Tag Archives: esoteric

The (Real) Meaning of Christmas

 

Quaerite Et Invenietis  “Seek and you will find”

 

“There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed”

 

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more!”

-Dr. Seuss,  ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’

 

“The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live.”

-George Carlin

 

Merry Christmas to all on this most wonderful day of the year! This morning children everywhere will rise early in anticipation of opening their gifts, brought the night before by Santa Clause. Families will be together to share the joy and love of the Christmas Spirit. Christmas is celebrated in different ways all over the globe on or around December 25th.

Here in the U.S., families decorate the outside of their homes with festive lights and displays. Inside, stockings are hung over the fireplace to be filled with goodies and the Christmas tree is adorned with lights and decorations, and surrounded by gifts to be opened on Christmas morning. Later – the family, gathered together from far and wide – have a traditional turkey feast. But how did we come to celebrate Christmas the way we do?

We know that Christmas is an annual festival solemnizing the birth of Jesus Christ (or Jesus the Christ). It’s a religious and cultural celebration observed by billions around the world.

The gospels of Luke and Matthew state that Jesus was born in Bethlehem to the Virgin Mary. The pregnant Mary and her companion Joseph traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem for the census, Jesus being born there. The Angels then heralded him as a Savior for the world.

Although no date is given in the Bible, early Christians connected Jesus to the Sun with such phrases as “Sun (not Son) of righteousness.” The Romans marked the Winter Solstice on December 25th, consequently, the first recorded Christmas celebration was held in Rome on that date in 336 A.D.

The word Christmas is a shortened form of “Christ’s Mass.” The word is recorded as Christesmaesse in 1038 and Cristes-messe in 1131. Christ is from the Greek Khristos, a translation of Hebrew Masiah or Messiah, meaning “anointed.”

The abbreviation ‘X-mas’ is based on the first letter Chi (x) in Greek Khristos. Christmas has been known by various names throughout history. Anglo-Saxons referred to the feast as “Mid-Winter”. In Old English Geola (Yule) referred to the period corresponding to December and January which eventually became Christian Christmas. Noel (or Nowel) entered English in the late 14th century from Old French Nael, ultimately from Latin Natalis, meaning ‘birth’.

Christmas is celebrated in many countries around the world including many non-Christian countries due to periods of colonial rule, for example; Hong Kong. Another reason would have been  because of a countries Christian minorities, Japan is one such country, where Christmas is popular despite a small number of Christians. Many of these countries have adopted Christmas traditions such as gift-giving and decorating Christmas trees.

So that is the History of Christmas, but what about the true meaning of Christmas. I know sometimes here in the U.S. we forget what it is really about. Almost everybody here celebrates; even the atheists. It has become  more of  a commercial holiday, with the television news reporting more on how much Americans spent on the holidays than on stories about the real meaning.

We all know the real meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of a great man whose life was dedicated to spreading a message of love and peace. We should remember that the tradition of gift-giving is about the act of giving,  not receiving.

I love this quote from American author Steve Maraboli:

“Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.”

Let’s try to remember what it is all about this holiday season. Try to spread joy and love to those you encounter, and remember, it’s about a man two thousand years ago who just wanted us to all get along. Peace. In the words of Dickens’ Tiny Tim – “God bless us, everyone!

Merry Christmas

Joyeux Noel

Frohe Weinachten

Feliz Navidad

Buon Natale

Feliz Natal

Vrolijk Kerstfeest

Craciun Fericit

Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narcdzenia

God Jul

Vesele Vanoce

Heri Ya Krismasi

Sheng Dan Kuai Le

Nollaig Shona Dhuit

Gozhgg Keshmish

*Please forgive any misspelling

 

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

 

Kelly Curtis

 

 

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The (Real) Meaning of Christmas

 

Quaerite Et Invenietis  “Seek and you will find”

 

“There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed”

 

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more!”

-Dr. Seuss,  ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’

 

“The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live.”

-George Carlin

 

Merry Christmas to all on this most wonderful day of the year! This morning children everywhere will rise early in anticipation of opening their gifts, brought the night before by Santa Clause. Families will be together to share the joy and love of the Christmas Spirit. Christmas is celebrated in different ways all over the globe on or around December 25th.

