickly, just by briefly touching my fingertips together, as described above. It has a calming effect on me, and helps me to clear my mind. The process of relaxing and clearing the mind is taught in many different disciplines. If you are already experienced at some other technique, feel free to use it, but you might at least try my method, so we stay on the same wavelength. Later on, the method you use will be largely irrelevant. I am including my own practice primarily for people who are new to the whole idea.

After a minute or so of the fingertip exercise, you may be ready to begin. Don't let your hands rest against each other. Keep pulling them away from each other. Focus on the feelings, not on your hands. One indication that you are being successful, is that suddenly you will notice a minor discomfort. Perhaps it will be an itch you hadn't noticed before. Perhaps your body positioning is not quite as comfortable as you thought. If you can resist the urge to fix the problem, good, but if resisting becomes a bigger distraction, then "scratch the itch," and then go right back to where you were, with as little disturbance as possible. Remember, this is an indication of success, not a signal to give up. Welcome to stage one.

When you are focusing and clearing your mind, your perceptions will become heightened, and your skin will become more sensitive. You may suddenly hear sounds you normally don't notice. If they are distracting, and you have control over the source, then you can stop the sounds. If they are not distracting, then simply make a note of them and go on. You may hear your own heartbeat. I usually seek a dark, quiet place for this, but others might prefer some type of music or sounds that are soothing to them. If there are background noises you can't avoid, then perhaps having your own sounds can help to mask the others. I've always been very good at blocking out sounds when I am concentrating on something, such as reading.

After you have done everything possible about the external environment, you must accept what remains and move on. As you focus on the feeling at your fingertips, everything outside of that feeling should begin to seem more and more remote. If you reach the second stage, you will begin to notice your own thoughts getting in the way of your concentration. It is similar to those times I've had when I am having difficulty going to sleep because my thoughts keep going around and around in my head. When I am worried, afraid, sad, hurt, or feeling lonely, and I go over the same thoughts again and again. Welcome to stage two.

This stage is much more difficult to deal with for most people than stage one. Although this stage may be frustrating, it does mean you are on the right path. There are a great many techniques for handling this stage, and I don't want to write a whole book about this one topic, so I'll just mention a few of the simpler and for me, more effective methods.

If the problem is words in your mind, then imagine a blackboard. Imagine yourself writing on the blackboard. You need to write down the words that keep distracting you. When your list is finished, then imagine a blackboard eraser, and erase the blackboard. If the thoughts come right back, then repeat this process. Perhaps boredom will help you to get beyond your disturbing thoughts.

If the problem is images, then try to imagine a giant movie or television screen. Put your images there as brightly and vividly as possible. Instead of trying to shut them out, focus on them, and try to see them clearly. Make a story, or a movie from them. Then imagine the lights fading out. Let everything get darker and darker, until you can't see the screen anymore.

If the problem is all the little things you have to remember. You might want to stop this exercise for a few moments and write down a list of all the things you have to remember. You can relax better when you know you have your list written down. When the exercise is over you can open your eyes and pick up your list. You don't have to worry about forgetting something on your list while clearing your mind.

If you are physically tense, there are several methods that can help, including mild exercise, and progressive relaxation. To use progressive relaxation, the basic idea is to alternately tighten and relax each different muscle in your body. For example, you can lift an arm and then let it fall gently back down. Lift a leg and then let it down. Same for head, back, etc. This will help you to recognize the difference between tension and relaxation. With practice, you might be able to just relax, in other words, instead of picking your arm up, you just let it drop, and since it is already down, it is very gentle. This is a very useful skill to develop for those times when well-meaning people tell you to "just relax" at the most stressful times. It's not perfect, but it sure helps to have a relaxation procedure to go through. Surprisingly enough, there is usually some tension in your body that will magnify other problems. It often helps to go through several minutes of relaxation, just to help you get ready to deal with your other problems.

Suppose you feel fine, and nothing is bothering you. You aren't fretting, or thinking about much of anything. You are focusing on the feeling and clearing your mind. Suddenly, a stray thought pops into your mind. It doesn't have to be anything big or important to you in any way, but for a split second, it is there, and it moves you slightly away from your focus. You may begin to struggle with holding onto the focus, while these stray thoughts keep appearing, and getting in your way. Welcome to stage three.

This stage can take years and years to master. So don't worry about it, because mastering it is not essential. Think of the few remaining stray thoughts as minor distractions. Like the background noises in stage one, that were beyond your control. Simply acknowledge them and move on. Don't let the process of clearing your mind of stray thoughts become a distraction in itself. Notice that I didn't say that about the problems of stage two. Those kinds of problems are enough to prevent further progress

I hope I have given you enough pointers, and not bored you. If you know about these things, good. If not, feel free to learn more from other sources. I am presenting techniques that work for me, but you need to find the techniques that work for you.

Now flex your hands until they are most comfortable for you, with fingertips touching as above. Now, instead of letting your fingers flex and straighten, keep your hands in the same position. Then move your hands, and fingertips, about a centimeter or less apart. You should still be able to feel the energy flowing as it was when your fingers were touching. If you lose the feeling, or are not sure about it, you can simply touch your fingertips lightly together again. You can repeat this as many times as you need. At first it may seem like the relaxation technique described above. Energy flow on (touching), and energy flow off (fingertips apart). If the on/off feeling is strong, then try making the flow stronger before separating your hands, and try keeping your fingertips as close together as possible without touching. If your hands move slightly and one or more fingers touch, that's all right. Just adjust your hands a little, and keep going. If you just can't make it work at all, then perhaps you rushed through the beginning steps too quickly. Perhaps you have done enough for one day. Try again tomorrow, or at least wait several hours.

When it first happens, you may not realize it. If you are focusing on the feeling and doing everything mentioned above correctly, then at some point you will be able to separate your hands without noticing any change in the feeling or the energy flow. You are relaxed and aware. Your mind is clear and focused. The energy you are focusing on is part of you and apart from you at the same time. You are ready to move on. Welcome to stage four.

This is the final stage of preparation. This is where you have to be in order to make contact. I know it seems like a lot of trouble at first, but that's just because you don't know what you're doing. Like telling someone to 'just relax' when they don't know 'how' to. After some practice, you will know what you are trying to do and where you are trying to go. When you've 'been there, done that' it will seem like very little trouble at all.

See the energy in your mind. It may appear as a light in the darkness. See the light. It may appear as a circle or ball. If the light forms a disk and it is not round, then it may not be turned directly toward you. Turn the disk or circle in your mind until it appears more round. Move toward the light. Go through the light. Welcome to stage five.

Not everyone can reach stage five. It depends a great deal on the level and experience of your spirit. Normally, as long as you live, your spirit is locked into "receive" mode, and your reality is his/her reality. (Note: Spirits are not male and female, but since I am currently male, I choose to use masculine pronouns from now on.) Under extreme conditions, such as "near death" experiences, you stop sending signals and your spirit is "disconnected." During "sensory deprivation" you may not be sending enough signals to maintain the connection. By turning your perceptions inward, and controlling the flood of signals, you can give your spirit the freedom to send signals back to you, or to "remember" the spirit world, temporarily.

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