Michele Knight's Blog, page 206

Soul Mate Or Just Plain Chemistry?

Romantic love – its acquisition, absence, loss or maintenance, is a subject that for most of us unless we have entered a closed order, dominates our entire adult lives. There’s no doubt that making that profound soul connection with another offers us not only the experience of loving and being loved, but provides us with incredible growth opportunities. Love is the answer, which is why so many of us can become embroiled in a cradle-to-grave search for that special someone.

We all know on a soul level we have spiritual contracts with specific individuals to enter into relationships with them (or not, as we always have free will!) in this lifetime. The latest scientific research however shows us just why we may be attracted to those we love – and why when the soul growth has been fulfilled, we may end the relationship. We already know that the state of ‘being in love’ puts us under the influence of a host of addictive brain chemicals. Let’s face it, whether or not your love is reciprocated, just the thought of the object of your passion can bring about a wildly beating heart, sweaty palms, dilated pupils and often an inability to speak or think clearly! This is the result of a cocktail of neurotransmitters in the brain such as phenylethylamine, dopamine, oxytocin, norepinephrine, and adrenaline. If things go wrong, then you will have the same experience as an addict has during withdrawal – which is basically the scientific explanation as to why breaking up is hard to do.

Research has taken this one step further and shown why that first kiss is the make-or-break event for whether the relationship continues. We all have something called a major histocompatibility complex (MHC) which measures immune responses in gene groups. This can be measured in your saliva scientifically or on a subconscious level in a kiss. Studies involving a lot of dirty laundry showed that women, on the basis of scent alone, consistently found T-shirts worn by men with an MHC most divergent from their own to be the most enticing. So, we are drawn to the people whose genes are most different from our own to give any potential offspring the best chance. But what is more interesting is that women on the pill show a hampered sensitivity to MHC in potential mates. They consistently picked T-shirts worn by men with MHCs far closer to their own. Some researchers now suggest that this may be a factor contributing to the high incidence of early divorce, given that women on the pill choose partners without the benefit of a fully functioning MHC detector. When later on they stop taking it, either to change methods or in preparation for starting a family, the closeness of their partners’ MHC is finally detected and the relationship hits the rocks. Of course, the basis of chemistry works on the same level in same-sex relationships when it comes to finding your partner attractive – perhaps without all the added complexity that comes with artificial hormones messing with your body’s signals however!

Neuroscientists have also posited that the ‘seven year itch’ is actually a four year itch as divorce rates usually peak after four years of marriage then level off. This is when that wonderful cocktail of brain chemicals we talked about earlier starts to taper off and many people think that this means they are no longer attracted to their partners. So, is love just a chemical imbalance? I don’t believe it is at all. On a soul level the right ‘chemistry’ ensures we connect in the first place. But after the initial ‘rush’ has died down, finding something new to love in our partners as time goes by is all part of being in a long term relationship. I think the chemistry acts as a way to bring us together with specific people and then finds us like glue so we can both evolve through the connection. And don’t forget – just because you have a deep soul connection with someone doesn’t mean to say that the relationship won’t require hard work. But at the end of the day – it’s the chemistry we feel when we are with someone special that makes the soul connection so worthwhile.

 

 

Out of Body Experiences: Just Where Do You Think You Are?

In the film Avatar Jake (Sam Worthington), is described as the ‘driver’ of his Na’vi avatar body. Now, the latest research into how our brains perceive reality suggests that just like Jake, we may all be nothing but ‘drivers’ of the bodies we think of as being ‘us’.

