Autocratic spiritual/religious beliefs are holding back further spiritual advancement

I just had a strong spiritual interaction/conversation with two “Christians” that came to my door to convert me.  I am sure I shocked them with my very different spiritual approach.  That is what motivated me to write this.  I strongly disagree with autocratic religious/spiritual beliefs that claim they have or are connected to perfect sources. I am not a Christian or member of any religion.I am into improving on the spiritual beliefs of the past and present, because I do not believe they are adequate for the advanced technological age we now live in. The predominating autocratic(not open to being questioned)spiritual/religious belief systems that exist on this Earth(including many”New Age” types)can be very attractive because of the “herd mentality” that exists in this world where people gain security and acceptance in the area they live by accepting a belief system that has a lot of believers there and thus sharing a similar spiritual mindset as a lot of people. People who have an independent spiritual mindset of the type that actually works at obtaining/developing beliefs that interface better with the physical reality we exist in right now, I believe are very rare here on this Earth.

Science may try to help us better interface with our reality, but often does not do the best job at this. Scientists are affected by what spiritual beliefs they have(or lack there of), which limits how good they are at finding out more of the truth. In some areas science can come up with hard results that will prove to work every time. But, often they come up with less reliable results, and sometimes they put forth theories that are very wild and difficult to prove as to their accuracy. In the past religion use to not know its limits and try to explain everything from their ideology and use to hold science back because of their immense power an influence in this world. Often science is doing the same in the modern world with its increasing dominance in fields in which the spiritual plays a very strong role such as psychology and medicine(healing). But, this invasion of spiritual areas by science is made easier by the lack of advancement in this world(the Earth)in the spiritual field of study. Sometime “spiritual” people will even take some of the more wild or complicated of scientific theories and use them to try to justify their beliefs.

One can design ones spiritual beliefs so that they help one to better perform in this challenging physical reality we now exist in.  One can do the type of physical-spiritual training(including very intense meditative movement and cardiovascular/heart exercises and a very effective diet) that will test how well one’s spiritual beliefs help one to handle really intense and difficult spiritual/emotional/physical states.  Science(especially in Medicine and Mental Heath fields) often dismisses the importance of “will power” or spiritual character and effective spiritual training and beliefs to alter how one is able to behave and function in this world.  Science, just often does not appreciate the huge value the spiritual can have in helping us better handle our physical and spiritual health and well being.  Science often does not take individual differences physically and spiritual into account enough.  I strongly believe the spiritual beliefs that enable one to handle this challenging physical reality we exist in will be closer to the truth.  That it is the challenging physical reality that we now exist in that really tests how good our spiritual beliefs really are by how well they help us to better perform spiritually.

I believe strongly in the importance of physical-spiritual connection and that actual parts of the brain that deal with emotions and sleep(altered spiritual states)are vital to our ability to perform really effectively spiritually.  Effective spiritual training must affect and help further develop these parts of the brain that impact one spiritual abilities.  They are not easy to impact since they have a sort of “(w)holistic” way of functioning.  The spiritual must deal with the big picture or see how our reality operates as a whole. Spiritual beliefs must deal with reality as a whole in order to help us function better in it.  A certain spiritual oneness and united focus is required in order to mobilize all of ones spiritual resources effectively in order to best deal with the serious problems/challenges this physical reality we are part of presents us with.

 

Picking up on hurtful feelings

I am picking up on some sort of “hurtful” emotions that probably relate to my intense connection to a person with a more traditional spiritual mindset. I can meditate(meditative walk or run) on this emotion and get stronger in handling the way a lot of the people on this planet intuitively judge me. Often when one picks up on a certain emotion as a result of an intense spiritual interaction(verbal dialogue) the other person will be feeling similar(sometime challenging) emotions. But intense spiritual discussions are best done by those who can handle them or benefit from them. A lot of people in this world are mistreated as a result of the insensitivity that come from the inadequacies of the dominating spiritual beliefs that exist on this planet at this time. The dominating spiritual/religious beliefs are easily tuned into spiritually and when they intuitively pick up on these beliefs people often believe they are from perfect sources. But, no spiritual sources are perfect, and even God is not a perfect source, since no one has a perfect connection with God.

Spiritual beliefs determine how well a person will be able to behave in this world

I often try to figure out how a person is likely to act from their words. One can not always get reliable information about someones past actions or afford to deal with their future actions. Communication is in itself an action and can often have very strong positive or negative impact on others. Spiritual beliefs have a strong impact on how well one is able to act especially when under pressure. People will often freely let you know what they believe,  and it is of positive benefit to oneself to try to find people to associate with who have spiritual beliefs that help them to better function in a positive way in this challenging reality we exist in. A lot of spiritual beliefs tend to discriminate against certain parts of our physical reality we exist in. When one’s beliefs discriminate against certain parts of our reality, not only do they make it harder for you to handle these parts of this reality, but you will discriminate against(be insensitive to)those who are being strongly impacted by this part of our reality.

