Spiritual Portal

When you meet people do not become affected by their state of consciousness.
Be one with those who are ever singing of God; remain aloof from those who
reveal undesirable qualities.....to evolve to a saintly state while clinging to
evil companions would be most difficult. It is most important to know
that sinners or saints are largely made through the company they keep. P.Y.

Sometimes we meet people who show a spiritual interest yet they have some very difficult problems with relationships. They seem to go from one difficult situation to another or they manifest problematic interpersonal skills and seek temporary 'fixes'. We can love these people from a distance otherwise they pull us into their problems.

If we find ourselves emotionally involved with others who are unable or unwilling to give and take in a relationship we need to withdraw and cultivate relationships that work both ways. We can drain our psychic energies otherwise. This is a conclusion i have come to in having close relations with others. i say this because at this point in spiritual direction i have found that time is too short to give energy to relationships that have little or no spiritual basis. i would b interested to know if any of u can relate to what i am saying or can comment.

We often get a glimpse of other peoples character thru those they choose to spend their time with. As much as we may love someone we need to see just what they want out of life from who they choose to associate with. i believe that as spiritual beings we should not continually blame our environment and others for the conditions we find ourselves in. Sometimes those close to us want us to fit into their lives independently of the lifestyles they have chosen for themselves. It is evident that we ourselves create our environment thru our thoughts and choices. We are not victims. We actually create separations or togetherness with others thru the choices we have made in the relationships we make and continue to cultivate with those in our every day life.

Most people have very little comprehension of the fact that even the area we live in, the family we have and the people that come into our lives are a result of prenatal decisions desires and attachments. The post natal choices we make determine future outcomes circumstances and environments. We often forfeit tremendous opportunities for spiritual evolution and advancement because of habits that determine decisions in the present. These are spiritual realizations that have come to me over my life and looking at the choices and results that my friends and i
have made and the grace that has helped me in this important spiritual
lesson.

Jitendra

Our commitment to the spiritual life is easily assessed by the company we keep. We cannot make people be what they do not want to be. We have to work with them and accept them at the level that they are at. This sometimes can be painful from our end of it. Yet if we abandon our efforts with others we also abandon our spiritual development. We must recognize that our path and theres may not always intertwine still we are grateful to have spiritual friends and support them in their efforts.
 
Jitendra

hiii
i'd like to exercise healthy relationships and live a balanced life with those i am emotionally involved with.
it is challenging at times
when i am eager i am too dependent. this pulls away from the ability to experience and share bliss in the moment. sometimes i let fear and doubt anchor me. the challenge now is to dissolve and to learn, how to. not say goodbye and let the other live their life freely- and live mine freely-without worry of our standing or constantly seeking the others comfort or delving to much into a persons psych, being judgmental and creating barriers, or making rules that close me off from those spiritual opportunities to grow. hmm im not sure how much sense i make  ;D but i know the things i want to practice. must practice, am taking steps in
and just learning how to be happy for what we share, when we share- and not sweat the times we aren't
because we can experience bliss with or without those we are emotionally involved with. in a healthy relationship, they just add to it
and althought i barely scrape the surface in understanding what you speak of, i am grateful for this thread. and another discussing the deep impressions we share with others.
the heart heheheh has much to understand

i seek harmony and hope to make things work ! but KNOW i must learn patience in order to will these things, and learn to go with the flow.
its interesting to discuss but . . . not much to discuss ! :D heheh instead i let go ! but yes. good things here *nod* just wanting to share recent endeavors. give thanks for this thread. and find it interesting how some things you share here spark my interest in this moment in time

freedom !  ;D thats what i really want
happiness
but do wish to continue to share love and friendship and kindness

dont stop
patience patience
dont stop
wildflowers in my hair

good ideas real good ideas eric sometimes we can be satisfied just knowing we tried. it's easy to be hard easy to be cold. but look what happens when we try to  be kind. you get all these good friends together spiritually evolving helping each other. nobody should be so egotistical so prideful that they can't deal with failure. failure is only a concept a state of being. to someone else it represents a need to find a new approach. often we regain our perspective about the actions of others or the inaction of others. we know that sometimes we could be better than that. it is not within us to hurt others like that. we would show more kindness. and that is why we have friends like you like us.... OM

Jitendra

In relationships Love happens when two souls touch and to have love last both souls keep that connection alive.

