Heaven is not reached at a single bound,
But we build a ladder by which we rise
From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies,
And we mount to its summit round by round.
-Josiah Gilbert Holland

The above familiar quotation epitomizes the belief that spiritual progress is achieved, generally, by taking one step at a time. Although some people report instantaneous illumination and then follow an enlightened path, most of us make progress slowly, one step at a time; additionally, we have to build our own ladders--- our own spiritual pathways.

In the physical world, there are standards which indicate the extent to which a desired end is achieved. Those standards show how close a thing is to perfection, precision, or requirement. The traveler has a compass, the mason uses a plumb line, the carpenter works with a level, the vendor employs scales, and measuring rods. In recent years, measurements are computerized. What standards do we have in our professional work? What are the standards for our behaviors and attitudes? How is an appraisal made in determining spiritual progress? Remember, the professional career is a part of a person's life--- not apart from it.

It is true that an organization has a Code of Ethics to which its members must adhere in daily practice. An ideal which we want to achieve, however, is something more. Those people who hold spiritual ideals have no real need for written regulations; such rules are observed from an inner state of understanding. Laws and regulations exist for the protection of people who might be harmed by others who have achieved only a limited measure on the application of spiritual ideals.

In philosophy courses at universities, some of us have studied, What is good? (G.E. Moore's Principia Ethica) The term good is discussed as "indefinable" and, while it might seem as if Moore is equating good with ideal, there is no definite reference. In philosophical thinking, a thing is good when it fulfills the purpose for which it was created, developed, or required. To what extent is the purpose of life being fulfilled? How is it measured?

"The unexamined life is not worth living." With that statement, Socrates verbalized the tenet of moral philosophers.

A top criterion for making decisions should be in accordance with that which is the best available, the highest known principle. Some people abide by the Ten Commandments given through Moses; other people consider those commandments to be ten suggestions to apply when convenient. Some people know about the Golden Rule. Knowing something means more than knowing about it; it means going to the heart of it for understanding which comes as a result of the application of principles followed by their evaluation in terms of the highest standard of motivation.

If we set our minds to practice the highest truth we know, and if we aim to be in attunement with that truth, we are likely to experience spiritual awakening in which we merge with that truth and rise to expand consciousness.

In working with soul exploration, the sessions seem to be best when both client and regressionist have spiritual development as a primary focus. The emotional charge needed for thoroughness in exploration works best when combined with contact with one's essence. Rapport and attunement happen easily when the center is a spiritual ideal--- something to which the client is aspiring. A focus beyond material, physical, mental, and psychological issues is important in making progress at any level. Centering upon a pivotal, personal, spiritual ideal will keep up balanced.

If you are a beginner in working with ideals, there might be a tendency to confuse ideal with idea or with a goal. Over the years, we have been very goal-oriented. Recently, many groups have been mission-oriented. More and more people are becoming aware that, through personal transformation, life can be enriched at the inner level of being. When corrections are made at the spiritual level, it is only a matter of time until changes are noted at the physical level--- in behavior. Physical manifestations are conceived in the spirit and put into action by the mind.

Ideals are related to motives and intentions. They come from the person's essence. From the hypnotic state, Cayce, the Father of Holistic Healing makes the statement, "... ideals are not your mind--- ideals are principles acted upon by the mind." (2533-6) In the Cayce Readings, ideals are mentioned more than ten thousand times. Two people can perform identical tasks. For instance, consider the person who is bagging your groceries: one in a loving, caring manner; the other in a selfish, ego-centric way. The completed service or product appears to be the same; however, each person's energy creates different vibrations. When the motive for doing something is one of cooperation, kindness, love, or any other spiritual ideal, we feel good because we have generated high-level spiritual energy.

Statements of orientation become ideals only after we become involved in them. Knowing which direction to take to a destination will not get us there until we take those first steps and start moving in that direction. Nothing happens until we move. In Genesis, Chapter 1, we read that the earth was without form until God moved. He talked after He moved. The sequence: create/imagine, do something, talk. It is only by the application in practical experience that words can become ideals. By choosing ideals, we begin to awaken the spirit--- to generate the energy, to generate new behavior. In the application, the awareness expands the energy of the principle. It leads to spiritual understanding. When we live the ideal, the wisdom gained through the application of principles will become transformational.

The re-orientation to the inner world of spirituality can lead to inner transformation which can be observed in a change of direction in life. It can be achieved by focusing attention upon, and by putting into practice, a spiritual ideal.

Standards for living should be the highest that we know. Actions based upon a sound philosophy of life must flow from that higher consciousness. The standard set, the spiritual ideal, is the motivation which permeates attitudes and actions in the home, the job, and in community interactions. It is the foundation and direction of life. It is the spirit, the essence, through which we function. It should be the highest principle in our awareness.

When we use hypnotic suggestions or affirmations using the client's own phrasing of the chosen spiritual ideal, it becomes as an open door or a channel through which the client can become attuned to the Creative Force, or God. It can be a word, a picture, or a feeling.

Often, there are strong issues which are impacting emotionally upon the client. In order to help the client to understand something which has its roots in another lifetime, we, as hypnotists, or hypnotherapists, need to set our sights upon the highest understanding/truth/measure/standard/guide that we know. When we live the highest ideal, we experience a spiritual awakening which enables us to go beyond limited beliefs which we have encountered.

