Spiritual Art Blog - *Ed P

Soul’s Connection

The picture is now getting close to the final concept. I’m now happy with the way this is coming together and how the hands are bringing their gifts to the bodies below them.

 

The University of Life - an introduction

Thought for the Week

We are all in the University of Life studying various degrees as we go through our lives. We each become proficient or an expert in some aspect of life. We graduate with a degree in looking after children or people, cooking, making money, working at a particular trade, creating things, communicating and lots of other skills and talents.

The main characters
We are often so busy living our lives we are unaware that we are in a learning environment. We don’t see that we are students of life in the University of Life. Let's meet some of the main characters in this university. The Student, the Head of the University, the Nutty Professor, the Assistant and the Genial Janitor.

The main character is our true happy, loving selves, Soul, the student who has enrolled into the University of Life. We have been sent off by our father, the Higher Power or God to discover ourselves, why we exist, how our existence works and what we are here to do.

Head of the University
The Head of the University is a strict no nonsense guy who issues projects for us to complete. He is often seen as pleasant and generous, a lot of people think of him as God and he is indeed the God of his University. While we are here as a student we have to obey his laws. Sometimes he can be seen as a demon and a devil, giving what seem like impossible tasks for us to complete. He is often accused of putting tempting diversions I our way to divert us from our goal and keep us in the University for as long as possible.

Nutty Professor
Next we have the Nutty Professor who can sometimes take control of everything and concentrate all our efforts on a few select projects and experiments. He has often rejected any input from the student as irrelevant and illogical. He bases all his research on logic and will often not take into consideration any suggestions or influences from higher sources. If it’s not logical, it doesn’t belong in what he considers proper work and research.

The Assistant
The next character is the Assistant and who sometimes ends up as a guinea pig. The Assistant does the bidding of the Nutty Professor and the Head of the University of Life. Regularly he has to perform the tasks necessary to conduct the experiments and gather the research, relating to the current project. Many times the Assistant becomes the guinea pig to test a particular theory.

Some of these experiments are straight forward and simple where we try a few combinations to see what happens. Other times we are dealing with something complex and unknown and can result in unexpected outcomes. Occasionally some of the experiments have been pushed too far causing the death of the poor Assistant.

Library
As we go through these experiments, Soul is gathering the experiences and collecting its research. It is earning positive and negative credits depending on the results achieved. If something doesn’t work out, we usually have to come back to it again at some stage, to complete the task.

The research and lessons are all stored in a huge library called our memories. We have several libraries but the one we are most familiar with is the one concerning our current life. We occasionally get references from older libraries as we come across people and places which had a significant role in one of our previous lives.

Genial Janitor
Then we have the genial Janitor. We spot him now and again as we go about our studies in the University. He can be very helpful in showing us how to get different places easily and seems to have the run of the place. He has often helped us with our experiments giving us advice and ideas. He has a way of explaining the rules and laws of the university so that we discover where we are going wrong and how to get it right.

While he is currently working in the university, one can see he has graduated a long time ago and is well versed in the outside world and how we can get there. He knows all the quick ways of getting through the university and will share his knowledge when asked. He’s carried out a lot of the experiments and knows how to get the best results. He also has a lot of friends who have been janitors in the past and between them they know their way around every part of the University of Life. He has been know to help a lot of assistants graduate a lot quicker than the Head of the University had planned for them.

Where do we fit?
So where do we fit into this view of the University of Life? Here are some alternative descriptions for the characters listed above:
Our Father – The Higher Power, the loving God, the Sugmad, Allah, the God of Gods.
The Student – Soul, the true, loving, happy part of ourselves.
The Head of the University of Life – God, the God of power and fear, the devil.
The Nutty Professor – our mind which uses logic to view and judge the world.
The Assistant – our physical selves, our body with its emotions.
The Genial Janitor – a prophet, a saviour, Jesus, Buddha, Mohammad, Krishna, Harold Klemp, Paul Twitchell, Dali Lama and others.
The outside world – heaven, happiness, joy.

Read through the article again and see if these character suggestions are right for you in your progress so far in the University of Life.

Next week we’ll have a look at the best degree we should go for while we are here in the University of Life. In the mean time live your live and love it.