Jitendra

There is often an ambiguity about relationships. You like to be around people you feel attracted to. Yet the attraction can easily lead to the falling out of the relationship. There is always the other side of the coin to attraction and that is repulsion.

Those you may feel less attracted to may be wonderful friends but there is not the same magnetic pull. Although the staying power usually is longer. Having the attractive energy of true love and spirituality is the attractive power we are trying to develop. The repulsion to this is strong in tamasic personalities.

Ah....speaking of relationships. Some people, when they think of relationships, cannot get beyond conjugal relationships. Nor past the physical aspects. So we must have the ability to think of relationships beyond many people's mentally conditioned framework. 

The chemistry between people has a very cold,  warm or hot nature. It is an energy that needs care in using. Some people are like firebugs they lite us up and then leave us smoldering or create a forest fire. Remember what Yogi bear said; play with matches and you could create a forest fire. But other people are like duds; as soon as they are lighted they fizzle out. But there are the ones that leave a warm fire at nite and continously feed it with branches here and there that make life memorable.

I do not always have definitive answers to life's brushes with encounters. I try to move in a direction that seems rite for all involved and that will be to our highest benefit. While recognizing we are still working out our desires on this plain of existance; we must also keep in mind our spirits longings and fulfillment in our relationships.

i believe that it is better to go unmarried rather then force compatibilities that are not there. Perhaps this is becoming more and more the life style of the future. Many people 'force' relationships by cutting others out of their lives and then fortify themselves into relationships that really do not speak for their individual spiritual and social values. Nor do they support them. All in the name of a worn out custom that really is not necessary; marriage. At least not necessary until it flows comfortably with out interfering with lifestyle and spiritual seeking.

In the case where someone does have a marriage that no longer fits them... a creative approach must be found to their relationship otherwise they find themselves in a self made prison. It is often better for people to be able to explore the vast potential of relationships and friendships. Through these encounters; there is a wonder that expands our perspective on life rather than a suffocation in narrow confining relationship that do not reflect our growing awareness and expanding consciousness. This includes relationships that may not be marriage but confine us with conditions.
__________________

Everything is energy. People carry an energy. If they do not carry an energy that is conscious of spirit then their vibration is animal in nature. If there is no acknowledgement of spirituality then their vibration is dark and leads us towards maya.

We may be attracted to various dark energies as a result of desire, envy, greed or passion nevertheless the energy leads us away from divine magnetism and understanding and on a spiral downward. Magnetism, like most other energy sources is subject to duality and has a dark side as well. People we meet and situations we are exposed to are a result of past karma. However we do have the free choice to discern the nature of our relationships and where we want to invest our energy.

One is not better than the other, they're both different, in that you can learn something either way.

Funny I was just talking to a co-worker about 60's/70's music vs 90's and up. He said to me what I just said, they're different, one is not better than the other. But in this case I completely disagreed.  ;D

There is the energy of one person and then the energy of another person. But when the two energies are together you can't control it. It is something you witness with wonder.

Personally i have never seen myself in the lite u r portraying. So it is bit hard for me to relate. i had to think about it for a while... to b honest with myself. However, like u and others here on the forum; i have had to know how to behave as people leave my life and i leave their life. Which is quite a different matter from getting to know someone.