Right now you’re probably aware of the fact you’re in your body reading this article, but according to research, this could not only be nothing but an elaborate illusion but your consciousness is not confined to your body – just like Jake transferred his to his avatar and then back to his human body, we are capable of doing the same. The most well-known example of this if of course the out-of-body experience when people astral-project and are able to look down on their own body – often during a near death experience. Scientists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) managed to recreate this experience by asking volunteers to lie on their backs and via a headset watch a video of a person of similar appearance being stroked on the back while a robotic arm installed within the bed stroked the volunteer’s back in the same way. Volunteers felt they were not only floating above their bodies but despite the fact they were all lying face-up felt they were floating face down so they could see their own back! “I was looking at my own body from above,” said one participant. “The perception of being apart from my own body was a bit weak but still there.” Excited, the researchers then repeated the experiment but this time inside an MRI scanner, This showed that a region of our brain called  the temporoparietal junction (TPJ) behaved differently when people said they were drifting outside their bodies. The TPJ is also involved in creating our perception of our bodies – coordinating all the visual, tactile and sensual messages we receive to create our feeling of ‘self’ – or someone inside a body.

However, it all gets stranger. Researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden have now managed to transport people out of their own bodies and into a life-size mannequin.  The mannequin had cameras for eyes, and whatever it was “seeing” was fed into a head-mounted display worn by a volunteer. In this case, the mannequin’s gaze was pointed down at its abdomen. When the researchers stroked the abdomens of both the volunteer and the mannequin at the same time, many identified with the mannequin’s body as if it was their own – their experience was in the first person just as if they inhabited that body – just as Jake does in Avatar.

We are all beings of light and made of the consciousness that makes up the universe. What this opens up is not only the possibility of being able to shift our consciousness into another body in the event of say, our bodies having a terminal illness – but the possibility that could there come a time when we can just do without our bodies entirely and be beings of pure spiritual light? I think the answer to that is only when we have evolved on a soul level and learned enough about what it is to be human and inhabiting a human body.

Weekly Astrology Video With Michele Knight 4th March 2013

Walker – A Shamanic Novel

My Good Friend and stunning writer Jane Alexander has brought out a fantastic Shamanic novel. This book is groundbreaking as it includes real Shamanic practices and is an important and exciting tale which I am sure you will love! Let me know what you think! x

Walker – a shamanic novel – by Jane Alexander

Hidden temples have always protected the Earth. But now they are dying. Concrete is spreading over the valleys, pollution hangs heavy over the cities: greed is consuming the world. 

One last hope remains. Kitnor, a remote valley, could be a new place of power. But it is young and vulnerable to attack. The guardians, ancient keepers of the land, have to find the new temple and bring it to its full power. But their mission is failing.

Hunter McKenzie, survivor of the car crash that killed his parents, is a shaman, a walker between worlds. He alone could find Kitnor. But Hunter doesn’t know his power. He doesn’t believe in shamanism. He doesn’t even believe in himself. 

Hunter encounters many strange beings on his quest – dead warriors, Tibetan lamas and, above all, his own powerful animal spirits. Some will help, some hinder. Some are not what they seem. Eventually Hunter must find himself – in the darkest places – before he can try to bring light back to the world.  

Walker is a magical eco-quest. It is based on the ancient practice of shamanism, in which the shaman ‘journeys’ into other realms with the help of power animals and guardian spirits, to find wisdom and power. Shamanism holds the earth and all its creatures as sacred – the shaman’s duty is to protect the earth and honour everything in it. 

While the story of Walker is pure fiction, the shamanic practices used in the tale are all based on fact.

What readers have said about Walker on Amazon:

“I heartily and thoroughly recommend everyone read this book. You will laugh, you will very likely cry, you will feel very deeply the beauty of the earth and the tragedy of our mistreatment of it and you will assuredly enjoy every second of the enchanting and gripping story within its pages.” Ren Warom.

“Good, strong and very real people populate the book and keep you reading to the end. I swear that Neil Gaiman will be jealous of the idea of the plastic hell.” Robert Studholme

“This book is at once a thrilling read, and a potential awakening to a greater reality that underlies this world in which we live. That is quite an achievement.” PD Allen, author of Quantum Meditations.

“This is an important book – funny, imaginative, gripping, informative and beautifully written – that deserves a wide readership.” Ian Cook.

