A.R.E. Meeting for 9/28/09

Leader: Cindi
Reader: Sylvia

We (those of us present; about half) rejoiced at concluding the chapter on Patience. Our patience may have been wearing a little thin, but there may have been a reason for us to stay on this topic. Next week, when Sylvia takes over as leader, we will start the chapter "The Open Door."

For our experiment:

Select and write down some experience that you have been impatient to have happen to you (e.g., to get well, to get a different job, to get married, to have more friends). Each day affirm that you are having learning experiences that will allow you eventually to have that which you desire. At the end of each daily meditation period take a few moments to listen within and know that there is something within your soul that is directing and ordering your life. Write down insights that come from this listening and which help you better to understand how your current experiences fit into your growth toward what you desire.

Positive Patience

Nancy pointed out that the Experiments book had a good description of patience as "a dimension that measures how we are responding inwardly to what is happening in the material world." I also found some quotes on the topic of positive patience from the readings that sheds a little different light on the subject for me. Positive patience doesn't mean letting others walk over you.

From Edgar Cayce Reading 3161-1:

That primarily needed is patience, persistence and consistence. Then we would define for the entity what we mean by the entity having patience--in an active, positive manner and not merely as a passive thing. Taking or enduring hardships, or censure, or idiosyncrasies of others, is not necessarily patience at all. It may become merely that of being a drudge not only to self but an outlet of expression from others that may never be quite satisfying because there is no resistance. Passive patience, to be sure, has its place; but consider patience rather from the precepts of God's relationship to man: love unbounded is patience. Love manifested is patience. Endurance at times is patience, consistence ever is patience.

From Edgar Cayce Reading 1402-1:

As has been indicated, a little more patient, a little more tolerant, a little more humble. But . . .not a tolerance that becomes timid--this would make rebellion in self. Not a patience that is not positive. Not an humbleness that becomes morbid or lacking in beauty. For as orderliness is a part of thy being, so let consistency--as persistency--be a part of thy being.

A.R.E. Meeting for 9/21/09

Leader: Cindi
Reader: John

We only made our way through two small sections in the Patience chapter, but we had a long discussion on the subject and its application to the story of Roxanne and Summer, grandchildren of Don and Ginger. We are on the last section of the chapter, titled Personal Experiences.

The experiment for the coming week is:

Select an aspect of your life that involves one of the three points above (overdoing something, feeling rushed, or being impatiently concerned about another person). Write down the person's name or the nature of the frequent situation (e.g., I feel rushed every day to get my work done at my job). Work each day for a week on replacing your impatience with a new sense of patience which comes from affirming the continuity of your life as a soul. At the end of the day make notes about how you did with recognizing your timeless nature in this part of your life.

Dreams

The site Greg links you to is good. Poke around. There is more available about dreams there. I especially liked the suggestion to pick out a symbol from your dream and then explain what it is, what it does, how it works, etc., to an alien. This could give you insight into what the dream is trying to tell you.

Also, I'm reading the book How to Interpret Your Dreams: Practical Techniques Based on the Edgar Cayce Approach by Mark Thurston, Ph.D. I highly recommend it to everyone in the group.

A.R.E. Meeting for 9/14/09

Leader: Cindi
Reader: Sylvia

It was so great to see everyone, old and new, at the meeting tonight. Don and Ginger rejoined the group after a long absence and Cassandra was led to us for the first time. We began the chapter on Patience and ended at the section titled "Means through which Patience is Gained."

This week's experiment is:

Use the following affirmation in your daily life whenever you confront a frustrating or painful situation: "Everything happening around me is in the past. What's happening now is the way I choose to respond." Let this affirmation re-orient your understanding so that you can respond with patience and love. Record situations in which you are able to use this affirmation effectively.

Interpreting Your Dreams

This ought to help Cindi out. The Discovery Health website lists twelve positive and twelve negative dream motifs and their interpretations. Just click on any one and you get a description and interpretation of common dreams.

Here are groupings of the negative and positive dreams you can select:
 -I am being chased
+I am being embraced or loved

-I am injured, ill or dying
+I am being healed, born or reborn

-I am having car or vehicular trouble
+I am having a pleasurable experience with a vehicle

-My house or property is lost or damaged
+My house or property is improved

-I fail a test or perform poorly
+I excel on a test or in a performance

-I am falling or drowning
+I am flying, swimming or dancing joyfully

-I am naked or inappropriately dressed in public
+I am well dressed

-I have missed a boat or a plane
+I am traveling happily

-A phone or machine malfunctions
+A phone or machine works perfectly

-I am in a natural or manmade disaster
+I experience natural beauty or miracles

-I am lost or trapped
+I am discovering new spaces

-I am being menaced by a spirit
+I am being guided by a spirit

How to Tell a Young Soul from an Old Soul

How to Tell a Young Soul from an Old Soul
by Jose Stevens, Ph.D.
(Who is a long time observer and reader of the Edgar Cayce Readings.)

