Temperament

It is almost impossible to change one's temperament. We come into the world with a clearly defined temperament. Character is influenced by the environment, family, society, education and other factors. So, it does sound like character is influenced by many aspects of life. A person's character is identical to his temperament but, it is a new 'edition'. It is deliberately acquired. We have the choice to either improve or ruin our lives. An important factor is our individual will and also the will of others. The end result is that a person's character reveals what he has decided or accepted to be. Character is the expression of the conscious dimension of man. Temperament is the expression of the unconscious or subconscious dimension.

It is true that your temperament evolves not only from what birth sign you were born under but how you allied yourself in past lives by your thoughts, desires and actions, with certain forces. The accumulative effect now determines your subconscious, which is your temperament. There is not too much you can do about it. It is like your skeleton or muscular system; it cannot be radically changed. Powerful thought and will can slowly and imperceptibly can eventually make little changes.

Character, on the other hand, can be changed. What we can do is mold and improve it. Once a soul decides to become a disciple of truth, he begins his transformation.
As an example: If you have lack of self control and frequently hurt other people's feelings, you can one day wake up to the fact that your attitude is not only detrimental to yourself but to others as well. Once you experience an inner realization, there are things you can do to soften your character and stop abusing others as well as your self. By managing to control ourselves, no damage is caused.
Temperament is closely related to man's animal nature. Character although closely associated with temperament represents the intellectual, conscious, voluntary dimension or impulses of our biological nature. Character does not exist at birth. It is formed gradually, over the years. For example: Children have a temperament but not yet a character.

Attainments

In the Sutras, there is a section on attainments. It states that attainments do not necessarily equate to freedom. A power, which is called attainment, suggests we are becoming powerful but it doesn't mean we are perfect or have achieved a balanced state of mind. There are twists to everything. Something for all of us to think about. There are many people who have psychic gifts, powers of various types and their lives are a mess.

In Sutra 3.16, it states we can become a conscious time traveler and learn to see either the past or future as if it were actually happening in the present. This is a very serious sutra. Where is your mind? Everything appears to go back to the state of the mind in the moment. Try checking on your thoughts at least once an hour. Meditation and chanting will bring you into the moment if you remain conscious. In other words, don't bliss out but stay in the moment. Breathing exercises help tremendously with our attaining a focused mind.

In Sutra 3.21, we are urged to look into our selves. We need to seriously look at the images we create of other people. Are they really true? The images we create of others can be false. It often is what we want to see or we project our own image on that person. One of the most powerful tools is to choose to create harmony, because harmony is the basis of creation. If we do not understand harmony, we will continue to be influenced by the memories of the past or look to the future. Work on attaining harmony that is useful and long-lasting and the present becomes an activity that is in harmony with the forces of nature, with the luminous spirits of the invisible worlds as well as with human beings.

Ultimate Goal

It is a wise and kind move on our part when we abandon past hurts and pleasures and at every moment meet each person as if we are seeing them for the first time. In other words, the ancient wisdom teachings suggest that we look past the skin, the ego and allow the beauty and mystery of every person to unfold without our mental interference.

Why not open up to life and transcend the need to read an other's mind? Because in reality we are the other. When we understand that truth we see that all people have identical feelings; the same hurts, fears, longings, and hopes. Everyone has the same structure of thinking and self-centered concerns. We then grasp the nature of all minds because we are all one mind, not some vague concept, but as a concrete reality. The message is to stop creating images of others and assuming you know them. You do not.

So, to remove the hindrances in the mind, we need to give ourselves a new vision of who we are. the vision will help safeguard our future. The thrust is in healing ourselves first allowing no one to abuse us and that we do not abuse anyone, which includes by the way our own minds and bodies. Understand? The ultimate goal is conquest of inner space.

Stop Creating Images of Others

A good example is the individual who sees himself as a great guru or teacher. He may see devotion and awe in those around him. This is his interpretation and not necessarily true. Another example is a person who is paranoid. He will find hostility and potential threats in people's actions and form images of them as menacing and aggressive. People generally interpret the actions and words of those around them according to their own self-image. We do this because other's actions and words have significance to us only to the extent that they effect us. I am speaking of people who are not yet balanced or full enlightened. This means they are primarily lower self-centered, not spirit or higher Self centered. They are only concerned about themselves. The average person is mostly interested in how others treat them. The image that they create of others is in reality a projection of them. What we relate to is the image we have created or clothed another in. Very interesting.