Here in the U.S., families decorate the outside of their homes with festive lights and displays. Inside, stockings are hung over the fireplace to be filled with goodies and the Christmas tree is adorned with lights and decorations, and surrounded by gifts to be opened on Christmas morning. Later – the family, gathered together from far and wide – have a traditional turkey feast. But how did we come to celebrate Christmas the way we do?

We know that Christmas is an annual festival solemnizing the birth of Jesus Christ (or Jesus the Christ). It’s a religious and cultural celebration observed by billions around the world.

The gospels of Luke and Matthew state that Jesus was born in Bethlehem to the Virgin Mary. The pregnant Mary and her companion Joseph traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem for the census, Jesus being born there. The Angels then heralded him as a Savior for the world.

Although no date is given in the Bible, early Christians connected Jesus to the Sun with such phrases as “Sun (not Son) of righteousness.” The Romans marked the Winter Solstice on December 25th, consequently, the first recorded Christmas celebration was held in Rome on that date in 336 A.D.

The word Christmas is a shortened form of “Christ’s Mass.” The word is recorded as Christesmaesse in 1038 and Cristes-messe in 1131. Christ is from the Greek Khristos, a translation of Hebrew Masiah or Messiah, meaning “anointed.”

The abbreviation ‘X-mas’ is based on the first letter Chi (x) in Greek Khristos. Christmas has been known by various names throughout history. Anglo-Saxons referred to the feast as “Mid-Winter”. In Old English Geola (Yule) referred to the period corresponding to December and January which eventually became Christian Christmas. Noel (or Nowel) entered English in the late 14th century from Old French Nael, ultimately from Latin Natalis, meaning ‘birth’.

Christmas is celebrated in many countries around the world including many non-Christian countries due to periods of colonial rule, for example; Hong Kong. Another reason would have been  because of a countries Christian minorities, Japan is one such country, where Christmas is popular despite a small number of Christians. Many of these countries have adopted Christmas traditions such as gift-giving and decorating Christmas trees.

So that is the History of Christmas, but what about the true meaning of Christmas. I know sometimes here in the U.S. we forget what it is really about. Almost everybody here celebrates; even the atheists. It has become  more of  a commercial holiday, with the television news reporting more on how much Americans spent on the holidays than on stories about the real meaning.

We all know the real meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of a great man whose life was dedicated to spreading a message of love and peace. We should remember that the tradition of gift-giving is about the act of giving,  not receiving.

I love this quote from American author Steve Maraboli:

“Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.”

Let’s try to remember what it is all about this holiday season. Try to spread joy and love to those you encounter, and remember, it’s about a man two thousand years ago who just wanted us to all get along. Peace. In the words of Dickens’ Tiny Tim – “God bless us, everyone!

Merry Christmas

Joyeux Noel

Frohe Weinachten

Feliz Navidad

Buon Natale

Feliz Natal

Vrolijk Kerstfeest

Craciun Fericit

Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narcdzenia

God Jul

Vesele Vanoce

Heri Ya Krismasi

Sheng Dan Kuai Le

Nollaig Shona Dhuit

Gozhgg Keshmish

*Please forgive any misspelling

 

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

 

Kelly Curtis

 

 

Essene Meditations And Blessings #79

Meditation

There is a wholeness of my being

That I have come to know.

My life is the sum

Of my body, mind, and spirit

And more.

For I am immersed in a cosmic ocean of Life

Which connects my life with All,

And I am All.

The Blessing

Awareness

Of the richness of my life

Draws forth in me a yearning

To share my gifts with all,

And the greatest of these is Peace.

To work actively for peace

Within my life

And to bring that peace

To those I know

Is to make real

My spirituality.

-Danaan Parry

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis

Weekly Meditation #76

Complete Confidence

My confidence in the All Good is complete. My faith in the power of Spirit is supreme. I have no doubts or uncertainties. I know that my good is at hand, and I realize that no fear can hinder that good from making its appearance in my life and affairs. I know that my life and good are complete. Evil cannot touch or hinder my work. I rest in security, for the one mind is my complete refuge and strength. I am serene and confident.

-Ernest Holmes

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis

Spiritual Essays #33

Freeing Your Mind From the Inner Dictator

The Prison Inside

by Jayaram V

True freedom is freedom from yourself. Jayaram V

You are the major obstacle on your path to learning and improving. Jayaram V

Mental rigidity is common to many people, which is responsible for many problems that we have in the world today. In some cultures, it is worshipped as an exalted virtue and a sign of trust, integrity, and reliability. People in such cultures do not like leaders, who change their opinions and consider them opportunists and weak-minded.

