[image error] Toxic importance is part of the identity of a gangster. Photo: #539993_1920 RyanMcGuire (CC0) Pixabay.

Why does a man cheat on his wife? Why does a robber break into someone else’s home to steal their valuables? Why does a child hit their sibling with dangerous force? Why does a grown man pick his nose? Why do we do anything that we do?

There is one common denominator underlying every single action, taken by every human being throughout all of history. Behind every act there is a sense of “importance,” otherwise we would never do it. The decision to define something as “important” is largely done on automatic. This is part of what makes us action-reaction cogs in the machine of physical reality. This is what kicked us out of Heaven in the first place. We “ate”—took in or assimilated—the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. This wasn’t physical “fruit,” but merely the product of all dichotomous intentions—ego.

The writer of the Ten Commandments understood these things. Breaking any one of these commandments erodes society and your connection to God. This is just simple mechanics. If you step off a building without a parachute, you go splat. However, following the Ten Commandments mechanically, without critical self-awareness, doesn’t help much. A rock does not commit adultery or murder, but we don’t heap praise on the rock for not breaking the Ten Commandments. The same goes for a “spiritless” Homo sapiens body. Following rules so as to appear “good” to other, fellow bodies is its own brand of evil. Such a person follows the rules because they are “important” egoistically. We need to get beyond “importance.” We need to do such things as spirit where there is no importance or scarcity.

Becoming self-aware of our urges and itches is a critical first step. Becoming deeply grateful for accomplishing that self-awareness helps to make it a habit.

Importance and Self-Concern



[image error] Lipstick on this man’s collar tells us a story of infidelity = toxic importance.Photo: #379565_1920 Tumisu (CC0) Pixabay.

Deciding that something is important sucks us out of the spiritual realm and locks us into the deterministic fabric of physical reality. Remember, Adam and Eve thought that “eating” the forbidden fruit was “important” enough to disobey the rule prohibiting it. Adam and his mate went from being pure spirit—nothing dichotomous: no space, no time, no energy, no mass, no scarcity, no suffering—to purely physical ego, with the true spiritual self “dead” asleep.

Our mission is to be born again as spirit—to wake up our true self so we no longer need the continuity of physical methods for perception, memory, analysis and action.

Any form of self-concern gives power to ego and robs it from spirit.

What do we do?

Practice restraint and humility. Practice dismissing anything that seems “important.”

Say for instance, you haven’t eaten in hours and your stomach is growling. You smell delicious food and your mouth waters up like crazy. Mentally, look at yourself perceiving the sensations. Look at the mechanisms that bring the sensations to you. Look at the thoughts and other biological machinery which tend to make those signals of hunger “important.”

Play with the idea of ignoring the “importance.” Take all self-concern about hunger and dismiss it as you might an unruly employee.

Naturally, you will take the time to eat, because that is the responsible thing to do, but look carefully at your motivation for eating. Stop being the physical cog doing what the physical universe tells you to do. If you eat, do it as spirit being responsible, not as a body giving in to physical urges. See the difference?

Empowering Questions



[image error] Doing what seems impossible, like surfing a huge wave, requires that we give up the fear of toxic importance. Photo: Free-Photos (CC0) Pixabay.

Most everything we do in life is based on a reason. We stretch and yawn because of a biochemical buildup in our body. We scratch because of an itch. We cheat because we think we can get away with it and something about that makes it important.

Instead of giving in immediately—reactively—consider not doing the “important” thing right away—or at all. Take the opportunity to be grateful for another discovery and another opportunity to get back more of your spiritual power.

To help leverage us closer to spirit, we need to “see” its direction and see its value, we need to be more squarely in the creative “now,” and we need to clean up the “dust” of the past so it no longer controls us.

Asking empowering questions can help.

“From where could I accomplish this task that says it’s ‘important’?”

The “where” in this question can be a location, but it can also be an attitude.

“What can I do to gain more control over self-concern?”

There are countless possible questions that you can ask yourself. But beware of the structure and wording. Some questions trigger negative answers. That can be useful when you want to find negative beliefs in the subconscious as part of your internal cleaning. Asking the right questions will produce feelings and information which empower you. Asking the wrong questions won’t hurt, but they can slow you down.

The power of self-restraint has been greatly overlooked by many, but the most successful in society instinctively know the value of restraint.

