SGM Nov. 2013 Weekly Message Two: “Experiencing The Universal Life Force”
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Welcome back to the November 2013 Edition of Spiritual Growth Monthly. I’m Kevin Schoeninger. It’s great to have you with us here at SGM!
Do you know what this picture is? It’s a Kirlian photograph, an energy picture, of my wife Monica and I sitting next to each other. The warm-colored energy sphere in the middle is where our hearts are. If that sounds a bit “out there” to you, or if it just confirms what you already know, I encourage you to read on. You may be surprised at how this information can change your life for the better!
This week, we dive into one of my favorite subjects and one that I feel is absolutely essential for stress reduction, healing, and reaching your fullest potential! That is, experiencing yourself as an expression of Universal Life Energy. In this Week’s Message, I’ll show you why this is so crucial to your well-being and how you can get more in touch with this dimension of your life.
Now you might not instantly see how experiencing yourself as Universal Life Energy is connected to the more practical matters of your life. You might think of this as a more esoteric subject and wonder how it could be so important in the real world. Yet, did you know that an energetic view of reality is accepted and taken for granted in physics and has even made its way into the mainstream medical profession?
One of our most common medical diagnostic tools relies on the existence of energy fields. MRIs (or magnetic resonance imaging devices) measure the radiations of the energy fields associated with the tissues in our bodies and then feed us a picture of what is happening on an energetic level. Yet even though that is the case, neither most doctors, nor most of the rest of us, give energy fields much attention. We look at the output of an MRI and see it as we would any physical object, not realizing that it is “energy” that we are seeing. We are pretty well-embedded in viewing our lives in physical terms.
If we also have a spiritual view of life, we might wonder how spirit and matter relate. How does this hard stuff called matter and this ethereal substance called spirit interact? How does the ghost animate the machine? What is the medium of exchange? When we understand that hard matter is really vibrating energy containing mostly empty space, which is quite similar to how we think of “spiritual” stuff, life comes together in a whole new way. Viewing life as energy provides a profound, integrated perspective.
In Stage Nine of Dr. Donald Epstein’s 12 Stages of Healing, we come to experience and appreciate that we are fundamentally made of energy. As Epstein says:
“in Stage Nine, we begin to experience life differently. As we arrive at this stage of healing, we become acutely aware that there is more to us than the physical body we have grown accustomed to knowing. We begin to perceive that there is a life force, an energy, an intelligence that flows through us. This energy can manifest as warmth, vitality, color, or light.” (p.150, 12SOH)
In Qigong meditation, “qi” or life energy is commonly identified by eight different sensations: heat, cold, pain, numbness, soreness, swelling, itching, and twitching. Many of these sensations are associated with energy that is “stuck,” “congested,” or not flowing smoothly, which is the precursor to having physical symptoms or illness. On the other hand, when your life energy is flowing smoothly, it feels good. Smooth energy flow, often feels like warmth, tingling, and fullness, accompanied by a feeling of relaxed, ease and stress-free well-being.
As you begin to feel the sensations of life energy, it’s common to initially feel them in your hands and feet or the top of your head, though you may also feel them in your abdomen, heart, the center of your brain, or throughout your body as a whole. Sensing energy is actually a skill that you can develop through qigong, t’ai chi, Core Energy Meditation™, yoga, chanting, deep breathing, prayer, and other spiritual disciplines and body-awareness practices. Through these practices you awaken your inner senses and become attuned to life on an energetic level.
While you may first feel energy inside your own body, it’s natural to begin to feel that your body is part of a larger energy field. This is why sensing energy naturally leads you to a spiritual perspective. As Epstein says,
“In Stage Nine, we begin to feel energy or life force extending through us and into the world around us. At the same time, we become aware that there is a deep yet subtle connection between ourselves and our environment, which includes the ‘empty’ space around us, as well as other people, animals, and plants.” (p.151, 12SOH)
Now, that might seem like just a nice spiritual awareness, but how does it impact your life, your everyday reality, and the issues and concerns that you want to solve? What is so life-changing about feeling life energy? Epstein says:
“Simply acknowledging that we are more than our physical senses and that there is a force or an intelligence that flows through us can potentially change our lives forever. For perhaps the first time, we sense that we are part of a larger, energetic reality, as compared to merely a physical reality. And this broader perspective initiates our ability to view ourselves playing a small but significant role in planetary healing.” (p.151, 12SOH)
When you experience life energy inside your body, between yourself and others, and throughout the larger Field, you get a sense that you have a part to play in what is happening on this planet, and in the Bigger Picture. You are here with a specific energetic frequency, which comes with specific skills, resources, and tasks to be used for the good of the Whole. Your life has purpose and your task is to discern and carry out that purpose each moment, to the best of your ability.
Not only does this give you a whole different perspective on life—life no longer feels so random—it also gives your life a whole new feeling. When you live in a consistent awareness of yourself as an expression of the One Energy that we all share, you instantly feel grateful. You feel loving and peaceful. Life is imbued with a pervasive meaning and purpose.
In Epstein’s words, “Experiencing this energy provides us with the knowledge that it is real, powerful, pure, true, connected beyond physical form, and somehow related to joy, beauty, excitement, and vitality.” (p.153, 12SOH)
The beginning of Stage Nine is usually exciting as you begin to feel the first tingles of life energy flowing. You begin to realize that you are much more than a physical body and your life is much more than you had previously imagined. You start to experience the connections between what’s happening in your energy field and what’s happening in your life.
As these energy sensations spread throughout your body, you may experience areas where energy seems to flow freely and other areas that feel numb or blocked. You might be inspired to take up a daily practice, such as Core Energy Meditation™ or Qigong, which are about opening up and releasing smooth energy flow through your whole body.
As you complete Stage Nine, Epstein says, you know that “There is an energy that flows through me, there is a consciousness that I am made of, there is an aspect of my reality I have never known before. I am not a fixed product or body, but I am in the process of unfolding.” (p.160, 12SOH)
A natural desire arises to honor who you are and what you are here to do in service to the Whole of Life.
As in the other stages, Epstein gives us a meditative breathing exercise to help us move through Stage Nine effectively and get in touch with our energetic nature.
(adapted from p.162, 12SOH)
This exercise is very simple. It can help you feel the sensations of life energy. Lie on your back with your legs comfortably apart and relaxed. Raise your arms, put your palms together and rub your hands vigorously together. Then, either open your arms as if you are holding a large beach ball over your face or reach your arms overhead.
Lightly close your eyes.
Imagine a cloud of light above you.
Breathe in the cloud of light, gently yet deeply, in through your mouth and out through your nose for one to two minutes.
After doing this breathing for one to two minutes, say these declarations or ones that resonate well with you until you really feel the meaning:
“I feel the Life Force. I am grateful.”
Lower your hands to your sides and pay attention to the sensations inside your body.
I would like to hear your experiences with this exercise and/or any comments on this message in our Discussion below.
In next week’s message, we’ll ascend to an even higher level of consciousness as we explore Stage Ten in the 12 Stages of Healing.
Until next time,
Pay attention to sensations of Life Energy inside and around you,
Kevin