What exactly is a person? We live, but what does it mean to actually live? Who are we? Where are we going? What exactly are we doing? Must we do anything? Must we go anywhere? It is innate in us to search out for meaning, wherever it may lie.

Life is our creation. We create it by our choices. In this ability to have choose, this is where we are gifted with freedom. But this freedom can be liberating or it can bring us to hell. Life is like a play or performance. At times, people’s frame freezes and they become trapped in that singular moment. All that they define about life, about who they are returns to that singular point. We imprison ourselves by our thoughts, by our own choice.

Life does throw us challenges at many turns, but it is our choice to either become entrapped and fall into despair, or to seek for our liberation. It is our choice how we wish to perceive events and circumstances. We can take charge and create our existence or we can allow life to control us. Human beings have the capability of being resilient. We have the ability to create, to create our own destiny. Eplicletus had stated that men are not disturbed by events but rather their perceptions of them.

Challenges and mistakes can be moments of discovery, if we will allow them to be.

Hindus often use the greeting, “Namaste”. This statement implies that I honor the self within you. We are all inter-connected, each of us plays a role in this play of life, we are all part of the human condition. Within each of us is the innate ability to remain inter-connected and the nature of what is benevolent. It is as if we each are a mirror reflecting beauty, yet when this mirror becomes covered with dirt, it no longer reflects this image of beauty. The image becomes contorted, even ugly. In Buddhist thought, there are three poisons that lead to the downfall of a person- greed, hatred, and delusion. Greed implies the desire to possess at the expense of another. Hatred is the resentments we hold to, the thought of harming another, and delusion implies that we are unaware or our thinking is clouded. It is these poisons that are a ‘collective sin’. We infect ourselves and our infected by others, and it is for this reason why individuals are born into various degrees of suffering.

Therefore, we must realize that our self is inter-connected with the self of others. We are all journeying the same path. It is not a race or a competition, but rather a simple journey. We cannot complete it alone.

What is success? We may find many, many answers. It is often our view of what success is that shapes our vision, our goals, and ultimately who we are and will become. Our views of success should be tempered with the reality of our mortality. Whatever our view is of that which occurs at death, we can all ask the question if our life was fulfilled. What have we created? What do we leave once we have passed on?

What exactly does it mean to love? Often love comes with strings attached or is a means by which to control another. The definition of love as put forward by Saint Paul is of great value- Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Dr. Richard Gallagher, professor at New York Medical College and Columbia University, believes possession and demons are real. He is the author of Demonic Foes, A Psychiatrist Investigates Demonic Possession in the Modern United States.

We didn’t believe in demons or dark energy 30 years ago, partly because we hadn’t yet researched and fully understood the subject. Also, we had recently put our college binge drinking days behind us and still had negative energy onboard from that, which can influence your thinking (such as to not believe in demons). Besides, the idea of demons seemed scary, so it was easier to ignore the issue.

Our findings show possession is far more common than most people realize. We don’t mean in dramatic ways as portrayed in scary movies. Dark energy is usually much more subtle than that, and why it usually goes unnoticed.

In addition to demons, lost souls–the soul of someone who died but didn’t go to “the Light”–can also interfere in similar ways, especially if that soul was possessed when the body died.

Is possession always to blame? Exorcists of the Church claim that many suspected cases of severe possession could be mental illness. However, we’ve noticed that mental illness can sometimes be caused or made worse by negative entities and lost souls.

Below we describe ways that dark energy and lost souls can mess with you.

“Have another drink, snort, hit, or pill.” Drugs and alcohol fuel self-delusion and open your energy field so dark energy and lost souls can come marching in and take over. People are much easier to control when under the influence.

Are those only your thoughts of smoking that cigarette or inhaling that vape? Most addicts and smokers, we’ve found, have lost souls onboard who attempt to satisfy their habit through the body and mind of their host.

Why did you angrily lash out at that person who didn’t deserve it? Did it seem like it wasn’t even you doing it? Yes, everyone is responsible for his or her behavior, but demons might also be part of the problem, especially while under the influence.

Sexually promiscuous people can get caught in the trap of looking for sex, again and again, to satisfy a seemingly insatiable urge. Is it only their desire or is there outside influence? Sometimes this hobby takes away from their important goals (some of which demons don’t want them to reach). Even worse, it’s easy to pick up bad energy through sex, so unless you clear yourself often, you’ll accumulate layers of damaging energy and the problem tends to snowball.

