A Belief Becomes Its Own Ecosystem.
Throughout our life we have certain experiences, good, bad, ugly and our parents had certain experiences, our country had certain historical experiences and when adopted beliefs that tried to protect us from reality. The problem is that perpetuate suffering if not questioned.
For example, many years ago I had a young Muslim woman who joined an introduction I was taking on The Work of Byron Katie, and her belief she discovered when she asked herself, “what would someone believe in order to experience this” in relation to a certain feeling she was experiencing was “Life is Hard”. When she really enquired into the belief she realised her life, compared to her immigrant parents was really easy, fun and with many opportunities, but when she believed the thought she suffered and everything became difficult. Without the belief she was free to choose her own experience.
Here is how a belief works:
Whether conscious or unconscious we believe something to be true based on experience or we adopt beliefs from our parents.
We gather EVIDENCE to prove it is correct, then the belief changes the way we FEEL, the way we REACT, our experience in our BODY, whilst other THOUGHTS collect around it and we FILTER life, relationships, money, success and our own sense of sense through the EXPECTATIONS of this alive belief.
As we gather evidence to prove the belief is correct is comes alive in us, and creates its own thought forms that are self perpetuating, which means when the opposite shows up the majority of the time we cannot see it or experience it as it is incongruent to the belief that is continuously gathering evidence to prove it is correct.
Now this is a problem as it causes internal suffering and conflict as it argues with reality and our true nature. So what to do?
The Great Undoing
Over the years I have worked with many techniques and the one that really works to relieve suffering, whereby the belief when enquired into, let’s go of you, is The Work of Byron Katie: The Great Undoing.
Time Magazine called it: “4 Questions to Inner Peace”
Eckhart Tolle said: “Byron Katie’s Work is a great blessing for our planet. It acts like a razor-sharp sword that cuts through illusion and enables you to know for yourself the timeless essence of your being.”
Here is how it works:
Start with something that stresses you. This could be an experience, something that someone does that annoys you or the like.
- Ask: What would someone believe in order to experience this?
- Write it Down as a short sentence
- Then ask from your head and answer from your heart: “Is it true?” Go deep within you and find if you can find the truth, not just your thinking.
- If it is a YES then ask: “Can I absolutely know this to be true?” in my heart of hearts. Then proceed to #5
- If it is a NO then ask: “How do I react, what happens to me when I think this thought?”
- Ask: “How do I treat myself, life, the other when I think this thought?”
- Ask: “Who would I be without this thought?” “How would I feel without this thought?” Really go inside and let the space without the thought come alive in you.
- Turn it around to opposite ie: To Reality (remember this is not about convincing yourself but meeting reality as it is)
- Turn it around to yourself ie: take the other out and add me (how do I treat myself in the same way I say the other is treating me?)
- Turn it around to me with the other ie: How do I treat the other in the same way I accuse the other of treating me?
- Where is each turnaround truer in your life? try and find as many examples as you can, so that your whole being gets to experience the reality of this.
The Work of Byron Katie is an opportunity to return home to your true nature, love, an experience of peace and flow with life.
If you would like to join us an enquire into your stressful thoughts as a group we welcome you. FOR MORE INFORMATION