Walker is just £1.98 from Amazon.co.uk - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Walker-ebook/dp/B006J74FX6/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361783060&sr=1-3

Or $3.07 from Amazon.com – http://www.amazon.com/Walker-ebook/dp/B006J74FX6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1361783944&sr=8-2&keywords=Jane+Alexander+Walker

Jane Alexander is also the author of over twenty non-fiction books on health and wellbeing (many of which are now available in e-book format).  Visit her Amazon author page at: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jane-Alexander/e/B000APLEKK/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Your Seven Step Spiritual Spring Clean!

Spring may be just around the corner on March 20 when the spring equinox occurs but the winter blahs can linger on. If you’re feeling down and even the thought of better weather isn’t enough to brighten your day, then here are some simple spiritual tips to boost your energy and change your perspective.

1: Focus on the positive. Remember, our thoughts create our reality and while we may be stuck in circumstances which may be dragging us down, we can direct our thoughts and focus on the positive aspects of our lives if we just look for them.

2: You are what you eat. What you feed your stomach feeds your brain. If you want to feel less frustrated, depressed or angry consider a vegetarian diet. And choose foods with lots of colour. Pretty food equals a pretty mood and when you feel good – the world starts to look good too!

3: Be grateful. No matter what is happening in your life right now you do have things to be grateful for. They can be as simple as your morning coffee or a smile a stranger gives you on a bus. Start a gratitude journal and list five a day to start with – they need only be one line each. You’ll be amazed at how that list grows.

4: Use your imagination! We are all creative and we all have the ability to visualise and dream. Your opportunities are limitless with a little action put towards them. If you come across a new idea, capture it and write it down.  Once you write it down you make it real.  Once it’s real you can take action towards it a little bit a time.  You will see that one idea expands into another and another.  As you write them down the ideas grow and come together and your life will begin to change. Live your ideas a little each day even if it’s just as simple as going into a store and trying on the outfit you will wear when your dream is a reality. Actions are what turn dreams into reality.

5: Don’t compare. You are unique. Don’t compare yourself to others and especially do not fall into the trap of comparing what you have materially with other people. Comparison is a trap. You have enough right now to start your journey to where you need to get to.

6: Read uplifting books. Reading is incredibly empowering. It helps you gain knowledge and learn skills to help you solve your problems.  It gives you access to inspiration and expertise and it helps you understand yourself through journeys others have taken. The more you understand yourself, the better your life becomes.

7: Reach out! Expressing ourselves and connecting with others is essential for our wellbeing. If you’re in a situation where you’ve just moved to a new area or changed jobs and are feeling disconnected, look around you. Seek out a group or activity. Smile. Use your journal to confide in and jot down ideas to make new connections then act on them!

The fact is, the blahs can strike us at any time just as any time of year can be a good time for a Spiritual Spring Clean!

Weekly Astrology Video With Michele Knight 25th Feb 2013

Hello Beautiful Soul,

This week is quite emotional and makes us look at our feelings versus our principles. A full Moon in Virgo opposite Neptune in Venus focuses on our relationships to love and our inner fears and desires. Check out your Astrology video below to see how to make the most of it. Don’t forget to check out your rising sign and Moon sign for more clues. Click here to find out exactly what is happening in the sky this week.

 

How To Read Tarot – Create Your Future!

Want to give your Quantum Creating and visualisations a real turbo boost? Then reach for your Tarot deck! The Tarot is far, far more than just a system of divination. You can use it to assist you with goal setting and in visualising and reaching those goals. In fact, the Tarot can guide you to the next step you need to take to manifest those goals. Here’s how.

First, schedule a time when you won’t be disturbed and turn off your phone. Have your Tarot journal to hand and take out your favourite deck. If you’ve not written down your goals in your journal now is the time and also this will help you focus. If you’ve already written then down or once you have finished this part of the exercise, run through your goals in your mind as you spread your entire Tarot deck FACE UP on the floor in front of you. They need not be in any order, you can lay them out just as they come out of the pack. Make sure you can easily see them all. Once you have done this, centre yourself and concentrate on your first goal. Ask yourself the following questions:

Which card represents my goal?

Which card represents me when I have reached this goal?

Which card represents me right now?

What do I need to do next to manifest this goal?

