The Celestine Vision - James Redfield

THE FIRST INSIGHT . . . A CRITICAL MASS
A new spiritual awakening is occurring in human culture, an awakening brought about by a critical mass of individuals who experience their lives as a spiritual unfolding, a journey in which we are led forward by mysterious coincidences.
THE SECOND INSIGHT . . . THE LONGER NOW
This awakening represents the creation of a new, more complete worldview, which replaces a five-hundred-year-old preoccupation with secular survival and comfort. While this technological preoccupation was an important step, our awakening to life's coincidences is opening us up to the real purpose of human life on this planet, and the real nature of our universe.
THE THIRD INSIGHT . . . A MATTER OF ENERGY
We now experience that we live not in a material universe, but in a universe of dynamic energy. Everything extant is a field of sacred energy that we can sense and intuit. Moreover, we humans can project our energy by focusing our attention in the desired direction...where attention goes, energy flows...influencing other energy systems and increasing the pace of coincidences in our lives.
THE FOURTH INSIGHT . . . THE STRUGGLE FOR POWER
Too often humans cut themselves off from the greater source of this energy and so feel weak and insecure. To gain energy we tend to manipulate or force others to give us attention and thus energy. When we successfully dominate others in this way, we feel more powerful, but they are left weakened and often fight back. Competition for scarce, human energy is the cause of all conflict between people.
THE FIFTH INSIGHT . . . THE MESSAGE OF THE MYSTICS
Insecurity and violence ends when we experience an inner connection with divine energy within, a connection described by mystics of all traditions. A sense of lightness--buoyancy--along with the constant sensation of love are measures of this connection. If these measures are present, the connection is real. If not, it is only pretended.
THE SIXTH INSIGHT . . . CLEARING THE PAST
The more we stay connected, the more we are acutely aware of those times when we lose connection, usually when we are under stress. In these times, we can see our own particular way of stealing energy from others. Once our manipulations are brought to personal awareness, our connection becomes more constant and we can discover our own growth path in life, and our spiritual mission--the personal way we can contribute to the world.
THE SEVENTH INSIGHT . . . ENGAGING THE FLOW
Knowing our personal mission further enhances the flow of mysterious coincidences as we are guided toward our destinies. First we have a question; then dreams, daydreams, and intuitions lead us towards the answers, which usually are synchronistically provided by the wisdom of another human being.
THE EIGHTH INSIGHT . . . THE INTERPERSONAL ETHIC
We can increase the frequency of guiding coincidences by uplifting every person that comes into our lives. Care must be taken not to lose our inner connection in romantic relationships. Uplifting others is especially effective in groups where each member can feel energy of all the others. With children it is extremely important for their early security and growth. By seeing the beauty in every face, we lift others into their wisest self, and increase the chances of hearing a synchronistic message.
THE NINTH INSIGHT . . .THE EMERGING CULTURE
As we all evolve toward the best completion of our spiritual missions, the technological means of survival will be fully automated as humans focus instead on synchronistic growth. Such growth will move humans into higher energy states, ultimately transforming our bodies into spiritual form and uniting this dimension of existence with the after-life dimension, ending the cycle of birth and death.
THE TENTH INSIGHT . . . HOLDING THE VISION
The Tenth Insight is the realization that throughout history human beings have been unconsciously struggling to implement this lived spirituality on Earth. Each of us comes here on assignment, and as we pull this understanding into consciousness, we can remember a fuller birth vision of what we wanted to accomplish with our lives. Further we can remember a common world vision of how we will all work together to create a new spiritual culture. We know that our challenge is to hold this vision with intention and prayer everyday.
THE ELEVENTH INSIGHT . . . EXTENDING PRAYER FIELDS
The Eleventh Insight is the precise method through which we hold the vision. For centuries, religious scriptures, poems, and philosophies have pointed to a latent power of mind within all of us that mysteriously helps to affect what occurs in the future. It has been called faith power, positive thinking, and the power of prayer. We are now taking this power seriously enough to bring a fuller knowledge of it into public awareness. We are finding that this prayer power is a field of intention, which moves out from us and can be extended and strengthened, especially when we connect with others in a common vision. This is the power through which we hold the vision of a spiritual world and build the energy in ourselves and in others to make this vision a reality.

Conscious Relationships

Inherent in the illusion of duality is the perception of "other". Undoubtedly, when we approach relationships from this perspective, there is, sooner or later, conflict. This is because what appears to be other is actually a (cleverly disguised) part of yourself. The people you draw to yourself are there to reflect another part of yourself, back to you. As such, each relationship in our lives gives us the opportunity to accept, heal and love another part of ourselves. There is an energetic dynamic that underlies everything. If you have within you the feeling/belief/perception that you are not worthy of being loved then you will repeatedly draw relationships to yourself in which you do not feel loved. The partner you attract may be incapable of emotionally giving love, they may be apathetic to your needs for love or they may be circumstantially unable to fully give love to you. If you have within you the feeling/belief/perception that you have to make yourself indispensable in a relationship by continually taking care of and "fixing" the other person, then you will draw to yourself a partner who needs "fixing" and who expects you to take on their emotional baggage. The examples are endless. The point is, whatever you hold within you, energetically, is what shapes your perception of yourself and the world. This is how we create our experiences. It is unconscious, to be sure, but it happens nonetheless, and continues happening until we begin to become conscious about what is happening and release the patterns. These energetic "knots" (also known as karma) are why we are continually drawn back to the Earth, they are the reason we experience everything that happens in our lives. You are not consciously aware of these knots, so they are reflected back to you from the world around you. They are reflected back because "like attracts like" and this is the nature of energy. Until you become aware of what is happening, you will keep repeating the cycle. The outer world is not really outer, it is a projection of what is within you. The inner and the outer are one. Therefore, when you continually draw to yourself a certain type of relationship, when you notice a pattern in your life's behaviour and when you repeatedly find yourself dealing with the same issues, you will know that the "trouble" lies within you...and not with the other person.
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This is an incredible discovery! This is the first step in the souls awakening. When this discovery is made, it is then possible to have conscious relationships. Rather than reacting to what happens around you, it is possible to look within yourself and discover what part of you has been "feeding" the situation. To be aware that the person you see in front of you is actually a part of yourself, and to treat them accordingly, means to have the courage to be honest with yourself. It means you can no longer act from defensiveness. It means you can no longer try and control others. It means you will no longer be afraid to trust because you will have nothing within you that needs protecting. These are the early stages of god-awareness and it is through relationships that we learn this. It is through relationships that we become conscious of who we are. Once you have the awareness of your patterns and you realise why you keep experiencing the same situations over and over, it then becomes possible to change your ingrained patterns. For example, if you are someone from our above example, that draws relationships to yourself in which the partner is not able to give love, you can consciously choose to love yourself first. In doing this, you would not place yourself in a relationship with such a person. You can choose to be around only those who are willing and able to give you love. To continually subject yourself to neglect, abuse, apathy or conflict is not being loving to yourself. If you are not loving to yourself, how can you expect anyone else to be? You must take responsibility for breaking your pattern. You must have enough love and respect for yourself to only surround yourself with those who nurture your best qualities. This is how you will heal. Only when you start loving yourself in this way, will you be able to draw someone to yourself who will be able to love you in return. When you approach all the relationships in your life from a more conscious perspective, you can then grow through love, rather than conflict. In understanding the dynamic at work, you can choose to come from a place of love in all interactions. This means to come from a place of love FOR YOURSELF. When you do this, you will automatically draw more of the same to yourself. The outer always reflects the inner. Trust yourself and open to the love that is within and all your relationships will be conscious ones.