Reflections on Your Future Self

Posted on May 26, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: I have read about the idea of working with my future self to overcome my current problems and gain a glimpse of a path forward for my life. Is this a viable strategy, or am I just deluding myself?

A There are seven major visualization mindsets for the future that people adopt. We can describe them and discuss their implications for successfully dealing with life issues—or not dealing with them, and getting lost instead on fear, rage, projection, and delusion. Here are the seven major future visualization mindsets:

Planned future self – You make a decision about what you are going to do. You identify the steps you need to take to reach that objective. You do each sequential behavior required until you reach this goal. In this perspective on the future, you are clear about what you want in your future, and you take constructive action to achieve it.
Idealized future self – You imagine your future self as having overcome any problems you are having, and it can advise you on how to overcome them. This type of visualization of your future self is used in psychotherapy and hypnotherapy to help you make positive behavior and attitude changes.
Fear-projected future self – Here, you cannot see any positive outcomes in your future and you worry about the bad things that might happen to you. This type of envisioning of your future self is associated with severe anxiety and depression.
Anger-projected future self – In this mindset, memories of people who hurt you or traumatized consume you—whether these events actually occurred or you believe misinformation about these people. You obsess about how you will destroy them and get your revenge for them hurting you. This vision of the future is associated with acts of violence and hateful attitudes towards others that you believe injured you or persecuted you, or who are vitiating what you hold dear or sacred.
Negative transmogrification – In this scenario, you see yourself deteriorating and becoming a subhuman monster or completely non-functional. This picture of your future self is associated with psychosis or degenerative neurological diseases. You anticipate the future with dread and horror.
Positive transmogrification – In this lens on your future, you visualize your body becoming filled with light, and you believe you will become so pure you will bodily ascend into heaven. New Age teachers disseminate this miraculous future vision of yourself, which is associated with beliefs about ascension, operating from a fifth dimensional platform, and instantly manifesting whatever you desire.
Developmental future self – In this way of seeing your future, you recognize your body-mind matures over time, and you meet a new set of developmental challenges as you move into each new segment of your life. Erik Erikson’s theory on each developmental stage describes these life segments and the challenges you will face in them. In this way of looking at the future, you deal with your current issues. You learn the lessons of these problems: you master them and move on to the next set of developmental milestones. You can get an intuition of the challenges that await you in the future as you mature; however, you focus on overcoming the current concerns that you are dealing with in your life.

You may find that you operate in one of these modes of envisioning your future self. Three of these modes lead to achievement, acceptance and patience, and reception of guidance about how you can move into actualizing your dreams:

Scenario one is realistic, and enhances your ability to take responsibility and achieve the goals you set for yourself.

Scenario two can be therapeutic and can help you change if your visualized future self has some genuine wisdom and guidance to share with you—and this future self with whom you dialog is indeed wiser, more masterful, and more mature than you are now.

Scenario seven gives you a roadmap of the actual steps of growth you will make in your life, as you mature, provided you overcome the challenges of each stage of your life.

Four of these modes of visualization of your future can generate greater suffering, more problems and entanglements, despair and hopelessness, and delusion:

Scenarios three, four, and five are negative visualizations of the future that are associated with the emotions of fear and worry, anger, and horror. If it is possible for you to shift into the perspective of scenarios one, two or seven, you may find you are able to better manage your current issues more effectively—instead of inhabiting very primitive and ineffective mindsets that give rise to worry and anxiety, depression, hatred and violence, or horror and dread.

Scenario six is predicated upon utopian fantasies, which are rarely realized in your life. These visions arise from imagination: they assume that supernatural forces will manifest miraculous things in your life. This worldview presumes you are a god-like being who can create anything you want in your future. These fanciful visions of manifestations are often founded upon you taking the steps to actually achieve what you desire; in this mindset, however, it appears to you that this is a supernatural creation.

This magical mindset appears to work sometimes; at other times, it leads to disappointment and motivates you to question how you are blocking or sabotaging the manifestation of the elements of the idealized future you desire.

In general, it is best to use constructive action; and to have the patience to recognize that once you master your current life challenges, you will have greater wisdom, ability, and understanding to share with others—and you will function at a higher level in your life. Additionally, if you visualize a wiser and better self in your future, you can listen to its counsel to guide you in the next steps for your life.