Do you ever have thoughts or feelings like you’re worthless, stupid, or an otherwise bad person, for no apparent reason? It could be negative energy directed at you. Demons love to make you feel bad because it’s easier to zap your energy when you’re down and out. They relish keeping you down in any way possible to make you feel the opposite of empowered, light, and energized, which is how you’ll feel when you clear yourself of the spiritual garbage.

Why did you have those thoughts that someone is an enemy, even though the person is clearly on your side? Little devils might be targeting you. They love to cause arguments and diminishing love is their game. The best way to counter this is to never assume the worst about a friend or loved one unless you have proof, and always meditate on the situation or problem before taking action or saying something.

Little tricksters love to encourage people around you to think negative things about you, especially when you spiritually protect yourself; the spiritual brats can’t get to you, so they’ll go through someone else around you. This can make dating and relationships even more difficult for the spiritually inclined, especially with people who drink excessively and, or do drugs. This might also be an explanation for why that neighbor seems to enjoy annoying you.

Did you take yet another wrong turn that messed up your plans? It might just be part of the process of learning, but spiritual deceivers might be messing with you, trying to lead you to bad people or problems. To counteract this, meditate and ask for help often, from your guides of the Light, for each step of all your goals and for everyday life.

Encouraging worry or fear is another way they jump onboard and stir the pot. Neutralize the worry with gratitude; be grateful that everything is working out just fine, be grateful that someone will help you with the problem. Feel the gratitude, relief, and love, which scare away the spiritual villains.

Dark energy and lost souls are everywhere and a natural part of life. Fortunately, you can arm and protect yourself with meditation and spiritual prayers.

Copyright ©

Beauty. What is beauty? A question which has given all the philosophers, observers and wise men sleepless nights trying to provide a definition which suits all sorts. But beauty exists both independently and exclusively contradicting every definition that’s been used to define it. Stating the word of Confucius:- “Everything has beauty but not everyone can see it.” Seems legit but even if it’s true it doesn’t stop everyone from developing their own ideas of beauty. Ideas that are convincing, ideas that are explainable and ideas that are appealing. And between all the assumptions, presumptions and preconceived notions beauty has definitely lost it’s meaning. From being a delight to the soul, beauty, rather has become a weapon to condescend those who lie below the line of perfect curves, appealing colour of skin, kind of hair or particular facial sets, a judgement based on practices begin by foul people with intentions of feeling superior just because they were blessed with the features mentioned above. And this definition of beauty has become a tactic to garner fame, attention, rewards, superiority and create illusion for it has been known that beauty is the most feasible delusion.

And this definition of beauty perceived by the opportunists has created a division amongst the society. The first being the one with perfect sets of body features claiming their superiority basing it on their luck of proper DNA arrangements and the others, that lay behind in this race living a life based on their dignity and their virtues still keeping them at the end of the line and leaving them wishing if they could be beautiful. My goal here is not to loathe people for being attractive but to analyse the concepts that have driven us all so far to a demeaning end. Quoting a famous author John Green:- “That’s always seemed so ridiculous to me, that people want to be around someone because they’re pretty. It’s like picking your breakfast cereals based on color instead of taste.” Words put together so well that it feels beautiful to read it at once. But the question is how many people get influenced by these words and make amends in their lives. And here again I raised question to my own answers about beauty.

‘Feels beautiful’. Is beauty an object to look and measure, is beauty a feeling to sense or is beauty an idea to endeavour? With every possible answer to existing questions we get more questions instead.

For a mother her child or for instance any child is beautiful as ever. For an artist whose art speaks volume of his excellence beauty lies everywhere or anywhere. For a snake charmer beauty lies in the skin and eyes of snakes. For a psychopath beauty lies in the curves of his prey and how it trembles when he informs him of his fate. For an engineer beauty lies in the designs he create. For a doctor beauty lies in handing over the newborn baby to her mother. For businessman beauty lies in the number game. For a model beauty lies on curves of her body and the look on her face.

So many ideas, feelings and explanations. And they somehow never seem to intersect.