Declarations of love have always been mutual and a sense of intimacy arose over time. Or acceptance of different feelings for one another emerged and were recognized. So any words that were said came much later after i had known someone for sometime. That in some ways is much more difficult then finding out some one is fresh from the beginning. Because it often takes time to know and develop a recognition of peoples expectations of you and your needs from them.... finally u become aware of what other people---that are close--- have wanted from you for sometime but you may not have recognized it.... Or what u may want out of someone else and u may not b able to get.

Words can increasingly b painful when we find we cannot fulfill someone elses' desires or spiritual needs. Words can also b increasingly difficult when we find out that other people cannot fulfill our desires and spiritual needs. Meeting someone in private and finding out what they want is much better in some ways. To give and example: i remember women who i spent time with who at one point early along came rite out and told me that they wanted romance with me. If they hadn't been outspoken i would have led them on the whole time---not intentionally though--It was because we spent private time together that feelings were exposed .... private feelings towards me.  Also on the flip side if i had never spent private time with others i would not express what i was feeling and known where we stood in our relationship. So in this sense i would say i am much different then u. Which is O.K.  :)  i am not sure that being 'Victorian' -- as u put it-- has anything to do with developing relationships for me. It is something i haven't encountered in someone else--- that's all. :) Have i been around 'swingers' all my life? i don't think so. LOL  ;D

It is at these times... later on in a relationship that the choice of words and our attitudes in dissolving relationships play a key role in the aftermath of parting. It is very awkward knowing something that at one time was very spontaneous and inspiring has become discouraging, and now lacks luster and enthusiasm. But most relationships have a time span and what actually lasts thru our life and many incarnations is something to really b treasured. Most relationships are unable to withstand the test of time. That has been my experience. There r those that r with us for the long haul! i would say-- for the most part-- they recognize our true purpose together: That is to help one another and serve each other as we return homeward.

Hi Steve - glad to know you haven't had such experiences online.  It can be pretty frightening.  Surely other women know what I am talking about.  A percentage of the population is mentally ill.  I tend to attract such folk  - because I seem so 'nice'.  Lol.

Peace :)

 
Oh! Not that i don't attract mentally ill people. i think i'm a magnet (Hilarious laughter). It just takes longer to find out--in my experience-- and its better to find out as soon as possible! (more laughter). i have had a lot of true to life experiences and stories!!!!!!! In many ways i have been called to 'help' such people. That is probably why i served in mental health for years. But...... i have seen some duzzies that work in the field. Much of the time it is difficult to separate the clients from the mental health staff!! Now there's a place u really find that everyone has their own personal sort of craziness!!! Having a Masters or Doctorate in the field by no means makes u immune. Perhaps i just have learned, to some degree, (no pun intended) to understand my own personal form of craziness over the years. It's a good thing u know... to know your own...that way u can avoid inflicting it on others!!

Women experiencing challenges? Try men who have had women call the police and make up false charges against you because they feel scorned. It works both ways dear one! Surely men know what i am talking about! A woman rejected in love can be very angry and dangerous. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. There is nothing as unpleasant as a woman who has been offended or whose love has not been returned.  >:(

Believe me. If it wasn't for advice from spiritual friends i still might not have completely recognized the harm some women have tried to do to my life and reputation behind the scenes. But shouldn't we be fair...both of us and admit that we are working out a lot of karma this life?  :'(

<That is quite evident to me about you and myself>  :-X We have chosen this path before coming into this incarnation. That was our destiny and that is why we are evolving so quickly.  ;)