Is there any additional information I need to know in order to reach this goal?

Now, without thinking too much about it select five cards – one for each of the questions you asked. As I said, don’t rationalise this – just go for the cards you are intuitively drawn to. Now, look at your cards. What messages do they have about your goal? Pay particular attention to the cards which show you when you have achieved your goal and you right now. What are the key differences? Very often these two cards give us clues about how we feel now and in the future. By changing our emotional vibration to the future card we can bring our goal towards us much faster. The same goes for the last two cards – what you need to do next and anything else you need to know. What messages do they contain about actions you could take?

Write everything you pick up in your Tarot journal and then shuffle the cards and repeat the exercise for each of your goals. You may find the same cards start showing up especially when it comes to how you will be in the future or actions you need to take. This can be especially helpful.

The great thing about doing this is we can use the cards we’ve chosen like a vision board. We can leave them laying out where we can see them or we can recreate the spread and use it to visualise and focus. The vibrant energy of the Tarot calls us all to action and we can use this energy in so many areas of our lives. So – start using your Tarot deck for more than just future guidance – use it to start creating that future today!

SoulMate Solutions – Men are from Earth, Women are from Earth.

How many of you bought Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus back in the ‘90’s? How many of you have a well-thumbed copy of it that you still refer to in an attempt to explain your mate’s baffling behaviour? If you’re blaming relationship issues on your partner’s sex, then you need to think again. According to the latest research just published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, the shocking revelation is that your partner is not an alien species. Men and women are categorically the same. “The common belief that men are from Mars and women are from Venus is really wrong, we are all from planet Earth”, Professor Harry Reis, at the University of Rochester and co-author of the study says. He and another author Bobbi Carothers from Washington University in St Louis, looked at previous studies, analysing 122 different characteristics that we all share such as fear of success, intimacy and empathy in 13,301 individuals. They found that on the whole, men and women did not fall into different groups. “Although gender differences on average are not under dispute, the idea of consistently and inflexibly gender-typed individuals is. It is not at all unusual for men to be empathic and women to be good at math — characteristics that some research has associated with the other sex”, explained Carothers. “Sex is not nearly as confining a category as stereotypes and even some academic studies would have us believe.”

There’s no doubt that for many people, John Gray’s book was groundbreaking in helping people communicate with their partners. But what this new research tells us is that we’re all human beings with the same needs, fears and feelings – even if we’re not always able to communicate those effectively. From a soul relationship perspective, avoiding stereotyping our partner because of their sex is a big step towards building a lasting soul connection. Dr Lissa Johnson, a clinical psychologist with more than 15 years counselling experience, says that many individuals still buy into the notion that men are from Mars and women are from Venus to the detriment of their relationships. “It’s not unusual for women to underestimate the depth of mens’ emotions and the degree of their vulnerability, particularly in relationships, which can cause a lot of misunderstanding and unnecessary disconnection. It is also not unusual to have conversations in therapy about the universality of basic human psychological needs, and men and women can be surprised to discover their shared experience in this regard.”

We can use gender differences to explain away or even excuse bad behaviour in a partner, when in fact this research shows us that other factors such as character, upbringing, culture, customs and ideologies have a much bigger role to play. So, before you blame your partner’s behaviour on the fact they are in their ‘cave’ or ‘well’ – it could just be they are exhibiting a personality trait rather than showing you they are from some alien world. And while many astrologers will tell you romance is written in the stars, the fact is that on a soul and emotional level we’re all coming from the same place – love.

Be Your Own Psychic – 5 Tarot Steps To Sort Love.

You don’t need to have spent years reflecting on the Tarot’s traditional meanings to put its powerful secrets to work. The rich magical symbolism of the cards was created as a tool to unlock the secrets of your unconscious mind, helping you tap into the source of Universal truths.

Knowing the traditional meanings of the cards can of course be useful, but relying on the standard interpretations robs you of the chance to give the cards your own unique meanings. And if you’re going to use them as a tool to open the doors to your higher psychic self, you need to have a strong personal bond with them.

