Spiritality of Struggle

A challenge dissolves the way we are and makes the boundaries more fluid, we are feeling a certain uncertainty. We are challenged by the way we look at our self and it takes us to an unknown place. So the challenge gives us the possibility to take a step forward and allow our self to roam more freely in the way we are. It involves a bit of sadness and fear. We start to wonder what is happening inside us.

There is different ways of coping. One thing for sure is that I feel lonely, that is what makes us uncomfortable but this is normal. A challenge is unique to us and the loneliness means this is a lonely path; we start to learn different type of skills if we accept the path of loneliness. We are alone in what we have to deal with. In reality, nobody can understand us. It is one of the best ways to engage with myself in a different way.

Aloneness, I choose, loneliness I don’t choose and it becomes a struggle, but it will start to push forward the start of creativity, the direct effect of loneliness is that the challenge becomes bearable; we get the strength to survive the day. It takes us to the point of who we are and this is not a bad thing.

Our main problem is that we don’t take responsibility of our life; all of us have to face issue bigger than we are use to sometimes. To find the way out, we need first to have a basic attitude of survival. We need to do everything to survive like reading, swimming, walking, sports, etc ... and then we need to be creative, we need to take the attitude that we want to learn from the challenge we’re facing, or we want to creatively find a way.

Sometimes we can’t solve all the problems. Sometimes it is ok to carry an issue. Creativity will tell us if it’s not the right time. It gives us a deep consolation. We can live with an issue without trying to solve it.

Remember that the most important thing is the attitude. It is ok to be lonely; it is ok to have an issue. We allow it to be, we accept this part of us we don’t understand. When I can’t understand myself, how can I expect someone to understand me? And then something happens. We learn to see our self differently because this issue has made us different. We have to realise that this is ok, that we can’t find a shortcut and some issue takes time to evolve.

There is nothing better in life to understand who we are, to accept the grey, the white and the black, It is ok to be the way we are. It brings us a deep sense of peace and we no longer struggle.

The experience of peace is the building block of our life. Carrying the burden is the learning process, and something new happens. We can be at peace even if we are not complete, therefore we need to have compassion for our self and for the others. Compassion is loving without understanding and it takes us beyond our problems.

Self Identity - Intimacy

Self Identity is born with us and will stay until we die. We are all trying to understand who we are and this question is so important that we would do anything for the answer.

Our environment, family and friends will push us to use the self destruction or the self loving. When we choose self destruction, it leads us to a low self esteem and depression. It is a direction we take as we choose all the things that make us unhappy (films, relationships, books...), and we’re ok with it because of low self esteem, we think we are not worth being loved. This idea is reinforced by people, or by a belief system. Some people will put us down to feel comfortable; some are aggressive because they want to take our power.

At some point we need to realise that we are worth being loved. It is a tough challenge, and we need to build a spiritual path with a strong foundation. When we’re not respecting our self, when we are not using life affirming ideas, we are losing contact with our self and we remain on a superficial level of intimacy.

Intimacy is the way I see myself in truth, it is a deep and honest view of who I am, and being honest is not easy, sometimes, but if we aren’t then we lose touch with our truth. It is a decision, there is no magic. Small incremental decisions every day will help us to stay on a life affirming path. And to be able to do that, we need think about the exception. If we live in a cloud, there will always be one day of light. When we think of that particular day, we go there and we stay for a moment that is how we open a window. When we choose life affirming energy, we find the seed that will help us to start something we think is impossible.

Le'ts activate our free will and we will discover our own spiritual path.

The Wheel of Life Harmony Center

Five Gateways - Our Journey of Ascension

Deborah Marshall-Warren - Hypnotherapy

The Mandorla

The Mandorla is a tool that helps us to explore our shadow side to move into the path of owning it and understand the dark side of our psyche.