*Ed Parkinson


You’ll find more insights on the University of Life on the Spiritual Writings page.

Inspirational Life Quotes

“Life is a stream of happy and unhappy experiences, because that leads to Soul’s purification. How do you get by in the dark times? Try to give love to someone, especially then.”
Harold Klemp

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”
Maria Robinson

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
Howard Thurman

“If you wait to do everything until you're sure it's right, you'll probably never do much of anything.”
Win Borden

“The difference between school and life? In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson.”
Tom Bodett

“The most important things in life aren't things.”
Anthony J. D'Angelo

“Life is too important to be taken seriously.”
Oscar Wilde

“Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life - think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success, that is way great spiritual giants are produced.”
Swami Vivekananda

“Perhaps our eyes need to be washed by our tears once in a while, so that we can see Life with a clearer view again.”
Alex Tan

“Our attitude toward life determines life's attitude towards us.”
John N. Mitchell

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”
Anne Frank

“Carpe diem! Rejoice while you are alive; enjoy the day; live life to the fullest; make the most of what you have. It is later than you think.”
Horace

“Life is the art of drawing without an eraser.”
John W. Gardner

“Life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.”
Grandma Moses

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
Albert Einstein

“Don't go through life, grow through life.”
Eric Butterworth

“Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they're supposed to help you discover who you are.”
Bernice Johnson Reagon

“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”
Charles R. Swindoll

“Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint you can on it.”
Danny Kaye

“Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
George Bernard Shaw

“Always do what you are afraid to do.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

“If I had to live my life again, I'd make the same mistakes, only sooner.”
Tallulah Bankhead

“The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
Buddha

“Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her: but once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.”
Voltaire

“Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn.”
C.S. Lewis

You’ll find lots more inspirational quotes about Life on the Spiritual Inspirations page.

 

Soul’s Connection

This development of the picture, Soul’s Connection, is getting closer to something I’m happy with. It portrays the idea that Soul is connecting with our physical. I have the image that Soul is stretching its hand down to connect with us in our physical world, however with all the other elements within ourselves, its message can easily get lost.

 

The Joy of Living

Thought for the Week

How can we bring the joy of living into our lives? How can we make what is for most of us a tough life, a little more enjoyable?

Hold on to the happy moment
When the happy times are scarce in our life we have to work at finding some happiness. We need to hold on to the happy moments that do occur. Whether the moment is a nice cup of tea or coffee, a smile from a friend or stranger, a thought of a loved one, a rest from hard work or a moment of laughter, we should hold on to these and make the most of them. We can take sustenance and strength from them as we see there is more to life than the pain and problems we are going through. We see a little light of happiness which brightens our day. We need to magnify that light so it brightens other areas of our life. We can recall the happiness while working our way through our current challenges.

We can change our attitude
A change of attitude can totally change the way we look at life. Changing our attitude can be like a miracle, it can change a situation completely. For example if we are in a disagreement with someone and we discover a new fact, it can change our mind about the whole situation.

We can also make a decision to look for and see the brighter side of the situation we are in. We can look to the goal of completing the challenge, solving the problem, fixing the situation or getting a task done. With this kind of approach or attitude we gain a more positive outlook on our situation. We begin to see that there will be an end to the problem or at least an improvement in our situation. We can sometimes see a glimmer of love shining through which often helps us get through our challenge.

Completing a challenge
Completing a challenge can bring a lot of satisfaction and add to our joy of living. If can see our issues, situations and problems as challenges and something we can get through, learn from and grow as people, we are putting ourselves on a positive path. We can now see that by getting through our tough times we will learn something and become better people. We will be stronger and able to deal with that problem if it comes up again.

Once we get one problem solved, we feel more able to tackle the next one. If we start with the small ones first and get some confidence in our ability to solve a problem we can then move on to the next one. Our confidence grows and our joy increases a little by little as we approach each challenge.

Switch love on
One of the secrets about love is that to get love we must give it. Love is an energy like electricity, unless it is switched on it stays dormant and unused. When we switch love on by giving love to someone or something, our love light comes on. The love we give brightens us and those around us.