If you adopt visualization mindset six, we recommend you verify whether your practice of intentional manifestation is actually working, so you may not delude yourself with magical thinking.

Octaves of Voices that Inform Decisions

Posted on May 13, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: I hear different voices when I attempt to make a decision. What inner voice should I rely upon? I feel conflicted as to what guidance I should follow.

A: When you look at the levels of voices within you that can inform your decision making, there are ten major levels:

The voice of fear – When you act from this level, you avoid, make excuses, lie, and run away.
The voice of prior conditioning and learning – When you act from this level, you lead an inauthentic life. You act out others’ programs for your life.
The voice of madness and unbridled imagination – When you act from this level, you may distract others through entertainment and humor; you tell stories and hide your genuine Self behind a facade. If you are suffering from mental illness, the voices from this level may attack you and tell you lies, which causes you untold suffering.
The voice of your conscience – When you act from this level, you act on your values. You act from integrity and you develop a positive character.
The voice of your Self – This is the voice that directs your behavior to accomplish your goals. When you act from this level, you take responsibility for your actions and your work to achieve your objectives.
The voice of your attentional principle – You hear this voice when you hear the attentional principle’s intention or suggestion. When you act from this level, you train yourself, your work on yourself, and become aware of your issues and resolve them.
The voice of your spirit – When you act from this level, love and caring express through your behavior.
The voice of numinous entities – These voices derive from angels, guides, and the Holy Spirit. When you act from this level, inspiration informs your actions; you take action on faith, based on the messages you receive at this level.
The voice of the Soul – When you act from this level, you carry out your Soul Purpose.
The voice of the Divine Will – When you act from this level, you carry out spiritual ministry and fulfill the Divine Plan or Dispensation that God has given you. [To understand the role of a Dispensation given to a lineage holder, please see the article, “What Is a Lineage Holder?“]

You progressively shift from hearing the voices of levels one through ten, as your core identity transforms. Personal maturation comprises levels one through five; spiritual maturation consists of levels six to ten.

Your spiritual nature functions from these levels:

Level ten guides Initiates.
Disciples operate at level nine.
Aspirants tap into level eight.
Your ability to do inner work and transform your spiritual potentials works at levels six and seven.

Listen for each of these layers of voices within you: aim to recognize the source of the voice. Notice what these voices tell you.

When you dissolve the conflicting guidance from these different levels of voices, you will ultimately act from the deepest level of maturation within you.

When you align the intention of your attentional principle, the wish of your spirit, and the volition of your Self at your personal octave and the Soul at the transpersonal octave—and you act in spite of fear, prior conditioning, or values that no longer serve you—you bring your deeper nature into expression.

Stages of Working with issues

Posted on May 5, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: I feel completely absorbed in my suffering and misery. How can I break free to meditate and begin feeling fully alive again?

A: There are seven major stages of working with your issues:

Complete absorption in the issue – There is full identification with the issue; the issue governs your choices, beliefs, emotions, and behaviors.
Separation of attention from the issue – This is the first sense that the issue is not your identity; your attention observes it.
Monitoring – Your attention observes the issue running like a tape; it notices the choices, beliefs, emotions, and behavior of the issue arise and pass away. This is the stage of Vipassana.
Inner work – You regard the issue from the standpoint of your attentional principle. You are able to use Process Meditation, Affirmation, Mandala Method, and Rainbow Technique to work with the issue to gain insight, release, and breakthrough.
Self-control – Your Self begins to overrule the issue and command alternate behavior, countermand the choices embedded in the issue, and refute erroneous beliefs.
Grace – You are able to call down the Light of Spirit to attune with the issue, which grants emotional comfort, healing, and reconnection with the Soul; additionally, your Self receives guidance and direction.
Surrender and detachment – You surrender the issue to the Soul, the spiritual Master, and God, and you abide in obedience to the Divine Will; you carry this out each day.

You start the process with taking these steps:

Your first challenge is moving from identification with the issue to observing it. With further practice, you can start to observe the issue arising and passing away—at this stage, you are capable of doing Vipassana.
Once you are able to shift to the perspective of your attentional principle and your Self, you will begin to be able to work on the issue and wrest control from it.
As you are able to tap into your spiritual core, you will begin to bring in the Light of Attunement and the Soul’s transpersonal will to help you overcome the issue.