Sometimes there is resistance to become better because the price to pay is too high for us, so we prefer to stay the way we are.
Issues keep coming up in our life, and we keep on having the same patterns of thoughts. They are triggered by a low self esteem, the feeling of being rejected, seeing people as a threat. We have issues of abundance (affection or material things) and issue of self identity.
- Some people are craving for attention and affection and will always be on the alert, they need the other to recognize their presence and will do anything to get the attention, even if it makes everybody miserable
- If somebody has a low self esteem, he would try to mirror his self esteem through money for example, the more he has, the better he thinks he is.

We have to identify with our inner power. We don't need extension of ourselves (like a car for example) to be ok. We don't need to have the perfect body to be ok. When we're in touch with our inner power, we don't need to excuse ourself, to explain why we think the way we do because we're ok with ourselves. We are crushed when we are not in contact with who we are really.

But how do we relate to our shadow ? The society has been telling us to fight our shadow side, it is a sin, it is black and bad. We have to hide it and discipline it, because Religion has interpreted it with shame.
Do not fight, do not try to destroy your shadow, you will hurt yourself big time. This is not the way to relate to our our shadow. What we need to do is become aware and become friends with it. Be curisous : what is my shadow part telling me ? Be interested, why is it here ?
The black and white are complementary. So whatever does not function is complementrary to my wholeness and whatever functions is complementary to my wholeness.

The Mandorla can help us to integrate our shadow.

The Mandorla is an ancient symbol of two circles coming together, overlapping one another to form an almond shape in the middle. Mandorla is the Italian word for almond. The almond is an ancient symbol for the closing up of valuable contents in a hard, almost impenetrable shell. It is a mysterious image of concentration upon the light that shines from within. Christ's true nature is supposed to lie beneath the surface of the corporal (bodily) being.

During medieval times, the almond was interpreted as a symbol of the embryo enclosed in the uterus. The form of the almond which suggests a stylized vulva may have contributed to such an interpretation. It is also a variant of a halo which surrounds the whole body of the holy person.

The Mandorla is also known as the "Vesica Piscis", symbolizing the interactions and interdependence of opposing worlds and forces. Although the symbol has its origins before the Christian era, the early Christians used the symbol as a method to describe the coming together of heaven and earth, between the divine and human.

The circles symbolise interacting but complementary opposites. The space within the overlap is the place in which we are called to "remain". This is the place where you arrive after you leave one room and have not yet entered another. In this place, you are living on the threshold and this requires faith. All transformation takes place in this space.

If we deny one of the opposites (our shadow), the circles may only touch; they do not intersect. In this situation, we are polarised, out of balance.

Our temptation is to keep them separate, the challenge is to allow them to meet. When opposite meets, it is a generation of living, it creates energy and passion. It is like the 4th stage of Alchemy, the creation of Gold :

1- Darkness

2- Lightness

3 - Mixte

4 - Gold

This creation of Force and Energy will help you to move forward ans we know that it is a life struggle to work on ourselves ...

Awakening to the Dream - Christine Page M.D.

The Male and the Female Energy

We have been created to be balanced. When balance is achieved we flow with life, we’re moving with ease. Since we are all both female and male we need to find balance between these 2 energies. If there is no balance, all decision we will take will be unbalanced but also our relationships, our thoughts processes, the way we formulate ideas etc ...

Very often we tend to neglect one or the other energy, and most of the time, we neglect the female because we have a wrong idea about the female psyche.

Female energy gives life, to give life, is to create. So the female energy is about endurance, creativity, intuition, compassion, care , etc ...

What do we need to take a hard decision ? we need the strength of the male and the flexibility of the female

How can we relate with somebody? With a strong love and tenderness – it means being protective and giving freedom at the same time

So the real strength is the combination of the 2 energies and being balanced means finding the balance between our male and our female energy, and then our whole body will transmit balance, we will project it outside of us.

The mantra of the week is:

Strength with gentleness

Gentleness with strength

Tuesday 27th July : Seminar on Sexuality

Sexuality is not about having sex in a “dense metal” way. Sexuality is the power of connecting, the power of openness, and the way of attachment. It is our capacity to allow somebody to come into our life. Sexuality is indeed a power, It is life giving, life creating, so the first thing to do is to acknowledge this power and accept it.