This love is attractive, it attracts people as it is something we all crave deep in our hearts. Love also connects with the love in others hearts. We see a sparkle of love in a person and we begin to glow a little as we connect with or recognise the loving energy. We don’t even have to meet or connect with a person who sparkles with love, we can feel our heart brighten, lighten and glow.

To let love bring the joy of living into our lives, we have to let it flow through us. We have to keep the switch turned on. If we have been through tough times it can often switch our love off. We need to remind ourselves regularly to switch on our love and let it flow. It can be a challenge but with it switched on, our life will brighten and joy will return.

A list of the joyful things
Sometimes we need to look back to see where we have come from to appreciate what we have achieved. What has changed in the last year or two? How are we different? What improvements have happened? There may also be new problems and challenges, some of which we wish were not here.

If we draw up a list of the joyful things in our lives they can help us see the positive side of life. Our list may include:

People Friends Family Children A smile		Beauty Nature Animals Music Flowers Sunsets Dawn Stars paintings		Food Flavours Dinner Lunch Breakfast Weather Chocolate Cream Fruit Spices Herbs
Work Challenges Achievements Goals
Fun Special Occasions Holidays Weekends Conversations Laughter Jokes Entertainment Movies TV Radio Travel		Places Home Foreign Countries Cities Small towns Countryside		Activities Walks Help someone Dancing Doodles Drawing Writing Reading Contemplations Meditation Prayer Cooking Naps Be in the moment Love
		Gardens Jungle Mountains Valleys Forests Woods Plains

Wishing you every joy of living.

 *Ed Parkinson

 

Looking for other ideas on the Joy of Living? Try the Spiritual Writings page.

 

The Joy of Living Quotes

“The secret is this. You make your own happiness.”
Harold Klemp
 
“The moments we enjoy most as they unfold, and that we treasure long afterward, are the ones we experience most deeply. Depth roots us in the world, gives life substance and wholeness. It enriches our work, our relationships, everything we do. It’s the essential ingredient of a good life and one of the qualities we admire most in others.”
William Powers.

“Small joys are available to us in the pauses between the outer actions that fill our lives.”
Leo Babauta

“Don’t hurry. Don’t worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.’”
Walter Hagen

“When you express your gratitude, you will bring joy to others’ lives.
When others know joy, your life will be filled with happiness.”
Arthur Dobrin

“Peace comes from feelings of satisfaction when working with joy, living with hope, loving with abandonment”
Arnold Hutschnecker

“Oh the wild joys of living! The leaping from rock to rock ... the cool silver shock of the plunge in a pool's living waters.”
Robert Browning

“If you live on the level of the Body and the Individual, you will get entangled in food, fun and frolic, ease, envy and pride. Forget it, ignore it, overcome it -- You will have peace, joy and calm. In the Divine Path, there is no chance of failure; it is the Path of Love.”
Sri Sathya Sai Baba

“Friendship, love, health, energy, enthusiasm, and joy are the things that make life worth living and exploring.”
Denise Austin

“The ideals which have always shone before me and filled me with the joy of living are goodness, beauty, and truth.”
Albert Einstein

“Gratitude helps you to grow and expand; gratitude brings joy and laughter into your life and into the lives of all those around you.”
Eileen Caddy

“When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the morning light, for your life and strength. Give thanks for your food, and the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies with yourself.”
Chief Tecumseh Shawnee

“Life is so generous a giver, but we, judging its gifts by their covering, cast them away as ugly, or heavy, or hard. Remove the covering, and you will find beneath it, a living splendour, woven of love, by wisdom, with power. Welcome it, grasp it, and you touch the angel’s hand that brings it to you. Everything we call a trial, a sorrow, or a duty, believe me, that angel’s hand is there, and the wonder of an overshadowing presence. Our joys too; be not content with them as joys. They, too, conceal diviner gifts.”
Fra Giovanni Giocondo

“Joy lives concealed in grief.”
Jalal ad-Din Rumi

“A happy life must be to a great extent a quiet life, for it is only in an atmosphere of quiet that true joy dare live”
Bertrand Russell

“Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy.”
Joseph Campbell

“Compassion is sometimes the fatal capacity for feeling what it is like to live inside somebody else's skin. It is the knowledge that there can never really be any peace and joy for me until there is peace and joy finally for you too.”
Frederick Buechner