We choose ideals, spiritual principles by which we guide our lives. As the little boy said when he didn't want to go to school, "It's not the work, it's the principle (principal) of the thing!" In the school of life, we do what the principle says. An ideal serves as a sense of stability, a criterion by which we make decisions. It is a conscious choice of a personal standard by which we can judge our potential actions. Recently, in a meeting, somebody said, "I have standards; they might be low but I have them." Standards of attitudes and behavior should be the highest that we know. When we choose principles and put them into practice, they become our ideals. We convert words to concepts, then to attitudes, followed by actions in order to gain a better view. It is in the experience, the living, that we understand the ideal.

It might be true that a near-death or a kundalini experience or any other sensational revelation might awaken us. Such experiences are of benefit to some people; however, we can choose. We can start right where we are. To experience a transformation, we can simply orient ourselves to an ideal, a personal North Star. We must choose to act in a way consistent with the spiritual ideal.

Each desirable action has a basis in a strong, spiritual philosophy of life, sometimes unverbalized and at an unconscious level of mind. If we neglect t choose the highest ideal, then we default to something of a lesser nature. Our actions are based upon mental attitude; mental attitudes are founded upon ideals. Slightly paraphrasing the Cayce Readings: the spiritual idea is the guide, mind is the builder, and the physical action is the result of our ideals, our belief systems. Some belief systems are not the highest; some ideals acted upon are less than the highest. Behavior is the result of the ideal filtered through the mental attitude.

For the past two thousand years, the concept of belief has been strong. The departure from the Piscean belief system is taking place and we are beginning the New Age of Aquarius where higher level knowledge will be paramount. Often, though, we might know through intuition--- from flashes of insight. There is empirical knowledge and there is revealed knowledge.

An ideal is spiritual. Attitudes and actions can become mental and physical ideals when they express a way in which we choose to think and to behave. Mental ideals are expressions of spiritual ideals in mental activities: thoughts, attitudes, and emotions. For instance, with a spiritual peace, a mental ideal associated with it would be: to live in peace with _____.

Physical ideals are concerned with actions. We make decision regarding how we are going to express a spiritual ideal in a physical manner. We decide what we can do to express the feeling of what we have chosen a spiritual ideal. Think in terms of specific actions such as: vacuuming, washing the car, talking with a friend, etc. Physical ideals are expressions of spiritual ideals in words and actions. A physical ideal: to have a tidy office; a physical goal: to put the books back on the shelf. An ideal is a purpose connected with a motivation which is connected with spirit.

Compare the spiritual ideal to a faceted diamond. The overall ideal, over many lifetimes, of oneness with God would be represented by the whole faceted diamond. An ideal for a lifetime (e.g., service, patience, love, etc.) would be represented by a facet of the diamond. A mental ideal is the attitude in which we approach work in any area of life. A physical ideal is the action taken based upon a mental attitude which is grounded upon the lifetime spiritual idea.

How do you measure your life? When choices have to be made, do you have a vision, a measuring device, a standard, an ideal by which you measure your alternatives? Examine the energy within you. What is your motivation for doing what you do? Do you consider such factors as: a sense of fairness, giving good service, and unconditional love?

Are you demonstrating cooperation, kindness, oneness, and patience? You can determine the standards by which you life. You are free will; you can choose your standard of behavior. While you might not be able to determine another person's behavior, you can choose how you can relate to it. You can choose to free yourself from entanglements. When you act upon higher principles, ideals, you attain stability.

How do you measure your life? What is your ideal?

Working with ideals is one of the most productive applications of hypnosis work. The ideal is at the level of the unconscious mind, the natural level of hypnosis. Personal work with ideals can be rich and rewarding. If you teach classes or facilitate workshops, it would be good to include exercises on ideals; there can be long-term results. Group work can be almost as valuable as individual sessions because members tend to receive valuable insights from their own opportunities to explore both the collective unconscious and the personal unconscious mind.

When you have another session in past-life exploration, take some time to determine whether your behavior showed evidence that the life was based upon a high, spiritual principle. Ask your facilitator to enhance the Soul Review part of the session to give you an opportunity to explore that question for that other life. After the trance segment of the session, relate the influence to the current life. When you are working as a regressionist, your client might like a similar opportunity.

Here is an exercise designed to help you identify your ideal. It is a fairly common type of exercise used by many group leaders. Perhaps you have used it several times:

1. Recall a person who, in your judgment, has lived, or is living, a very highly-evolved spiritual life. Select a word or phrase which applies to that person. Write that world or phrase on paper.

2. Write the names of five other people whom you respect. What principle of living do they seem to have in common? Write that principle on paper.

3. If somebody were writing a news story about you, what personal quality would you like to see in print?

4. Write a word or a phrase which is or could become your ideal.

Henry Leo Bolduc, P.O. Box 88, Independence, Va. 24348
Marjorie V. Reynolds, 202-237 Wellington Cres. Winnipeg, Mb. R3M OA1 mvreynol@mb.sympatico.ca

 

The above material may be used or adapted freely.