This process is a form of constantly reading other's minds. Anticipating what a spouse will request or certain looks on people's face may make you feel you really know what they are thinking. We are seeing images, not people, because we have created these images. How can we know another while we create images as barriers to knowing? Stop the insane process of creating images of others. The ideal is to allow the mystery of every person to unfold without anticipation and second guessing.

Creating Images

With appropriate practice, we may actually know the nature of any person's mind from the image of that person's form. This idea has caused great interest in the minds of crystal gazers, magicians of every type, charlatans and ordinary people who hope to see the hidden thoughts of their fellow man. Rather than try to look into someone else's mind, it would be much wiser to look into our own thoughts. Deep inquiry is the only one that can be true for you. If you are given an answer and grasp it intellectually, you only have intellectual knowledge, and it will be of little use to you in the areas that count.

Have you ever stopped to analyze how we relate to people? We create an image of them and based on the nature of that image we form a relationship. Anything negative or positive resulting from our relationship with that person we add to our image of them. That image becomes our reality and it is the image to which we relate. It is enormously important to see that this is how we relate to the world. Good example is a couple relationship. One of the parties matures, grows in his or her understanding. The other party will not necessarily like the change. Why? Because the comfortable image of the partner has changed.

What happens is that we manipulate the reality of those around us by projecting ourselves onto the image that we create of them. We also form images about someone by how they respond to us. For instance, someone is giving a dialogue and you appear to be listening with an intent look and a smile although you are hoping they will soon shut up. Your mind is elsewhere. The speaker will perceive the attention as evidence that you are really interested. More on this tomorrow.

Increasing Your Vibration

You can change, heighten and expand your vibration when you circulate and increase your Light. Light is your spiritual essence. The more you increase your Light, the more you are a conscious spirit vibrating and expressing in matter. The more you are consciously this spirit, the more you will remember about the one Reality, your spirit identity, and be able to live in the present moment. Begin the habit of asking yourself periodically throughout the day, who am I?

So, who is it that is feeling bruised, saddened, feeling alone or suffering? It is the ego-personality and the physical body. Could it be that all our experiences both pleasant and unpleasant have been created to jolt us back into recognizing who we really are? When lonely or depressed could it be that we are really longing deep within us to have proof that we are a spirit in form?

If I was walking down the street and I greeted a stranger by saying, "Good morning, Master", how do you think the stranger would react? He or she would think I was crazy unless the truth of the human identity was already known and accepted. How many strangers would I have to greet that way before one would respond with the same greeting? Many have studied this truth but they forget. A master does not forget. Remembering your spiritual identity is another way to increase your vibration.

The Philosopher's Stone

I have always been very impressed with the consciousness of the Bulgarian spiritual teacher Omraam Mikhael Ainvanhov. He was the kind of soul who instills in us a great love for life, courage and hope. Our souls have an ancient connection. Although he is no longer in the body, I have seen and felt his presence in his Diamond Body, the body of the Celestial Plane. His teachings began in 1938 and the subject matter found in his many books is timeless. He was adamant about change. Omraam taught that we must make universal brotherhood, universal harmony, our goal, and put all the means at our disposal, our qualities, faculties, talents, strength and energy, to work toward that end. I agree. This is how the problems of mankind may be resolved.

Omraam taught that each time you make use of light and heat, each time you act with wisdom and love, you form the philosopher's stone inside you, which transmutes all matter into gold. and that's when you become a true alchemist. So you do not have to look for the philosopher's stone anywhere other than inside yourself. There is no philosopher's stone more powerful than the spirit. The day you attain that state of consciousness where you feel your spirit, your higher Self, is an immortal, eternal principle, and indestructible entity travelling through space and penetrating every place, you will understand there is nothing more important than to use this power to work on matter. I am speaking of your own matter, to purify it, vivify it and enliven it.

The philosopher's stone is this spiritual quintessence which transform everything into gold, into light, in yourself first of all but also in all the creatures around you. When our focus is on radiant light, all the creatures around us benefit, all things increase and multiply. This is the sublime dimension of the philosopher's stone. If you have read my latest book, Be-Embracing the Mystery, you will understand why I love Omraam and his amazing consciousness.