Oh yes, I am definitely working out karma this life - every life I hope.  And sincerely, I would not presume I am evolving quickly.  Not at all.  I am not even a decent yogini.  Kindness and helping others is part of a meaningful life, but haven't you ever been in a situation when you thought you were helping but you were in fact in dangerously way over your head?  I once slept with a baseball bat under my bed for a year, terrified of someone (a devotee no less) I thought I was 'helping' through friendship.  There is Love, but then there is psychotherapy.  Lol.  When I became a mom, I realized there is a difference between putting yourself out there, and putting yourself out there recklessly. No, call me a coward but it makes more sense to at least try to stay off the radar of those who might harm you becuase they live in an alternate reality.  Don't get me wrong.  In life, I still have 'fringy' friends.  I don't expect people to be perfect.  We are all a little imbalanced in different ways - me included.  But at least in regular, physical life, you have a lot more clues about a person.  The vibration is stronger - and weird quirks are more evident.  On the web, one can be blindsided.  People present themselves in a calculated way.  I use my instinct and intuition both in life and on the web.  My intuition is still not clear about you, Stevie-boy!  Ha ha.  For the past few years I have leaned toward your being a nutcase because of various things you've said - and a certain vibe -  but then there is the music, and an underlying possibility that maybe you're alright and I am overly guarded.   Not sure.  God is constantly pushing me.  Maybe time will tell.   :-)

I tell ya honey ya'al been a hecklin' away when ya shoulda joined me in the corn fields back home where that there Stevie-boy.well ya know he's been a corn huskin' and even smoken some of that there corn silk with me one day. We'al got to talkin' about milkin' the cows and a baling some hay. Y know those there Barns getta pretty hot in the summer in the top where we put the bales of hay. But he kept on a workin till it was through and we gota havin' one of those shindig parties that led us to getta knowin just who we are and where we've been. I'll tell ya there ain't a better laugh i go outta dat der boy. Shove your panties and yo sniffle snuffers in bag and ride out to the ol farm and join us for the corn huskers convention next year. That a way ya'll won't be a mistakin' the vibes ya'al been smellin' round the fringe. Ya know honey ya'l got to be a Nut Cracker to get in a Nut Case. Ya'll just remember what ol Beady told ya. Ya hear? i've been round a few years and i can smell fruitcakes a mile a way.

                                                                    Beatrice Landcaster

ANNAMALAI SWAMI - FINAL TALKS

Question: 'All is one' may be the truth, but one can't treat everything in the world equally. In daily life one still has to discriminate and make distinctions.

Annamalai Swami: I once went for a walk near the housing board buildings [government flats that were built in the 1970s about 300 metres from Annamalai Swami's ashram]. There was a sewage trench on one side of the building. I could smell the stench of the sewage even though I was a long way away. I stayed away from it because I didn't want to be nauseated by the bad smell.
In circumstances such as these you don't say, 'All is one.
Everything is the Self,' and paddle through the sewage. The knowledge 'everything is the Self’ may be there, but that doesn't mean that you have to put yourself in dangerous or health-threatening places.
When you have become one with the Self, a great power takes
you over and runs your life for you. It looks after your body; it puts
you in the right place at the right time; it makes you say the right
things to the people you meet. This power takes you over so completely, you no longer have any ability to decide or discriminate.
The ego that thinks, 'I must do this,' or, 'I should not do that,' is no
longer there. The Self simply animates you and makes you do all the things that need to be done. If you are not in this state, then use your discrimination wisely.
You can choose to sit in a flower garden and enjoy the scent of the blooms, or you can go down to that trench I told you about and make yourself sick by inhaling the fumes there.
So, while you still have an ego, and the power of discrimination that goes with it, use it to inhale the fragrance that you find in the presence of an enlightened being. If you spend time in the proximity of a jnani, his peace will sink into you to such an extent that you will find yourself in a state of peace.
If, instead, you choose to spend all your time with people whose minds are always full of bad thoughts, their mental energy and vibrations will start to seep into you.
I tell you regularly, 'You are the Self. Everything is the Self.' If this is not your experience, pretending that 'all is one' may get you
into trouble. Advaita may be the ultimate experience, but it is not something that a mind that still sees distinctions can practice.
Electricity is a useful form of energy, but it is also potentially
harmful. Use it wisely. Don't put your finger in the socket, thinking,
‘All is one.'
You need a body that is in good working order in order to realise the Self. Realizing the Self is the only useful and worthy activity
in this life, so keep the body in good repair till that goal is achieved.
Afterwards, the Self will take care of everything and you won't have to worry about anything any more. In fact, you won't be able to because the mind that previously did the worrying, the choosing and the discriminating will no longer be there. In that state you won't need it and you won't miss it.

