VICKY ANDERSON: There is an interesting word, called RUMINATION, for which there are two definitions. One is 'the act of chewing cud.' The other is 'to go over in the mind repeatedly.'

In regards to the latter, the inability to stop ruminating is a characteristic of the spiritually unconscious.

The 17th century philosopher, Rene Descartes, is regarded as the founder of modern philosophy. It was he who gave expression to the famous statement, I think. Therefore I Am.

But the consciousness that says 'I Am' is not the consciousness that thinks. And, as long as we are unaware of this fact, we continue to mistake the thinker for who we are.

The core of all of our mind activity consists of repetitive and persistent thoughts, emotions and reactive patterns. This entity is called 'the ego'. And the ego is the one who identifies with possessions, opinions, external appearances and long-standing resentments. These are the things to which the words I, me, my and mine refer.

Many of us are completely identified with a stream of compulsive thinking, most of which is repetitive and pointless. But, if we understand the basic mechanics behind the ego mind, we can recognize it as such.

What a liberation to realize that the voice in my head is not who I am. Who am I then? The one who sees that. Eckhart Tolle

The ego was created as a survival mechanism when you descended in consciousness during the Fall of Man. It creates the illusion that we are separate from one another and separate from God. This either makes us feel that we are not as good as, or better than others.

We are born into truth. But we grow up believing in lies. We witness so many lies when we are young and innocent, and we use these lies to form our personal Tree of Knowledge. And one of the biggest lies is the lie of our own imperfection, which is told to us by the ego. And believing the ego is an addiction.

Awareness is the power that is concealed within the present moment. Ego, and awareness of the ego, cannot co-exist. Eckhart Tolle

The ego is actually an impostor who is pretending to be you. So your greatest protection from the ego is to become fully conscious and aware of it. Human beings are meant to evolve into conscious beings. And the Universe is helping us with this process. In fact, when used correctly, astrology can make psychology look like something out of the Middle Ages.

When you are invited, take the lowest place, so that, when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Luke 14:10-11

The Universe is demanding that we free ourselves of our ego. And freeing ourselves doesn't have to be a difficult task if we remain conscious of our thoughts and emotions - as they take place. Becoming fully conscious of an emotion is what enables us to perform new actions, instead of re-actions.

If we can choose to embrace emotions with un-conditional acceptance, the patterns can release, the pain can dissolve, and cellular and molecular recoding can occur.

Non-resistance and non-reaction are the keys to the greatest power in the Universe. So humanity must become a people who, in the face of adversity, can simply stand patiently and peacefully chewing our cud.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the Earth. Matthew 5:5

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Inspired by the book A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose, Eckhart Tolle, Penguin Books, 2005