“I have been through a lot and have suffered a great deal. But I have had lots of happy moments, as well. Every moment one lives is different from the other. The good, the bad, hardship, the joy, the tragedy, love, and happiness are all interwoven into one single, indescribable whole that is called life. You cannot separate the good from the bad. And perhaps there is no need to do so, either.”
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

“We either make ourselves happy or miserable. The amount of work is the same.”
Carlos Castaneda

“Resolve to keep happy and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.”
Helen Keller

“The greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions, and not on our circumstances. We carry the seeds of the one or the other about with us in our minds wherever we go.”
Martha Washington

“The pleasantest things in the world are pleasant thoughts: and the great art of life is to have as many of them as possible.”
Montaigne

“To get up each morning with the resolve to be happy…is to set our own conditions to the events of each day. To do this is to condition circumstances instead of being conditioned by them.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.”
Thich Nhat Hanh

“Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.”
Henri Nouwen

“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
Abraham Lincoln

“Happiness is not in our circumstance but in ourselves. It is not something we see, like a rainbow, or feel, like the heat of a fire. Happiness is something we are.”
John B. Sheerin

“The really happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery when on a detour.”
Anon

“Happiness does not depend on outward things, but on the way we see them.”
Count Leo Tolstoy

 

Looking for other Divine Quotations? Try the Spiritual Inspirations page.

Soul’s Connection

Here’s the latest development of the picture, Soul’s Connection. It’s getting there but we’re not there yet.

Why would we want self realisation?

Thought for the Week

Why would we want self realisation? What is the point of being self realised and what does it really mean? 

Self realisation gives us the answers to a lot of the core questions we ask ourselves, our God, our angels or whatever higher power we refer to in times of anguish and despair. These questions include:
Who am I?
Why am I here?
What is life all about?
What is the purpose of life?

A lot of us go through life with these questions in the back of their mind but for some people, these questions are to the forefront of their lives. They spend their lives searching for the answers. Some travel to far off places like India and the Himalayas or retreat to nature or explore various spiritual paths. Some people use drugs and alcohol to find an answer to these haunting questions or to quell the burning in their hearts.

Self realisation frees us
If we can gain some realisation of who we are, how life works and its purpose we will become a little happier. Self realisation frees us from the illusion of having to do what "they" say or what "everyone else" is doing. We begin to see how we are individuals, each unique with our own understanding of life and the world. This comes from our experiences in life on all levels including our spiritual life. As we begin to reach self realisation, we become more individual and are prepared to step away from the crowd as we realise that what is put forward as good for the crowd, is not always good for us individually. We go it alone on some issues, steering away from what “everyone” says is “good” or “bad”.

We see that the social order is good for society in general but its rules, opinions and expectations can damage us individually on a spiritual level. Society doesn’t offer any meaningful answers to our questions. It has the consciousness of the mob because society is made up of Souls ranging in consciousness from animals to saints. We are all looking for the happiness that comes from self realisation but depending on the consciousness of the individual they may use brute force or divine love to achieve it.

How to reach  Self Realisation?
How do we reach self realisation? The good news is that we will reach it at some point in our journey as Soul. As we go through our lives we learn a little every time. We discover that hurting people and ourselves doesn’t bring happiness. We eventually discover that love is the key to bringing happiness into our world. Not just the romantic, emotional love but the selfless love which we give without expecting anything in return.

What would love do?
A way of achieving this state consciousness is by asking the question, What would love do in this situation? If we were that divine essence Love, what would It do? If we were in love with the person or people involved in the circumstances or the problem which faces us, what would we do? We may not like the answer we receive but the answer will likely solve the problem we are facing and bring a love to all involved.

Using Love as the first reason to do anything is an excellent way of getting in touch with our true self, Soul. We as Soul are in a heaven of Love, where Love sustains and maintains us. If we begin to use this Divine Love in our lives in this physical world, we begin to use the same essence that Soul is using all the time. By using this Divine Love and letting It flow into our worlds we begin to pick up more of the wisdom coming from Soul.