According to famous poet John Keats:- ‘A thing of beauty is a joy forever: it’s loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness.’ I wish I could oppose this statement because as am reading this I feel so many memories rushing back in support of this. Remembering the times when I hold a baby in my arms and it refuses to leave me holding me tight altogether. Seeing an older couple who by society’s standards are neither pretty nor rich holding hands while going on a walk. Getting a text from someone telling you that they love you and the curve it makes on your cheeks. You might confuse it all with love or affection but these are all things of beauty if my idea of beauty is correct. I can literally think of so many instances and examples to support my claim. But this is not about convincing others about my idea of beauty. This is an effort to put restrictions on evolving ideas of beauty cause sometimes some mysteries should never be unfold and some answers should never be told for as much as we deny it, we live for the surprises that comes our way. We live to find different forms of beauty.

For my closing argument or rather justification; let’s, like everybody else in the past think of the origin of beauty. Perhaps the first men saw a rainbow after the heavy tornado and thought of giving a name to this feeling or view. And at the same time on a different place another man stood at the edge of the a cliff and saw a sunrise. They both saw something which gave them joy and a feeling indescribable. So they gave it a name: beauty. And with years passing different people with different experiences drew their own ideas or assumptions or experiences of beauty into quotes, poems, songs and stories including those who tried to objectify beauty. Unfortunately those who objectified beauty has succeeded in the present times.

So when we look at all these definitions of beauty from the mediaeval ages to this present moment, there exists no possible explanation or definition to beauty. There is only exploitation of it for personal endeavours.

Perhaps this is where we are wrong at. Trying to define beauty. Ever since humans existed they have this urge to know and control everything. Trying to define everything always undermines the thing. Because no matter how much you try you’ll always end up missing something. And when you miss something it haunts you. And right now when I am trying to force you to think about how wrong your idea of beauty is, I am giving you another idea. While that is wrong and I myself will never reach to a perfect definition all I am trying to do is to take you at least an inch closer every time to what it actually is.

For more instances, As it is said ‘Excellence is subjective depending on each person’s preferences’.

On the opposite side with regards to maths there is dependably an answer that we are sure off which we can’t negligence and we can’t contend about, for example, 5+5=10, it is outstanding that the outcome is 10 to everybody and nobody can think of an alternate answer, which implies that we consider things to be they are. Yet, when it is about the techniques we used to achieve the hypotheses which may contrast starting with one individual then onto the next, enabling the individual to consider speculations what he is not as others. When I need to do bungee jumping I Experience it in light of the fact that to me I imagine that it is not a hazardous thing to do, while to numerous other individuals it may look to them as the most unsafe experience of life. So all things considered I would take after my feelings about this specific things and decimate the questions of others. A method for information is the reason by which we watch and take a gander at all things. For instance in the range of the learning, we now and again take a gander at the craftsmanship and attempt to comprehend it the way the craftsman clarified it however somewhere inside what truly matters is the initial introduction about it climate it’s great or not and we endeavor to consider it shows up before our eyes.

In the event that an author was available in a seen it might be imprinted in his psyche with full subtle elements including its shifted angles, while others may recall it by and large with poor points of interest or neither as though it is an everyday ordinary seen. Visually impaired may rely upon his of touch rather than his non-existing sight,he will touch a great deal of things and his intuition will help him to see things and feel things significantly more than what an ordinary individual do as such a ton of times you see them have certain abilities that contrasts them and quench them from others.

In today’s day and age, the concept of self control seems to have lost its relevance and significance. Forget about hedonists – even many so-called spiritual gurus advocate that we just do whatever pleases us, whenever it pleases us. This way of thinking and living includes indulging in sexual excesses, as well.

In fact, many a tantra teacher is approached by aspiring students because they are seeking ways and means to indulge in precisely such unbridled erotic activity. They are under the delusion that tantra is a school of thought which propounds such excesses, and that it provides the ways and means to do so.

This is utter and perverted foolishness, and only underscores the fact that ancient tantra remains a mystery to most modern minds. The tantric arts are firmly based in the principles of tantra yoga and meditation, both of which require the practitioner to exercise considerable self-discipline in all matters.

To practice tantra, one needs to closely follow the instructions of the tantra teacher, whose primary intention in the initial phase will be to bring about greater health and harmony in body, mind and spirit. It is common knowledge that any kind of excessive behavior or activity does nothing but disrupt natural physical and mental balance. How, then, could tantra advocate anything but increased self-control?