Having a goal that includes giving in to self-indulgence and importance may not serve you well in the long run. That’s like playing basketball, and instead of scoring, settling for a few, well-executed dribbles. Or it’s like entering the dating scene, but instead of finding a mate, settling for a weak smile in response to your insecure “hello.”

We can include physical things in our goals, but our motivation needs to change. We need to eliminate self-concern and importance.

Don’t worry about any of this. Simply play with it. Have fun.

Refinement of Our Definition of ‘Important’



[image error] Crossed fingers behind your back signify “lying” and the toxic importance behind the need to lie. Photo: #1562272_1920 TSwedenSky (CC0) Pixabay.

Am I making the Prosperity Engine “important?” This question reveals the possibility that there are different, but overlapping, definitions for our word. Let’s explore this for a moment.

In one sense, it seems that I have made this project important. Otherwise, why would I do it? But there are two viewpoints at work, here. One is negative, egoistic and physical; the other is positive, spiritual and non-physical.

important adj.—Strongly affecting the course of events or the nature of things; significant (American Heritage Dictionary).

important adj.—A quality or state of being of some object or condition which is vital for some purpose (my own, ad hoc definition).

Okay, that’s the standard, human idea of “importance.” These definitions include some of the physical universe’s sense of lack, scarcity or struggle, and cause-and-effect, dichotomous relationships. Now, let’s take a look at the other side of “importance” from the perspective of our work, here.

important adj.—Having the correct viewpoint, attitude or behavior for accomplishing a righteous, non-selfish task.

I will have to revisit this definition, later, and refine it if necessary, but it seems closer to a spiritual viewpoint than the other definitions.

The difference is a matter of viewpoint. The difference is also a matter of leverage. Last week, we looked at the leverage of imagination and how gratitude can add power to that viewpoint. But behind the scenes is the stirring from spiritual slumber that provokes the true spiritual self into participation in creating more than the status quo. The only true leverage in changing our direction in life is one of spirit, because the lever and fulcrum need to reside outside of the thing being moved. You cannot move a car by using a lever and fulcrum inside that vehicle.

So, egoistic or selfish “importance” is what we need to avoid. We need to become critically aware of our own inner motivation. This determines whether or not we are doing something from the required spiritual viewpoint—outside the “vehicle” of physical reality.

Clarity on ‘Importance’ vs. ‘Responsibility’

As you can see, this avoidance of “importance” doesn’t mean we should never eat or never have sex. It does point out, however, that we can do a physical action as spirit or as a cog in the machine of deterministic, action-reaction physical reality. Most people sleepwalk through life as cogs in the machine.

But this points out the real reason to avoid sin and helps us to sharpen our awareness of what truly is “sinful.”

There are varying degrees of sinfulness—all of them subject to forgiveness. All except blaspheming against the Holy Spirit. But what’s that about? In a nutshell, the only unforgivable sin is not subject to forgiveness because the individual is pretending the target of forgiveness does not exist. They are pretending their own true, spiritual self is a “fantasy.”

You can’t repair a piece of equipment if you keep hiding it from the repairman, and lying about it “not existing.”

We can do all the things other humans do, but do them for a different reason—for the reason of being a responsible, loving, generous, compassionate and humbly confident child of God.

The ‘Importance’ of Messing Up

When you mess up or make a big mistake, it may be more sinful to berate yourself repeatedly than was the original infraction. Both incompetence and berating self can be extremely selfish or egoistic.

Sinfulness might be defined as anything which takes us further from God, while righteousness is anything which, for its own sake, takes us closer to God.

Viewed from this perspective, clinging to the physical universe or anything in it, can be viewed as sinful. Yet, we need to use this physical existence in order to work our way toward the spiritual graduation originally intended for us. And this was the original purpose of all these galaxies and planets—including our beloved planet Earth.

Doing ‘Important’ Things With Attitude of Unimportance



[image error] Monk meditating. The practice of meditation can sometimes help eliminate toxic importance. Photo: Phra Ajan Jerapunyo-Abbot of Watkungtaphao, by Tevaprapas Makklay (CC-BY-3.0) via Wikipedia.

If you normally attack your food and wolf it down when you are starving hungry, then try looking at your food as a “tedious chore,” while your stomach is growling and your mouth is squirting saliva. Find other ways to play with the “importance” of eating. Use restraint while eating. Observe your body’s reactions. And pay even closer attention to what happens in your mind as you play with this common habit. Be aware not only of the activity, but also your motivation in doing the activity, and also be aware of you being aware of these things. Shining the light of awareness on every aspect of your activity helps you gain some distance from being the dutiful cog in the machine.