Sexuality defines us, it defines how we relate with our self and with others and this is how we understand who we are. So sexuality is our thermometer that gives us an indication of the level of consciousness we are at this point in time. Our sexuality is complex because it engages every aspect of our personality and when sexuality is in the centre of our consciousness, it becomes bliss, it becomes ecstasy because it is a channel to relate to the divine. Sexuality is generated through Passion, that tremendous energy that gives us the power to overcome the obstacles in our life. Therefore we need to start to live with passion and bring it in everything we do in life.

We are all a sexual being for others, sharing helps us to grow and to understand our self in a deeper way. Sexuality doesn’t exist without others. We need to meet and generate energy. Sexuality is about creating something new with someone else. In most of sexual acts, the fusion does not happen. For the fusion to happen, we need to allow our self to be vulnerable with our partner, we need to trust and letting go. Then, both partners will decide to fusion together in a way they come in contact with their own power.

With tenderness we can allow vulnerability to happen. Tenderness allows us to open up, it demises the resistance, it pushes us to the point where we allow our self to let go. In vulnerability, the shadow side manifests, the other sees our dark areas, and it becomes a dangerous game. But tenderness shows a deep caring for each other, it is an energy coming from the heart.

Fusion will bring to ecstasy, but ecstasy is brief and you can’t experience it the all time but the experience of ecstasy will help us to continue to work on our self, because each time, we have to start all over again. So the first step is to concentrate on tenderness, when you are tender, you love unconditionally, tenderness is an energy does goes beyond our mind, it allows us to love somebody despite his dark side. It allows us, not to forgive, but to love even more.

There is 7 stages of Love :

1-Attraction: when we are attracted to somebody, this person is mirroring something is us, we feel similarity, and we like to see our self in the other person.

2- Infatuation: it is the 2^nd step of attraction, we see that the person really likes us and we lose our mind, we want to fuse with the person, it’s like self absorption.

3- Communion: after the “fusion” stage, the couple will experience the separation, we create space between us, we become aware of our differences and we realise that despite these differences, it is ok to stay together.

4- Intimacy : we have accepted our differences, we don’t agree on everything and we take the decision to start to love unconditionally. There is a kind of pull/push negotiating period where we agree on the terms of staying together. We are committing our self into the relationship, our bodies and our psyche merge together. When true intimacy happens, we have an equal relationship.

5- Surrender & non-attachment : The dynamic becomes different, we don’t need to negotiate anymore and we feel an even deeper unconditional love. We love our partner for who he is really now at this point in time and not for whom he can become.

There are 2 stages here:

Surrender: we experience as a couple, an emotional surrender, it is as if we give up our opinions, to allow our partner to come into our life completely.

Non attachment: Unconditional love allows the other person to be free. We allow him to have his own space. It is not distance, but a space created between the 2 persons, a space where each person is totally free to be who he is. It needs a deep understanding and respect for the other person and it creates a bound on another level, it creates a spiritual bound.

6- Passion : Passion means intensity, it is that dynamic force that creates life, by respecting our individuality and connecting with each other, sexuality takes then another meaning, it gives us access to god, it moves us to a higher consciousness that creates the living existence.

7- Ecstasy: Ecstasy happens when 2 people lose themselves totally, merge into the other and experience the essence of what creation is all about. We arrive at a point of total union, total bliss.

This dynamic can’t be maintained because we can’t sustain it. What is left is the memory that will be engraved in our psyche. We feel one with the whole universe, it is a true experience of oneness.

Wed 28th July 2010 - The shaman and the addict

The shadow side of each one of us is mostly unknown, rejected or suppressed to / by us.

It is part of who we are which we forgotten.

The more our psyche is open to the light the more we can transform ourselves deeply. We have two options:

Either to ignore the shadow self or to engage it and allow it to come to the surface. We recognise it and take responsibility for it.

Both the shaman and the addicts goes for extremes and for intense experiences - for the Buzz - Energy - Power.