We teach the techniques for inner work in our intermediate meditation classes: the in-person Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation and the by-mail and online Accelerated Meditation Program. Having the ability to work on the issue from a place of clarity can catalyze inner movement; eventually you will fully overcome the issue.

Exercise to Explore These Seven Perspectives

You can do an exercise to experience the different perspectives on your issue. Identify with what issue you want to work. Then ask the following questions for this issue:

How do I experience my issue when I am fully identified with it?
What does my issue look like when I detach my attention from it?
What do I notice about this issue when I monitor it in the present time?
How does my attentional principle view this issue? What tools do I have to work on this issue from my attentional principle?
How does my Self view this issue? How does my Self interface with the issue? From this higher standpoint, can I begin to control the issue’s behavior and beliefs, and overrule its choices?
If I call in the Holy Spirit or my spiritual guides or Masters, what attunements can I send to work begin to heal this issue?
How does my Soul regard this issue? What abilities, love, and knowledge does it have that can change and ultimately overcome the issue?
If I surrender this issue to the Divine, what do I need to do live with the issue until I am freed from it?

What Happens to Vehicles of Consciousness When the Soul is Liberated?

Posted on April 8, 2023 by George Boyd

Vehicles of consciousness typically align with the Soul and are tuned up as it evolves. But they are not necessarily liberated when it drops into the Nirvanic Flame. Several scenarios exist for what happens when the Soul becomes liberated in the Planetary Realm:

All vehicles of consciousness are liberated at death – one must undergo the Pratyeka Buddha process to do this.
Selected vehicles of consciousness are liberated – Adept Masters and empowered Adepts drop certain vehicles of consciousness that are not relevant to their ministry.
Alignment of vehicles of consciousness with a form of service – individuals who liberate their Soul may align their vehicles with a nodal point where they can carry out a selected ministry via activating the vehicles of consciousness through Attunement. For example, an individual who has liberated the Soul might align his or her vehicles of consciousness with the 14th nodal point of the New World Servers Subplane on the Manasic Plane to carry out work as a group leader.
Alignment of vehicles of consciousness with a stage of development within Planetary Creation that mirrors their station at Cosmic, Supracosmic, or Transcendental levels of development. For example, a Bhakti Yoga Preceptor who dwells on the First Cosmic Initiation might align his vehicles of consciousness with the form of the Saint to express Divine Love in the Planetary Realm
A Master who elects to take the Sixth Initiation may tune up the vehicles of his or her personality to animate an immortal form in full consciousness – this stage of development is called the Ascension. [We write about the Ascension in depth in our Initiates Library volume, Discoveries on the Path. This book is available to those students who have completed the Mudrashram® Advanced Course in Meditation.]

Two other vehicle alignments are observed when the Soul is not liberated:

Vehicles of consciousness line up with the Soul up to its establishment in its Crown of Purpose – this is normal vehicular development for those who have a Crown of Purpose.
Selected vehicles of consciousness are tuned up out of alignment with the Soul – this appears in groups that identify with a vehicular seed atom or a nucleus of identity and transform it outside the axis of being, and move it beyond the Soul, so it is no longer controlled by the Soul’s transpersonal will.

We discourage aspirants from doing transformational work that misaligns vehicles of consciousness and moves vehicular seed atoms or nuclei of identity off of the axis of being—in the Subtle, Planetary, Transplanetary, Cosmic, Supracosmic, or Transcendental Bands of the Continuum.

We refer you to our articles available on our Open Stacks page to learn more about what spiritual imbalance is and how to avoid it: “The Cutting Edge of Spirituality,” “On Avoiding Imbalance from Spiritual Practice,” and “What is the Axis of Being?”

Those of you who do not know whether you have a Crown of Purpose or not may benefit from a Soul Purpose Reading, which can identify whether this is present and where this Crown of Purpose dwells in the Continuum of Consciousness.

The Challenge of Working with Concretized Thought

Posted on January 21, 2023 by George Boyd

Q: I have heard you use the term, concretized thought. What do you mean by this?

A: There are three major levels of thought:

Concretized
Abstract
Spiritual

The seven levels of Concretized Thought are:

Naming – This establishes a one to one correspondence to physical objects and people. This creates the sense of reality for the environment and the objects and people who are in it.