i am starting to remember the chants i used to sing at SRF. It would b nice to be round other SRFers to sing them. Some of them r very visual in nature. But often spiritual songs of my own seem to pop up in my head so they r part of my consciousness always. No doubt my desires will manifest as they do seem to quite often. God seems to spare me those that r not so good. That is what i have found. There is divine protection. It surrounds us. Ask for divine protection dear friend. God will protect u from forces that have disturbed you. They will mysteriously b taken out of your life.

Others may need your help for a time. Today i was in a restaurant and a waitress told me 'i am so glad i met you!' i am glad i met her also. She was receptive to my spirit. If others r not u may just let them go. Sometimes u just have to b honest with others. They may not like what they hear. But it will take away the fear of new people coming in your life. Life moves on. It brings to us people and circumstances. Everything that comes to you comes from the Masters. Embrace it and see it as from God. There is no need to fear life. Everything is for a purpose. Even those things that have been very difficult. Somewhere some how we have created them. But as Babaji has told us... just a little bit of practice of Kriya will spare us from 'dire suffering and colossal fear.'  All is well. There is so much beauty and wonder around us that is entering our life daily but we ourselves often shut it out with our own preconceived ideas, notions and social conditioning. i have no idea sometimes why these words come to my mind. They come from some where else at times. They are just as much for me as u or anyone else that may b listening.

There are people who r dangerous and treacherous. It is a mistake to think that the intentions of everyone that comes in our lives is good. But to always b on guard is to forfeit the blessings that come into our lives. Listen to the kindness offered by others and ignore the hell that some have created for themselves. If they truly want your help.... U may have to help from a distance. But some of them will want something you cannot give them. If you tell them that and they still can't accept it you will have to let them go and tell them they must go until they  have genuinely changed their attitude or perhaps u yourself have found that yours also needed changing. If you find yourself around people who mistrust you and your intentions; It is often because you yourself mistrust the intentions of others. If you cannot trust the intentions of those around you it is often because you cannot trust your own intentions.

Were you kind of like one of those nurses on one flew over the cuckoos nest?



Sorry you went thru whatever it was.

Wow!


Too true, it's one of the only tools I have to talk with other spiritual folks. Or am I?


Me too! Jus kiddin

exactly right, this is the way i feel whenever typing or presenting my case to a client when i'm trying to sell something.


calculated... i like that

Steve checks out with me! ^_^ then again, i'm not a female  ;D :P

 ;D. Lol.  The internet is excellent for connecting with others you share something in common with - especially if those things are unusual for where you physically are.  Not everyone is scary - or scared! I am a special (basket) case due to over exposure, ha ha.  I have met just 4 people in life whom I encountered first through online boards. All four turned out to be pretty much as they were online.  I think they felt that I was, too.  It isn't all smoke and mirrors.  :)

i see i am under scrutiny these days. May i ask why?.... i do not even have a potential relationship. At least no one has indicated it to me. i am fortunate for my friends though!

I think we are all under scrutiny at all times and therefore should behave as best we can (no one is perfect). Even the masters, however great their reputations, are scrutinized - often viciously. It is only wise to be careful about who one interacts with in life, whether online or off. I truly believe there is some exchange of mental energy that happens in every relationship we have.

On another note, I think there are more threads going than there are people on this forum. These conversations are very hard to follow as you forget which thread the discussion was under. I see I have been made a moderator. If this was true, I would have merged these topics. I don't really intend to do any moderating here though, but thanks anyway for the priviledge.