It must be remembered that any kind spiritual pursuit requires discipline, and discipline must exist both at a physical and mental level. The tantric path is not about lack of sexual discipline. It is a holistic spiritual path which helps in bringing about a higher state of being. In this elevated state, sexual activity becomes an act of worship. It is closely related to specific tantra rituals and meditation techniques.

Giving in to the desire to indulge in unbridled indulgence of the senses of any kind brings about massive dysfunction and lack of harmony in a person. However, advertising and mass media today teaches us to indulge to our heart’s content.

Products and services for enhanced pleasure and excitement are the order of the day. To this, the tantra master can only say – this is the source of all your problems. This is why your relationships are not working. This is why your body and mind are in such a state of upheaval.

Come back to the natural way of life. Embrace the spirituality of moderation, which is the only way in which anything can be enjoyed to the fullest. Ancient tantra is a path that will help you regain self-control, and to gain a greater appreciation of your senses. Only with self-control is mastery of anything possible.

As a manager, I’m pretty sure along the way, I said something to this effect…

As the head of this group, I’m responsible for what happens. But I want to know what you think. When things come up, I want to know what you think we should do. I want to hear your recommendations. In the end, I may decide to take your recommendation or I may go a different direction. If I go a different direction, I’ll try to make sure I tell you why. But my point is, I want your input, even if I do decide to go another way.

And if I decide to go another way, and I tell you why and you still don’t agree, it’s OK if you want to go above my head and talk to my boss. That’s the process. I ask that you let me know first. But if you think it needs to be escalated above me, go for it.

I really believed that message. Most of the time, I think I incorporated the input of my staffs. After all, I was blessed to work with smart people who cared about the work we did and wanted to do a good job. Why wouldn’t I want to take their input into account?! And I don’t think anyone ever went “above my head” to escalate to my boss. I want to believe if they did, I really would have been OK. But I don’t remember it ever happening.

What I wonder now, as I talk to leaders who work for organizations who use tools like Yammer, IBM Connections, and Jive – tools that give employees a chance to skip the chain of command and give feedback directly to upper management or leaders in other organizations – what would it feel like to be “gone around”?

Here are some of my thoughts…

Control May Be an Illusion, But I Want My Illusion (or Should I Say Delusion)!

One of the reasons we as managers want to be kept appraised of what’s going on is we don’t like surprises. We want to feel like we’re in control. If people talk to us first, then we know what’s going on.

If people are jumping the chain of command without first talking to us, then we are out of the loop… we feel out of control.

So how would I need to feel to be out of control? What would I need to “know” to feel right with my responsibilities?

I Can Trust the Intent of My People

I said it before. I was blessed to work with good people who cared about the work. If I’m losing control, or giving up the illusion of control, then I need to believe that my people have the best of intentions. They contribute to the conversation because they believe what they have to say will make things better.

If They’re Wrong, It Will Still Be OK

If they’re wrong because I didn’t keep them up-to-date, then I can fix that. I can work to make sure they’re kept informed.

If they’re wrong because they didn’t stay in the loop, then they can learn from their mistakes and keep up.

If they’re wrong for another reason, it will also still be OK. No one’s perfect. At least they care enough to try.

My Bosses Trust Me and They Trust My Staff

My bosses need to trust me and trust my staff that we are as dedicated to success as they are. They are willing to ask themselves the same questions – Am I keeping people informed? Do they have the best intents even if I disagree?

My Bosses Aren’t Going to Think I’ve Lost Control of My People

I’ve always felt like my staff was a reflection of me. If I did a good job of hiring, I’d have a talented, dedicated staff. If I did a good job as their manager, then they’d be successful in their roles. If they messed up, it was a reflection of my inability to know their capabilities and coach them appropriately. If my employees speak out of turn, it’s because I didn’t do a good job of telling my people what was expected of them and the processes they needed to follow.

Well if we want an organization of people who are engaged and want to make a difference, then I have to give up the thought that I’m in control of my people.

If My People Speak Up, It’s Because They Care

It’s more important to speak up when you feel that it’s appropriate than to follow a process for process’s sake.

If My People Speak Up, It’s Because It’s Urgent

There’s something that’s going on that needs to be addressed.

If My People Speak Up, It’s Because They’ve Been Asked

It’s OK if upper management asks a question and gets the response directly from my people. It doesn’t mean I’m not doing my job to keep upper management informed. It doesn’t make me less of a manager because I didn’t ask the question first. It’s OK for there to be no filter between staff and upper management.