HU Song
Music often brightens our lives when we hear an uplifting piece. There is a song we can sign which can uplift us to the higher, happier part of ourselves, Soul, whenever we sing it. This song is the HU Song. We may have come across it in the word Alleluia, which is a combination of Allah and HU. This HU Song is one of the sounds heard in Soul’s worlds or heavens. By singing it we are tuning into that same heaven and opening ourselves up to Its level.

When we are on Its level we can gain insights and inspirations into our current situations. We can also partake in the peace and serenity of Soul and bring a little of it back to our current situation. In this way the HU song bring us wisdom and peace along with the realisation that we are more than our physical world, more than the situation we are in physically.

Wisdom and guidance of Soul
When we reach Self realisation we reconnect with Soul, the true happy part of ourselves. We now have access to the wisdom and guidance of Soul. We now are given insights into why some situations, people, problems, gifts and blessings are in our lives.

While our problems and challenges will not disappear, we will have a better understanding of them. With that understanding they are easier to live with. Our attitude changes to a more positive outlook and we take another step upwards in our spiritual growth towards self realisation.

Wishing you Soul’s love and self realisation.

*Ed Parkinson


Have a look at the Spiritual Writings page for wisdom relating to Self realisation.

Inspirational Self Realisation Quotes

“Know that you are a spark of God and can exist fully only within the realization of that profound truth. As such, you are a light and inspiration to others.”
Harold Klemp

“When your intellect, that is confused by the conflicting opinions and the ritualistic doctrine of the Vedas (Hindu sacred texts), shall stay steady and firm with the Self, then you shall attain Self-realization.”
Bhagavad Gita

“Men can starve from a lack of self-realization as much as they can from a lack of bread.”
Richard Wright

“Life is perpetually creative because it contains in itself that surplus which ever overflows the boundaries of the immediate time and space, restlessly pursuing its adventure of expression in the varied forms of self-realization.”
Rabindranath Tagore

“Through self-realization, people dwell within the home of their inner being; egotism and desire depart.”
Sri Guru Granth Sahib

“All service should be regarded as an offering to God, and every opportunity to serve should be welcomed as a gift from God. When service is done in this spirit, it will lead to self- realization.”
Sri Sathya Sai Baba


"The highest goal of spirituality is Self-realization, but what does that mean? It means to feel your Self as a living reality in this moment, and there is always only this moment."
Gay Hendricks

“The real beauty of realizing your true nature is in the freshness, peace and deep bodily relaxation which touches to the core of your being, flows into your everyday life and bursts forth naturally into blossoming from within itself. Without you 'doing' a thing about any of it.“
Julie Sarah Powel

“Every single person who became anything, believed that they could.
Every single person who never became anything believed that they couldn't.”
Mark Firehammer

“Fearlessness means faith in God: faith in his protection, His justice, His wisdom, His mercy, His love, and His Omnipresence... To be fit for Self-realization man must be fearless.”
Paramahansa Yogananda

“Self-realization means that we have been consciously connected withour source of being. Once we have made this connection, then nothing can go wrong...”
Swami Paramananda

“When you can see through the mist of Maya (illusion) to the Self, that mist has not disappeared. You have just learned to see through it."
Shyamananda

“Accepting, allowing and interacting with your life as though it is exactly as it should be, without making yourself wrong (or right) for what you discover is it the way to Self-Realization.”
Ariel Kane

To find other inspirational self realisation quotes and wisdom try the Spiritual Inspirations page.

Soul’s Connection

I’m still trying to find the correct way of showing Soul’s connection through its various inner bodies down to Its physical body. While this is a nice sketch, I don’t think it gets the concept across. I’ll just have to keep trying. :-(

 

Self realisation, a major step to happiness

Thought for the Week

Self realisation or getting to the point where we recognise who and what we are is one of our major steps to becoming a happier and more fulfilled person. 

What does self realisation mean?
When we realise what life is about, why we are here, what role we play in life and our purpose in life we are getting close to being self realised.

Life is really an educational system to help us become aware of our selves as Soul and the divine qualities we have. We are all Souls here in a physical body learning about ourselves. Firstly we learn how to survive physically. We get to a point where we can get enough food, water, air and space to live and keep our body alive. Once we reach our teenage years we usually have our physical needs taken care of and are aware of what our bodies are capable of.