It’s a bit like interpreting someone else’s dreams. If your friend and you both dream about bananas you might smile and label it with a sexy, phallic meaning… but then it turns out your friend slipped on a banana skin that broke her leg when she was five. The best person to interpret your dream, vision, oracle or Tarot spread, is you.

One of the most exciting ways to use Tarot is to get insight into your relationships with other people. Our partnerships can be consuming, complicated and baffling – that’s why we endlessly discuss them with our friends, hoping they’ll help us find solutions by helping us examine our contradicting thoughts and feelings. It’s a bit like panning for gold. Tarot does exactly the same job but because you’ll be doing it alone, you can be much freer and more honest with your ideas.

1. Get into the right headspace

Find a quiet place, turn off your phone, the TV or radio and make sure you won’t be disturbed for at least an hour, or the duration of your reading. How you feel at the moment you look at the cards will affect the quality of your reading, so aim for a relaxed and open attitude. Take some deep breaths, think of your favourite place in the world (a beautiful, peaceful environment will work better than Vegas or bungee jumping in Brazil). Take your time.

2. Think about what you have together

Think about your life as a couple, see the other person clearly, focusing on as much detail in your vision as possible (the colour of their eyes, the way they move, the sound of their voice). Now visualise yourself as honestly as you can… see the same details in your own face, body and manner. Now visualise the pair of you together. Watch yourself, watch your partner. Just let yourselves exist happily for a while. Let this be a peaceful process and try to keep strong emotions out of the way for now. You’re asking your higher self, your objective truth, to guide you.

3. Now for the magic

Choose three cards
 shuffle your pack of Tarot then pick three out three cards you’re attracted to. Place them facing upwards in a row. The first card is You, the Second is The Other Person and the third is Your Relationship.

4. Let your imagination run riot

With a notepad or a large piece of paper in front of you, study each card without worrying which cards represent what, and write down your first feelings on looking at the shapes and images. What effect do the colours have on you? If there is a person on the card, ask them what they have to tell you. Look at any shapes and symbols and imagine you could walk inside the card and could touch the images, what do they feel like? Imagine you can look behind any objects or people on the cards – who or what can you see?

Let your feelings flow in any way that feels appropriate, noting down any emotions, as they’re not always easy to remember later. It really doesn’t matter if the feelings or thoughts you have don’t appear to make any sense. You’ll work that out later. Get as much detail of your response to each of the cards as possible. Take as long as you want.

5. Tell your story

Now you have a jumble of thoughts, feelings and random words written down in front of you… the response from your subconscious mind to your relationship. Don’t worry if it looks like a bit of a mess – it should do! Now it’s time to join the dots together to make sense of it all.  Look at the cards again, but this time when you pick the card representing You, look at the mishmash and pick the emotions, thoughts and words that seem to fit with your card. Do the same with the Other Person’s card, then the Relationship card. Already you’ll be forming a story of how the two of you are as a couple. You may see things that surprise you, comfort you or even make you angry. The story of your relationship may bring up surprising themes but most importantly you’ll shed light on difficult areas and find inspiration in places you hadn’t even thought to look. If something doesn’t seem to fit anywhere, don’t leave it out… sometimes the bits that make no sense at the moment are actually things that will happen to you in the future.

6 Keys To Karmic Relationships

Breaking free of karmic relationships

When you meet someone you have a karmic connection with, a spark of recognition ignites in your soul. You’ll feel a haunting familiarity, a sense of having come home, a longing for something not quite remembered.

You might recognise their face, name or the sound of their voice, or you may intuitively know you have met before. If this person is a potential lover, these feelings are magnified, giving the whole relationship a compulsive, alluring intensity. You’ll feel a connection that goes way beyond what you actually say and do together. Something profound appears to be bubbling away under the surface.

Familiar old patterns

Unfortunately, just because something is familiar, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good for you. You might feel comfortable in situations that are actually very limiting, just because that’s what you’re used to. If you have low self-esteem you may feel more ‘at home’ with people who perpetuate that myth around you because that’s how you’re used to seeing yourself. Unconsciously this might feel much safer to you than the terrifying unknown beyond your own self-imposed walls.