I May Be the Boss, But I Was Never Really in Control in the First Place

So much of what we do as leaders depends on trusting that our employees will do the job we need them to do. Part of the reason organizations use managers is to get the best out of people who work for them.

The vast majority of people who go to work in our organizations want to do a good job. They want to be successful and to be recognized for the good work they do.

Most of the time, our job as bosses is to make sure they have the tools they need and then get out of their way so they can do the marvelous things they’re capable of. And if we’re good bosses, we’ll remember to tell our folks how much we appreciate them and how lucky we feel to have them on our teams!

There Really Is Nothing to Fear but Fear Itself

With all this in mind, I’d like to think that I would be OK in an organization using internal social tools to open lines of communications within the organization.

If we are all working toward what’s best for the organization, for our people and for our customers, then how the information gets communicated shouldn’t matter.

What’s Your Reality?

What I’d really love to hear is the reality of your experience. How are you adapting to having an open environment? What has it been like to feel like you’ve been “gone around”? Have you come to these conclusions as a manager? Or has the reality been different for you?

Please share in the comments or reach out to me privately if you want to share your experiences but keep them confidential.

For centuries, the practice of witchcraft was considered an evil and foul tradition, and witches were hunted and killed, often by cruel and painful methods, usually by being burnt alive at the stake. Fear of witches and witchcraft was widespread throughout several areas of Europe and in some areas of a newly settled America. The witchcraft delusion was an epidemic affecting everyone, and even a simple accusation of being a witch, despite the absence of any real evidence, was often enough to condemn an individual to torture and death.

Thankfully, modern society has moved beyond such superstition and insanity, and today, witches are free to practice varying traditions of witchcraft openly and without fear of persecution. The Wiccan religion is perhaps the most well known form of modern witchcraft, thanks in part to movies and media attention. However, there are several forms of modern witchcraft being practiced today, though most have roots in ancient cultural traditions.

Modern witchcraft in western culture can be largely attributed to the influence and practices of three specific individuals. The first is Gerald Gardner, sometimes referred to as the Father of modern Witchcraft. In the late 1930s and during the 1940s, Gerald Gardner began establishing several covens throughout Britain in an attempt to revive the foundations of the old religion, which is closely related to modern Wicca.

Gerald Gardner was a public figure who wrote several books on the subject of witchcraft, helping to cast the old traditions in a new and positive light and reshape society’s perspective of witchcraft.

Another individual of note is Margaret Murray, a British scholar who studied ancient witchcraft and also wrote of old religions, preceding Gerald Gardner’s work by over 20 years. Her books are considered essential reference sources for practitioners of modern Wiccanism.

The third individual credited with influencing the contemporary witchcraft movement is Alexander Sanders. Alexander studied witchcraft as a young boy, as it was a family tradition passed down by his grandmother. Alexander also established several covens throughout Britain, and proclaimed himself the “king of witches.”

While Wiccanism might be the most popular tradition of witchcraft studied and followed by modern society, other old traditions still exist. Native Americans and indigenous tribes located in Central and South America still practice shamanistic magic. Similarly, tribes in Africa and Australia look to their tribal witch doctors whenever tribal magic might be needed, whether it be asking the gods for a good hunt, or seeking to expel a sickness from a tribe member.

In Louisiana and Haiti, Voodoo is practiced, and similar traditions such as Santeria in the Spanish Islands, as well as other offshoots of voodoo such as Hoodoo and Macumba.

Most forms of witchcraft share common denominators — rituals, spellcasting, and calling upon the gods for help or wisdom. Typically, most forms of witchcraft are also considered “white”, or good, and are meant for healing and positive effects, rather than to induce harm, curses, or ill will towards an individual.

While many books and resources are available for those interested in Wicca and other forms of witchcraft, individuals should also take care not to treat witchcraft lightly or as a form of entertainment. Spells and rituals are best left to professional witches who have several years of experience and have studied extensively.

This timely booklet of 62 pages may be just what you need to pep up your own marketing and brand, and/or simply do the thing it promises: namely, get your book out there and enable it to become a “strategic business development asset”.

