THE NEXT FEW BLOGS ARE ON THE SPIRITUAL POWER OF JOY

The Ancestors

Spiritual practice and knowledge of the energy pathways it facilitates are crucial in the management of Joy.

In the previous bogs we talked around the Tree of Life as an energy,  and vibrational model for spiritual transformation. In these blogs I thought to sometimes invoke the Chakra model as well in illustrating how high up on the vibration scale Joy can be.

"Joy is not incidental to your spiritual path it is vital." 
Rev Nachman

The two models embrace the same polarities. The T.O.L. can also be transposed onto the human body, as above so below. They are both models for connecting to the macrocosm.

The T.O.L. is aligned in three columns; left contracts, right expands and the center hold the balance. With the chakras there are also three energy channels and these course up and along the spine.

 The moon, blue, feminine, contraction channel spirals around the chakras 

together with the sun, masculine, red and expansive channel

while both surround the central channel. 

The feminine, Shakti, Kundalini, serpent energy is coiled around the base of the central channel and is the key to spiritual transformation and vibratory change. We will also see how it affects Coherence.

The Shechina, the feminine equivalent of the God head resides at the base of the Tree at Kingdom or Malkhut.

When the yoga, Shakti, Kundalini moves up the spine with the synchronous balancing of sun and moon to reach Shiva, the Oneness Experience or Unity Consciousness occurs where the Knower, the Known and the Process of Knowing fuse into One thing. 

When we reach Keter, the crown of the T.O.L., we come into recognition that we are made in the image of the Divine and "I am that I am," as is the microcosm, so is the macrocosm and that we are a microcosmic, holographic representation of the Creator. 

If we compare the qualities of the sephirot and the chakra system we can understand that they are very similar although the T.O.L. is more elaborate.

During the next few blogs I will refer to the one or the other, you can choose the one you prefer to appreciate your progress up the vibrational hierarchy.

Joy I believe is towards the top of both energy "ladders" to enlightenment.

In the figure underneath the properties of the sephirot of the T.O.L. are to the left and the chakra system to the right.

T.OL.                            Chakras

The Ancestors say that its all about 

Sorrow 
& Joy
and the ups and down of life. There is always an ongoing flux between them which is the way it is meant to be. There can be no joy without sorrow. 

The polarity between the two makes for our "Becoming". This depends on how we approach the issue of sorrow. We can take pause with the wisdom teachings about sorrow in our lives and try as the Ancestors recommend to; 
Find joy in hidden recesses.

Also
"Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional."

An extension of exaggerated and unrequited sorrow and grief is  Learned Helplessness which embraces the mnemonic of 

H.A.D.  (as in maybe - "I HAVE HAD IT WITH LIFE!") 

However, we can take steps to prevent this from happening.

Those who survived the Nazi death camps were not usually the strongest physically but the optimists who still had a strong desire to fulfill a goal. They refused to learn helplessness.

The opposite of Seligman's Learned Helplessness is Learned Optimism.

Seligman the father of Positive Psychology studied Learned Helplessness vs. Learned Optimism and found that optimistic people were happier, enjoyed life more and were healthier and more productive than those that were pessimistic. Pessimistic folks were also more likely to be depressed and anxious. He also showed that learned optimism could be taught with various exercises.

According to Seligman optimism can be learned. The Ancestors agree.

Pessimists are frequently right but it is clearly an advantage to be an optimist. However, it's also important to be a realistic optimist.

Some may be too optimistic and think they are right when they are not. So Ford is incorrect but this below was obviously a good mantra for choosing optimistic engineers for his automobiles.

This raises the question of

self-esteem 

vs. 

Self-worth 

(an unconditional positive regard for oneself and for others or U.S.A. - Universal Self Acceptance which also embraces not only oneself but others.)

The self-esteem movement - where children were unrealistically praised - started in California and proved to be a dismal failure.  According to Seligman it led to depression, anxiety and less ability to perform as well as an increased incidence of suicide. In other words...

Self worth is crucial for Joy and spiritual transformation since

 It's all about giving back which is soul technology.

All about me 

is a recipe for misery

 
This is also part of the Incorporation phase of the Hero/ine's journey. 

Self worth as with the many other things we will describe goes along with gratitude and joy and resides in the upper chakras above the diaphragm, i.e. with (self) love in the 4th heart chakra. Moreover, Self worth does not exclude humility. 

The Ancestors

"s"elf esteem or "s"elf cherishing (Buddhism) is a property of Ego, the 3rd chakra along with persona, stuff, fame and attachment to the objects of our desire. Self esteem is self cherishing with a small s.  Self worth deserves a capital S and is an essential quality for nurturing the higher Self. Along with gratitude and congruence it resides in the higher chakras.

Learned Helplessness is a 1st chakra survival, flight of fight response.

Click on the link to highlight, then play and dance for joy's sake.

-_MP3s/18_African_Joy.mp3