Emotions
We also need to take care of our emotional selves and not get too unbalanced in any area. We get our temperament to a point where we are balanced in all our emotions. Our emotions can swing out of balance in a number of areas, such as:
Optimism /\ Disappointment
Love /\ Hate
Humility /\ Aggressiveness
Courage /\ Fear
Happiness /\ Sadness

Our emotions are constantly balancing. If we get very happy we’ll have a period of being very sad. If we have a lot of emotional love for some people, we can have a lot of emotional hate for others. Our emotions can burn us if we get out of balance in any area. When we realise how our emotions can affect us and we learn to keep a balance so that we don’t go too far in any area, we begin to become aware of our emotions and are better able to control them.

Memories
Our memories can affect us in both a positive and a negative way. If we have memories of how we were treated with love, being given assistance or received a benefit, these can help bring a positive influence to our lives. They can help inspire us and motivate us to achieve something or be of service in some way.

On the other hand if we have negative memories of being mistreated, hurt or degraded, these can have a negative impact on our lives. If we focus on these memories, we won’t be able to see the positive sides of life. These negative memories can keep us locked in a negative space for a long time.

When we realise the impact of our memories on our lives and we take steps to control what our memory feeds us, we begin to have a more positive life. We have more control over our memories and we select what memories influence us and the decisions we make from day to day based on our memories.

Mind
Our mind is very often seen as what drives our lives. It seems to be the controller of our lives of how and why we do things. It gets its information from our physical world, our emotions, our memories and its own logical processes. The mind is an excellent tool for helping us survive. It can work out solutions to problems in a logical way, it can make judgements on situations based on our memories and emotions on similar events in the past.

For some of us our mind is the controller of our lives. We believe that logic is what controls our world and once everything in our lives is logical we will have control over them. This can work well for some people for a period. However there are other non-logical elements and events which happen in life such as, unusual weather, natural disasters, coincidences, imagination, synchronicity and many other events which cannot be explained by logic. There are also things like new people coming into our lives which upset everything and for some ‘love at first’ sight can really turn their world upside down.

When we get to the point where we realise our mind is a tool for our use and not the real us, we then begin to let other non logical influences come into our lives and give us direction. A lot of these influences come from our intuition or subconscious.

Subconscious
If we have been of the opinion that our world runs on logic, we are not going to allow much space for the illogical nudges and messages from our subconscious. Our subconscious often lets itself be known by ‘feelings’, nudges, urges and our intuition. Its messages can be subtle if we are not used to watching for them.

We can turn up our awareness of the messages coming from our intuition. We can ask questions or request that we be shown these subtle messages in a clearer form so that we can understand them. Once we get used to receiving these intuitive messages we will begin to realise that they are coming from a higher source and that source is Soul.

Soul
Soul is the whole objective of our quest for self realisation. When we become aware of ourselves as Soul we have reached the first spiritual objective of our lives. We have realised ourselves. At this point we realise who and what we are. We get some idea of how our lives work and some realisation of what life is about.

If just knowing about these various elements within ourselves was enough to achieve self realisation, then because we’ve read about them we should be self realised. Unfortunately it is not that easy. We have to experience each of these states, go through them, understand them and get them into a balanced state before we become self realised. In other words we have to realise each of the lower states individually before we get to total self realisation. It is a process of learning we have to go through.

What are the benefits and how can we achieve self realisation? They are big questions and next week I’ll try and answer them.

In the meantime let’s enjoy our journey to self realisation.

*Ed Parkinson

Only a few Calendars left – it’s now a collector’s item!

Inspirational Art Calendar 2011 for Sale, Now!

If you want to get your copy of Ed’s Calendar 2011, you better order it now. There are only about 10 left of what has turned into a collector’s item. If you have one, enjoy it for the year but don’t throw it out at the end of the year. It looks like it will worth holding onto.

This calendar will inspire you every month of the year. Each picture was created for you, so you could find your own story and insights. While there are a few lines describing the thinking behind the picture, the reason it was created is to allow you explore your inner imaginative worlds. The pictures are a starting point to help you explore the worlds within your imagination. The details of the pictures act as catalysts and open doors so you can discover new vistas which you can explore at your leisure.

