Your whole civilization is convinced that the way to solve a problem –any problem, private or worldwide– is to exaggerate it, see its worst projection; and this, then, is supposed to make you take proper action. This approach, unfortunately, solves no problems, and only compounds them whether the nation is trying to solve problems of energy, or social problems, or whether an individual is trying to overcome a dilemma.
You (Seth talking to Jane and Rob) are so immersed in that method of problem solving, however, that it comes back to haunt you. At least you can be aware of it and alert. I will give you the answers to your questions, but they are not the way to solve your problem–and against all conventional knowledge, reviewing the mistakes of the past does not lead to wisdom.
When you become so worried, of course, you concentrate even further on the problem–how bad it is, and what will happen if it becomes worse in the future. The problem is, therefore, compounded to whatever degree–and when I give you both such reasons, then sometimes you use them, the two of you to ADD TO your private and joint self-disapproval. The belief is that if you frighten yourself badly enough through imagined projections, you will be frightened enough to change–but the nation or the individual following that method does not change for the better. Instead, they compound the original condition by concentrating upon it until it looms larger than before. Such methods cause panic, national or individual.
To solve a problem you begin to minimize its characteristics, diminish its importance, rob it of your attention and refuse it your energy.
The method is the opposite, of course, of what you are taught. That is why it seems to be so impractical. I have said this so many times – and I do realize it is difficult for you – but you cannot concentrate upon two things at once. Therefore, to the extent you concentrate upon your pleasures, your accomplishments, and to the extent you relate to the PSYCHIC AND BIOLOGICAL MOMENT, you are refreshing yourselves. You are not projecting negatively, and you are allowing the problem to un-wrinkle and un-knot. You are denying it the energy of your attention that keeps it going.
You do not spend time thinking that you have not used your abilities properly. You take it for granted that you ARE using them properly, and that allows them to fully develop.*
* In a value judgment system organized by ideas like right and wrong, good and bad, enforced by the shame of guilt and the fear of punishment, we’re always looking for bad things to happen to us. Why wouldn’t we if the system is built on the idea that what we are is bad or flawed? It’s a fear-filled system of thought and feeling, action and reaction that exerts strong control over us from the outside in.
Here’s another option, one that’s based on the idea that what we are is good. Seth describes it as “living by value fulfillment and practicing idealism.” It sounds complicated but it’s not, if you think about it. For example, who do you love to be? Your answer to this question represents something you value. Your environment may have something to say about this so you may have to keep asking yourself this question for some time to find the answer that works best and makes you happiest.
In the process of finding the answers that work best for you and make you happiest, you may have to discard old beliefs that limit and conflict with what you most deeply want. For example, suppose you’re in the habit of looking for outside approval from a teacher or parent who strongly believes we’re all bad and can’t be trusted. This is a limiting belief that will keep you from being your True Self, the self you love to be, assuming you want to be the person you love to be and not the person you hate to be. By asking yourself, who do I love to be, repeatedly, you put it out to the universe of All That Is, and with patience, you will get the answer you’re looking for. You will feel it. (For more on this, read: Ask Value Questions and Listen for Intuitive Answers.) – Pete
Seth: Session 08/14/78, The Personal Sessions, Book 4
Copyright © by Jane Roberts and Robert F. Butts. Current copyright holder is Laurel Davies-Butts.
“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having (creating) a human experience.” – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
“How you define yourself and the world around you, forms your intent, which, in turn, forms your reality.” – Seth
In other words, we create our reality from what we believe about ourselves, and the world around us.
If we do not consciously choose our beliefs, we unconsciously absorb them from our surroundings.
If our beliefs, attitudes, values and expectations create our reality, can we afford not to question them?
The more we love, understand and appreciate ourselves, the better we treat ourselves, and the world.
Blessings of love and understanding be to us all!
The secrets of the universe lie hidden in the shadows of your experience. Look for them!
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