Thank you for the thoughtful reply, Steve.  I think you have spoken wisely, and I appreciate it - it isn't just coming from you, either, though you are surely one of the messengers.  Spirit is speaking too.  Have you ever read the book Hinds Feet on High Places?  It is a beautiful story about transformation.  The main character is a crippled young girl named Much Afraid who follows the Good Shepherd to the High Places though her foot is clubbed and the journey is steep.  Everyone has challenges to overcome.  I am passing through a deeply reflective and emotional glen on my way to the mountain at this time.  I cannot emphasize enough the depth of this phase, most of it inwardly driven as it needs to be.  You must not read too much into anything I say or don't say at this time, because it is transitional and I am so deeply focussed on what is brewing inside - processing - that all else barely registers.  A butterfly in its cocoon is not aware of the sun that shines on it, yet it unfurls its wings and flies in its own time - once that old shell is no longer useful.  

I think you are a good person.  Have never said otherwise.  Sharing fear is part of the new me opening up.  In general, I only share the good and strong parts.  But that has not served me very well in the past.  As you know, everyone needs their own time for comprehension.  You cannot just tell someone something.  They have to live it or observe it for themselves. My sharing with you the inner wondering of wether or not you are a 'nut' is not meant to be derogatory or mean.  It is respect, the puppy showing its under belly, a person being honest about where they are at.  If I did not care or question at all, I would not come here.  So!  That said, let us lighten up, okay?  If you are already light - super!  I am a little heavy sometimes.  You know my chart. Bless you and your owls, and your music.  I am off to tuck the kids in bed. Peace -

Sorry i must have a hard time counting... let me see 2 4 8 16 32 something like that. But it seems to me that there are more people then threads. Ha Ha You were chosen for your looks b. Its that new cactus look that's so contagious. About the scrutiny: 'When this you see remember me and please don't judge me too harshly.' It seems like to me that the best scrutiny we can do is on ourselves.That is the only place we can do some real changing and improving. Hey if you want perfection your looking in the wrong place- out there and in me.

hey beady

Those corn silk smokes were too much. u have some stiff tastes. Smokin them was like smokin a strong cigar. I've got a nut cracker but the nut cases i'm talkin about are the ones that are already cracked. Never had a chance to go crazy on them. They went crazy on me. They went ballistic. Never even had romance with them. The spin-doctor in their head let them know about me before they even got close to knowin' about who i was. When we let spin doctors control our decisions we end up living a life in our heads instead of what really is out there in reality.

There is nothing more scary then normal people.

                       The Kook

i will come by to sing the children a lovely lullaby. We are all very grateful to have you with us Ms. Shannon Leigh. If little hoot seems to be doing acrobats on your porch it is only the yoga postures i learned from Grandpa - i don't give a - hoot.

Hello SI!

You r talking about Nurse Ratched. i believe i was much more friendly then her. i don't believe in all the years i worked in mental health that i saw workers that were quite like that! Because of privacy we are not supposed to talk about are clinical experience with clients. But i did see incidents in which Mental Health workers treated one another that way. i believe there was a lot of rivalry... people wanting overtime and your full time job etc.

The difficulty that we have in a public forum like this is to bring things out into the open that have happened to us. i am sure that if i did that someone may still b watching this forum that i may anger so it is better to chalk it off to experience and move on. Some people that may have been treacherous in your life may just tell you to 'get over it' but at the same time they feel that you should be friends with them. But their actions might have cost thousands of dollars to you.

i have not read 'Hinds Feet on High Places' Perhaps i will sometime. i appreciate your honesty, long response and continued presence here. If more comes to mind about this nice post i will write later....

Well then i will consider your feelings.... we should all do that... consider each others feelings and what we have gone thru in life. When and if you want to meet/ talk off line let me know... i have spoken with many people on this forum on the phone and have met them. If u do not wish that to happen or do not feel comfortable about it then we appreciate your being here. That should be enough and no one should expect more.

Yes u r correct. The internet has brought many people together from distant places with similar interests. Life was never like this when i was younger. i was a loner when it came to meditation and my spiritual interests.