For example some people believe that “time” can eventually be spiritually escaped from. This belief discredits the value of time in the spiritual scheme of things. Having a past to learn from, a present to apply ones actions to, and a future to improve upon gives people purpose. Some people survive, not because the present is so wonderful, but because they can envision ways to contribute to making for a better future. It takes time to train oneself to be more capable in any area including the spiritual. Some people may want instant gratification and not have to look to the future for results. But purpose comes from having a goal to aim for in the future. A person will often put up with an awful lot of hardship over time in order to prepare/train themselves and then climb to the top of some “mountain” representing some very worthwhile goal or achievement. So many really great achievements happen in this world by people who have really big goals that take a lot of time an effort to accomplish. Those with the most spiritual strength of character understand how valuable time is, and would not have spiritual beliefs that devalue its importance. Just feeling good in the present without having any desire to achieve something of value is not to me a very healthy spiritual state to be in.

Spiritual beliefs that value this challenging physical reality we exist in right now an awful lot, and that help people to put all of their focus on having a positive spiritual impact on this challenging reality will be the beliefs that one can rely on to perform in a way to bring about the more positive outcomes.   We live in a world that has a lot of serious problems and unhealthy conditions that are rooted in the inadequate spiritual state this world is in.  Not only is it important to be in a healthy spiritual state individually, but it is also to be contributing to improving the spiritual state the world around you is in.  Of course if one is in a healthy spiritual state one will automatically feel the need to do what it takes to contribute positively spiritually to the world one exists in.

The spiritual is very much powered by emotions.  A whole spectrum of emotions exist.  How well one acts will be very much determined by how well one can direct what ever emotion one is affected by in a positive/healthy spiritual/physical direction.   One needs spiritual beliefs that value this whole  spectrum of emotions.  Emotions are neither positive or negative in themselves, but are useful spiritual tools that we just need to figure out how to properly use.  Different circumstances in this challenging physical reality require different emotions to effectively deal with them.  Since in the present different people will be dominated by different emotions, being able to comfortably deal with differing emotions will help one to better interact with these people affected by them. Here is my blog post dealing with the value of the spectrum of emotions:

https://astrogoodwin.wordpress.com/2014/09/10/all-of-the-spectrum-of-emotions-can-be-positive-when-properly-directed-spiritually/

Is there such a thing as a better spiritual belief?

Yes, what one believes to be true about the spiritual can be improved on. Good training can tune you into the spiritual a lot better. And as one tunes into the spiritual better one can improve on ones spiritual beliefs so they interface better spiritually with the concrete challenging physical reality we exist in. So many spiritual beliefs tune people out from being effective in this challenging environment we are now in. As one increases the difficulty of the tough spiritual-physical training one does, or as one takes on more difficult spiritual(emotionally tough)challenges in life, one will require spiritual beliefs that are good enough to help one handle them. So many spiritual beliefs do not help one embrace the tough side of life spiritually, but seek a sort of escapism from it. The beliefs in perfect spiritual sources or connections makes one not open enough to improving what one believes. No one has perfect intuition especially in this world as is obvious by how people behave when on autopilot. Gut feeling are often wrong and the heart often misguides people with disastrous results. So many really naive(overly simplistic) beliefs are readily accepted often without much thought. Often people represent and sort of impose their spiritual beliefs on other on their internet posts without thinking they are!

Believing there is no such thing as a better spiritual belief, is a belief that I believe can be replaced with a better belief!

In my life I learned the hard way how important it is to have spiritual beliefs that help one to interface well with this challenging physical reality we all exist in that can really test how well our spiritual beliefs help us function spiritually when we are under a lot of pressure.

A lot of wild spiritual beliefs can come from a persons imagination which do not help them to connect very well spiritually with day to day reality in this physical world they exist in. A lot of religious and spiritual beliefs that are popular(and have a lot of psychic support in this world due to all those who believe in them)that can be readily be found on sites on the internet, tend to motivate people to seek to ultimately escape from the physical reality we are now in, rather than puting all of their spiritual energy they are able into doing the really difficult spiritual work required to positively transform it.

One can feel better about oneself and stay in a better mood

What is most important is to work hard at contributing in a positive way to this world what abilities you find enable you to so. One can get joy from knowing you are contributing to making this world a better place. Working hard to be on a good healthy diet, doing intense meditative and cardiovascular exercises(safely), working to develop ones spiritual beliefs so that they better help one embrace and interface with the physical reality one exists in will all be helpful. The problems that one will face in this world and the spiritual energy that comes with it can be very challenging. One needs to constantly work at becoming better at handling the challenges of life and the challenging emotions that come with them. Life can be a spiritual battle that takes a constant effort to keep in the right mood to handle it. One can with effort do a lot to improve ones physical and spiritual well being, provided one puts in the required work. Those who face the biggest spiritual challenges well will achieve a lot of real value in this world.

Here is a helpful blog post on meditation and mind-body exercises:    https://astrogoodwin.wordpress.com/2013/08/20/my-type-of-meditation-meditative-walkingrunning-and-mind-body-exercise/

All of the spectrum of Emotions can be positive when properly directed spiritually

People have a tendency to see certain emotions as only positive while seeing others as only negative. But, actually all emotions have a reason for existing and can be positive/healthy or negative/harmful depending on how good one is able to handle them and direct them.

