The mental environment of the world is changing. Continuation Training Step 73

The mental environment of the world is changing. CT Step 73 (MP3)

The mental environment of the world is changing. CT Step 73

Perhaps you have wondered why the world feels different or seems different. In your own way, perhaps you have experienced this. Things are certainly changing in some obvious ways, but the feeling of being in the world is changing as well. Have you ever wondered why this might be the case? It is easier to attach causes to social and economic factors, but these alone cannot account for the great change that is occurring in the world and for the new experiences that people are having.

Indeed, for many people, though there is greater affluence in many parts of the world, there is a greater discomfort as well. People often attribute that to psychological causes or the result of emotional dysfunction, past traumas or things like this. Any of those may indeed be the cause in many situations, but the mental environment of the world is changing.

Let yourself have the experience of this today and see what it means for you. Engage in your practice in stillness and your hourly practice in awareness and discernment, but also take time today to ask yourself this question, "Is the mental environment of the world changing?" Let yourself have your own experience. Ask the question, but do not give the answer. Let the answer naturally come from within you. Feel what it means. Even when you are out in nature, away from human establishments, if you have this opportunity today, ask yourself this question. It is the beginning of a new understanding.

Practice 73:    One 30-minute stillness practice.

                         Contemplation practice.

                         Hourly practice.

Picture:  Hirshhorn Art Museum, Washington, D.C. Artists can depict a different world which may reflect changing mental environments.

Plan B - If the MP3 doesn’t work, here’s the link to the folder: New Message - Student Spoken Steps CT Recordings - Steps to Knowledge Continuation Training - Working file

Chapter 4: God Has Spoken Again

We continue.

NNC

Note: If you’ve some interest, but this is the first time you’ve seen Steps, you should go to the beginning blog post. From here you will learn about Steps to Knowledge and can begin it on the day that makes sense; then progress as needed. Begin at the beginning.

If you do know about Steps, but have not done Steps twice completely, read the related materials, and have a sense of the direction of this study, you won’t get the experience. The Introduction begins:

“This is the Steps to Knowledge Continuation Training. It is designed to build upon the Steps that were learned in Steps to Knowledge to enable you to experience the grace, the power and the direction of Knowledge in your life and to become an expression of Knowledge in everything that you do. If you have completed the book, Steps to Knowledge, twice through and have followed the instructions as they were given without altering the curriculum in any way, then you are now ready to begin this more advanced study”.

If you are an independent student, that is certainly an option. Posts here provide a trail that may let you have a virtual companion when and if you want one. One may have to study alone, as I did in the beginning. There are other Steps students blogging their experience and you might find a person more like you as a companion, or use a number of such Steps journeys. There are options as well through the Free School of the New Message

I am influenced by the mental environments around me. Continuation Training Step 72

I am influenced by the mental environments around me. CT Step 72 (MP3)

I am influenced by the mental environments around me. CT Step 72

Perhaps you doubt the power of the mental environment to influence you. If you do, today’s practice will be very helpful in showing you to what degree these environments do influence you and even control your experience.

It may come as no surprise here that the wise remain hidden. They are very selective about where they go, who they are with and what kind of relationships they establish with people. There is a very important reason for this. The wise are not indiscriminate. They know that wherever they are is important and has an impact upon them and upon others. They take this seriously. They are not careless in where they place themselves. They do not spend time in environments that are not supportive unless they have specific business in being there. They are sensitive. They know that the environment is powerful, and they respect this power.

Yet look at people around you. They go from place to place, they have experiences, and yet they do not recognize the impact of the environment upon them unless the situation becomes extreme. Sometimes they will say, "Well, this place feels very good," or "I don't feel comfortable here. I don't feel safe here." And they may respond, but often they do not. If they do not respond to an environment that is dangerous for them, this is the first sign that there is a problem. They have missed the first cue. The cues are being given, but people are not responding.

In addition to your practice in stillness today, practice upon the hour seeing where you are and how it feels to be there. But even beyond your hourly practice, take some time today--a few minutes here, a few minutes there, in different situations and in different environments--and see how it feels for you to be there. See what kind of response you have. Is it emotional, mental or physical? In time, you will learn to shield yourself from negative forces in the mental environment, but for right now you need to learn about the environments themselves. This will be the focus of today’s practice.

Practice 72:    One 30-minute stillness practice.

                         Contemplation practice.

                         Hourly practice.

Picture:  Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington County, Virginia. Flashing lights on a police car alter the mental environment for those arriving and departing. Is something wrong?