Each month has a large image which you can study and discover the small details which give hints to lead you to find your own individual story for each picture.

It is A3 size with a picture for each month by award winning artist Ed Parkinson. If you’d like to buy one just click this button.

 

It’s an ideal gift for you or the spiritually aware person in your life.

There are only 100 of the calendars printed, so if you’d like one, don’t delay. Order now to make sure you get yours. They are only €15 each, including postage and packing. They will sell out quickly. Click this button to order your calendar now.

 

This video shows all of the pages in the calendar.

 

Inspirational Self Realisation Quotes

“Self-Realisation. Soul recognition. The entering of Soul into the Soul Plane and there beholding Itself as pure Spirit. A state of seeing, knowing, and being.”
Harold Klemp

“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover is yourself.”
Alan Alda

“Never mind searching for who you are. Search for the person you aspire to be.”
Robert Brault

“Man cannot remake himself without suffering, for he is both the marble and the sculptor.”
Dr. Alexis Carrel

“The greatest explorer on this earth never takes voyages as long as those of the man who descends to the depth of his heart.”
Julien Green

“There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
Anaïs Nin

“The value of identity of course is that so often with it comes purpose.”
Richard Grant

“All men should strive
to learn before they die
what they are running from, and to, and why.”
James Thurber

“If you don't get lost, there's a chance you may never be found.”
Anon

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”
 Henry David Thoreau

“A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.”
George Moore

“It is good to feel lost... because it proves you have a navigational sense of where "Home" is. You know that a place that feels like being found exists. And maybe your current location isn't that place but, Hallelujah, that unsettled, uneasy feeling of lost-ness just brought you closer to it.”
 Erika Harris,

“If in the last few years you haven't discarded a major opinion or acquired a new one, check your pulse. You may be dead.”
Gelett Burgess

“Learning how to operate a soul figures to take time.”
Timothy Leary

“Endurance is frequently a form of indecision.”
Elizabeth Bibesco

“The man who views the world at fifty the same as he did at twenty has wasted thirty years of his life.”

 Muhammad Ali

“Perhaps the truth depends on a walk around the lake.”
Wallace Stevens

“One may understand the cosmos, but never the ego; the self is more distant than any star.”
G.K. Chesterton

“If you resist reading what you disagree with, how will you ever acquire deeper insights into what you believe? The things most worth reading are precisely those that challenge our convictions.”
Anon

“It is only when we silent the blaring sounds of our daily existence that we can finally hear the whispers of truth that life reveals to us, as it stands knocking on the doorsteps of our hearts.”
K.T. Jong

Soul’s Connection

I’m still trying different ideas to illustrate how Soul connects with our physical body and world. Here’s the latest sketch.

 

Inspiration - The creative spark which light up our lives

Thought for the Week

Inspiration is often something we use in our regular life and because we have grown used to it we don’t see it as such. This regular inspiration could arrive as an idea for a meal we are cooking, a solution to a problem, a way out of a situation or new way of doing something.

Inspiration is one of the tools used by creative people to produce their work. The work could be poetry, music, a song, writing, art, a movie, an ad, etc. For a number of creative people it is recognised as a flow they can usually tap into. They have learned how to find inspiration in many areas of life to get ideas for their work.

To be in spirit
The word inspiration comes from the Latin word inspirare, -to blow into or upon; to breath into. A more modern interpretation might be – to be in spirit. We are in Spirit during our period of inspiration. We are with the Life-force or Holy Spirit as we search for a solution to or current challenge. Being in Spirit is how we find inspiration.

For me, as a spiritual artist, finding the ideas and images to portray a concept is the most enjoyable part of the process of creating a picture. It is interesting, challenging and like a voyage of discovery, I try different ideas and techniques to get the result I’m looking for.

Other things
If we look at other things, not related to our current challenge, for ideas and inspiration, we may find a solution. In business, people look at their competition or similar businesses to find a new way doing things or providing new services. Designers and artists look at various combinations of items to create a solution their project.