Attribution – This assigns qualities or labels to physical objects or people. This places subjective judgments about these objects and people, and emotionalizes them.

Experience – This is your memory for life events and the people in your life, which generates your life narrative and your sense of connection to other people.

Learning – This is your memory for facts and information. This mnemonic reservoir is only as accurate as the quality of the information you learn—if you learn information that is incorrect, you will share that incorrect information with others and believe it.

Attitude – This is the stratum of emotionalized beliefs. You might idealize other people and things; you may demonize them. Negative attitudes form the basis of prejudice, arrogance, and racism.

Beliefs – A dictionary definition of beliefs is “the acceptance of the truth or actuality of something without certain proof; [it is a] mental conviction.” Commercial advertising, journalism, politics, and religion are examples of agencies that seek to shape beliefs; this in turn, may lead you to develop positive or negative attitudes about certain topics, objects, or other people.

Opinion – This is communication of your beliefs as speech, writing, or through other media.

Concretized thought can be vitiated through distorted beliefs and incorrect information. Especially when information is communicated to you in an emotionalized or sensationalized fashion, it may powerfully shape your beliefs and attitudes; those who disseminate falsehoods and wrong information can readily manipulate people, who are unable to verify the information they receive.

The seven levels of Abstract Thought are:

Mindset – This is a perceptual frame that is a container of your beliefs about the world, other people, and yourself. It may be difficult to break out of a mindset that posits certain beliefs about your potential and what is possible in your future; limiting mindsets may hold you back from taking risks and realizing your dreams.

Values – This is the content that arises from your conscience, which dictates the standards and moral rules that shape your behavior, mold your character, and influence the way you relate to other people. Values affect your beliefs about what is right or wrong; what is good and evil; and what you should and shouldn’t do.

Plan – This is a mental roadmap of the behavioral steps you must take to accomplish a goal. Planning, together with the execution of that plan, form the basis of your ability to work and carry out the functions of adult life in family, academic, and vocational settings.

Goal – This is a statement of what you choose to achieve. When goals are clothed in desire, they are called dreams. Goals are ideas of what you want; a plan provides the steps for you to achieve that goal; action enables you to attain that goal.

Problem solving – This is the action of your intellect, which uses intelligence to solve problems. Education and training develop your problem-solving skills.

Reflection – This includes thinking about the meaning of concepts and how they relate to other ideas. Reflection creates theoretical models of the world; science tests those models to see if they are accurate. Reflection about your life and the choices you have made is called introspection; reflection about your values is called values clarification; reflection about your options is called decision.

Personal intuition – This is the mental function that allows you to “check in” with the different levels of your mind and to get information on what you are experiencing. As you know and understand your self, you can extend this into an empathic reflection into the experience of others. This ability to have empathy for others is the basis for what has been called emotional intelligence.

Abstract thought draws upon the faculties of your Metaconscious mind. Problem solving and reflection may help you work with concretized thought to uproot the false information and beliefs that undermine its reliability and accuracy. Critical thinking and the ability to examine your beliefs and values help you to gain greater control over the ideas and information that enables others to deceive you or manipulate you.

Spiritual thought also has seven major facets:

Revelation – This is the passive reception of information from an archetype or spiritual being. If revelations are not subjected to reflection and analysis, they can lead to irrational beliefs. Some of the conspiracy theories circulating today stem from insights or revelations that have not been thought through, and are simply presented as truth.

Dialogue – This is an active question and answer discussion with different aspects of the personality or with elements of the Superconscious mind. At the personal level of dialogue, you might interview your ego, or a personification of one of your issues in your unconscious mind (subpersonality), your conscience, or your Self. In the spiritual level of dialogue, you might ask questions and listen to the answers from your attentional principle, your spirit, a nucleus of identity, or your ensouling entity—or you might dialog with spiritual beings who are outside of your own axis of being, such as angels, Ascended Masters, spiritual guides, the Holy Spirit, or the Divine. Dialogue is the foundation of journaling.

Guidance suggestion – This is a directive given to your attention in meditation, hypnosis, or psychotherapy to focus your attention on an internal aspect of your mind. You may be asked to observe this internal object of meditation; you may be asked to dialogue with it; or you may be asked to interact with it. Guidance suggestion underlies guided meditation, hypnotherapy, and many of the imagery therapies that interact with intrapsychic elements.