My experience has been quite different then yours Shannon. i have found the people i have met on line to be quite different off line and have found that people are quite different on line if i met them first in the physical realm. It adds a whole different dimension to relating. It can deepen relationships but it can also help us realize what a person is like when you spend personal time with them in the physical realm. You get a closer view at their habits and life styles and can find out to what degree you are compatible in the physical realm. That is often quite different then cyberspace.

i will leave you with one example: It is very difficult to experience the communication of silence and just being with someone here on the computer. But when you are with someone you can spend hours in silent communication. To connect here we have to put a lot of energy and thought into expressing our ideas. In the physical you can experience someones aura in a tactile, aural, olfactory and visual way. It is amazing to watch someone paint, play music, dance, their body language and how they serve one another. Just amazing! Once a friend literally ran to see me! What a feeling!

i can relate to what u mean when u say 'sharing the good and strong parts and how it has 'not always served u well in the past.' i remember Eric once told me that sometimes u can extend the hand of friendship and kindness to others and they can literally cut it off.

Sometimes though u find people that u would like to b light hearted with that u come to realize they do are not light hearted themselves and u have to take their intentions and feelings seriously. i think that is what u saw taking place at yoganandaji.org with someone u and i knew on the forum. What started out to be lightness, years of friendship and joking around ended up to b dead serious. Circumstances changed all that. Changes in relationships can also make dramatic changes in how people act towards one another. New people that come into their life may cause them to act quite different then they had before.

So u see u never know for sure the level of what u have triggered in someone else. It is good to stand back and say 'wow something i say or do may trigger past experiences in some one that were traumatic without me even knowing it. Or they may want something from me/you emotionally and as a friend, that i/you are unable to presently give to them. When they do not get it some can become easily vindictive. Suddenly you become the enemy and you can be accused and blamed for things that have never taken place or you have never done. It is not a general rule but we have to realize that mental illness is very prevalent in our culture and can and has manifested many times for many of us from other lost and weary souls living in their own private hell.

c'est bien vrai!

Maybe it is partially SIRENS AS FEMMES FATALES that have left me out there feeling like there was nothing to hold onto until i found my way out of the quagmire..... back to the spiritual Masters guidance. It was just a false alarm. But the mirage was sure presented as real.

Sorry just playin

That's why I created a log in called SI, that way if someone hijacks my account, at least they will not gain admin permissions, remember we do not use an SSL certificate for logging in...

And unfortunately, there is nothing to define normal or scary.

Yes she was one of them,

Shock treatment. I certainly hope you were not forced to resort to that.

(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/jfine7/dump/shockt.jpg)

http://redgramliving.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Emergence-Gestalt-Prayer.jpg

Really not to much a fan of this prayer. Y? Because it emphasizes individuality. In order to come together  people merge and help one another. It is more then just -- I do my thing you do yours-- It is more about what is your thing and how do I understand u? Compatibility depends on people working together. This is not a coincidence but comes with effort and service towards one another. i do agree about one important point about this prayer though. That is that it is important to expect things out of ourselves and not others.

i really believe u would enjoy the presence of Amma if she comes back to Georgia next year. i enjoy the presence of kind people. i seek them out and avoid mean people. If i see someone being unkind towards others or myself i may mention it. If they cannot see it or do not seem to care i will find others who r kind and thoughtful towards others and seek out their companionship.

If i am able to b in the presence of a real saint or Master i will do every thing i can to seek them out. Sometimes my thoughts do not concur with those of others but if they r making a conscious attempt to b kind and practice meditation i overlook these differences and hope they do as well. We have many mental states conditioned by life times that may make us feel different in shallow ways. But if we have come to the point of making an effort to b kind and correct ourselves while meditating we are old souls who need to help one another as friends and in our service to God and Gurus.

But we can be both, individuals and help others, a balance, might also help with becoming too attached.