Spirituality That Works

Q: Meditation is so often discussed as the central spiritual practice. So, why isn’t instruction in meditation much more widespread, especially when it comes to the education of our youth?

There are not enough adults who know how to meditate. So, how could they be aware of its benefits for their kids? Those who do try to meditate are often inconsistent. When there’s no consistency, the results are not immediate, so many tend to give up quickly. So, there’s a … Read More

Q: How do we make ourselves better able to embrace change and uncertainty?

You have a major opportunity right now. This national uncertainty we’re facing will continue intensely for quite a while before it levels out. Knowing that this is not going to go away quickly will prevent you from rushing back to the status quo. Most of this has to do with varying levels of acceptance: acceptance of certain emotional states, external world conditions, and so on. Once we … Read More

Life has a way of pulling us under its current. One moment we’re here, fully in the present. And the next, we’re swept away. A thoughtless remark, an unexpected email, a shift in the day’s plans, and suddenly our body tenses, our mind races, and the present slips through our fingers like water.

Here is a simple exercise to bring yourself back into the present anywhere, any time.

Step One: Pause
Stop. Just for a breath. Feel your feet against … Read More

Q: I’m reading the Krishnamurti book, and I had an understanding when they said to let go of all attachments. At first, I felt exhilarated. And then I went to, it’s not available to me.

Why did you go there? What was the thought on that?

Q: Because there are many significant things about myself I’ve tried to let go of for decades and haven’t.

But what was the understanding that you had, that brief moment of understanding that you … Read More

Q: Can we talk about the path to enlightenment? How does one get on that, and stay in it, and get to enlightenment?

First, you must learn about and understand what enlightenment is. This information has been shared in-depth for thousands of years,  and still, few people are able to do it. It cannot be accomplished by intellectual pursuit, but that is often the doorway that is easiest to enter through.

In some ways, the task is impossible as it … Read More

We like to imagine there will be a perfect moment to begin. The day when all the stars have aligned, the laundry is done, the plan is clear, and our mindset is exactly right. We think that once we’ve lined up all the pieces, we will finally start that project or make that change we have been putting off.

But life rarely offers such a tidy runway. More often, we’re juggling family drama, looming deadlines, a body that sometimes aches, … Read More

Q: It seems that around the age of 4 and 5, children experience many more powerful emotions. This can make getting kids to bed even more difficult. Around that age, so many kids seem to save all their talking for bedtime.

At that age, they’re processing many emotions of change, loss, learning independence, learning acceptance and how to fit in. Some are in an environment for the first time where they are seeking approval from someone other than their parents. … Read More

Q: Why do people of various spiritual schools of thought describe different realms in which they travel? Why aren’t they all going to the same place? I’m thinking of the differences between Theosophists, Spiritualists, Shamans, Sorcerers, and so on.

All of those worlds various people describe exist for those people. Many dimensional states exist in which one can travel and experience a spiritual reality. Just as there are many countries to which you could travel to in your world and … Read More