If you have karma to resolve in a close relationship you may be sucked into a whirlpool of repetitive past patterns and behaviour that appears to have very little to do with your conscious wishes and actions. But because you know the pattern, you’re compelled to repeat it.

Making new patterns takes much more effort – and brings unsettling change. It could mean you have to look at yourself in a new light, which can feel daunting. What if you are not who you thought you are? Friends and family may feel threatened by you changing, and oppose it because it brings to light things they need to break free from in their own lives.

Love versus karma

Discovering whether you’re caught in a karmic emotional rollercoaster is actually quite easy to do. Real love should be a peaceful, beautiful experience filled with mutual respect, joy and space to grow. If you’re hynotised by someone who controls, mistreats or lies to you, but whom you still refuse to believe would deliberately hurt you – you’re in a karmic relationship. You might have incredible sex, and feel like they know you better than you know yourself. But you also have terrible cathartic fights and say unforgivable things to each other. You feel like you experience life more intensely through them, for better or worse.

The karmic recognition falsely tricks you into feeling that your destiny is tied up with this person. It feels fated. And, yes, it is, as you have possibly encountered each other hundreds of times before in various guises. And the reason he or she keeps coming back is that you could not find a way to resolve your past issues. So why should this time be any different? Because this time you have the potential to understand that your karmic relationship is teaching you a lesson that could transform your life for the better!

Acceptance and realisation

One of the first things to accept if you’re in a karmic relationship is that you are actually in one. You’re not a fool to have mistaken the intense feelings you’re experiencing as love, or felt that you are bound together in an inevitable dance with someone who is controlling you like a puppet.

Karma has to be compelling and addictive, otherwise you wouldn’t learn anything from it. Its only purpose is to teach, so you can become more whole.

Your friends and family will have already pointed out that they don’t understand why you put up with your karmically-challenged person’s attitude or behaviour. And perhaps, intellectually, you know they’re right. But in your heart you’re probably still a slave to the beast.

The great news is that as soon as you start to consciously acknowledge the truth of your fated relationship, the mask will slowly slip, and you will see them for who they truly are. You’ll soon come to realise what the people who really do care for you see so plainly – that it’s not really love.

Your own path

This is one lesson you have to learn on your own. Everyone goes through it at some time, and your path is unique, created by your own personal karmic debts.

Although it can be a lonely place to be, the miracles that will happen when you take charge of your own destiny will amaze you.

Tackling your personal fears and negative patterns has the potential to completely re-wire your spiritual life path. It is also important to recognise the other person in the relationship as a powerful force in your life. They are teaching you a valuable lesson, one that could free you from an endless loop of negative behaviour.

Next time around

To break the pattern, one of you needs to evolve. But if that seems impossible at the moment, don’t be too hard on yourself. Though staying in an abusive relationship of any sort will erode your self-esteem, and drain your energy to deal with it at all. Speak out and get help if you can.

Karma can be painful – but as you learn more about your life, through both your wonderful and painful experiences, you will grow wiser and more whole, and the pain will ease.

Just being aware of the karmic nature of the partnership will lessen its power over you. And if things don’t get resolved, you can choose to put it back on the spiritual shelf for now. Of course this means you’ll have to go through it all again… but in another life, perhaps by then you’ll have accumulated enough good karma and positive energy to slay your demons once and for all!

Never again!

If you are feeling brave enough to take charge of your karmic debts in this life, you’re in for a soul-changing experience. Because once you assert yourself, or take charge of the situation in a conscious way, you’ll feel the burden slowly lift. Communicating your needs and wishes, not tolerating unkindness, sticking up for your opinions and beliefs, and most importantly, forgiving yourself, will melt those binding karmic ties into oblivion.

Once you have learned your lesson you will know in your heart that you will never have to deal with that particular piece of karma again. The person who had you spellbound will begin to look like an ordinary human being, and you’ll become master of your own destiny.