The following is a brief description of the characteristics of five basic soul levels. Each level has many lifetimes of lessons to teach us wisdom through trial and error.

THE INFANT SOUL
INFANT SOULS choose lessons of physical survival. They live in simple situations that include intense experiences - famine, plagues, floods, wars, oppression, etc. They don’t know the difference between right and wrong, though they can be taught to be decent human beings. They don’t usually seek higher education and often don’t seek employment, as such. Infant souls don’t question authority and willingly adopt the religion of their parents as is.

THE BABY SOUL
BABY SOULS display less fear than infant souls and are more sophisticated. But they tend to over apply rules. Black is black as far as they’re concerned. Their strong early beliefs remain fixed in their minds, regardless of lack of their wisdom or tolerance. Baby souls love to become big fish in their little puddles...but hate being opposed. Because of this they may spend much time in litigation. Baby souls don’t spend time navel-gazing into their own lives. They’re often “good students” that learn “proper subjects,” and are attracted to fundamentalist religions.

THE YOUNG SOUL
YOUNG SOULS are the “Donald Trumps” of the world...the movers and shakers. They usually set the bar too high for themselves. Achievement is paramount. They chase after what they believe will bring success without ever stopping to think why - because they’re so limited in their perception. They fear death and must have all the toys, experiences, fame and money they can possibly accumulate before they die. They are designers of civilization. Young souls usually seek higher education and graduate-level degrees. Their views of orthodoxy are at one end of the spectrum or the other. Monks and nuns are at one end and a belief in total sexual freedom, the other. They have difficulty with insight into other people’s behaviour.

THE MATURE SOUL
MATURE SOULS challenge the young soul’s desire to “have it all.” It is a hard cycle that demands seeking answers to life’s tough questions. They are attracted to gentler faiths, such as Quaker, Unitarian, or Buddhist. Mature souls are not as open to the occult as old souls. They look for and question the motivation for all of life’s actions. They often continue with inappropriate relationships - perhaps believing that through self-sacrifice, or tough lessons they will ultimately prevail. Often they can’t shake their sense of duty. Mature souls suffer from stress related illness that sometimes results in schizophrenia, psychosis and a higher suicide rate than other souls. [Cayce emphasized the role that ‘stress’ plays in not only physical illnesses but also mental illnesses; he believed it was ‘stress’ that wrecked havoc on the brain chemistry/balance] . But they’re smart enough to seek professional help without urging. Mature souls often make huge contributions to knowledge - particularly philosophical and scientific. But altogether they don’t necessarily have the drive for fame, many still achieve it. They’re emotionally high maintenance.

THE OLD SOUL
OLD SOULS live and let live. They seek the route of least resistance.. .they’re individualistic and usually easy going. They have an inner knowing of the waste of time in pursuing fame and fortune and therefore create the appearance of being “laid back.” Old souls are highly competent - even in roles they don’t particularly like. They tend to choose work that is pleasant and undemanding, leaving them free to pursue their desired goals easily...unless the job adds to the spiritual search. They may or may not seek higher education... but definitely will seek it if they sense it’s needed for their chosen path. Old souls create confidence in animals. And their choice of medical care tends to be alternative and holistic. Old souls are here to teach others their spiritual understandings. Their philosophies and writings are simple and easy to read. Old souls religion is far reaching and has no label. A grove of trees is a sacred place to them. They seldom cling to dogma and prefer personal spiritual practices. However, old souls are wise enough to be discreet in their religious practices and know how to pass in public undetected. They focus on searching for the spiritual truth and have a finer sense of knowing what is true than any other souls level. Old souls all over the world share the experience of emptiness and a longing for that feeling of home.

You may start noticing these characteristics in people around you - and perhaps better understand why they think and act the way they do.

Edgar Cayce Therapeutic Touch Healing

Mark Thurston from the A.R.E. talks about the concept of therapeutic touch. The Chinese believed that energy meridians existed in the body called "Chi." Disease resulted from an imbalance of the Ying and the Yang.

Edgar Cayce also believed that disease could be caused from an imbalance of the energy fields. Therapeutic touch is based on the concept of the Law of Resonance and that humans are energy fields. This touch healing is useful for physical injury or emotional trauma. The video mentions five steps in the process.