;When that belief becomes a cultural value or a social criteria, it undermines the importance of growing and learning, or of improving your knowledge and thinking to become a better person. In some cultures you will find that a scripture, a book, or an ideology becomes the guiding force, forcing people to declare their allegiance to it, suspend their free thinking and live in obedience. In today’s world of extremism and extreme intolerance, mental rigidity gained cultural significance in many countries as the voice of political correctness and moral policing.

The causes

Mental rigidity, thus, is a serious problem. However, before we go further into the subject, we need to know what exactly we mean by it, and how anyone can decide whether the problem applies to them. No one is completely inflexible. People remain fixated or opinionated only in certain areas of their thinking. Most likely, you have some areas in your mind that are frozen and some that are free and flowing. However, if you have not done any introspection, you may not know when you tend to become rigid and when you remain flexible. It is also important to know what causes it, and how it creeps into your thinking and attitude. Mental rigidity arises from many factors such as the following.

  1. Social and cultural influences
  2. Strong likes and dislikes
  3. Parental influences
  4. Attachments
  5. Education
  6. Self-serving bias
  7. Media influence
  8. Friends and family
  9. Immaturity

Examples

Your inflexible attitude arises from your thinking, as you attach fixed meanings to things and do not like to change them, even if contrary evidence presents itself. For example, if you are a rigid person and if you find a situation or a person distasteful, most likely you will hold on to that opinion, as you impart a negative or an unpleasant meaning or a label to that person, assuming that he may remain so forever, and ignoring any information that may not support it.

On the contrary, if you find a person who is friendly and to your liking, you may cherish that relationship and tend to ignore all the data that may suggest otherwise or make your feel uncomfortable. If you are inflexible, you will do the same with many things in your life, which may even sabotage your own chances of success and happiness. If you have musical ability but due to a fixed belief inherited from your parents if you pursue a career in science or medicine, imagine how it will influence your life and the extent of unhappiness you may experience.

Whether it is an author, writer, singer, actor, artist, town, ideology, profession, political affiliation, or faith, because of inflexibility you will stick with your opinions and choices and ignore the facts that speak otherwise. This is mental rigidity in short. It arises from selective thinking, in the absence of reason, due to conscious or subconscious influences, as you attach fixed meanings to things and become their guardian philosopher justifying them to yourself and to others as part of your worldview, self-expression, and self-image.

Consequences

Mental rigidity is synonymous with mental stagnation. It limits your growth and your opportunities to know and learn. In people it manifests in numerous ways as habits, routines, likes and dislikes, fear, prejudice, reluctance to listen, and irrational behavior. As they become attached to their past and live by rigid choices, they dislike to change, move with time or acknowledge their current reality. It is as if they have created an arctic tundra inside their minds and frozen their memories and thoughts in it.

Having opinions, conclusions and preconceived notions is part of your mind’s heuristics. It uses them to save you time and effort in making sense of the world and respond to it with appropriate decisions and actions. They give you stability, and help you deal with the problems and challenges in your life. Your mind uses them as mental shortcuts to deal with the complexity of the world, and improve your survival and chances of wellbeing.

Mental rigidity is not about having opinions, but having fixed opinions and fixed patterns of thinking that are hard to overcome. In most cases you may not be even aware of them as they become a part of your worldview, instinctual thinking, personal identity and individuality. You continue to act under their influence, despite your good education, knowledge, and wisdom, because in most cases you find acceptance from your friends and peers who hold similar opinions.

Unfreezing your mind

The truth is, while you may remain stuck in your thoughts and choices, the world moves on leaving you behind to your unconscious illusions and frozen beliefs, and limiting your choices, relationships, chances of success, and the quality of your life. If you do not attune to the reality around you, you will remain prone to assumptive and authoritarian thinking, which in turn makes your life rather unpleasant and conflict-ridden. You can resolve the problem of mental rigidity in many ways. The following are a few important approaches.

1. Awareness: Becoming aware of your rigid thoughts and beliefs and how they are influencing your world view is the most important. Without it you cannot overcome the problem. Become aware of how people and the world are influenced by various social, political, and cultural biases, irrational and rigid thinking, and how many people refuse to think for themselves and blindly depend upon role models and public figures for their worldviews and opinions.