Consider the idea of eating delicious food without enjoying it the same way you always do. Try different approaches. One might be that of an alien being ignorant of taste buds and cuisine. Take the viewpoint of that alien hitching a ride in your brain while you eat, dismayed by the flood of olfactory sensations and the curious behavior of salivation.

By taking uniquely different viewpoints about ordinary things, you may well come up with some powerful ideas. But you will certainly gain a deeper perspective on what it means to be a sentient being in this physical universe.

By becoming more critically aware of that which is aware, you take a step closer to knowing the mental and spiritual direction of the true self.

Prosperity Engine Progress

It’s easy to lose track of progress, sometimes. I have several people who are helping to hold me accountable for my Prosperity Engine goal—$5 million (2019 USD) in the bank. This, of course, is only a short-term goal. This is a “proof of efficacy” goal. It’s a goal to create the ability to “see” that my Prosperity Engine is working properly before I give it larger tasks.

Projects, deadlines, emergencies, barriers, difficulties—lots of things can seem “important” or distracting. I welcome the “chore” of this weekly blog to help restore my focus on this project.

During this last week, I found myself struggling with “importance” on the vector of time. Translation: “impatience.” I looked at my current book project, Pangaea Sister Sites, and wondered about it gaining a lot of press and going viral. Then, I realized that I had slipped into egoistic, “struggle” mode, or Effect Mode. I had made the project “important” for the sake of separate, selfish self. Naughty boy!

Such a “problem” can prove sticky. I’ve invested hundreds of hours of work on this project. Suddenly, I pictured someone else stealing the idea and then my book selling only one or two copies. I pictured me including material in the book that would make it socially toxic so that people avoided it. I pictured the book becoming a ripe target for the “cancel culture.”

Amazing, the creativity of the mind, even when it is in destructive mode.

Part of my problem had been focusing on egoistic “importance” of the project, rather than simply having fun with it. If it sells well, that’s okay, but if it doesn’t, that’s okay, too. I pictured a future where the book flops royally—not selling even one copy. I did not create this negative picture out of weak reaction or fear, but out of active intention and decision. I was committed to dislodging the grubby fingers of selfish ego from my project, and committed to removing my own “attachment” to the project and attachment to some desired outcome.

Remember: Humility is the antidote to ego. Giving up can help us return to the spiritual viewpoint. Suddenly, we have the power to create success. But if we hold a feeling of panic and one of forced “giving up” with the purpose of stealing our way into Heaven in order to find that success, we will find our path blocked. We cannot cheat; we have to remain genuine and clean. The humility needs to be pure and complete. We need to be perfectly willing for success to take an infinite amount of time—in other words, never! And we have to hold the viewpoint of perfected, fearless confidence that it is already done. And that’s where gratitude and delight can help.

Cleaning up my past is progressing. Keeping the present clean and “being here” are both becoming more stable. I keep waking up with a flurry of “dust”—negative emotions begging for my awareness, for they already have my subconscious attention. And I’m finding it easier to discover delight in the uncovering of each new glob of mental “dust.” It’s still a chore in cleaning up that mental darkness—giving it a new, empowering meaning. This is largely because it’s still difficult for me to pinpoint the exact meaning behind a feeling. Quite often, I get a number of overlapping feelings. The wisdom, there, is merely to pick one and, for the moment, forget the others. I know that, as I become more proficient at this, the cleaning will become easier and easier. I have already had experience with as-ising (vanishing) large chunks of mental darkness by merely casting my awareness in its direction. That’s a talent I need to “dust off” and reacquire.

Creating a clear picture of the future is also progressing nicely, when I’m not sliding back into egoistic “importance.” The morning exercises were skipped for a few mornings in a row, and the results were predictably dark. So, I nudge the routine back into place, grateful for the experience of “apparent failure.”

I also realized that accomplishing my first Prosperity Engine task may well have nothing to do with my current book project. And that brings us back to the wisdom of never asking, “How am I going to achieve my goal?” God knows “how.” Our job is merely to prepare our inner selves so that we are ready to receive.

Coming Up Next

The negative beliefs lodged in the subconscious, along with the latent residue of past sins, known as “karma,” sit there, in the darkness of our unconscious mind, waiting to be triggered. Instead of waiting, perhaps it’s time to go on the offensive. We have a method for coaxing the negative beliefs and karma to reveal themselves to us. In the next article, we will explore how to take advantage of this new technique.