The shaman has great experience in this. s/he is brave - courageous. The shaman goes to the limit of his/her own power.

The addict goes to the limit of the experience.

The difference between the addict and the shaman is that the shaman is sober. The shaman doesn’t loose control and is totally rooted in the experience while the addict gives the power to the addiction.

We are all addicts in some form or another being it a substance, relationship patterns, dysfunctions, self and so on.

Shamanic practice can help us to move out of the addiction dynamic.

The addiction recognise a need whether the need is true or not, and addiction acts on it, relate to the need by intensify it to a point where the person loose control.

We are all the time suppressing the shadow self. We do not root ourselves in Reality. We prefer not to hear, not to see, and instead prefer to be rooted into out thought processes and imagination. This is called projection.

The process of projection creates a Shadow - which is the lack of clarity and lack of truth.

Jung said that the shadow self is pure gold.

It is the catalyst we need to transform. If we bring fourth what is within us, it saves us. If not it will destroy us.

Addiction is a perceived need which we habitually intensify up to a point where it takes control over us.

Our needs become addictions because we believe we have something missing or we do not believe that we are whole.

I am complete. I am whole. I will take responsibility for my life. I do not need anyone to make me happy. I do not need anyone or anything to complete who I am. I am whole within myself.

Thank you Maria Ruth for taking the notes

Raimbow Camp : Community day - Saturday 24th July

Swimming, discussions, working together and meditation in Qawra

Theme of the meditation : Tools to keep our balance

In the next 2 coming years, everything will speed up, everything will be breaking up. Things will move out in relationships, in structure and we will experience confusion. Things are moving very fast and we won’t have time to do everything, we will just have enough time to do what is really important, what we really need to do. Volcanoes, earthquake, oil spread, things are shifting and we need structured life so the all world can collapse but we keep our balance.
We can achieve a slowing down dynamic through structured silence, discipline and a structured spirituality. A structured silence is a good base for balance. Our body find balance with a new structure of connection between our body and our psyche. We re-find our balance through reconnection with our self. It needs discipline, but it only takes 10 minutes a day to be still in our mind, still in our body and experience the desert silence, it is like coming back to the mother. Let the silence covers us like an aura and help us to connect with inside of our body, silence helps us to connect deeply with ourself.
Things will happen to unsettle our balance and with a structured spirituality, which is unique to us, a spirituality which works for us, we will be able to face changes without being upset. A structured spirituality is simple and allows us to be flexible and to evolve quickly. As we’re changing consciousness, our balance change as well so we need to find a higher balance. A structured spirituality means meditation, silence, taking care of your body, giving service to people, being flexible to re-invent ourself very fast.

Rainbow Summer Camp 23rd July to 1st August 2010

Have you been feeling that there must be more to life than the everyday stress, boredom and busyness of coping with life and making ends meet? Would you like to learn to truly LIVE instead of just existing? Would you like to meet new people, and make sincere friends, where it is safe to explore your spirituality, and get to know yourself deeply? Do you think it's time to start a completely NEW chapter in your life, where you ...learn through experience to be free from suffering, where you get in touch with your Self, and start living a more serene life, learning to love yourself and others?
Then join us during the Rainbow Summer Camp - a beautiful place to start your amazing journey in this beautiful life.

These events are open to anyone intending to start giving attention to his/her spiritual life. Come and bring your friends. If you're interested in attending please book your place by sending an email to: flowtogether@gmail.com, or by calling Godwin Genovese on 9944 2944.

(click on picture to read the programme )

First message

The Wheel of Life Harmony Centre ideal is to create a FREE and SAFE place where people can develop all aspects of the personality, mind, body and spirit in community.

This space is dedicated to anyone in Malta who's trying to understand life and him/herself more....and who has embarked on a spiritual journey for the discovery of love and Self.
We respect any spiritual tradition. We embrace all faiths. Everyone is welcome.

Wheel of Life Harmony Centre,
Isis Creativity Centre
Windsor Flats, Msida Circus
MSIDA - Malta

flowtogether@gmail.com