Love is the emotion that seems to be often seen as only positive. But, love without understanding does not work that well at bring positive results in the world. It is the results that come from being motivated by an emotion that really count. Often the emotion of love is channeled in to all kinds of harmful addictions. Often relationships can be addictive and harmful. Sexual addiction can lead to all kinds of problems. Drug and food addictions are related to misdirected love. People often get addicted to their spiritual/religious beliefs/ideology and to the group/tribe associated with their beliefs. So many problems in this world are related to the sort of addictive tribal energy people become overly attached to. People who are strongly addicted to their spiritual beliefs are going to be very resistant to improving on them so that they can become more effective at directing their love energy to making positive things happen in their life and the world they influence/affect. A person may not always seem/appear to be very loving even though they may actually be doing a lot to help others and in helping make this world a better place. Some people do send out a lot of effective healing energy to others and to the world. If one is doing a lot spiritually to improve the conditions in the world around you and to help those close to you to lead better lives, then one would be using ones love energy in a really positive and effective way.

Anger is an emotion that is often really maligned by some spiritual ideologies. But a lot of the great causes that have made a really positive difference in this world have come as a result of the anger some people have felt about things that they felt were not right with this world. Often when someone or someone they know becomes a victim of an accident or crime or injustice, they will become quite angry and direct that anger toward mobilizing support to change the conditions that lead to the tragic results. A lot of things in this world are worth getting angry about. The main thing is to be able to handle the anger well, and utilize it to make the effort to improve the serious problems that exist on this planet. It is true that so often people are unable to handle anger well and they do things that are destructive to themselves and others. Some people just do not perform well when angry, but people who are able to handle anger well actually can perform better when angry. Some athletes, for example, perform at their best when angry.

Fear is also often maligned by certain spiritual ideologies. But, we live in a dangerous world where it is easy to get in serious trouble if one is not careful and does not fear making costly mistakes or fear certain dangers. People who work in Nuclear Power plants or involved in occupations that mistakes can cause serious injuries or cost lives need to use fear of harmful consequences to make them more vigilant. Fear of failing some test or not reaching a goal can motivate one to try to be really thorough when it comes to doing everything that it takes to past that test and meet that goal. Even if one fails at something it is so important that you know you gave it all you had. Trying to do ones best is what counts spiritually. One need to be aware of the dangers that exist in this world and actually fear them, so that one will be able to formulate some kind of plan on what to do if one is faced with a danger. One can not plan for every danger, but it is the awareness of possible danger than help one to intuitively sense approaching danger so that one can best avoid it. Feeling fear related to something can be ones intuition warning you to be extra careful or the need to change course or plans so as to avoid a dangerous/unsafe situation.

I will not cover every emotion, since you should be getting a sense for how emotions can be directed in a way to bring positive results in this world. The spiritual is very much powered by emotions. Good spiritual training requires one become really good at handling intense and difficult emotions so one can direct them toward positive results in this world. If one is really good at doing really intense meditative exercises, one will be good at channeling in on the emotions one is sensing related to the various things happening in your life or the lives of people you are close to and having a positive impact on them as one processes them spiritually. As one dissipates the discomfort an emotion is producing using intense meditation/meditative exercise and makes one more comfortable with the emotion, one will at the same time be having a positive impact on the source or cause of the emotion. One may still need to take some action related to a situation that has a certain emotion associated with it, but after meditating on the emotion one should be able to handle the situation in a lot more effective and positive way. I often feel anxiety before a meeting or social event, but find if I meditate shortly before the event/meeting I will be better able to handle the situation. The anxiety help me to mobilize the energy I need to better handle a situation that could be quite challenging to me.

One can not relate really effectively spiritually with a person who is powerfully affected by a particular emotion, unless one can handle that particular emotion well oneself. Understanding people really well requires one understand and handle emotions of all kind really well.

The Spiritual Value of Fear

Fear is so very valuable if you have the strength of spiritual character required to handle it well! One needs to be able to be really vigilant in this very precarious world we live in. One does not want to become a victim of some sort, due to ones carelessness or lack of vigilance. Accidents can so easily happen if one becomes too fearless/careless. There are all sorts of natural disasters that one should be prepared for, if one lives in an area prone to them. Fear, certainly motivates one to be prepared.

We have so many really spiritually messed up characters that one does not want to be victimized by. One needs to be afraid of becoming vulnerable to them, and have ones spiritual radar working well so one can sense when one of them might be approaching and you may be vulnerable to them. One can do a lot to make sure one does not do anything to make oneself vulnerable and has the means to protect oneself from harm.

One can use fear to motivate oneself to do to really hard and difficult spiritual(meditative/mind-body)training(with good diet) required to become strong enough and aware enough spiritually so that one will have the spiritual radar to better sense and deal with all sorts of dangers be they from other humans or from the physical world. Also if one want to succeed a lot in this world it is important to be vigilant in taking advantage of every opportunity and avoid costly mistakes. Fear can help motivate one to have that sort of vigilance. ONE HAS TO LOVE HOW VALUABLE FEAR CAN BE!

  • Thomas Goodwin "astrogoodwin"