I have to say at the outset that I was intrigued to read this book, since writing (I have had over 30 books published) and publishing (and my books have been with many of the major publishers such as Pearson and Routledge as well as self-published via Lulu) have been central preoccupations of mine for well over 30 years. The thing is: if you are published by a major you tend to assume that they are responsible for marketing your book, and so do nothing yourself; and if you self-publish, by the time you finish writing the book, you often have very little energy left to promote it. And to be honest too: many authors suffer from the idea that their writing is intrinsically interesting so that they simply have to write and publish and – voila! – their merits will be discovered. Alas, such a fantasy is delusion at best, and dangerous at worst. Many fine books have been published only to disappear entirely from view for the want of adequate marketing and sales.

Like any other activity designed to make money, publishing is a business (albeit a weird one!) and one needs to consider not only the alpha (writing the book) but also the omega successfully getting it to market). Does Georgia Kirke’s slim volume help you do that?

The answer has to be a resounding yes: this is an amazingly helpful and straightforward book. Its brevity is a strength, especially for busy business people who need to get to the heart of the matter quickly. In order to turn your book into a ‘strategic business development asset’, then, Kirke recommends four pillars or four assumptions that she unpacks: one, that ‘your book marketing and the quality of the book’s contents are of equal importance’. That seems to me very hard and very realistic: marketing a book that contains nugatory content is pointless. Two, taking the long view pays. In other words, one has to be strategic; it’s a bit like pets – they are for life, not just Christmas! Three, book marketing works best with a plan. Hardly a revelation that, but actually so important to stress because so many people think they can make it without one. Four, one size doesn’t fit all. And this is true too: if there were just one way of making a success of book publishing, then everyone would be doing it. One needs creativity here as much as anywhere else if one is to make an impact.

With these assumptions established, then, Kirke goes on to unpack the three stages of publishing self-promotion. Many good ideas and pieces of useful advice follow. My own favourite, which shows me that Kirke really knows her stuff, is in her advice on becoming an Amazon best seller. As she comments: “you can become a bestseller for all of half an hour or so, by tagging your book in less popular categories, arranging for a load of them to be bought on the same day it comes out and lining up reviews for publishing day’, but as she then realistically comments: “achieving bestseller status in that way may not do much for you”. Her view – which I echo – is that “you’re therefore better off focussing on how you can reward your readers for picking up your book in the first place, making the read so valuable they talk about it, share it and most importantly, action it”.

But I have saved the best for last. The really outstanding feature of Kirke’s book is the final chapter, and the book is worth its price for this chapter alone. Indeed, it is barely a chapter in the traditional sense: it is a list of 80 marketing tools and ideas to promote your book, and they are quite superb. I went through all of them and realised that in my time I had only actioned about half of the 80 – that there were 40 or so ideas that my wife and I would now need to review that could be extremely useful to the promotion of my books. So time to be busy and action stuff!!

Thus, I wholly recommend Georgia Kirke’s to any author, but especially to self-published authors who want to create an extra edge for the promotion of their books. This is a must-read.

We all have aspects of ourselves that we believe are not worthy of being loved.

It may be something physical: I have a long nose that no one would love. Or I am not lovable because I am so fat and ugly. It may be something about our personality: I am an angry person. Or I am a dull person.It may be something about our character or our circumstances. Yet when we swim in the ocean waters of our Heart Center, we realize, “No matter what, I am loved. I am totally loved by The Divine.” Once that realization is part of our consciousness, we simply have to bring it into the places where we feel unloved.

In meditation, become aware of the parts of you that feel like unloved orphans, and welcome them back into the family. Become conscious of parts of your nature that you can’t love, especially those that you want others to love for you. Gently and steadily, bathe one aspect at a time in The Divine’s Love. When you truly feel that each part of you is love, you are whole.

Be careful not to whitewash your fears with grandiose illusions. If you say to yourself, “I totally accept myself, my faults and weaknesses. I am perfect just as I am, I need no change”, you are creating a delusion, a white shadow. Instead, cultivate self-love by acknowledging that in you which is difficult to love, and then loving it. Look at your hands, examine them carefully, and realize the ways in which they are beautiful as well as the ways in which they are imperfect. No matter how you perceive them, feel love for them anyway. Make that love a part of your being. Each day, feel more, love more.