Creation – This anchors thought forms in the Astral Plenum though affirmation, visualization, claiming by faith, and decree. Thought forms are purported to substand the phenomena of miraculous manifestation; the New Age community relies upon the creation of positive thought forms to activate the Law of Attraction.

Love – This is the thought stream of love and devotion that comes from your spirit. You become aware of this type of thought when you meditate upon your spirit.

Attunement – This is the beam of directed thought from your attentional principle that carries the Divine Light during attunements. In addition to making attunements, this beam of intention can activate a transformational mantra, actively focus your attention on an object of meditation, or enable the attentional principle to travel through the bands of the Continuum of Consciousness.

Illumination – This arises from the activation of the Illumined Mind of your ensouling entity. This allows you to access the knowledge of the Superconscious mind, to receive the wisdom and guidance of your ensouling entity, and to discern the true nature of your ensouling entity.

You access spiritual thought in the Superconscious mind. Spiritual thought allows you to work on yourself and uproot the false beliefs that plague concretized thought; it promotes insight, understanding, creativity, and the expression of your ensouling entity’s wisdom, love, and ability.

The Psychological Matrix

There is interaction between eight of the levels of concretized and abstract thought that can distort belief and behavior:

Attribution can go astray when people have negative experiences, incorrect learning, mistaken attitudes, and false beliefs that influence your ideas about other people. Attributions that come from the unconscious mind are called projections; desire and fear distort projections.
Life narrative can be subverted through traumatic, abusive, or difficult life experiences; erroneous learning, warped attitudes, and untrue beliefs can distort your perception and experience of your life and self-image.
Learning can be vitiated when you receive incorrect information.
Attitude can be conditioned though attribution, experience, learning, and belief.
Belief can be influenced through your experience, learning, and values; the opinions and judgments of others also play a role in shaping your beliefs.
Opinions communicate your values, beliefs, attitudes, experiences, and attributions; when these levels of the psychological matrix have been corrupted, your opinions reflect this bias.
Mindsets are held in place through other’s opinions; and through your values, beliefs, attitudes, and experiences. Negative mindsets can impede growth and change; positive mindsets can facilitate forward movement in your life and achieving more of your potential.
Values can influence your mindsets, opinions, beliefs, and attitudes; how you regard your life experiences; your attributions, and your behavior. When you accept the values of others as your own (introjection), this can powerfully affect how you view yourself, others, and the world.

Your psychological matrix is constructed from the interaction of these eight facets; when these have been perverted, your beliefs and mindsets may imprison you. Those who begin to work with spiritual thought—aspirants and disciples—can begin to purify this psychological matrix.

Purifying Your Psychological Matrix

There are a variety of methods that you use to begin to purify your psychological matrix:

Attribution – Ascribing correct descriptors to a person’s character and behavior; re-owning your projections
Life narrative – Working out traumatic and abusive life experiences through psychotherapy and forgiveness; experiencing emotional healing through reception of the Holy Spirit or Comforter
Learning – Correcting inaccurate information; utilizing critical thinking, reality testing, and reflection to uproot incorrect learning
Attitude – Cultivating loving kindness, compassion, and understanding towards yourself and others
Beliefs – Deconstructing false beliefs through cognitive behavioral therapy; immersion in the stream of the Illumined Mind
Opinions – Gaining direct experience and accurate knowledge that counters inaccurate learning and beliefs; connecting with your attentional principle, your spirit, and your ensouling entity and receiving truthful guidance
Mindsets – Shifting attention into alternate frames of perception (reframing); operating from the deeper perspective of the Self and the Soul; moving your attention into higher levels of awareness (consciousness raising)
Values – performing values clarification and introspection; exposure to moral teaching that enables you to evaluate your behavior and the values you have chosen; choosing to improve your character; and discovering your Dharma—the inmost core of truth within your heart.

You learn several of the modalities of spiritual thought in our intermediate meditation courses, the in-person Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation and the by-mail and online Accelerated Meditation Program. Through these applied methods you can begin to reform the layers of concretized and abstract thought that imprison you in the labyrinth of your psychological matrix.