Our friends
Our friends who encourage us and help us achieve things can often inspire us.. Sometimes their advice is not always welcome because we are stuck with the idea that our way is best, but given time to reflect or contemplate on the situation we can sometimes see how their idea can benefit us.

Art, books and films
Art, books and films can often provide inspirational ideas or bring us on a journey to unexplored places. The ideas presented to us can help us gain a better understanding of our life and the challenges of life. They may give us ideas to help us understand what is going on in our life and inspire ideas for new ways doing things.

Music and songs
Music and songs can bring us inspirational visions and emotions. With some classical music we can be transported into other worlds or places. The lyrics of some songs can present us with a vision or motivate us, others can give us strength and direction.

Prayer, meditation, contemplation
Prayer, meditation and contemplation are also excellent sources of inspiration. While spending some quiet time with ourselves we can find ourselves drifting into new areas of thought and insight where we see new solutions to the issues we face in life. Contemplation is a regular source of ideas, guidance and creativity for all areas of life. If we spend time contemplating and singing the HU Song, we can get inspiration for solutions and understandings to challenges and issues on a daily basis.

Dreams
Our dreams can also be a source of inspiration. Whether it’s a vision we see in our mind or an event we experienced in a dream, they can provide the creative spark to help us progress towards our goal. Some dreams can spur us on to achieve goals in our life which without the dream we could not have seen the possibilities available to us.

Love
When we are in love or falling in love we often find the inspiration to do wonderful loving things for the one we love. This person and the love they inspire helps us see new ways of being a better person or doing things better or more creatively.

The spark that ignites our inspiration
When we look at all of these ways of being inspired and we examine them closely, we’ll discover that love is really the spark that ignites our inspiration. When we look at things with love, we see the best in them, the goodness hidden behind the rough exterior. This love adds a sparkle to what was dull and lights a creative fire within us and the world around us.

Our friends are loving and kind. Books, music and pictures all light up like fireworks with ideas shooting at us. Life seems to be orchestrated perfectly as the love flowing from us brings our dreams to life. We are in Spirit, inspired by love to do the best we can. We are in love the source of our inspiration.

Once we begin to see that it is the Life-force, the Holy Spirit or Love which is behind the inspiration in our lives we then see that we are working with this Higher Power to bring love and inspiration into our lives and the lives of these around us.

Wishing you a life inspired by love.

*Ed Parkinson

Inspirational Inspiration Quotes

“Endeavour to gain inspiration from God's Cup of Love: then you will become selfless and without volition.”
  Rumi

“The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it's the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him with his friend.”
  Ralph Waldo Emerson

“We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.”
  Frank Tibolt

“Leadership is based on inspiration, not domination; on cooperation, not intimidation.”
  William Arthur Ward

“Cease trying to work everything out with your minds. It will get you nowhere. Live by intuition and inspiration and let your whole life be Revelation.”
  Eileen Caddy

“When you do not know what you are doing and what you are doing is the best -- that is inspiration.”
  Robert Bresson

“Just as appetite comes from eating, so work brings inspiration, if inspiration is not discernible at the beginning.”
  Igor Stravinsky

“Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.”
  Thomas Edison

“Wealth is not a matter of intelligence it's a matter of inspiration.”
  Jim Rohn

“I decided that it was not wisdom that enabled [poets] to write their poetry, but a kind of instinct or inspiration, such as you find in seers and prophets who deliver all their sublime messages without knowing in the least what they mean.”
  Socrates

“Just don't give up on trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong.”
  Ella Fitzgerald

“No one was ever great without some portion of divine inspiration.”
  Marcus Tullius Cicero

“Inspiration: A peculiar effect of divine flatulence emitted by the Holy Spirit which hisses into the ears of a few chosen of God.”
  Voltaire

“The glow of inspiration warms us; it is a holy rapture.”
  Ovid

“Without craftsmanship, inspiration is a mere reed shaken in the wind.”
  Johannes Brahms

“Youth is the period in which a man can be hopeless. The end of every episode is the end of the world. But the power of hoping through everything, the knowledge that the soul survives its adventures, that great inspiration comes to the middle-aged.”
  G. K. Chesterton

“Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working.”
  Pablo Picasso