Thursday, August 23, 2007

Spiritual Renewal & Healing through "Quiet Time"

My personal path in life has involved extensive education in the fields of psychology and healing. A gift given to me by one of my teachers is the practice of what he calls Quiet Time. That teacher is Herwig Schoen and he is the originator of a new healing modality he calls "Reconnective Therapy". (www.reconnectivetherapy.com) All of Herwig's classes are started with Quiet Time during which we stop all activity to sit and be with "what is".

During this Quiet Time, I have a heightened awareness of my racing thoughts as well as external sounds and then I come to a point where I become keenly aware of my own breathing and I feel a conscious presence beyond my thoughts
. I rise above my thoughts and connect with my consciousness that observes these thoughts.

Sometimes it is almost impossible to stop my thoughts and be still, but even observing that I am not my thoughts, but something greater than my thoughts, is progress towards reconnection with my higher self. After all, who is observing the racing of the thoughts? It is something more than those thoughts.


Eckhart Tolle (www.eckharttolle.com), author of the best-selling book The Power of Now, talks about how beneath the surface everything is connected with everything else and also with the Source of all life. When we become quiet and stop all the noise, we have the opportunity to connect to God or the Source or whatever someone chooses to call the great Intelligence that lies beyond our limited human minds.

The greatest gift of Quiet Time is the experiencing of the higher self. Eckhart Tolle's book A New Heaven and A New Earth: Awaken to Your Life's Purpose refers to heaven not as a location but as the inner realm of consciousness. He states: "A 'new heaven' is the emergence of a transformed state of human consciousness, and 'a new earth' is its reflection in the physical realm."

Your voice in your head is not who you are. If you take just five minutes a day with Quiet Time, you will start to observe this truth. Transcendence of thought through Quiet Time can be a powerful tool for you to make your individual contribution to the spiritual evolution of mankind, which is the foundation of creating a happier and more harmonious civilization.

Stephen Covey in his popular book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People says that renewing your spiritual dimension is what provides leadership to your life. That spiritual dimension "draws upon the sources that inspire and uplift you and tie you to the timeless truths of all humanity." For some, being in Nature can be the key to renewal. "When you're able to leave the noise and the discord of the city and give yourself up to the harmony and rhythm of nature, you come back renewed.....until gradually the noise and the discord from outside start to invade that sense of inner peace."

Do yourself, and the planet, a favor, and start to practice Quiet Time.

and......interestingly enough, I spoke to a travel agent today on the phone and her actual name was "Heaven." And, honestly, working with her was a "heavenly" experience.