Plan B - If the MP3 doesn’t work, here’s the link to the folder: New Message - Student Spoken Steps CT Recordings - Steps to Knowledge Continuation Training - Working file

Chapter 3: The Engagement

We continue.

NNC

Note: If you’ve some interest, but this is the first time you’ve seen Steps, you should go to the beginning blog post. From here you will learn about Steps to Knowledge and can begin it on the day that makes sense; then progress as needed. Begin at the beginning.

If you do know about Steps, but have not done Steps twice completely, read the related materials, and have a sense of the direction of this study, you won’t get the experience. The Introduction begins:

“This is the Steps to Knowledge Continuation Training. It is designed to build upon the Steps that were learned in Steps to Knowledge to enable you to experience the grace, the power and the direction of Knowledge in your life and to become an expression of Knowledge in everything that you do. If you have completed the book, Steps to Knowledge, twice through and have followed the instructions as they were given without altering the curriculum in any way, then you are now ready to begin this more advanced study”.

If you are an independent student, that is certainly an option. Posts here provide a trail that may let you have a virtual companion when and if you want one. One may have to study alone, as I did in the beginning. There are other Steps students blogging their experience and you might find a person more like you as a companion, or use a number of such Steps journeys. There are options as well through the Free School of the New Message

Let me become aware of the mental environment in which I live. Continuation Training Step 71

Let me become aware of the mental environment in which I live. CT Step 71 (MP3)
 

Let me become aware of the mental environment in which I live. CT Step 71

You live in a Mental Environment as well as a physical one. The Mental Environment is filled with forces and thought forms, generated by thinking beings everywhere. You have experienced this. You experience it every day. Walk into any house, any building, any place where people are congregated, and you will experience the mental environment of that place--an environment that is created through the predominating thoughts and interactions of the people who dwell there.

Become sensitive to your environment. Feel it wherever you go. Out of doors, the mental environment dissipates, though places in genera can have an overall feel to them, depending upon what has occurred there in the past and what the prevailing ideas are in that particular location.

Indoors particularly and in close proximity to others, you will experience a unique mental environment. Some of these environments you will find agreeable. Some you will not find agreeable. The question to ask yourself is, "Where do I need to be?" Sometimes you need to be in a disagreeable place to understand it, to discern it and to learn further about the forces in the mental environment. These are forces that influence you every day and that on many occasions govern you completely. This is an essential part of your preparation for the Greater Community, where the emphasis on control of the mental environment has been developed to a far greater degree than is apparent in your world. Here you can practice everywhere you go because everywhere you go, there is a mental environment. With everyone you spend time with closely, you create a mental environment

The question to ask yourself is, "Is this the right place for me to be?" If it is the right place, then you must begin to learn about where you are. How does it feel? What are the characteristics? What are the prevailing notions, ideas or sentiments that exist there? What do they motivate in you? Do they encourage you? Do they discourage you? Do they make you feel stronger? Do they make you feel weaker? Do they dissipate your energy or do they charge your energy?

Beyond your practice in stillness today and your hourly practice, carry on this investigation and do not forget. This is a day of practice, a day to deepen your understanding and to gain new skill and authority in your life.

Practice 71:    One 30-minute stillness practice.

                         Contemplation practice.

                         Hourly practice.

Picture:  O'Hare Airport, Chicago, Illinois.

Plan B - If the MP3 doesn’t work, here’s the link to the folder: New Message - Student Spoken Steps CT Recordings - Steps to Knowledge Continuation Training - Working file

 Chapter 2: The Recitation

We continue.

NNC

Note: If you’ve some interest, but this is the first time you’ve seen Steps, you should go to the beginning blog post. From here you will learn about Steps to Knowledge and can begin it on the day that makes sense; then progress as needed. Begin at the beginning.

If you do know about Steps, but have not done Steps twice completely, read the related materials, and have a sense of the direction of this study, you won’t get the experience. The Introduction begins:

“This is the Steps to Knowledge Continuation Training. It is designed to build upon the Steps that were learned in Steps to Knowledge to enable you to experience the grace, the power and the direction of Knowledge in your life and to become an expression of Knowledge in everything that you do. If you have completed the book, Steps to Knowledge, twice through and have followed the instructions as they were given without altering the curriculum in any way, then you are now ready to begin this more advanced study”.

If you are an independent student, that is certainly an option. Posts here provide a trail that may let you have a virtual companion when and if you want one. One may have to study alone, as I did in the beginning. There are other Steps students blogging their experience and you might find a person more like you as a companion, or use a number of such Steps journeys. There are options as well through the Free School of the New Message