© Aadil Palkhivala, 2008

A horrifying and fascinating disease is affecting thousands of people in the Bay Area, along the Gulf Coast, Florida and throughout the world. The disease is called Morgellons, and no one knows what causes it or if it’s even a real skin disorder. People with weird symptoms with no alternatives available at the moment find comfort and a diagnosis on the Internet. After more than a year of pressure from patients convinced they have Morgellons, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will begin investigating the ailment for the first time and determine, once and for all, whether the Morgellons disease exists.

It was named 2002 by Mary Leitao in McMurray, Pa. Leitao named the condition Morgellons Disease, after a disease with similar symptoms mentioned in a 16th-century medical text, while investigating a skin condition on her then two year old son. Nobody had every heard about it before then. Till this day, few doctors have heard of the condition; fewer still know what to make of it. Most in the medical community dismiss it as a hoax, scabies, Lyme disease or a mental condition called Delusional Parasitosis. Delusional Parasitosis is a mistaken belief that one is being infested by parasites such as mites, lice, fleas, spiders, worms, bacteria, or other organisms.

Most victims with this skin disease report painful crawling, stinging, and biting sensations, as well as non-healing skin lesions, which are associated with fiber like or filamentous structures. Victims as well have reported the presence of seed-like granules and black speck-like material above and in their lesions. The reaction of medical professionals has made a difficult situation even harder for victims. Dermatologists claim the filaments are all delusions, although none had taken the time to even study them.

Oklahoma State University Professor Randy Wymore was the first scientist to conduct research on this skin disease. He says it’s the biggest mystery he’s ever been involved in. Wymore says his tests rule out not only textile fibers, but also worms, insects, animal material and even human skin and hair. He says the filaments are not an external contamination. Instead, they are a substance that materializes somehow inside the body, apparent artifacts of something infectious. If no more medical professionals take the time to study this, we may never know the truth as it continues to spread.

Does therapy really help people to change or is it only a placebo, a substitute relationship, providing comfort for those who are unable to form relationships on an equal basis in the outer world?

Therapy can enable and empower people to change. But we must be aware that there are many pitfalls, echoes of illusion and delusion and many seductions on the inner journey. So we must be sure that change is change and not merely imagined.

So, how can we be sure? The first rule is you cannot do it by yourself. You must have someone you trust — a therapist or a counselor — who acts as a guide and who you allow to know you in an authentic way. Your therapist must become familiar with your quirks and particularly the ways in which you avoid difficulties, hide secrets, sabotage your own growth and positive or negative attributes. Essentially the therapist must know who you are beneath your character.

How is a therapist able to do that when we might not know who we are underneath our character ourselves? Character is communicated in various ways, just as the essential self is expressed in a variety of ways. It is the job of the therapist to “listen” in a whole body, psychic, intuitive, instinctive, and extremely sensitive and considerate way to the client. The client may have no idea of what is being communicated to the therapist unconsciously.

Some people have tried to change through therapy and counseling and become disillusioned. The practice of psycho-spiritual psychotherapy by a competent practitioner is the specialized, focused approach for people to achieve lasting, personal change and transformation. There is a vast body of knowledge, philosophy, research, and, of course, psychology which supports the practice of psychotherapy. Although clearly some practitioners are more competent than others for a variety of reasons and though sometimes a person may wish for change while being unaware that another part of themselves is resisting change, and winning, we can no more throw the baby out with the bathwater in the therapy field than we should throw the toolbox away simply because some of us don’t know how to use it.

But therapy that proffers hope is not really enough for someone who wants change and is motivated to succeed, or who is depressed and seeking a way out, or suicidal and desperately seeking an answer to their angst. The first aspect of therapy we should understand is that therapy is not a commodity. You don’t buy it like you go to the chemists, the grocers or the 7-Eleven. It is essentially a relationship and it is the relationship that makes it work.

The second aspect of therapy that we need to understand is that it is crucial to maintain focus. The therapist should keep you on your path and the client needs to be able to discern the relevant material and be prepared to work on it.

The relationship is crucial, because it is in early, formative relationships that we have become protected and defended. Through our relationship to the world we have learned to hide ourselves and restrict our creativity, joy and pleasure in life, as well as the realization of our potential. It follows that a healthy relationship, one that is supportive and nurturing, expansive and challenging, is the way forward to change and personal transformation. The therapy journey is a process that unfolds over time. With the right guidance, quality of relationship and mutual respect for the inner journey, transformation is possible, and indeed probable.