2. Listening: Learn to listen and appreciate other people’s opinions on any given subject that interests you as a learning experience and to expand your own awareness. Especially, listen to those opinions that you dislike or disagree with, and to those who are not afraid to speak their minds. When you interact with others, listen with an open mind for learning and introspection.

3. Questioning: Learn to ask questions and seek answers. A person with a closed mind does not ask questions. He either accepts or rejects information based upon his likes and dislikes, or emotions. By asking questions you can keep your mind open, rational, and free from judgment and bias. It will also give you an opportunity to examine facts and draw your own conclusions.

4. Challenging: Challenge your own decisions, conclusions, and judgment to find the rigid beliefs, assumptions, and biases that are hidden in them. You must constantly challenge your surface beliefs, thoughts, and ideas to find the best in you. It helps deal with the distortions and cognitive bias your mind creates in response to the world and events your perceive, and gives you a better perspective about them.

The solution to mental rigidity is openness and maturity. You cannot practice them without honesty, truthfulness, humility, and detachment. Maturity means having opinions and conclusions based upon your experience and observation, rather than what you have been taught by others as true, unless you have subjected it to rational verification. A mature person relies upon his observation and experience, rather than blind submission to authority. He listens, learns, improves, and adapts to changes and challenges, keeping his emotions under control.

Importance in spiritual life

Spiritually speaking, detachment is the best antidote to mental rigidity. Detachment is a virtue. It starts with your thinking. To free your mind from rigid thoughts and find freedom within yourself, you must overcome your attachment to the world and the likes and dislikes you form with it. You must keep an attentive and open mind, willing to embrace the reality rather than your rigid beliefs and opinions.

Open-mindedness is especially important in spiritual practice. Spiritual people can become rigid in their thinking and attitude as they develop attachment to their faith, methods, masters, and beliefs. As they open their minds for learning, they may also succumb to conditioning and blind submission to authority. If you practice spirituality, you must open your mind to the realities of life, and free it from the illusion of fixed opinions and rigid thoughts about the things you like or dislike. The mind is prone to delusions. Hence, you must remain attentive, and stay tuned to the current reality. Practice detachment. It is the best way to stay free from the delusion of your own mind and the walls it builds around you.

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis

Pagan Prayer #27

Morning

Today is a day to focus on safety. I will remove from my mind any ideas that make me think I am not safe. There are many beings and circumstances in the world that affect me and my surroundings. I cannot control them, but I can protect myself from them. I can deflect their negative energies and impulses. I am aware that I am protected by all of the forces of the universe and have no need to fear.

Evening

I know I did my best today to focus on feeling and staying safe. Tonight I will rest knowing that myself and my loved ones are always safe and protected, and that I will not give in to believing or feeling otherwise.

-From the book ‘A Daily Book Of Pagan Prayer’ by Megan Day

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis

Rosicrucian Reflections #76

“Mysticism teaches cosmic laws and principles by which we are brought into closer consciousness of our divine power. The mystical experience of union with the One imposes upon the mystic a moral obligation — to use this knowledge for the welfare of others.”

-Rosicrucian Manuscript

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis

Essene Meditations And Blessings #78

Meditation

With the electric limits of my aura,

My personal energy field,

I tap the power

Of the earth in summer.

The earth current flows in me

And strengthens my body

For the work that only I can do

As a channel for the Light.

I feel it shine in me.

The Blessing

I am a builder,

A vehicle for creative perfection

To work itself upon the earth.

My task is clear and simple,

For I am the Plan unfolding,

And I am my work in progress.

The work goes well

And I give thanks.

-Danaan Parry

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis

Weekly Meditation #75

A Marvelous Sense

A marvelous sense steals over the one who waits on the All Good. A feeling of some unseen presence silently creeps over the waiting thought, and the voice of God speaks through the mist and says “Be not afraid.” It is all for a purpose, and when you cannot trace you must trust. This is not an illusion but a reality for time proves all things, and the one who waits is rewarded. Good comes for the infinite light itself is our companion. I wait on divine presence.

-Ernest Holmes

*****

May God bless and protect you and…

May you always be

Healthy, Happy

Safe and Comfortable

Seth Kelly Curtis